Small Town Australia

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September 2nd – After breakfast, we loaded into Judy and Mal’s new car (bought especially for their Canadian rellies visit – how kind) and went on a whirlwind tour of the communities near their home. My recollections of these places is a little sparse as I was still suffering the effects of jet lag. So these are the ‘Coles Notes’.

We went through a number of small towns and villages with names like Seaham, Wallabong, Morpeth, Hinton and Dungog. Most of these communities began in the 1800’s and many of the buildings indicated the year they were built. In Dungog, we approached a lady sitting on the front steps of the theatre that was built in 1914 and asked if we might take a look inside. She kindly allowed us in and gave us a brief history. We sat on some old theatre seats and wondered how anyone’s back would survive leaning back on a flat piece of wood for any length of time –the films must have been shorter back then.



The communities were all laid out with wide streets, small shops, and quaint homes often with verandas and wrought iron details. Sandstone and brick were used as building material for many of the larger homes and businesses. The ‘big box’ stores are in Australia, and they are starting to impact these communities. The town of Maitland, where Judy worked at the Art Gallery, is building walking paths by the river and doing a major reconstruction of its downtown in hopes of keeping its core alive. I wish them well in staving off this cancer that has invaded much of North America.



More photos below.

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Photos

"Kissing the the Rain"
Michele, Mal & Judy "strolling" by the river in Maitland

"You Otta be in Pictures!"
Judy at the Dungog Historic Theatre