Dear Friends,
It is that time of year again, when you realise that the new year we celebrated a couple of months ago is in fact nearly over!! Maybe it is a sign that I’m getting older but I prefer to think that I am just too busy!! Now that I have come to terms with Christmas being upon us, I have been reflecting on what I have been doing with 2004. So here is a quick run down of the highlights of our year.
After Christmas in Essex with family, 31st Dec 2003 found as in the company of some of you at the Loosemores’ party. We were particularly mean to Dieter. He was not told that Reuben and I were in the UK. At a pre-arranged time Miriam allowed him to ‘call Australia’ to wish Reuben a Happy New Year. In fact he was calling my mobile and we walked into the house still speaking on the phone!! The joke backfired a bit as I think Dieter didn’t appreciate being kept out of the loop but it didn’t take long for him to forgive us. We saw the New Year in a very damp Piazza in Truro peering through the mist and drizzle to see the fireworks! We had a lovely time catching up with everyone and fellowshipping with the crew at Truro Vineyard on the first Sunday of the year. It was lovely also to spent 4 days on the Roseland with my Mum, Sister Deborah and Niece, Naomi. I was able to take them to see some of my favourite haunts in Cornwall and visit a few places that I never got around to when I lived there. We had perfect weather, lovely cold, crisp winter days except for a very vicious hailstorm that blew in suddenly when we were on Chapel Porth beach.
On the way out of the county we headed for Launceston to meet with Friends there. The word went out that we would be at a pub at lunch time and over 30 people turned up to meet with us. I was completely overwhelmed. It was a bit of a shock to the publican too who was expecting a quiet lunch session and had to find food for us all. We continued to meet half of the town when we popped in to Tesco’s to pick up a few groceries. But time was short and we headed out of Cornwall having enjoyed the company of many friends but saddened that we had not the time to see others. Reuben was able to spend valuable time with his Father and friends in Plymouth.
Our trip to UK was with Royal Jordanian Airlines (which happened to be the cheapest option for us) but it gave us the bonus of a stopover in Amman. I must admit that on our way to Heathrow I did wonder if it was worth it as it took forever, 3 stops, 2 change of planes and every leg was delayed for no apparent reason. Five hours in Amman airport was trying, in a “non-smoking” environment where the only place free of smoke was the smoking booth! We arrived in London eventually having missed our coach connection by 15 minutes so £35 lighter and 72 hours after we left Perth we met with my Mum. To take full advantage of the return stopover in Jordan I arranged a tour. We were to meet up with Friends working in the Middle East for the 5-day tour. Jordan is fascinating I would recommend it (I would also highly recommend our Tour Company Petra Moon Tourist service). Not only are you driving through lands which Moses, David, Solomon and Jacob walked through you can see history from many periods. We visited a Crusader castle at Ajlan, an awesome Roman town at Jerash, reportedly the best-persevered ruin anywhere. Our Guide Basel knew so much, on knowing that we were Christians showed us additional things like the spot where Jacob wrestled with God. He also let Reuben know when we entered the Old Testament lands of the Reubenites. We finished the first day back in Amman at a museum that holds some of the Dead Sea Scrolls.
We proceeded into the Jordan Valley where the Bedouin live which brought to life biblical images of the shepherd leading His sheep to good pasture. We visited Bethany over Jordan to the place where John baptised Jesus. This area being so close to Israel has been closed for years but amid heavy security it is now open. I admit being some what disappointed by the River Jordan, it is nothing more then a muddy creek not more then a few metres wide, I can fully understand why Naaman didn’t want to bathe in it, even to get rid of Leprosy. It was lovely to be amongst the shady trees by the river, it was not hard to imagine what it had been like 2000 years before, it was so peaceful.
Swimming in the Dead Sea was a strange experience, it tastes disgusting!
The highlight of any trip to Jordan is Petra. It is almost beyond description. A hidden city in the middle of some unremarkable hills. To walk down the Sic, the deep crack that is the entrance into Petra and enter in front of the Treasury a 40m high ornate facade carved out of solid red rock is an experience not easily forgotten. Petra is huge, containing 800+ tombs carved out of the cliffs. Some looked like Flintstone houses, all are incredible. The insides show the beauty of the rock, like unpolished marble. We spent 2 days exploring but it wasn’t enough. God willing, I will return one day.
Interior of a tomb in Petra
Suddenly we were thrust into reality. Shopping for school & back to work! Reuben entered year 11, his second to last year of school. It came with a few challenges but he rose to them eventually. Life continued in the normal sleep, eat, work cycle until the next outing! Friend who had planned a 7-week drive to Queensland asked me if I’d like to come for part of the way. I now have a better idea of just how big West Australia is, it took us 4 days driving to be anywhere near crossing unto Northern Territory reaching Darwin area on the 5th day. It was fascinating to see the changing landscape of Australia. My birthday dawned at the campsite at 80 mile beach (yes it is as lovely as it sounds) and ending at Broome with an awesome sunset and BBQ. In the north of W.A is a town called Kunanarra, which I was surprised by. The home of many huge fruit farms (had the best banana smoothie ever, sipped whilst seated by a Lilly pond). We had a picnic lunch by a lake made during the construction of Lake Argyle, an enormous dam created to supply water to this parched land. You only get the scale of the project if you fly over it, it is probably the size of Cornwall. I went for a walk on the banks of the lake and found the most amazing reflections, fortunately I have my camera and was able to capture some great photos [below]. I was able to spend time with my brother Matt and his wife in Darwin before returning back to Reuben.
July was Reuben’s turn to go away! Off to Sydney again to compete in the Australian National under 17 Fencing Competition. He enjoyed his time and bettered his seeding from the year before. He was supposed to go Bali with the school in September as well (He is studying Indonesian) but it was cancelled at short notice after a terrorist attack in Jakarta.
The year has ended with Reuben being voted Vice Captain of his house for next year (I am very proud). We had an enjoyable visit form Billie Mallett, she spent 10 days with us and I was able to take some time off to show her some sights. The highlight was a small island called Rottnest. It has the most beautiful beaches and clear waters, we spent 2 days busy doing nothing! Rottnest is inhabitant by small cute mammals called quokas. We did some girlie things like shopping I came out of the mall with bags of clothes like Julia Roberts in ‘Pretty Woman’! After encouragement from Billie, a friend called Helen took me to get my ears pieced!
A Pair of Quokkas at Rottnest Island
Hot off the press! Last week I put a deposit on a block of land, ultimately the idea will be to build a house on it but I may not start that for another 12 months. It is only a small block,11mtrs by 32mtrs but I could still fit on small 4 bedroom by 2-bathroom bungalow on it at the cost of around £95 000 for house and land.
Reuben is heading back to Europe in January to visit with Paul;they plan to ski in Switzerland for 7 days then spent some time in the West Country. In the meantime I will be earning an honest crust having finally been put on a permanent contract at work. We look forward to 2005 with hope and anticipation, I wish you very happy Christmas and every blessing for the year ahead, remember that Jesus is the reason for the season, take care, big loves,
Anna & Reuben
Perth City Skyline From Rottnest