Sydney Australia.

Does any one know what the above is?

















An Aboriginie playing the digeridoo

















Sue Ian and Margery on a trip to national Park.

Hello everyone I am back from my visit to Australia.

Thank goodness after a few days of rain in Sydney the sun began to shine. I was beginning to think that I was some sort of Jinx as the rain keeps following me. The people in New Zealand tell me it is the worst start to their summer in ages. Though it is wet and drizzling it is not really too cold 18 during the day and 12-13 during the evening.

Well as you can imagine in Australia I got my leg pulled about the cricket. What a mess and what a shower of no hopers. The last excuse was that the Aussies bat with a wider bat than we do. I wanted to go to the fifth and final day as I thought I couldn’t come all the way here and not see a test. Everyone said that I was living in a dream world and they were right. They only just managed the fourth day and that was because of the rain on the first day! Anyway no more about cricket.

I had a lovely week in Cronulla with my friends Ian and Sue and their children Marianne and Sebastian. Sue’s mum Margery was there and I hadn’t seen her since the early eighties in Farnham. Ian was still on his Christmas Holiday so we spent a day in Sydney walking around and chatting which was enjoyable. Went through Darling harbour which has changed beyond all recognition to what I remember ten years ago. A good tourist attraction when the sun is shining.

It has been ten years since I was last here and there have been many changes especially to the docklands area. Here there has been a regeneration and there are now lots of very expensive apartments and docking areas for ones boat, if one has one. If one has not got one then one can look at other people’s through ones windows or on ones balcony. It is all very pretentious but interesting to see. But I must say there must be a lot of money swilling around this area.

Met Bin and Dan from the Burnside parish who were out here visiting their daughter and we went on the explorer bus which wasn’t bad but wasn’t a patch on the one in Florence (Firenze) We had a good day getting on and off seeing Sydney and for the first time in my life ate at the Subway. (Maybe my last time?)

I was in the parish of Crunulla and went to Mass every morning at seven o’clock and it was suprissing how many people came at that time. Very busy parish run by Fr Tom, they had over 4000 people for the Christmas Masses and over 2000 for the children’s Christmas Mass. They must have been hanging off the rafters.

I flew out of Sydney early on Monday morning and arrived in New Zealand three hours later on the eigth of January. I will now be staying at the cathedral and working as a chaplain to the main hospital for a few weeks. will tell you more on my next blogg.

Here are two notes I received from the sisters in Myanmar which might interest you. One of them is about little Emily whom you may remmeber from an earlier blogg.

Dear Fr Kevin, Thanks a lot for your Christmas card it arrived on the 26th Dec Sister Lydia is delighted that you are thinking of adopting little Emilie. The students are doing well and are no more anxious about their school fees. Please could you support 4 pupils 3 girls and 1 boy for the year 2007. These are really pooor I have e-mailed you about the raiding business. Once at night a thief came and stole all our petrol we saved in a can and another came stole all the washing on the line and the girls were so upset at loosing their clothes. I e-mailed you but it couldn’t get through because of the power cut we have here and also they cut off the internet and wont tell us when it is back on again.

The new superior in Zawgi died suddenly within less than 3 hours on the 26th Dec. She was alright before she went to bed at 10.30 and was dead in less than three hours. We brought her body to Mandalay. So it was a sad end to close the year 2006.

I was sure you were going to miss England at Christmas. Never mind every day is a day closer to home sweet home. The days and months fly by so fast, we don’t remember what happened yesterday. May your new year be a year of grace, joy and peace and may you be blessed with the gift of good health, goodness and happiness wherevere you are. Thanks for everything Sr Geraldine.

Dear Fr Kevin we wish you and all your parishioners the joy the Christmas season brings. You really outdid yourselves in doing so much for us and the children with the presents you gave them. It made it a joyous Christmas for them. Emilie is in good health and improving and keeping well. Union of prayers sisters and children of Amarapura.

Certaintly puts the cricket into perspective!