Jacqui Howard
| First name | Jacqui |
|---|---|
| Last name | Howard |
| Country of Origin | England |
| Date of Birth | 170847 |
| Year of Arrival in Australia | 1966 |
| Submitted by | Jacqueline Howard |
Story
[Reason for leaving homeland]
I married an Australian and I always wanted to see Australia. I was young and everything was an adventure.
[About the Journey]
Left Southhampton on a cold November day with chilblains – on board the Ellenis a Greek ship – Chandros Line with not much money. We called in at Pyraeous, Port Said, Aden and Freemantle and disembarked in Melbourne. We had a great trip loved seeing all those places Athens was great, Aden was a bit of an eye opener seeing all the British soldiers carrying the guns and I had never seen beggars before. Met some really nice people on the boat and arrived in Melbourne with $25 and I should have had 50 pounds. I was lucky and not asked to show how much I had.
[Impressions on Arrival]
My first sighting of Australia was of beautiful white sand. We were met by my Father in law who was terrific considering he had never met me before. We lived for about a month with him in Ashford Melb and then rented a flat in Glenferrie Road. All that first summer my chilblains were so itchy – I had never felt heat like it . I couldn’t get over how everything shut on a Saturday at noon – it was always the best time to go shopping in Somerset but not in Melb it was dead. For a big city it didn’t have much except Myers. Loved Myers biggest shop I’d ever been in. We moved to a bigger flat when son Gary was born which was in Albert Park – that was great , close to South Melb beach and had a small town feel but close to the big city. My husband got a job with Foreign Affairs – so we moved to Canberra. I just fell in love with Canberra it was such a friendly place – we lived in Hotel Acton until we found a place in O’Connor. I have lived in Canberra ever since except on posting to Singapore, Rome, London and Vienna. I had three sons – all have done very well going to university and getting really good jobs. I’m sure they would not have done so well in the UK and I have 4 grandchildren so far. I love Australia but do still have pangs of homesickness. The husband and I parted 10 years ago but I have never regretted coming to Australia. I have made many friends, love the countryside and beaches, Melb has more to offer now and I like going back and the best bit I’ve never had chillblaines again!! JH 13/3/07