An Australian Connection

What Better thing to do after Australia Day than to have a look around Dorset at the Ozi connections. And it is surprising how many there are! The first photo is a plaque on an old bridge over the River Stout. I know they have a problem with overcrowded prisons here but this seems a bit extreme punishment for damage to a bridge. Then again, may be a good way to get a cheap ticket home!

The next photo is a sign post on the A31 but this is no ordinary sign as it is red. The reason is that the red posts were used as a marker for the illiterate guards who transported prisoners from Dorchester to Portsmouth where they bordered a ship to Botany Bay. Just down the road from this sign there is “Botany Bay Farm”. While it is a normal farm now it used to have a small prison where the prisoners were held overnight on their 90 mile walk.


A much nicer stop now is the Botany Bay Inn. Funny but they still only sell English beer there.


I was waiting in the doctors surgery last week and overheard the man next to me give his address as Sydney Street. Little did I know that in Weymouth there are several streets with an Ozi connection. As you can tell by the photos the English dont think much of Australian cities - obviously some disgruntled cricket fans live there.

Ozi Day

I hope you all had a good Australia Day (or Invasion Day for some). For me it was a day at work but the staff were kind enough to give me a nice welcome in the morning with Fosters (I told them no one drinks that in Australia), a bucket of sand, and some pictures to remind me of home. I did call a stop work meeting to ensure all staff continued our tradition of not doing anything on the day. Continuing the celebration went out to lunch and finished it off with dinner this evening at 'The Ship'. While not the same as a Barbie at home with friends still a good day.

Environmental confusion

It seems we have much to learn and much to ignore from the UK in relation to the environment. I am amazed at the focus in the media over here on the issue of global warming. On every news channel and talk show there is some mention of it. As in Australia, it seems that it is a very 'hot' issue. Also the shops have a much bigger range of organic food that is not much more than other produce. Where in Sydney you are lucky to find a single shelf in the supermarket, every row has an organic section.

While environmental awareness is very high at the same time I am amazed at the amount of packaging material. All the fruit and vegis are wrapped in individual plastic trays and every one uses plastic bags. It is only in the village shops like in the photo are they not obsessed with plastic. Then I just hear they have made it mandatory now for all companies that sell electronic/whitegoods to take back old items at no direct cost to the consumer.

Not sure who is better off?

Corfe Castle Ruins

Another history lesson for you all. Visited Corfe Castle which is located on the Isle of Purbeck, about 30 min drive from home. A lovely spot to sit and watch the sun go down (as you can see by the photos above). The oldest surviving structure on the castle site dates to the 11th century, although evidence exists of some form of stronghold predating the norman Conquest. It has been used by King Henry I as a royal treasure storehouse and prison as well as subsequent kings and queens and then was in Sir John Banks family for over 400 years. During the English Civil War, the castle twice came under seige by Parliamentarian forces in 1643 and 1646. In the centuries that followed, the local populace scavenged building material and masonry, door frames and other items originally from the castle.

Must bring the family back here when they arrive - ONLY 32 DAYS TO GO!

Self Portrait

Went for another walk today to Cerne Abbas and visited the Giant - and it is giant in all respects! The Cerne Abbas Giant or the 'Rude Man' is the largest hillfigure in Britain, and based on the photo I think you can guess its sex. The giant, carved in solid lines from the chalk bedrock measures in at 180 feet high carying a 120 feet knobbled club - I dont know how big his other appendage is? Mind you, in this weather I am amazed there is not more shrinkage. Recent theory given the most weight by historians is that it was created during the reign of the Emperor Commodus between 180 - 193 AD. It has also been put to some good use by the locals with women who wanted to conceive spending a night sleeping on his appendage or young couples would make love on the giant to ensure conception.

Survived the Day

Been a wild and wooly day. Below is an extract from news from today:

At least ten people have been killed as storms and gusts of 160km/h sweep across Britain, causing major structural damage and bringing travel chaos. There was chaos on the roads as numerous lorries overturned, causing long delays. More than 30,000 electricity users are without power after overhead lines went down. Part of the roof at Lord's cricket ground in London was badly damaged [Their excuse to get out of playing cricket in the future i think]. A major rescue operation to save the crew of a freighter off the Lizard, Cornwall, has been completed successfully.

There were times when you could not stand up the wind was that strong. ....Loving it!

Boats

With gale force winds and rain expected for the end of the week I thought I better get out again, so I spent a couple of hours wandering around the harbour in Weymouth. It is such a pretty harbour with little fishing boats and grand old buildings lining the edge (see the photo album for some more images). You would not believe it but this is the view 20 metres up from our Council building. Early in the morning you can sit and watch the fishing boats come in and unload their catch from the night.

Weymouth has been a port for many Centuries and evidence shows that Roman Galleys sailed up the River Wey as far as Radipole where they could be beached and cargo unloaded for transport to the Roman Town of Durnovaria (now known as Dorchester which is not far from where we are living).

While I tasted my first english "fish and chips" on the weekend I must say that I think I will be buying it fresh from the local fishmonger from now on. I reccon I could run a car for a year on the amount of oil in the fish.

So another weekend over and back to work for another week.

The sun does shine!

For all those that have being sending me photos of sunny Sydney (thanks bro) you would not believe it but they actually do have one over here as well! Woke Sunday to a brisk clear morning. Luckily it was the morning I agreed to link up with a couple of people from work to go for a walk around Portland.

Portland is joined to the mainland by a narrow strip of land and the Chesil Beach. The mass of land that juts out into the channel is formed from a block of limestone 4.5 miles long by 1.75 miles wide. Little did I know that the plan was to walk around the entire point. 4 hours later my legs were wanting the closest pub but despite this it was lovely.

Portland has been inhabited since early times and traces of occupation have been dated back 7,000 years. The Romans knew it as ‘Vindilis’ and Thomas Hardy wrote about it as ‘The Isle of Slingers’ due to the fact that Portlanders used to throw stones to keep Kimberlins (strangers) away. Based on the people at work it still seams that the people from Portland dont associate with the mainlanders. Much like Tasmania there are stories of families being very 'close' to each other.

Portlans is most famous for the many quarries which dot the landscape and this is where Portland Stone comes from. St Paul’s Cathedral and some fifty other churches and other buildings were built with the famous white limestone.

A great day out.

14 Days

So after a total of 14 days (7 working days) what can I tell you:

1. I know why there are so many pubs - because it is dark by 4pm and nothin to do but drink
2. When driving people think I am mad because I keep putting my windscreen wipers on rather than the indicator
3. they LUVVVVVVVE roundabouts here
4. If you thought streets were narrow in Sydney, on the road to our house I have to drive on two wheels sideways and have to pull over to let the wind go by
5. I know I am an environmentalist but bloody hell petrol is expensive!
6. There is a lot more choice in organic produce and it is not that much more expensive than non-organic - having said that when you convert to the Ozi dollar everything is expensive
7. The sunsets hear are fantastic.......well so I have been told
8. The coastline is magnificent with wind swept cliffs, hidden inlets and rolling green hills
9. I like the idea that I have a neighbour as a horse
10. Weymouth itself is such a lovely sea side village just like a post card and I am privileged to be able to spend a whole year living in it
11. I now know what a boiler is to heat the house - it doesnt involve shovelling coal thank goodness but you do get to learn to like the smell of burning oil all the time in the house
12. The workplace is no different to home - the same challenges, mix of personalities, performance issues, paper work, budget constraints, but a real desire to make a difference - but they do speak a funny language
13. Inside the work building, with its dark corridors, pigeonhole offices and 1970's furniture makes the tower building in Parramatta look like a palace
14. BUT... the outlook over the harbour, the small fishing boats, the yaughts, the old buildings makes Parramatta look like a dump
15. I have had warm flat beer and......... It aint half bad
16. The biggest national crime at the moment where revenge is being sought - bigger than terrorism - is the punishment the people here want to put on the English Cricket Team
17. There is no dumpling place or vietnameese soup!

I know i have said that everyone talks about the weather here and I said I would not fall in to that but you cant fight culture so here is a last little image to leave you with. Till next time

Warning tank crossing??

We may have signs of kangaroos on the road or koalas crossing but I am not sure if we can beat this sign I came across!!!!

Winter skies

Spent today driving and walking along the Lulworth Coast. The day started out raining and blowing a gale. I started to wonder if the sun does actually shine on this side of the world. Then by the afternoon, the rain lifted and the most beautiful skies eveloped the coastline. The winter light is amazing with the sun remaining low in the horizon and a glow that touches everything.

Don't Mention the War

With a 5-0 score line I could not help but to put this image on the blog for prosperity. It seems that no one at work wants to confirm that the game even exists so I need to ensure that an image is kept for future record.

Speaking of things that should not exist I have the pleasure of only having 4 TV channels to watch. Unfortunately they seem to have the same obsession with reality TV shows as Australia.

Tonight I had the choice of watching:

1. Soapstar Superstar - with "stars" from Coronation Street and Emmerdale, sing live accompanied by an orchestra and are judged by a panel

2. Just the Two of Us - a series in which nine professional singers are paired with celebrities and have to sing live duets in front of a judging panel

3. Celebrity Big Brother - no need to explain this with the exception of celebrity includes Bollywood superstar Shilpa Shetty - what else can I say

Thank god I have lots of good books to read

First day on the job

Well I have survived my first day on the job with:

- 40 mentions of the weather in the UK and how cold and rainy it is, has been, will get.

- 5 comments on the cricket

- 3 people asking why I would want to leave Sydney

- 2 "good luck - you will need it" and

- 1 "what were you thinkin?"

Spent most of the day being introduced to everybody. Rest of the week will mainly involve getting to know my team, meeting the other Managers and getting a bit more of an understanding of the role and priorities. For those that dont know my role is Corporate Development and Partnership Manager. Still learning what this actually means but so far it includes:

- Corporate Policy and Planning (I always knew I wanted Dougs role)

- Community Planning (2 staff very similar to our community capacity building team)

- Sports

- Arts (I can hear Susan laughing now!)

- Heritage Centre

- Pools (being handed over)

- Democracy (mix of Councillor services and community engagement)

A mixed bag with a lot of challenges (oops) opportunities! I am looking forward to the year ahead.