Herbert Nitsche
| First name | Herbert |
|---|---|
| Last name | Nitsche |
| Country of Origin | Germany |
| Date of Birth | 30/11/30 |
| Year of Arrival in Australia | 1958 |
| Submitted by | philippa nitsche |
Story
My late husband Herbert Nitsche left Germany in 1958 to seek a better life in Australia- he had been told by fellow work colleagues in Stuttgart that you could make a lot of money in Australia and that the climate was so much better – a lot had come out for the two years and so he thought he would do the same, but like so many others, he never went home and this country became his home – he passed away on 7th july 1999. in Canberra
In march 1958 Herbert Nitsche boarded the ship”Skaubryn” – I think it was in the port of Bremen. Not long after leaving Aden the ship caught fire in the Red Sea at night time and everyone was forced to abandon ship and get into life boats. They lost all their possessions and the only things my husband took was his passport and camera – he nearly got caught by the water tight doords when he went back for his life jacket – they were rescued by a freighter then later transferred to the passenger ship Roma which took them to Aden – After six weeks in Aden where they were accommodated by BP Petroleum (he always bought his petrol at BP stations!!) – the surviviors of the Skaubryn were bought to Australia on the ship Johan van Oldenvanbelt, which also later sank!
On arrival in Melbourne they were transported by train to Bonegilla and he thought that train trip would never end and could not believe the dry country after the beautiful green of back home- from there to Canberra and another train trip and arrival in May after a long long journey.