Karin's Projects

Monday, 25 July 2022

July

We retired early in 1990 from our permanent jobs, both not yet 60 years old. After a few years of consultant jobs, and travelling around Australia in 1994 we decided to move out of Sydney to a quieter place. We travelled around NSW country side a lot looking for a place of tranquillity. Finally we settled for a beautiful new house close to Sydney in the Blue Mountains with bush on two sides. It was a huge two story place with 4 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms, one with a spa , 2 large open space living areas, one with a dining area, a huge kitchen, 4 balconies and a large garage and workshop. All was new, just finished being built, still we had, with our friend Ron’s help to change, improve a few things. There was no garden at all, just native bushes on a large (endless) block on a slope. This place was big enough to accommodate the whole family for holidays and parties.

So we sold our house in Neutral Bay and moved to Mt Hay Road in 1996.

Since it was only 100km from Sydney our children and families could visit us easily and grandchildren stayed often with us during the holidays. And best one of our daughters and family lived only a few km away. We both did many great bush walk there in the Blue Mountains National Park. Once we were right in the middle of a bushfire.

We loved this place and had 8 great years there.

Sunday, 26 June 2022

June

In January 1975 we returned to Australia. Whilst in Papua New Guinea we had sold our home in Narrabeen and bought an old house in Neutral Bay as investment property. Now we moved into this spacious but run-down place and started to renovate soon, adding a garage, a sunroom at the back and turned the space under the roof into a large family room.The garden was very small but soon I turned that into a green oasis. We lived in this beautiful place close to the city and with a Harbour Bridge view for 21 years till we retired.

And these were very happy years.

Monday, 16 May 2022

May

At the end of 1971 Hartmut had an offer to work for 2 years as economics lecturer at Goroka Teachers College in Papua New Guinea. What an opportunity. A chance not to be missed.

This new experiences was so exciting and had it’s challenges too. Hart loved his job and extended his contract by a year. The students came from every part of Papua New Guinea. Although this was a 3 year teachers training course some of the graduates took positions in the new government. With so many expatriates leaving in a hurry before independence, I was asked within 6 months after arriving in Goroka to work in the college administration. With only the Australian Principal and one typist left the College was not functioning well. I too enjoyed working in the college, although to pay was not much: I agreed to accept local wages. The Hippy time was in full swing and it made it all more exciting. Schooling for our 2 eldest children was problematic. Ulrike and Tom attend the local high school as the only European kids and had to do correspondence lessons with the Australian curriculum as well. After 2 years Ulrike had to leave and stay with friends in Australia to do year 11, because high school finished with year 10 in PNG.

We lived in one of the many small new 2 bedroom cottages on the college ground the Australian government has quickly put up to accommodate the new staff needed to finally train some local people for self-government. The place was very small for a family of 6 but comfortable. We put up a room divider in the large open space living area and had a third bedroom.

It was expected to employ a local person. We did not want a ‘houseboy’, but a gardener would be very useful. Jacob from a village near by became our gardener and transformed the land around our little house into a beautiful garden and build a little roundhouse too. We are still in contact with Jacob and his family.