Avoca Beach Picture Theatre

There was a day when there were loads of folks at the beach house in Avoca that I just took myself off for some solitude. 



I knew exactly where I wanted to go.



Jane had told me about seeing the preview of The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel. 

Bill doesn't go see films much, in fact I can tell you exactly which movies we've seen together:  Twister (our first date), The First Wives Club, and the last two Harry Potter films.  

It's no big deal as I'm not that big on paying movie theatre prices, but I knew I'd love anything with Maggie Smith and Judi Dench in it.  What I didn't expect was to fall in love with the theatre itself. 



It was a movie theatre, but also a pub and also an amazing shop. 

Life is not about Waiting for the Storm to Pass...It is about Learning to Dance in the Rain.  (Particularly in one lives in England...)

Even the loos were fun:

Not that I went in the Gents...

I've never seen such great ideas!

On each of the stall doors!

I browsed at length and then went away to buy myself brunch to fill in the time until the next showing. 

Life is not Measured by the number of Breaths we take, but by the Moments that Take our Breath Away.

I had myself some salad, steak and chips at a restaurant overlooking the beach.  Delicious.

My day out proved to be just the R&R I needed, away from the need to socialise, to be polite, to consider others, to do anything other than think my own thoughts in silence. 

Needing occasional solitude is simply part of me, something I can't change about myself, not that I wish to.



However, I was quite excited to drag Bill back to the theatre, after everyone else had returned to Sydney and we had a couple of days to ourselves. 

He loved it, too. 

Who wouldn't?

Beauchamp Park, Sydney

I never stop being astonished when I trip over something I wasn't seeking, something that ties into one of my obsessions.  The world really does feel like a small place occasionally.



Bill and I walked to the shops one day to pick up a few food items.  We happened onto this lovely little park. 


The names Beauchamp, Lygon or Madresfield probably don't mean much to most folks and I'm sure that a good percent of the world doesn't remember Evelyn Waugh. However, the name Brideshead sort of sticks in the brain I think.  




For those not familiar with these names, a short explanation is: a man named Evelyn Waugh (1903-1966) wrote a novel called Brideshead Revisited: The Sacred and Profane Memories of Captain Charles Ryder which drew heavily on the real lives of the Lygon family, whom he met when he was attending Oxford University. The book is renowned for evoking the nostalgia of the interwar period in Oxford, before social changes chipped away at the privileged lifestyle of Britain's nobility. The head of that family, William Lygon (pronounced Liggon), was the 7th Earl Beauchamp (pronounced Beecham)and the ancestral family home was not called Brideshead as in the book, but was Madresfield.   Before being exiled from England for his homosexuality, which was then illegal here, Lord Beauchamp had also been Governor of New South Wales, the Australia state in which Sydney is located.

 

Sadly, I read that Lygon wasn't a big hit with Australians, owing to a reference he made to the 'birthstain' of their convict heritage.  So, I guess diplomacy wasn't his strong point. 

There was also a Lygon Street in Melbourne. We took a walk out there one of our last mornings and wished we'd done so sooner. Just out of the CBD, it was an oasis of calm. Street cafes lined one side and residents sipped coffee and read the papers under the shade of awnings. A nearby park and flats surrounding all made it look quite appealing. It is apparently a largely Italian sector and I'm sure there would have been some delicious meals to have been enjoyed had we discovered the area sooner.

The Quilt

Right, we've left Melbourne (12 hours on the train again).  This time behind two very energetic boys.  Watching the two parents keep them entertained and out of trouble wore me out.  There is no doubt that good parenting takes effort. 

We came back to Sydney to find Chris home from hospital and things moving back to the usual patterns. There were still a lot of things going on, but that is what passes for normal in that household.

Jane is the local coordinator for ESL (English as a Second Language) classes, which are taught at her church.  The classes are attended by all sorts of Asian women from China, Korea, Japan, etc.  Jane says that some of these ladies are in Sydney because of their husbands' work, some are widowed, some have elderly husbands.  In a few cases these women are quite isolated owing to the language barrier and also to the cultural expectation that they stay home and tend the house. 

ESL classes aid not just in learning the new language but also brings together expatriot women from the various countries on a social level, which they enjoy enormously.  Interestingly, given the general respect for education in many Asian cultures, attending an English class is a valid, creditable reason for escaping from the house putting aside domestic duties to enjoy a bit of social contact improve their language skills.  Jane says some of the regular attenders make little effort to learn English, but they enjoy the morning out.

Remember me mentioning the flood in the basement?  Those are the quilt
pieces marooned over there on the pool table.

As an added interest for the ladies, they have started having monthly craft lessons and of course these also add to the range of subjects on which to practice speaking English.   Jane's close friend, Jenny (who happens to be the mother-in-law of Jane's younger son), helps with the craft classes; as does the mother-in-law of Jane's eldest son.  I'm thinking there ought to be a better word for 'other-mother-in-law', particularly when they are a close knit group like this.  As both sons have children, perhaps they are 'grandmothers-in-law'?

Before I had the idea of the spreadsheet...






One of the crafting projects that has been a huge hit with the ESL ladies was learning to knit and being given the assignment of knitting 10" squares to be put together for a blanket destined to go to a hospital in Tanzania that specialises in surgical correction of fistulas.


All stitched up!

Tanzanian women often walk several days to reach the hospital.  [Which puts a whole other level of thinking into the idea of 'access to medical care'.]  In this particular hospital, following their surgery, each woman leaves with a new dress and a knitted blanket.  I had heard the term 'fistula' but never understood what it was.  You can read more about obstetric fistulas here.

The ladies loved finding 'their' squares!

The ESL ladies really enjoyed knitting the squares and Jane had stacks of them on her sewing table waiting to be put together.  The blanket was to be presented to the representatives of the charity in a couple of weeks' time on a Thursday at the ESL class. 

I think they were rightfully proud of what they made.

Unfortunately, these being mostly novice knitters, very few of the squares were actually 10 inches by 10 inches.  When Chris landed in hospital, I could see that sewing together this blanket was going to be quite low on Jane's list of priorities.  I love hand stitching, so I thought I might make myself useful here.  I started by measuring and labelling each of the squares and making a spreadsheet of the sizes.  This helped me group the squares by width and to come up with a plan that would make assembling the quilt easier and to reach the aim of a 60" x 80" quilt - just the size to cover a double bed.


Jenny, Jane and I put together each of the six columns together in an afternoon and started sewing the columns together.  I finished sewing the columns together over the next few afternoons and it was ready just in time for presentation.  I got enormous satisfaction from contributing to this:  thinking of how colourful and cheery the blanket would be to the African woman recovering from surgery, that the ESL ladies would feel proud of what they had accomplished, that I was lightening Jane's load of worries just slightly.  I happened to stumble upon this website just today and I'm thinking I'll look into this further.

I was intrigued by the little 'waffle cookies'.

On presentation day, Jenny brought a whole bag of adorable girls' skirts she'd made from remnants; they were going to Africa as well. 

Jane showing us one of the skirts Jenny made.

I enjoyed helping set up the classroom and Jane told me the ESL ladies liked having their photo taken, so I took loads!   Everyone there was really warm and friendly and some of the Asian ladies were lovely and elegant.  Jane recently wrote that she already has enough squares to make another blanket.   We were brain-storming before we left about possible sources of free yarn; I guess they cracked that one!

Do you do any sort of charity work that gives you satisfaction?

Royal Exhibition Building

Sorry for any confusion.  Yes, we still live in England.  You could be forgiven for thinking we did immigrate to Australia.

 What with being there so long, I sometimes wondered if we had myself. 



Right, just this one more post before we exit Melbourne.  I have to leave you some things to find for yourselves, after all


It's just not possible to tell you everything wonderful about the place, as I'm sure there is much more that we have to discover ourselves.




Jane had recommended we go see this building.  She'd tried to go once herself but whomever was using it at the time wouldn't give her access without a hefty fee.  Since it wasn't their doings she was interested in, she declined. 

On this day it was some sort of convention of travel companies trying to entice Australians to go walkabout - as though they needed encouragement - and entry was free of charge. 

We had not the least interest in any of the package tours of course, but the building itself was amazing.  I was in awe of the intricate paintwork everywhere and for some reason the miles of hard wood flooring also looked really exotic to me.  Been away from the US for too long, I guess.

Outside was a large park where some building project was in progress.  A young man driving a forklift with very long boards patiently waited for us, making some polite comment as we passed. 

I managed not to stare and I resisted the temptation to take his photo, but I'd swear he was related to Mel Gibson. 

Stranger things could happen, this being Melbourne. 



I really loved this fountain.  I know it probably doesn't do much for you, but if one doesn't live in Australia,




just how many fountains would you likely see with water sprayed by duckbilled platypuses?

Manchester Unity

I did say that this building deserved its own post, so here it is.  I simply thought it was an astonishingly beautiful building.

This is called the 'neo gothic' style of architecture.

According to Wikipedia, it was built in 1932 in eight-hour shifts around the clock and was the first time in Australia a production schedule was used to construct a building.

Going inside felt a bit like stepping back in time, with art deco features everywhere.  The building houses offices and cafes.

Nothing that spectacular, just lovely design.

People in the building seemed quite used to having photographs taken.  It must be a daily occurrence.

I was reminded of all the time we spent in Chicago looking up, with me trying to remember to close my mouth.

The tiles on the centre floor of the ground level spell out "amicitia amor et veritas"

which means "friendship, love and truth".  I initially thought that 'Manchester Unity' referred to an insurance company, or perhaps a labour union.    

Turns out that it refers to the Manchester Unity of Oddfellows, which has a very interesting history.   

Phryne Places

The Block Arcade. 

My photos don't do it justice; too many people,

too much to see.

Better you should look here.  See what I mean?


Windsor Hotel (where Phryne stays before buying a house).  For a better view, see this.

Queen Victoria Memorial Hospital . 

This is where Phyne's friend, Dr. Elizabeth MacMillan, works.

Now the Queen Victoria Women's Centre. 

Collins Street I've already shown you, though there is much more there to see.


We could see the Theosophical Building from the roof of our hotel (where we visited the defunct swimming pool). 

It wasn't particularly remarkable, but I had to look up the term to find out what it meant.  I have to admit I'm not really any the wiser having done so.

Regent Theatre (first opened 1929)

Town Hall.  Turns out there are several...

Toorak.  Another place we've already visited.  Phryne is invited to a party in Toorak, where some of the best and worst people are to be found.


The Cathedral on Swanson Street  is likely St. Pauls with the spires.

Flinders and Spencer Streets.  I can't remember what Phyrne is doing there on page 74 in Cocaine Blues (and in any case that might give away the story.  You've seen Flinders Street Station and I can tell you that Spencer Street was named for the 3rd Earl Spencer (ancestor of Princess Diana).

Little Lonsdale Street.  There isn't much of note there now.  In Phryne's day it will have been terrible slums, all torn down and redeveloped now.  I just included it because of the interesting naming convention of 'Little'.  Whereas in Britain they have 'back' streets (Bill loves that Tynemouth has Back Front Street), in Melbourne they seem to call these 'little'.  They aren't alleys at all but are often just access to the backs of large buildings, parking garages and the like.  BTW, that evil bath house where Madame Breda sold her wares between Russell Street and Little Lonsdale?  That's the Victoria State Library now.

Little Bourke Street is still Chinatown,

where Bill and I enjoyed a wonderful dinner in The Crane.

And walked 'home' in the rain.