Category: King Charles III

Important reminders of a past that has so firmly shaped my future!

27/5/2023

I suppose this was the week winter really began to bite here in Australia. Of course winters down under are not the same as they are back home; there are no freezing temperatures, ice and snow, but there is a distinct chill in the air, and already I am feeling the bite. I have never been a person who enjoys this time of year, feeling the cold more than most, which is one of the reasons I moved to Australia in the first place. However, Australia does have seasons like the UK; it is a fact of life I just have to live with. Suitably wrapped up warm, Darrell and I have already been discussing a move to a country on the equator, without the winter we both detest. That is a long way in the future for now but we can of course keep dreaming, as we have done all our lives!

Surprisingly for me, it has rained a lot, more than I expected. I have never experienced Australia in all its seasons, so I didn't really know what to expect; in a homage to Britain, the heavens opened, and it chucked it down, sometimes for days on end. Despite the wet, if I am perfectly honest, it really hasn't been that cold. I think I feel the chill now, more than ever, because my body has acclimatised to the Aussie weather and as Darrell reminded me recently, we haven't really experienced a winter for a long time, having been travelling since leaving the UK in September 2022.

It is important for me to stay in contact with those closest back home and since I have moved to Australia, I have made a conscious effort to speak to friends and family as often as I can. Luckily, with the wonders of social media, it is far easier than it once was. In 1995, when I first lived in Perth, my relationships with people back home suffered greatly. Without facetime, video calls and heavily reliant on an intermittent dial-up connection, it became virtually impossible to keep in contact with people on a regular basis. It is one of the reasons I ended up moving back to the UK in the first place. Today I am happy and content, knowing I can just pick up my phone and speak to my dearest and dearest on a mobile device. This has allowed me to settle into expat life down under as easy as I did in Spain, and I don't feel as homesick as I did 27 years ago.

My Father is the most important person in my life, along with Darrell, and I am fully aware of his advancing age. Dad is very nearly 75 now, and I do try and stay in contact as much as I did back in Britain. Once a week, usually on a Sunday, I ring Dad, as I always have done, and we chat for an hour or so. Like me, he discusses his ailments and day-to-day life in the UK, especially politics. This link to home is important to me, as I integrate into Australian society, knowing my roots and hearing about the little sleepy market town I used to call home, makes me feel part of something bigger. I may well be a village boy at heart, but the choices I have made today are far removed from where I grew up in the 1970s and 80s. Having said that, I have never forgotten where I come from, and my Father often mentions places and people who are now all but a distant memory, but an important reminder of the past that has so firmly shaped my future.

This week, I have also heard from my old colleague and dear friend Sue, who sent me an 'emergency Coronation package' from the UK. Despite King Charles III being the Head of State in Australia, there was very little fan fare for the crowning of our new King. I did manage to find one shop selling some Royal memorabilia and duly bought myself a mug, but otherwise there was little to welcome the new Monarch.

However, Sue put together a jiffy bag full of all the things I love, commenting on the 'over the top spectacle' taking place back home and how she knew I would love some mementoes from Britain in the post. There was a Coronation programme, some new King Charles 50 pence pieces and my favourite, a Coronation Tesco carrier bag. It was wonderful to receive a little slice of Tesco here in Australia, a company I thoroughly enjoyed working for.

Whether speaking on the phone, seeing familiar faces online or on a mobile phone, or indeed receiving a letter in the post, I am always so happy to hear from friends. Darrell and I may well have been through testing times in the UK, but the people who really matter have been so warm and supportive, and they continue to play a very important role in our life. Life in Australia is so much quieter than we are used to, but knowing mates are just a phone call away has helped us adjust to this new expat existence.

Between working, Darrell and I have been concentrating on the new house. It has been a very long time since we owned our own home, so we are spending most of our time renovating and buying new furniture. One has to remember we turned up in Australia with just a couple of suitcases, so we are having to build our life from scratch - daunting yes, but fun nonetheless.

This week we had to have new taps fitted in the kitchen, after the old ones sprung a leak on Sunday. Yup, that's right, just as we were about to sit down to our Sunday roast, water started pouring everywhere, and we had to call out an emergency Plummer. $748 later after frantically trying to find the water meter and isolation switch, we had a new set of taps and some rather bruised hands, trying to stop the water gushing out all over the kitchen - oh the joys of owning your own home.

With Darrell on holiday this week, we have had a new bed delivered for one of the spare rooms and have managed to get it looking a bit more respectable. It isn't finished by any means, but it is looking a hundred percent better. Ideally I want to replace the carpets throughout the house, but they will have to wait until finances allow, so for now we will make do with what we have.

Today we were also given a quote to replace the rotten fence in the back garden. We had hoped it could have been fixed, but it is too far gone. In consultation with the Strata we will have to replace the whole fence with a colour bond alternative; this should cost about $2500, according to the local fencer we have asked to do the job. This is far less than I expected, and I should have the money to do the job in a few weeks. These days we are working with our own cash and no credit. After building up huge debts in the past, it is the last thing I want to do now.

With three days off, Darrell and I did manage to spend some time away from our life in Midland. We spent a lovely morning in Perth city. We actually haven't done this together for a good three months, with our lives consumed with work and house renovations.

Morning coffee and cake at the Westralia Dome Café, followed by a spot of shopping and lunch at The Shoe in Yagan Square, was just what the Doctor ordered. It did feel good to be happy and relaxed for a change, something we really should do more often. It will be a while before we can do it again, however, especially with expenses mounting - new fence, drainpipes and new rates bill about to drop in the mailbox. Still it was a perfect day, surprisingly sunny and there was no, yes no rain, who could ask for more.

The end of another week beckons; each day that passes, Australia feels more like home. Both of us have everything we ever wanted and are so thankful for the opportunities we have been given here. I am glad we embarked on this journey eight months ago and look forward to the future with happiness in the main. With friends and family so far away, there will always be a tinge of sadness, but they understand the decisions we made, and we are aware of just what has to be done. We will both keep on striving for success and will not look back; life is indeed for living, so we will make sure we live it well, just as I'm sure all of you will too.

Thanks for staying the course, thanks for your continued support!

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Thank you for the Birthday messages!

13/5/2023

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The Coronation of Charles and Camilla - The future of the Monarchy!

7/5/2023

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When I left the UK, a little over seven months ago, I could never have expected, the monumental changes that have happened to the Great British Monarchy. Sitting on the Makarska promenade, overlooking the Adriatic, along the Dalmatian coast, I discovered our late Queen had died. As an ardent Monarchist, I immediately felt a sense of sadness, that I hadn't felt since the death of Princess Diana in 1997. This was the beginning of the Carolean era and the end of a reign that had spanned seventy years.

It is difficult to put into words how I felt about King Charles in September 2022, because I, like most people of my generation, have a conflict of interest. I have never forgotten the death of Diana, Princess of Wales, in that Paris car crash, in the early hours of Sunday morning, 26 years ago. Watching her emotional funeral on television, I remember how angry I felt towards the then Prince of Wales and how I could never forgive him for what he had done to the people's 'Queen of Hearts.'

A lot has happened during the intervening years; the woman who was the 'third person' in the marriage of Charles and Diana, was now Queen, and the bitterness felt towards Camilla has all but disappeared. Even I have changed my opinion of the Royal couple; as I watched the Coronation on television, I felt content that our new King and Queen would be an asset for Britain, as I put my feelings on the death of Diana to one side.

HM The King appears happy with Camilla, in a way he never was with Diana. As hard as it is to admit, the new King and Queen seem like a perfect match. Their body language, affection and etiquette, towards each other, is that of a happily married couple. If they had been allowed to marry all those years ago and others hadn't interfered in their relationship, things may well have been very different. The arranged marriage with Princess Diana was a disaster because there was no love between them, very different to what you see today.

There was no public holiday in Australia yesterday, and I finished work, just as the King and Queen left Buckingham Palace to travel to Westminster Abbey. I rushed home as quick as I could, to settle down and watch the Coronation. With a tinny, plate of Chicken and Chorizo and Cherry ripe for desert, I watched this blend of the ancient and modern unfold before me. I was awestruck at the spectacle; feeling emotional watching the beautiful service, my Monarchist credentials were well and truly confirmed. This was unlike anything I had seen before; like most people alive today, this was the first Coronation I had witnessed, and I was transfixed at the historic occasion. This was my homeland doing what it does best, and I wasn't disappointed.

As someone who understands the historic significance of the coronation and the institution it represents, I was delighted to be able to pay my respects to our new King and Queen, who have, and continue to, work tirelessly for the Commonwealth, charities and country I once called home. Their service and duty is without question and without a doubt, they are the future of the Monarchy and a link to a past, rich in history and symbolism. The King's continued commitment, is the bond that connects the British people together, in a way no elected Head of State could ever do. They are the embodiment of a country that I will always call home, and also the King and Queen of Australia, where I have chosen to live.

Reflecting on such a historic occasion, has allowed me to remember important milestones in my own life and the opportunities afforded to me as a result. The King and Queen have large shoes to fill, but they are now both in a position to make things happen. The Monarchy will change and adapt during King Charles reign, of that I am sure. Despite his advancing age, Charles, like his Father before him, was always a moderniser, but he must be careful not to go too far. Modernise the institution of which you are head, but keep the elements that allow it to flourish and grow, at the centre of its existence. My fear is, any streamlining of the Royal Family will go too far, and we will be left with a mere shadow of the past. The Monarchy's appeal is in the mystique it portrays, not in the power it wields; for that reason, the King must remember the journey that brought him to the throne, and respect the heritage that is indicative of its success!

Like everyone, I wish the new King and Queen well; it is time to embrace Charles for all his faults and, most importantly Camilla, as his loving wife. History is littered with the failures of the past, let's not let that happen to an institution that sits at the very heart of the British psyche. As a Brit, the King has a special place in my heart, as his Mother did before; I am happy to pledge my allegiance to His Majesty and hopeful for the future that pledge represents!

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From a new life in spain, to an old life in britain, 'roaming brit' documents uncertain times!

Important reminders of a past that has so firmly shaped my future!

Thank you for the Birthday messages!

The Coronation of Charles and Camilla - The future of the Monarchy!

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