Heading home and reflections.

⏰ 6.00 - alarm rings.

🍳 7.30 - breakfast.

🚗 8.30 - return hire car.

🚌 9.00 - shuttle bus to airport.

🛫11.30 - flew out of N I.

✈️ 3.15 - flew out of Brisbane.

🛬 5.45 - landed Melbourne.

🏡 9.45 - arrived home.

John's reflections:-

The history on the island is amazing and was really brought to life for us as Michael's ancestors arrived with the first fleet. Kinston is considered to be on a par with Port Arthur, Tasmania, as the most intact examples of early settlement.
Cows graze all the roadsides and are never in a hurry.
The island looks neat and tidy everywhere. We decided it's due to the cows keeping the grass well clipped. I saw no litter. One local suggested that anyone littering would be named and shamed.
The locals were friendly and often approached us for a chat. The children were happy and very, very polite. They played games but we didn't see them on devices ever.
There was no speeding that I saw. I didn't hear a horn toot or see road rage. The locals are probably used to tourists driving around not sure where they should be going.

Janette's reflections:

A place like no other. Initially it is the distinctive trees and the rugged coastline that make if feel different. Then you explore further into the history and culture - also unique.
The people appear to have all the basics and are very happy. They seem to live a fairly simple and stressless life. Like everywhere, there are those who are industrious and hard working who live amazing and interesting lives.
Kyle and Pete live and run a business on the island but use it as a base - working mainland jobs remotely and travelling - just like their friends in Australia. Best of both worlds.
As education is generally finished on the mainland there becomes a connection for many. We met locals who travel between their base on Norfolk and their "other life" in, generally, Queensland.
Felt so at home with the cows everywhere. Roosters and chickens were also truly free range and roamed everywhere. Because materials are expensive and hard to get, we saw lots of "barbed wire gaps" which seem to be rarely used in Australia these days. Costly to bring in gates no doubt.
Retail and hospitality have clearly been affected by Covid lockdowns but, according to one tour guide, not as much as we might think. It was the off season and there seemed to be a lot of shut up shop moments. Whatever the signs said in regards to opening hours they had to be disregarded - open hours were to suit the owners not to comply with the signage!
Came home with a few more Colleen McCullough books and memories of her amazing home with its writing room, extensive and expensive library, and ostentatious living and dining areas - clearly she lacked restraint and there were many valuable items. Even the amazing wallpapers were incredibly expensive. We were told she was very philanthropic to the islanders.
There are no high rise buildings - two stories was the maximum we saw. The National Parks were very well maintained and funded and provided lovely walks down to little coves with rocky beaches.
We had lovely meals and time to catch up and reminisce with Denise and Michael and we made memories we can all share in our dotage!

Arriving Home:

We arrived home around 9.45pm Thursday evening. Stopped at Wallan for a bite to eat and were sprung eating burgers at Macca’s by neighbours Andrew and Di Muller who had been to a funeral at Ballarat. Once home we were greeted by signs that a wallaby had taken up residence on the back verandah. A dozer had been unloaded near our front gate (tracks in the soft wet soil) and we are not sure what that was about. Unpacking and washing to look forward to and the gst and tax await … Fish & chips with the locals tomorrow night will have us back to normal in no time.Read more