S.C. Skillman's Blog, page 10

Highlights of My Australian Journey 2022: A Travel Diary #9 Kiama, the Illawarra Film Festival and the Norman Lindsay Art Gallery, New South Wales

This is the ninth of my Highlights and includes some of the most outstanding experiences of my Australian trip.

Blowhole at Kiama

First, Kiama, which is down the coast south of Sydney. This was a base from which we planned to visit the Illawarra Film Festival in the Phoenix Theatre, Coniston. We were there because my daughter Abigail Robinson’s 10 minute documentary ‘Ghosts of the Outback’ was one of the films chosen for the Festival. We were looking forward to seeing it for the 1st time on the big screen!

There is a very good reason however, to visit Kiama for its own sake alone: for it presents a spectacular natural phenomenon which enchants and amazes all those who gather to watch – the blowholes! Waves surge into a chamber below the surface of the sea pressure builds up, and the blowholes enable this dramatic uprush of water, rocketing high into the air.

Kiama itself is a lovely town which, as it first appeared to us reminded me of Polzeath in Cornwall, UK. White houses arranged across the slope down to the sea made a very picturesque scene. Kiama the town has much to offer but there’s no doubt about the main attraction for visitors, which gives all the watching tourists such fun and excitement. But of course – it’s not a good idea to venture onto the rocks and find yourself in the wrong place at the wrong time!

The following day we drove to Coniston which is in Wollongong. There we found the Phoenix Theatre where the Illawarra Film Festival was to take place.

The Phoenix Theatre, Coniston, Wollongong, New South Wales.

I loved the decor in the bar.

Cat luxuriating on velvet cushians in the bar of the Phoenix Theatre, Coniston Wollongong New South Wales.

The Festival consisted of 19 Australian films of which Abigail’s was the first. Her short documentary came over extremely well on the big screen and was hugely atmospheric. Several indigenous people describe their experience of the Min Min lights in the Queensland Outback. You can see a trailer for the film if you follow the Facebook Page ‘Ghosts of the Outback.’

After the interval during which hot savouries were served, there followed 4 international and 6 Illawarra films. I loved the diversity of the films: we all voted for our favourite and then handed in our ballot slips for later assessment. Of course I voted Abigail’s film as number 1!

The next day we travelled on to Leura in the Blue Mountains. Our journey took us past sublime distant views of Lake Illawarra, climbing up between massive subtropical rainforest trees, close beside a mighty rock face to our right, past giant tree ferns, creepers, vines, tangled roots. We passed a forest of white ghost gums, their branches reaching out in different directions, as if will-o-the-wisps were dancing between them.

We drove on up the highway and crossed a steep gorge, later passing through Camden near the Australian Botanic Gardens, and green velvet hills. I noticed signs saying ‘Arcadian Hills’ pointing us to ‘Kenilworth Falls’ and ‘Three Sisters’. We arrived at the Norman Lindsay Gallery at 12.50pm.

Norman Lindsay Gallery, Blue Mountains, New South Wales.

What an amazing place this is. Owned and managed by the National Trust of New South Wales it celebrates the life and astonishing creativity of the man who lived there. Norman Lindsay lived from 1879 to 1969. He was a poet, children’s writer, illustrator, cartoonist, painter, sculptor: he even created wartime propaganda posters. To me he is the creator of ‘The Magic Pudding’ one of my most-loved books as a child. I bought the 100th birthday edition at the gallery and read it again on the flight back to Heathrow!

Cover of ‘The Magic Pudding’
by Norman Lindsay

His home and garden and studio is a place of enchantment. All the sculptures are his, and so too is the colonnade on the verandah and the garden design.

The wisteria- festooned colonnade, garden flowers, paths and sculptures, and studio at the Norman Lindsay Gallery Blue Mountains, New South Wales.

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Highlights of My Australian Journey 2022: A Travel Diary #8 An Odyssey Through New South Wales – Manly and Sydney

This is the eighth in my Highlights series. It opens in Manly, lively, buzzing beachside suburb of northern Sydney, where we stayed in the Quest Apartments overlooking the Harbour.

Manly at night.

Taking the boat from Manly to Circular Quay was delightful and although I have visited Sydney a few times before in the past this time I felt such a thrill as we approached the Opera House across the harbour. It was wonderful to see it for the first time in this way.

Approaching Sydney Opera House across the harbour from Manly – arriving at Circular Quay and browsing the tourist shops.

I had a special reason for wanting to inspect the tourist shops as I have written a short story in which my main character visits Sydney and he arrives at Circular Quay. I make reference to a certain item of quintessentially Aussie headwear he buys (overseas tourists think it absolutely sums up Australia – Australians themselves might disagree).I’m glad to report the shops are still selling them!

I loved walking round the Opera House. Which newly arrived visitor can resist the allure of walking right up to one of those sails and touching it?

Later we took the harbour ferry to The Australian Maritime Museum where we found a magnificent replica of Captain Cook’s ship The Endeavour. Whatever you might think of his ‘discovery’ of this great southern landmass later claimed by the British to be ‘terra nullius’ before the subsequent colonisation of the land, nevertheless he is an iconic figure for Australia.

In the Maritime Museum we found a dazzling variety of different galleries filled with exhibitions on the marine environment, ecological challenges facing us and much more. I was fascinated by a presentation on the big screen of what Sydney looked like before British settlement – groups of indigenous adults and children playing on Bennelong Point around their campfire where the Opera House now stands. Everywhere around the harbour, rich dense forest where now glittering towers rise.

Our next destination was a truly magical place across the harbour behind Luna Park in Lavender Bay.

It was Wendy Whiteley’s Secret Garden, created by Wendy the wife of renowned Australian artist Brett Whiteley, on a steep abandoned harbourside site owned by the railways. The land is close to the home which she shared with Brett and with their daughter Arkie before each of them – at different times – died tragically. Wendy assuaged her grief by creating this phenomenal tropical garden. Lush, rich and abundant it frames so many astonishing views of harbour and bridge.

Lastly in this Sydney experience we visited a beautiful Chinese inspired tea room and art gallery in the area of Chippendale.

The White Rabbit Tea House, Chippendale, Sydney

There we enjoyed Chinese dumplings, scones jam and cream, and lotus blossom tea. Afterwards we browsed the shop full of curious, fanciful and quirky gift items before visiting the exceptional art gallery in the same building which showcased contemporary Chinese art.

The shop in the White Rabbit Tearooms and the opening installation in the Gallery of Contemporary Chinese Art – Chippendale, Sydney.

Finally we explored Spice Alley nearby. A quixotic, colourful street market and cafe area: a true delight to taste another unexpected facet of the multi-dimensional and wonderful city of Sydney.

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Highlights of My Australian Journey 2022:A Travel Diary #7 An Odyssey through New South Wales – Boonah to Newcastle

This is the seventh post in my Highlights series. Today we begin our exploration of New South Wales, from Boonah in Queensland, through the Border Ranges National Park on the Lions Road, passing through Kyogle, Casino, Coffs Harbour and staying our first night at Sawtell. Then on the next day heading to the city of Newcastle via Nambucca Heads and Camden Haven.

Commercial Hotel BoonahBorder Loop Lookout, off the Lions Road, Great Dividing RangeGreat Dividing RangeSawtell Motor InnViews at Camden Head Pilot Station, Camden Haven & North HavenCamden HavenCamden HavenCamden Haven

Sunset at Newcastle, New South Wales

The city of Newcastle was for me an amazing surprise: full of elegant, beautiful architecture, buildings grand and modern, historical and art deco, and Norfolk palms along the lovely esplanade. Christ Church Cathedral was full of light, colour and beauty. The lighthouse at the end of Macquarie Pier on Nobby’s Beach was spectacular: glorious beach and dramatic ocean views. As I gazed around me, the following places came to mind: Napier in New Zealand; Cardiff in Wales, UK; St Tropez; Monte Carlo; Raffles Singapore.

There are many artistically designed buildings with art deco ornamentation in appealing colours such as soft ochre, charcoal grey, creamy pink coral, taupe, and forest green, with much iron lace and exquisite detailing.

I learned that Newcastle suffered an earthquake in 1989 so it seems that this city, like Napier, chose to rebuild in a harmonious and creative way.

Apartment in The Edge Apartment Hotel, Newcastle New South Wales.House in Newcastle New South WalesTribute to Queen Elizabeth II in Christ Church Cathedral, Newcastle New South Wales.Banner in Christ Church Cathedral Newcastle, NSW.Altar frontal in Christ Church Cathedral, Newcastle NSW. The embroidered flowers are the Waratah the national flower of New South Wales.Christ Church Cathedral, Newcastle NSWWhite Building in Newcastle NSW.Yellow building in Newcastle, NSW.Kookaburra painted on a house wall in Newcastle NSW.Tree in the street, Newcastle NSW.The footpath to the lighthouse on Nobby’s Beach, Newcastle, NSW.

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Book Review: ‘The Continued Times of Isabella M. Smugge’ by Ruth Leigh

I’m delighted to be bringing you my review of this third Isabella book, as I’ve read and loved the previous two by Ruth Leigh: The Diary of Isabella M Smugge (book 1) and The Trials of Isabella M Smugge (book 2).

Author Ruth Leigh

The Continued Times of Isabella M Smugge was published by Instant Apostle on 29th October 2022. This is the best book Ruth Leigh has written so far: it is sharp, witty, fluent, and incredibly discerning about human psychology and relationships, and about the English class system together with all its attitudes.

Isabella herself, the privileged, snooty social media influencer, has developed enormously since she was first introduced to us: in this book I found myself totally on Isabella’s side as I watched her navigate her increasingly chaotic home situation. The reader feels Issy is real; we can believe in her and care about her; and we can see and feel we are in the lovely Georgian rectory where she strives to maintain a sense of control over her life.

Isabella is obsessed with control, perfection and success: we see clearly that this preoccupation has come from her mother, and from past tragic events.  Isabella is undergoing profound inner changes; nevertheless – and this is very astute observation of human behaviour – she does still frequently switch back to her ‘everything must be perfect’ mode, when she becomes absorbed once again, for a brief period, in her old, false, artificial values. Then she re-emerges with a new family crisis, a new emotional challenge.

I loved watching how she grows through the frequent agonising dilemmas presented by Johnnie, her coercive, manipulating, philandering husband: and also, how she finally recognises the truth about his character. Highlights include Isabella’s application of ‘Tony the counsellor’s technique’ – very funny to read about and very effective. What does matter in the end is love, compassion and caring, and accepting people for who they are: and this is a lesson Johnnie still has to learn.

We watch Issy’s interactions with friends, family, and enemies/ ‘frenemies’ as they all play their part in her transformation. One of the friends I particularly like is Leanne, because she ‘says it like it is’. There are, too, a number of times in the story where I identify closely with Issy on a personal level, and on a couple of these occasions I realised I’d experienced this myself and had even dealt with it in the same way Issy does! – not of course, I hasten to add, because I am a privileged social influencer descended from aristocracy living in a beautiful Georgian rectory etc…

Read all the Isabella M Smugge books for acute psychological and social observation by the author, and lots of laughs and recognisable moments.  Then delight in this one: the best Isabella book yet.

Ruth can be found on the following socials:

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Highlights of My Australian Journey 2022: A Travel Diary #6 Mangrove Swamps

This is the sixth part of my Highlights. I love mangrove swamps: and enjoyed exploring those on the Boardwalk at Nudgee Beach on the shoreline of Moreton Bay, and also the swamps along the riverside walk at the Brisbane City Botanic Gardens.

Mangroves play a vital ecological role: they help to stabilize shorelines and reduce the devastating impact of natural disasters such as tsunamis and hurricanes. They also serve as breeding and nursing grounds for marine fish and shellfish species. I find them particularly beautiful at the late afternoon high tide: dark mysterious mud, the bright gleam of water through the trees, the deep rich salty odour of the swamp.

The riverside path through the City Botanic Gardens is also a place of deep contentment: that exquisite, cool, organic odour of shadowed waters lapping against drenched mangrove timber beneath the over-arching leafy canopy. You’ll recognise this same smell in rockpools on the English coast: rich, secret, mysterious.

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Highlights of My Australian Journey 2022: A Travel Diary #5 Australia Zoo

This is the fifth post in my Highlights. Today, we travel to Australia Zoo: always such a joy to explore and to enjoy the lush landscaping and the vast variety of animals, both from Australia and around the world, including those who are endangered and who are at the forefront of conservation efforts.

Located in Beerwah near Landsborough, an hour’s drive north of Brisbane on the Sunshine Coast, the zoo always gives me a buzz when I visit. It does have, of course, a strong commercial element, with the shops, Crickey Cafe, crocodile and dinosaur models and the show in the Crocoseum, not to mention the new upmarket accommodation Crocodile Hunter Lodge; but this is all vitally important to draw in the widest possible range of visitors and to ensure funding for the hugely important animal conservation work done by Australia Zoo.

I loved Bindi’s Tree House among the gorgeous landscaping, a profusion of palms and other subtropical trees and shrubs. The animals are of course the main attraction and this time I was particularly delighted by the red pandas being hand-fed by a devoted keeper.

Here is a selection of photos from around the parkland, giving a flavour of our latest visit to this captivating zoo.

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Book Review: ‘Do What You Love – Fragility of Your Flame’ by MJ Mallon

Today I am delighted to be sharing with you my review of an advance copy of a new collection of poems, photography and flash fiction by fellow author MJ Mallon. The book is due for release on Kindle on 25th November 2022.

I’ve read this author’s work before: young adult novels, poetry and flash fiction, and I love her imaginative handling of the magical, the phantasmagorical and surreal. This short book is no exception to the quality of MJ Mallon’s output. I found her exploration of her past life captivating.

Author MJ Mallon

We may consider that the inclusion of often very personal material in a compilation of this sort would make it difficult for the outside reader to find a way in. This is not true at all of MJ Mallon’s poetry and prose: in many places, I related so much to what she writes, especially about a daughter ‘flying the nest’ to a faraway country. I particularly loved the device MJ Mallon uses to draw all this together: she presents it as a conversation with Atropos, one of the three Fates in Greek mythology: the Morai.

Atropos presides over the past. I thought this worked extremely well as a central metaphor. It had me googling the three Fates, and reading all about them: Clotho, who spins the threads of life, guardian of the present; Lachesis, who measures the length of life with her measuring rod, and is guardian of the future: and Atropos, who is the guardian of fate and destiny, and who chooses the manner of death by snipping the threads of an individual’s life. The close relationship between these three Greek supernatural beings and the Three Norns in Norse mythology, also intrigued me. Anyone who loves Wagner’s operas The Ring Cycle will be familiar with the Three Norns who weave the threads of fate; they certainly spend a long time singing about it!

MJ Mallon has had a fascinating and varied life experience: born in Singapore, she spent her childhood in Hong Kong and her teens in Edinburgh. She now lives in Cambridge. Every culture she has lived in, I believe, has influenced her imagination, her interests and her approach as a writer. In this book, we find a compilation of words and images which draw us in: poignant, sensitive, delicate, playful, as she opens up for us her past and present relationships, the places she has loved and spent time in, and her thoughts and feelings about it all.

A highly recommended book for you.

Find MJ Mallon on:

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Highlights of My Australian Journey 2022: A Travel Diary #4 Roma Street Parklands, Brisbane

Here is the fourth post of my Highlights. Today, Roma Street Parklands, Brisbane. Reclaimed from a railway goods yard (and using land which was, of course, prior to that, used for thousands of years by the local indigenous peoples for ceremonies and meetings), these exquisite parklands are a joy to wander through and to rest awhile, which I did for a few hours, accompanied by thieving ibises.

Here is just a taste of these lovely parklands. Everything is here: lakes, gorgeous display gardens, performance area, arena and auditorium, cafe, children’s play areas rainforest, waterfalls, a network of winding paths and boardwalks, fabulous city views, birds, animals and fish. For a writer this is a perfect place to explore, admire, reflect, and also to sit for hours with your Moleskine notebook and a cup of coffee to review your writing ideas and add many more.

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Highlights of My Australian Journey 2022: A Travel Diary #3 The City of Brisbane, South Bank

Here is the third post of my Highlights; today, the south bank of the Brisbane river, with its Art Galleries, Performing Arts Centre and State Library, along with the headquarters of the ABC (Australian Broadcasting Corporation, where my daughter Abigail works on the news programme), the Big Wheel, and the inspired South Bank Parklands, formerly the site of World Expo 88.

First, the River scenes from the area by the Art Gallery. In the gallery, I saw an exhibition called ‘Embodied Knowledge‘ which presented cultural art by aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. In the gallery water mall I found an installation with floating white tablets, each of which represented a coroner’s report into an aboriginal death in custody across Australia: ‘Inert State’, a very moving and disturbing installation by artist Archie Moore.

After viewing the exhibitions here I went to meet Abigail at the ABC and we walked through the Arbour to a food court where we had lunch. I remembered this site when Expo 88 was held and I have many happy memories of the pavilions, the landscaping, the plaza and all the many exciting events and buildings and performances. The subsequent development and use of the site has been sheer inspiration. Here are further South Bank views.

Finally we visited the GOMA (Gallery of Modern Art) to see an amazing art exhibition of works by the Japanese artist Chiharu Shiota: The Soul Trembles. I was captivated by this exhibition. The first installation, I describe as “tiny boats of dreams, all suspended by black threads, and we all have different ideas of who’s holding the threads.” I found the exhibition dreamlike, profound, transformative.

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Highlights of My Australian Journey 2022: A Travel Diary #1: Arrival

Now I’m back in the UK after my two month trip to Australia to see my daughter Abigail I’d like to share with you the highlights of my amazing journey through some of the most awe-inspiring and sublime scenery in New South Wales and Queensland, along with birds, animals, flowers, art galleries, cafes…. and a few tourist selfies thrown in along the way!

I flew back to London on Qatar Airways on 15 October 2022 and said goodbye to my sister Julia and her husband Bruce, and to my lovely daughter Abigail, at Brisbane Airport.

Saying goodbye at Brisbane Airport Departures 15 October 2022

Niw I’ve arrived back in the UK I’ve been looking through all my photos during the past 2 months. The perennial question we ask travellers is: So what were your highlights?

Let me show you my highlights then during the course of my next few blog posts here on scskillman.com. The theme? A Travel Diary. (And fortunately I did keep one!)

I’ll go back now to the beginning of my journey 16 August 2022 with a few views from my window seat. Actually, these are views as we landed in Doha, which was the transfer point.

Reunited at Brisbane Airport ArrivalsScenes from Chermside Shopping Centre, Chermside, Northern suburbs of Brisbane

Then we drove to the village of Samford, via Dayborough. Samford is like an early colonial settlers town, and has a beautifully landscaped park with a gift shop, art gallery and garden centre. It also has The Store of Requirement – all things Harry Potter. Samford is distinctively different from an English village, with places like The Slab Hut: and, of course, rainbow lorikeets in the melaleuca trees. We had a delightful lunch at The Flying Nun Cafe.

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