Thoughts on my first year in Australia

So much happened. It was a big year, an experience I wouldn’t change for all the tea in England…time to take a breath...

arriving: tail end of covid, Sydney quarantine, covid on plane so more quarantine: seven days but balcony at least, balcony to put the giant roach out onto. first big bug experience first of many, many legs crawling especially in the summer: it’s december start of the summer start of a new hot life? quite cold actually why is it cold? rent big car check for big bugs drive north: under the Harbour Bridge to Coffs Harbour six hours - Too Easy - still New South Wales still cold cold like wales well not like wales but not like the pictures of beach and sea and sun and surf and so long Sydney I haven’t seen you again. beautiful Coffs: The Big Banana and Blue-Tongued Lizards; Roos on the streets, Bats in the skies, Cicadas in the trees, cyclists on the motorway, cars in the long long covid test queues to cross the border into Queensland our next stop north: Meeanjin/Brisbane/Brissie/Brisvegas four hours - Cruisy - aircon cruise control through the recently opened border. and we’ve hit an isotherm: we’re Going sub-Troppo. four hours north and the humidity wraps you in its blanket and whispers “still early summer” in your ear. getting to know the birds new exotic sounds screeching and digital but beautiful and same but different. Rainbow Lorikeets squeak and speed and Kookaburra’s rolling sinister monkey laugh in the morning and Magpie’s dialup broadcast. the Magpie’s pied, but it’s not a corvid and it swoops literally attacks people with its fierce beak bicyclists wear helmet spikes and speak of close calls. nighttime calls from Boobooks, Bush Stone-Curlews and Masked Lapwings like someone’s dying. dead insects are swiftly carried away by myriad ants so many ants. Bush Walks in Reserves smells of Eucalypts oh that’s what a Gum Tree is oh maybe not. Mangroves at Manly and Lota and Wynnum and causeways at Wellington Point. I’ve looked out from the most eastern point of Australia, it’s at Byron Bay next stop Chile. three more points to go.

Chrissie not chrimbo, Parmy not parmo, Bogan not chav, Lollies not sweets, Sunnies not shades, Pokies not fruities, Maccas not maccy d’s, Stubby, Servo, Smoko, Snag, Hoon, Ute, Beaut, Grog, Pot, Mob. christmas in 30+ degrees and humid, now that’s a way to eat a full-on roast, tinsel shining in the sun. depths of summer it’s a cold one by Brissie terms but some days the air ground water all the same temperature and you submit. go walking at 5am if you don’t want to sweat 7am is buckets already. stay out of the sun, no seriously, stay out of the sun burn in seven minutes with no sunscreen. awesome storms, is the car under cover from golf ball hail? La Niña number two february endless rain we try to escape Brissie but it follows us to Northern Rivers. Ocean Shores a known flood zone 20cm on the regular - No Worries - neighbours say move car to the safe zone, then say move from the safe zone to the super safe zone evacuation order comes by text at 4am - No Worries - the power is gone by lunchtime. canoes come by front doors and the water slowly rises. first floor inundated and half a metre left to the second where we sleep, where will we sleep? decision made. we wade. through waist deep flood waters adjoining Bushland - maybe Snakes - wade past Toyota Land Cruisers submerged to the roof. this is fine. sleep in a church local evacuation centre just glad we don’t live here no-one can get insurance. we were lucky, Lismore was bad. cold winter more rain not the winter that was promised but still get sunburnt. it reached 6 degrees in Brisbane and I wore trousers. Triple Dip La Niña this year...

“where are you from?” “UK” “well yeah, but where?” Aussies know cities and accents but it’s england not uk to them. half my street are recent immigrants too. recent as in they’ve lived in another country. not so recent are still recent compared to First Nations Australians who have lived here for 60,000 years. the situation is complicated, better than it was, the pain is recent: stolen generations as late as the 70s, finally Rudd’s apology in 2-0-0-8, that late. National Sorry Day. Reconciliation. Acknowledgement of Country. so much culture lost but still it is everywhere. Australian place names albeit anglicised are common:
Wynnum (‘Breadfruit’)
Tingalpa (‘Plant for Stupefying Fish Place’)
Murarrie (‘Sticky, Messy Earth’)
Coorparoo (Dove sound)
Woolloongabba (‘Whirling Waters’)
Capalaba (‘Ringtail Possum’)
Yeerongpilly (‘Gully of Sand’)
Indooroopilly (‘Gully of Leeches’!)
Moorooka ('Iron Bark')
Coot-Tha ('Honey')
Toowong (Eastern Koel sound)
Toowoomba (‘Reeds in the Swamp’)
Australian-made a big deal here Real Estate a big deal here (local agent sponsors the school oval and name plastered on every bus stop) Bunnings is a big deal here it’s a suped-up B&Q (plus BBQ aka Sausage Sizzle). cars are a big deal here. sometimes you could be in america, sometimes in england, but it’s the flora that soon gives it away the skinny wiggles of the Eucalyptus and the towering Epiphytes. Seasonal foods good tomatoes...Mango Season: Kensington Pride, R2E2, Honey Gold, Calypso. october november is Jacaranda season not native trees but a dazzling display of purple-blue blooms. I’m living in suburbia paradiso surrounded by Geckos, Skinks, Orb Weavers, Huntsman, Cane Toads, Possums, Mud Wasps, Flying Foxes and I love it.