hermann riedl
| Town/City | patersonia |
|---|---|
| First name | hermann |
| Last name | riedl |
| Country of Origin | germany |
| Date of Birth | 27.12.56 |
| Year of Arrival in Australia | 1980 |
| Submitted by | hermann rudolf josef riedl |
Story
Reason for leaving homeland – I always felt, that Europe was overcrowded and possibly close to another war; also there are too many rules and regulations; impossible to buy any property / house unless very rich. We also wanted to start a completely new life and have an adventure at the same time.
About the Journey – My wife, Jutta (23) and daughter (1) and myself (24) left on a one-way ticket with Singapore Airlines. We had an address in Tasmania; friends who had an empty house on the Tamar River , where we could stay free of charge. We only had to built a garage for them in exchange to our free lodgings.
Arriving in Launceston airport was very unusual, since it was a very small airfield – more like an open paddock. We took the bus into Launceston and it felt we had arrived in the wild west. Power poles lined the streets and all shops had big awnings. We had trouble understanding the locals due to a strong Australian slang. We took a taxi to find Kayena and our new home, an old weatherboard house. Everything was new and exotic, half naked trees with the bark coming off and darkened bark from a previous bushfire. Everything was so different from Europe and all the locals were very friendly and helpful.
It only took us 3 month to find a 130 acre bushblock 30 km north-east from Launceston. We cleared the land while we lived in a tent and then in a wooden teepee. We stayed for 2 years in the teepee until we had built our new house. We were very impressed how friendly all Tasmanians were.