Author's note: It was recently brought to my attention that the text font I had been using for our website in the past had been appearing in a weird cursive script when viewed on an iPad. I did not select that script deliberately, and I can't explain the anomaly; but I have now changed the base script and hopefully the problem has been resolved. My apologies. |
NEW HORIZONS |
SAILING THE ANDAMAN SEA AND MALACCA STRAIT |
The Facebook junkies among you may well have followed our recent progress from Phuket to Johor Bahru aboard the 40 foot Leopard class catamaran, Topspot, thanks to regular updates from Frances - who recently discovered the fun of Facebook........
Our adventure began a week after I returned home from Beijing, with a flight to Singapore where we stayed for a few days with our dear friends, the Parry family. We then flew to Phuket in Thailand to join the owner and skipper of Topspot, Graham Body - Graham and his wife Marina are friends from our time in Guangzhou, and they now live in Brisbane. Graham has owned Topspot for several years and has had it managed by a sail boat charter company in Phuket and Langkawi in Malaysia. He recently decided to relocate Topspot to Airlie Beach in the Whitsundays in Queensland and needed crew members to help him sail the boat to Australia. We were fortunate to be selected as part of the crew for the first leg, which was the easiest and most scenic of the four stages. Graham is presently en route from Johor Bahru to Bali with his second crew , and that will be followed by separate hops - each with a new crew - from Bali to Darwin, Darwin to Cairns, and the final leg from Cairns to Airlie Beach, arriving at the final destination sometime in late June.
Frances and I flew to Phuket from Singapore and spent a few days with Graham helping to prepare for the journey. The boat was in dry-dock for maintenance and a polish until the day before we departed. By that time, we'd been joined in Phuket by the third crew member, Jessie Maltby - another friend from our Guangzhou days who now lives in Sydney with her husband, Andy.
Having stocked up on supplies at the local Tesco, we set sail from the Ao Po Marina in Phuket on ANZAC Day, April 25th. The beauty of the islands, crystal clear waters and abundant marine life of the Andaman Sea, east and south of Phuket is breathtaking. The weather was hot and balmy, and for most of the time the going was relatively calm. Unfortunately that meant we had to motor along rather than sailing as we would have preferred; but it was quite exhilarating when we did get to sail.
Every night for the first week we anchored off beautiful islands, often with a resort or settlement that we could go ashore to. We woke early to magnificent sunrises, and a swim in the delightfully warm water before setting off each day.
We had a two-day stopover in Langkawi at the marina where Topspot had previously been based, before continuing our passage south east toward Singapore. After leaving Langkawi we stopped overnight off the northern coast of Penang, and went ashore for a nice meal at a local restaurant. This proved to be our last time ashore before reaching Johor Bahru. We were traveling to a fairly tight schedule and had to motor/sail for up to 12 hours a day to cover the required distances in daylight hours. The next stop after Penang was a lovely island called Pangkor, but after that there were fewer and less appealing overnight anchorages to choose from along the way.
It may seem a bit claustrophobic for four people to spend an extended period together on a small boat, but the Leopard 40 class Topspot is well designed with four double berths, two toilet/showers (and an outside shower on the rear deck), a galley and an external eating/recreation area, as well as a foredeck and netting to relax on; so there was plenty of space to find some solitude when needed. As a result, we all managed to get along well, enjoying the scenery, the hot sunshine and the bon vivant. The girls whipped up some amazing meals along the way, and most nights were spent playing cards over a glass of wine (or two), a G&T or a rum and Coke.
We eventually motored into Dangar Bay Marina in Johor Bahru on day 12 in absolutely still conditions, having traveled 720 nautical miles from Phuket. We helped Graham prepare the boat for the arrival of the new crew later that night before Frances, Jessie and I took a taxi across the causeway into Singapore. The next day Jessie and Frances had a girls day out with our Singapore host, Anita before Jessie flew home to Sydney in the evening. Frances and I then had two wonderful days with the Parrys, whose two beautiful young children - Rhianna and Ross - had us completely charmed.
Our south east Asian adventure came to a conclusion on May 9th when Frances flew to London and a few hours later I returned home to Sydney. It was an unforgettable experience, and we are eternally grateful to skipper, Graham, for inviting us to join him. |
FRANCES AT HOME IN WALES |
Frances is now in Brecon to spend a month or so working with her brothers to help their mother, Liz, make some lifestyle changes in the face of declining health and mobility. Hopefully the family's efforts will enhance the ease, comfort and quality of Liz's life without having too much impact on her independence. Apart from family commitments, returning to Brecon is always spiritually nourishing for Frances - she is still a Welsh girl at heart. Also, her first weekend at home coincided with a visit to Brecon by her Australian cousin, Nigel and his wife Pam, who are on a two month tour of Europe.
Frances will be in Brecon until early June, and will then fly to Italy to spend a couple of weeks at Casa dei Viaggiatori in Capestrano. She returns home to Sydney in mid-June. |
EMMA'S VOYAGE |
Emma is becoming more and more mature and iindependent, and is increasingly capable of self-managing many aspects of her life. But for the time being she still needs a guiding hand and the support of her family and friends as she continues to develop the skills and experience necessary to live the semi-independent lifestyle she wants, and we seek for her. So we were extremely fortunate to have Rhiannon to fill that important role while we're away traveling. And as luck would have it, Rhiannon returned to live at home in Dural not long before we left on our trip to south east Asia.
Supported Living Fund (SLF) Plan. As mentioned previously, 2013 has so far been a period of great change for Emma. Her SLF plan is progressing well, and she is reaping the benefits of the support, guidance and encouragement she gets from the people we have engaged to support her under the auspices of the SLF. Frances and Rhiannon have worked closely to direct and coordinate the various aspects of the plan, including recruiting staff and identifying new opportunities to make best use of the funding. One of the best, and most important outcomes of her SLF-related experiences has been the establishment of new relationships, especially within the general community. These friendships and acquaintances have developed naturally because Emma has been participating in mainstream activities (such as going to work and the gym etc) without contrivance. This has given Emma a higher level of self confidence and a greater appreciation of the range of things she'd like to do with her life. We have a circle of support involving friends and family members who meet occasionally to review and adjust the SLF plan as required, and to assess Emma's progress and needs; Emma now joins these meetings and contributes her point of view (in many ways it is still "our plan for Emma", but hopefully it will eventually become "Emma's plan for herself"). We're approaching the end of the funding cycle, so we're trying to be even more creative to ensure we make best use of the money, before the allocation of further funding for the next financial year. A major target for later this year is for Emma and one of her lifestyle coaches to travel to California to visit Hollywood; what an exciting thing to aim for!
Work. It never rains, but pours. Just as Emma began to embrace the lifestyle changes that came with her SLF plan, she found the new employment opportunity that she'd been seeking for such a long time. With the assistance of the government funded organisation, Job Support, Emma was recruited by an information technology company called Frontline, to work in their office in the central business district of Sydney. She works from Monday to Thursday between 10am and 2.30pm (till 3pm on Thursday so she can participate in the weekly staff lunch), and does a range of office support tasks such as cleaning the kitchenettes and individual workspaces, emptying staff bins, ensuring the printers and copiers have paper etc. Having been taught the bus routes etc and supported in the workplace by Job Support for a few weeks, Emma now travels completely independently to and from the city, and is able to perform all her work tasks without supervision. She has been with Frontline for less than three months but already she's become a much liked and welcome member of the team. Most importantly, Emma has overcome her initial trepidation and very much enjoys going to work each day. It goes without saying that she also earns a decent wage for her work, which combined with her pension will eventually put her in a position to at least partially fund a semi-independent lifestyle.
University. As if adapting to the impact of her SLF plan and a new job was not enough, Emma is also participating in a program at Sydney University every Friday during the university year. She attends a film appreciation course along with regular university students, but without the commitment to pursue any of the academic requirements for the course. In doing so, Emma gets exposed to new and interesting learning concepts but more importantly, she gets to experience campus life and the fun of being a university student. It is an excellent vehicle for normalisation and integration. With the assistance of a travel-trainier, Emma is still getting used to the complex travel arrangements but will soon be making these journeys independently.
Creative Writing. We all know Emma to be a creative soul, and she has always loved using poems that she's found on the internet to express her sentiments. We decided to nurture that creativity by engaging a creative writing coach, who Emma meets with each Monday afternoon after work. It has been a wonderful collaboration and her coach, Anna, does a great job.
Our Talented Artist. Speaking of creative talent, Emma continued to produce some beautiful paintings and other works of art while attending an art focus group at Studio Artes in Hornsby. Unfortunately, this is one of the activities that she has had to forgo because of her new job. Nevertheless, the walls of our home are adorned with Emma's artwork; some of her paintings have even been sold commercially through the Studio Artes gallery. But her most significant artistic achievement came in March when one of her paintings won first prize in the Studio Artes Botanical Artes competition featuring works inspired by the famous artist, Gustav Klimt. She never ceases to amaze us.
Other Pursuits. Emma's Saturdays are busier than her weekdays. She spends the mornings attending in a film making course at a community college in Rozelle, and the afternoons playing netball at Turramurra. No wonder she loves chilling out at home on Sundays. |
THE BOYS |
Oliver. Oliver seems to have adapted well to life as a university student in pursuit of a Bachelor of Information Technology degree at Macquarie University (even if his study techniques are a little unorthodox). He is enjoying university life and is happy that he's doing something meaningful with his time. He continues to fund his busy social life by working part-time at McDonalds in Round Corner. After a successful baseball season during the summer playing alongside his brother, Oliver is playing soccer as his winter sport.
James. James and his girlfriend, Monique, are happy and well, and continue to enjoy their near-beach side lifestyle at Coogee in the eastern suburbs. On May 19th, James and I will both participate in the Sydney Half Marathon (although I doubt I'll be able to keep up with him for very long!). |
JOINING THE RANKS OF THE UNEMPLOYED |
I've been on holidays since leaving the NBA just over a month ago. But now that I'm back at home in Sydney, the job search has begun. I'm in the process of setting myself up with an Australian Business Number (ABN) and applying for a security license (necessary for working in the security/risk management industry in Australia) so that I can do project work and/or consultancy, either in Australia or abroad. Having said that, I'll be happy to take on a full-time position here in Sydney if the opportunity arises. In the meantime, I'm enjoying life at 4 Angourie Court Dural near to my family and friends.
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TRAVEL PLANS |
The remainder of 2013 is likely to be as interesting and as busy as the first four and a half months have been. As noted, Emma is hoping for a trip to Hollywood in December, and Rhiannon is likely to be in the US at around the same time supporting another friend with Down Syndrome. Before Frances gets home from Europe, I have to return to Beijing for a few days to collect my NBA superannuation payout, and I'll also travel to Brisbane to visit family and friends, especially my good buddy,Terry Breen, who is not in the best of health. Later in the year in August, Frances and I will travel to the UK to attend the wedding of our dear friend (and Frances' God-daughter) Lizzie Grubb, hopefully followed by a few weeks in Capestrano. And in late October, we will fly to Hong Kong for a few days to participate in the 50th Anniversary of the Little Sai Wan Cricket Club. In between all that we hope to visit Melbourne and perhaps Canberra. |
SALUTATIONS |
As always, we hope this finds you in good health and good fortune. Keep well. |
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