It is the nature of oncology nursing that some patients will return to the ward time and again, whether it is for their chemotherapy, radiation treatment or just because there are other complications or progression of their disease process. While some are in and out within a couple of days, others stay on the ward for longer periods.
It's rather strange. Patients can be sorted into two categories- I like to think of them as the sheep and the goats. First, there are some patients who just get under your skin, you develop a good relationship with them and their family members and they become "your" patients - or sheep! Others don't have the same effect - while they are usually nice people and appreciate the nursing care, they come and go and you don't feel anything special emotionally except a genuine interest in their well-being, thus they fall into the second category of the goats.
During the past five months, there have been a few patients that I have nursed that fall into the sheep category. With these patients, it doesn't seem to matter whether you have nursed them for a week or a month, the relationship is there from the start and something just 'clicks'.
Friday 22 June 2007
Monday 12 February 2007
Return to Reality
9 days post holiday, and we are exhausted and need a holiday to recover from the holiday! Since our return last Thursday, it has been a whirlwind of getting organised and back into the rhythm of daily life with school and work, and trying to have some sort of family time in between! Not easy when juggling a shift worker in the family (especially if the shift worker is the one who usually coordinates everything, including meals!).
My nursing registration came through last Friday - finally! I still can't believe the hassles I had over the hyphenated surname, but at least it is done now and I am officially registered (RN 12071).
I have just finished my first full week of work, and thought I should let you all know how things are going. My placement got changed at the last minute, and I was moved to the Oncology ward rather than the chemo clinic. This means a full rotating roster including weekends, which was a bit of a shock as I had mentally prepared myself for having Mon-Fri and weekends off for the first six months! Monday, Tuesday and Wed were orientation days and then I had Thurs/Friday off, which was lovely as I had lots to catch up on and needed to spend some time at home. We really were thrust into things with returning from holidays last Thursday and work/school starting on Monday!
I have spent the last two days on the ward, working in the high dependency unit (this is where patients who have had chemo come to if they become sick, get a fever etc). In short, I LOVE it. I can't believe I can sign RN after my name finally, and that I can do medications, blood transfusions etc without someone watching over my shoulder the entire time! It's nice to be a little more independent and have my own patients to care for. I'm having a ball...although I am very tired. Each night I come home and collapse. I have started having "nanna naps" when I get home from a morning shift (an hour's sleep at 4pm lets me stay awake and actually function till 10pm bedtime!). The early starts are tough - shift begins at 7am and finishes at 3.30pm. Next week I have some evening shifts (1pm till 9.30pm). Thankfully we don't have to do night shifts for the first three months! Of course, the other bonus is that I am going to be PAID for doing what I love...can't wait for that first payslip!
Catherine and Jono are very pleased to be home and are enjoying catching up with all their friends in person, rather than just on MSN. They are both talking about 'next time' and saving up for another overseas holiday. Anura and I are both very "Europe sick" and are not really happy to be home at all - we are both very keen to explore the option of living and working overseas for a few years, and will start thinking about submitting resumes etc soon. I really need to complete my graduate year before I can move on, but after that, anything is possible! We are also missing the lovely family and friends we stayed with while we were away and wishing the distance between Australia and Europe was not quite so great.
Anyway, it is time for my nanna nap so that I can function for a few hours after dinner tonight - school uniforms to be ironed, etc etc... Does it ever end?
My nursing registration came through last Friday - finally! I still can't believe the hassles I had over the hyphenated surname, but at least it is done now and I am officially registered (RN 12071).
I have just finished my first full week of work, and thought I should let you all know how things are going. My placement got changed at the last minute, and I was moved to the Oncology ward rather than the chemo clinic. This means a full rotating roster including weekends, which was a bit of a shock as I had mentally prepared myself for having Mon-Fri and weekends off for the first six months! Monday, Tuesday and Wed were orientation days and then I had Thurs/Friday off, which was lovely as I had lots to catch up on and needed to spend some time at home. We really were thrust into things with returning from holidays last Thursday and work/school starting on Monday!
I have spent the last two days on the ward, working in the high dependency unit (this is where patients who have had chemo come to if they become sick, get a fever etc). In short, I LOVE it. I can't believe I can sign RN after my name finally, and that I can do medications, blood transfusions etc without someone watching over my shoulder the entire time! It's nice to be a little more independent and have my own patients to care for. I'm having a ball...although I am very tired. Each night I come home and collapse. I have started having "nanna naps" when I get home from a morning shift (an hour's sleep at 4pm lets me stay awake and actually function till 10pm bedtime!). The early starts are tough - shift begins at 7am and finishes at 3.30pm. Next week I have some evening shifts (1pm till 9.30pm). Thankfully we don't have to do night shifts for the first three months! Of course, the other bonus is that I am going to be PAID for doing what I love...can't wait for that first payslip!
Catherine and Jono are very pleased to be home and are enjoying catching up with all their friends in person, rather than just on MSN. They are both talking about 'next time' and saving up for another overseas holiday. Anura and I are both very "Europe sick" and are not really happy to be home at all - we are both very keen to explore the option of living and working overseas for a few years, and will start thinking about submitting resumes etc soon. I really need to complete my graduate year before I can move on, but after that, anything is possible! We are also missing the lovely family and friends we stayed with while we were away and wishing the distance between Australia and Europe was not quite so great.
Anyway, it is time for my nanna nap so that I can function for a few hours after dinner tonight - school uniforms to be ironed, etc etc... Does it ever end?
Wednesday 31 January 2007
Goodbye Geneva
Well, our bags are packed, and ready to go...
We're standin' here in the snow,
We hate to wake you up to say goodbye
'Cause we're leaving on a jet plane
Don't know when we'll be back again
Oh, no, we hate to go...
But winter's done, we're sick of snow
Canberra calls, don't you know?
The summer sun will be so warm....
So we're leaving on a jet plane
Don't know when we'll be here again,
oh, yes, we're ready to go...
We're standin' here in the snow,
We hate to wake you up to say goodbye
'Cause we're leaving on a jet plane
Don't know when we'll be back again
Oh, no, we hate to go...
But winter's done, we're sick of snow
Canberra calls, don't you know?
The summer sun will be so warm....
So we're leaving on a jet plane
Don't know when we'll be here again,
oh, yes, we're ready to go...
Tuesday 30 January 2007
Lethargy in London
So here it is, the final chapter of the Samara Family European vacation. We will pick up where we left off, having returned from a strenuous day visiting Oxford university and packing our bags to go to London....
Thursday morning (25th Jan) we left Nola's beautiful house in Bath to head for London. Before we left we decided to return to the pub in Bathhampton where we had dinner with Nola to take some photos as it was situated next to the canal and we had forgotten our camera the night we went there. As we approached the pub, we noticed that there was an old church across the road, and lo and behold it was flying the Australian flag! We thought that a bit odd, and decided to investigate. We approached the gates, to find that the iron posts were painted red, white and blue. The church was unlocked, so in we strolled!
What an amazing find, and one that was totally unexpected! We had stumbled across the church that Arthur Phillip had retired to upon his return from his First Fleet voyage and stint as the first Governor of New South Wales. He and his wife are both buried there, and there is a lovely chapel called the Australia Chapel which has stained glass windows with the coats of arms of each state of Australia. In addition to that, there is a list of the people who were on the first fleet, and a few other memorials and tributes. We decided to sign the guest book, and discovered that another Canberra family had been there only days before. Apparently the Australian Ambassador visits this church in October each year, close to the 11th which is the anniversary of Arthur Phillip's death, and attends a special service there. Since it was the day before Australia day, we thought we had been lucky to have this find, and it was a nice reminder of home!
We reluctantly left Bath and headed through Wiltshire for the bright lights of London. On the way we stopped at England's largest white horse at Westbury - carved into the side of the hill in 1778 and thought to be a tribute to Alfred's victory over the Danes at the battle of Ethandune in 878, it stands out for miles and is a spectacular sight. In spite of the cold weather, we climbed to the top of the hill and looked down on the horse, and spent some time watching four men trying to parasail of the side of the hill in very strong winds! It was freezing, muddy and wet, but well worth the effort.
Next stop was at Salisbury to visit Stonehenge. We went there 10 years ago, but the children could not remember it so we decided to visit again, and thoroughly enjoyed it. While we were there the sun was setting, so we took some (hopefully) spectacular photos of the sillouette of stonehenge against the sunset. Can't wait to see how the photos turn out.
Speaking of photos - we are up to about 1700 and counting. Thank goodness for digital media and the fact that we don't have to print them all, but it is nice to be able to click away without stressing about the cost of developing film!
We arrived in London at about 6.30 at the house of David Keiller (old family friend) and it was great to see him. He had dinner prepared, and we stayed up late into the night chatting. Unfortunately this back fired on us the next morning when it was time to get up and moving and make our way into the centre of London for sightseeing! Again, it was 10am before we got out of the house and on our way.
On Friday we went the the London Eye (spectacular views) and walked from there to the Houses of Parliament. Anura, Catherine and Jono walked to Thames House (home of MI5) and Whitehall while I visited the Florence Nightingale museum, which was fascinating. Then we met at Westminster Abbey and toured there - another one we had already visited but there is always something you missed the first time and it is such a beautiful building. Charles Darwin, Dr Livingstone, Sir Edward Elgar and countless Kings and Queens of England are all buried there, along with many famous poets and writers. Then we went to Madame Tussaud's to see the wax models (Jono's favourite outing so far). I had a brief encounter with Robbie Williams (fondled his hairy chest) and had my photo taken - sorry to make you jealous Jen! We were absolutely exhausted and didn't get home until about 8pm, as we stayed to see Big Ben and the London Eye lit up at night (also worth the effort).
Saturday we battled with a few public transport problems - the rail line between Red Hill (where we were staying) and London was undergoing engineering work thanks to a Landslide the previous week, and the underground district and circle lines were not operating. This meant we had a 2 hour trip to the city, which would normally only have been 45 minutes, and we didn't get there until after 12pm. We went to the Tower of London (fascinating, and Catherine's favourite) and then walked to St Paul's cathedral to meet old friends from Australia who are living/working in London for a year. Kylie and Paul have three very lively boys under 8, so it was a busy couple of hours! Unfortunately St Paul's closed their doors just as we arrived at 4pm, so we didn't get to see inside which was disappointing. Instead we walked down the Strand to Trafalgar Square, via Australia House. On the way we passed the church of St Clementine which has shrapnel marks along the walls thanks to the bombing raids on London during WW2 (remember the nursery rhyme "Oranges and Lemons, sing the bells of St Clemens"? That's the one...and we DID hear the bells chiming!). We then went to Buckingham Palace and back to David's...and off to a pub for a lovely dinner with him.
Sunday morning we didn't have much energy, and the rail lines were still not operating, so we decided to go for a drive in the country. We visited Runnymede - famous site of the signing of the MagnaCarta and then went on to Windsor and toured the castle there. We discovered that there are some bonuses to travelling in winter - we got to see the Queen's private apartments which are absolutely magnificent. In fact, that castle is probably the highlight of the whole UK visit. Sunday night we went to visit some relatives and had dinner with them - Marcel and Daryl, Max and Susan - it was a fantastic evening and we didn't want to leave! Finally tore ourselves away at 12.30am...
Today (Monday) we packed our bags and returned to Geneva after a delay at Gatwick airport. One more night here and we head for home. I have to say that although Catherine and Jono are desperate to get home, Anura and I are defintely not ready and would happily stay longer. Not only are we dreading returning to work and the busy everyday life we lead, there is so much here we still want to see and do. We already have lists of places to visit 'next time', and the length of the list seems to imply that there will be at least two 'next times'!
That said, it will be nice to catch up with you and bore you with our 1700+ photos, and 5 video tapes! We are also absolutely exhausted and need to come home to recover from these escapades.
Thursday morning (25th Jan) we left Nola's beautiful house in Bath to head for London. Before we left we decided to return to the pub in Bathhampton where we had dinner with Nola to take some photos as it was situated next to the canal and we had forgotten our camera the night we went there. As we approached the pub, we noticed that there was an old church across the road, and lo and behold it was flying the Australian flag! We thought that a bit odd, and decided to investigate. We approached the gates, to find that the iron posts were painted red, white and blue. The church was unlocked, so in we strolled!
What an amazing find, and one that was totally unexpected! We had stumbled across the church that Arthur Phillip had retired to upon his return from his First Fleet voyage and stint as the first Governor of New South Wales. He and his wife are both buried there, and there is a lovely chapel called the Australia Chapel which has stained glass windows with the coats of arms of each state of Australia. In addition to that, there is a list of the people who were on the first fleet, and a few other memorials and tributes. We decided to sign the guest book, and discovered that another Canberra family had been there only days before. Apparently the Australian Ambassador visits this church in October each year, close to the 11th which is the anniversary of Arthur Phillip's death, and attends a special service there. Since it was the day before Australia day, we thought we had been lucky to have this find, and it was a nice reminder of home!
We reluctantly left Bath and headed through Wiltshire for the bright lights of London. On the way we stopped at England's largest white horse at Westbury - carved into the side of the hill in 1778 and thought to be a tribute to Alfred's victory over the Danes at the battle of Ethandune in 878, it stands out for miles and is a spectacular sight. In spite of the cold weather, we climbed to the top of the hill and looked down on the horse, and spent some time watching four men trying to parasail of the side of the hill in very strong winds! It was freezing, muddy and wet, but well worth the effort.
Next stop was at Salisbury to visit Stonehenge. We went there 10 years ago, but the children could not remember it so we decided to visit again, and thoroughly enjoyed it. While we were there the sun was setting, so we took some (hopefully) spectacular photos of the sillouette of stonehenge against the sunset. Can't wait to see how the photos turn out.
Speaking of photos - we are up to about 1700 and counting. Thank goodness for digital media and the fact that we don't have to print them all, but it is nice to be able to click away without stressing about the cost of developing film!
We arrived in London at about 6.30 at the house of David Keiller (old family friend) and it was great to see him. He had dinner prepared, and we stayed up late into the night chatting. Unfortunately this back fired on us the next morning when it was time to get up and moving and make our way into the centre of London for sightseeing! Again, it was 10am before we got out of the house and on our way.
On Friday we went the the London Eye (spectacular views) and walked from there to the Houses of Parliament. Anura, Catherine and Jono walked to Thames House (home of MI5) and Whitehall while I visited the Florence Nightingale museum, which was fascinating. Then we met at Westminster Abbey and toured there - another one we had already visited but there is always something you missed the first time and it is such a beautiful building. Charles Darwin, Dr Livingstone, Sir Edward Elgar and countless Kings and Queens of England are all buried there, along with many famous poets and writers. Then we went to Madame Tussaud's to see the wax models (Jono's favourite outing so far). I had a brief encounter with Robbie Williams (fondled his hairy chest) and had my photo taken - sorry to make you jealous Jen! We were absolutely exhausted and didn't get home until about 8pm, as we stayed to see Big Ben and the London Eye lit up at night (also worth the effort).
Saturday we battled with a few public transport problems - the rail line between Red Hill (where we were staying) and London was undergoing engineering work thanks to a Landslide the previous week, and the underground district and circle lines were not operating. This meant we had a 2 hour trip to the city, which would normally only have been 45 minutes, and we didn't get there until after 12pm. We went to the Tower of London (fascinating, and Catherine's favourite) and then walked to St Paul's cathedral to meet old friends from Australia who are living/working in London for a year. Kylie and Paul have three very lively boys under 8, so it was a busy couple of hours! Unfortunately St Paul's closed their doors just as we arrived at 4pm, so we didn't get to see inside which was disappointing. Instead we walked down the Strand to Trafalgar Square, via Australia House. On the way we passed the church of St Clementine which has shrapnel marks along the walls thanks to the bombing raids on London during WW2 (remember the nursery rhyme "Oranges and Lemons, sing the bells of St Clemens"? That's the one...and we DID hear the bells chiming!). We then went to Buckingham Palace and back to David's...and off to a pub for a lovely dinner with him.
Sunday morning we didn't have much energy, and the rail lines were still not operating, so we decided to go for a drive in the country. We visited Runnymede - famous site of the signing of the MagnaCarta and then went on to Windsor and toured the castle there. We discovered that there are some bonuses to travelling in winter - we got to see the Queen's private apartments which are absolutely magnificent. In fact, that castle is probably the highlight of the whole UK visit. Sunday night we went to visit some relatives and had dinner with them - Marcel and Daryl, Max and Susan - it was a fantastic evening and we didn't want to leave! Finally tore ourselves away at 12.30am...
Today (Monday) we packed our bags and returned to Geneva after a delay at Gatwick airport. One more night here and we head for home. I have to say that although Catherine and Jono are desperate to get home, Anura and I are defintely not ready and would happily stay longer. Not only are we dreading returning to work and the busy everyday life we lead, there is so much here we still want to see and do. We already have lists of places to visit 'next time', and the length of the list seems to imply that there will be at least two 'next times'!
That said, it will be nice to catch up with you and bore you with our 1700+ photos, and 5 video tapes! We are also absolutely exhausted and need to come home to recover from these escapades.
Oxford Odyssey
After a brief interlude (read: no computer access) here I am to share another chapter of the Samara Family vacation.
I have lost track of days, but I think it was last Wednesday that we decided to venture to Oxford for the day. We started out at about 10am (again, a slow start due to the teenage contingent) and headed north on the motorway from Bath to Oxford. It had been very cold, and had snowed in Oxford, so the countryside surrounding it was white and very pretty.
We had arranged to spend the day with Corinne (my lecturer from first year at uni) who is working in Oxford as an agency nurse (they call them 'bank nurses' in England) for twelve months while her husband has a contract and is attached to the university there. They live just outside Oxford, in a small village called Sanford-on-Thames...which like many other english towns has three pubs, but no shop! Corinne had the day off work, and was happy to take us on a tour of Oxford. We started at the University (where else?) and walked along past Christchurch College and Magdalene (pronounced maw_dlin) College to a smaller chapel on campus. We climbed the tower of the chapel, and had a fantastic view of the whole of Oxford. It was a clear day, and we were able to see for miles.
The first thing that struck me was the difference between Oxford and Cambridge. While Cambridge is largely built from lighter stone, the buildings in Oxford are much darker. The second difference is that Cambridge is a bit more open and welcoming - Oxford is very much a closed university, with each college enclosed by walls and very secluded. It is definitely the City of Spires - the architecture is very pointy with tall spires everywhere. The public can pay to tour some of the colleges, so Anura, Catherine and Jonathan toured Christchurch college (and saw the dining room that was used in the Harry Potter movies) while Corinne took me to one of the local hospitals that she works in.
For the nurses reading this, let me tell you just one or two of the differences between the hospitals in Canberra and the very old one I saw in Oxford. The first thing that struck me was the age of the building - everything is so old, and well and truly looks it! The hospital is a specialist hospital so has no emergency section, no paediatrics etc. It has renal services, thoracic and I think neuro wards. It is a real rabbit warren of different buildings - no two of which look alike. Some are timber, some brick, others are portable buildings that you see on building sites! The second major difference - cardboard bedpans, sick bowls, urine bottles and syringe trays! They have a pulping machine in the sluice rooms which compacts it all and somehow washes it into the sewerage system and gets rid of it. While I can see the benefits (reduced risk of infection due to poor sterilising technique and having pans sitting around waiting to be used), I couldn't help thinking about the poor soul who asks for a pan and uses it, only to discover that the nurse doesn't answer the call bell to take it away because she has rushed of to another patient. Apparently they do go soggy, so you have to be very prompt in disposing of them! More info on the hospital system to follow when I get back - won't bore the non-nurses with details!
It was great to catch up with Corinne. She is expecting to return to Canberra in June/July, and is not sure what she will do when she gets there - possibly more agency nursing for the time being.
We left Oxford at about 5.30 and it took us an hour or so to get back to Bath for dinner, packing our bags and a reasonably early night. Next stop...London. Stay tuned!
I have lost track of days, but I think it was last Wednesday that we decided to venture to Oxford for the day. We started out at about 10am (again, a slow start due to the teenage contingent) and headed north on the motorway from Bath to Oxford. It had been very cold, and had snowed in Oxford, so the countryside surrounding it was white and very pretty.
We had arranged to spend the day with Corinne (my lecturer from first year at uni) who is working in Oxford as an agency nurse (they call them 'bank nurses' in England) for twelve months while her husband has a contract and is attached to the university there. They live just outside Oxford, in a small village called Sanford-on-Thames...which like many other english towns has three pubs, but no shop! Corinne had the day off work, and was happy to take us on a tour of Oxford. We started at the University (where else?) and walked along past Christchurch College and Magdalene (pronounced maw_dlin) College to a smaller chapel on campus. We climbed the tower of the chapel, and had a fantastic view of the whole of Oxford. It was a clear day, and we were able to see for miles.
The first thing that struck me was the difference between Oxford and Cambridge. While Cambridge is largely built from lighter stone, the buildings in Oxford are much darker. The second difference is that Cambridge is a bit more open and welcoming - Oxford is very much a closed university, with each college enclosed by walls and very secluded. It is definitely the City of Spires - the architecture is very pointy with tall spires everywhere. The public can pay to tour some of the colleges, so Anura, Catherine and Jonathan toured Christchurch college (and saw the dining room that was used in the Harry Potter movies) while Corinne took me to one of the local hospitals that she works in.
For the nurses reading this, let me tell you just one or two of the differences between the hospitals in Canberra and the very old one I saw in Oxford. The first thing that struck me was the age of the building - everything is so old, and well and truly looks it! The hospital is a specialist hospital so has no emergency section, no paediatrics etc. It has renal services, thoracic and I think neuro wards. It is a real rabbit warren of different buildings - no two of which look alike. Some are timber, some brick, others are portable buildings that you see on building sites! The second major difference - cardboard bedpans, sick bowls, urine bottles and syringe trays! They have a pulping machine in the sluice rooms which compacts it all and somehow washes it into the sewerage system and gets rid of it. While I can see the benefits (reduced risk of infection due to poor sterilising technique and having pans sitting around waiting to be used), I couldn't help thinking about the poor soul who asks for a pan and uses it, only to discover that the nurse doesn't answer the call bell to take it away because she has rushed of to another patient. Apparently they do go soggy, so you have to be very prompt in disposing of them! More info on the hospital system to follow when I get back - won't bore the non-nurses with details!
It was great to catch up with Corinne. She is expecting to return to Canberra in June/July, and is not sure what she will do when she gets there - possibly more agency nursing for the time being.
We left Oxford at about 5.30 and it took us an hour or so to get back to Bath for dinner, packing our bags and a reasonably early night. Next stop...London. Stay tuned!
Thursday 25 January 2007
Basking in Bath
Did I say 'basking'??? Hardly! This is the coldest weather we have experienced yet! I would tell ou to grab a cup of steaming hot chocolate and settle in for a nice cosy read, but you are probably all doing the exact opposite and trying to cool down - well, most of you anyway!
We woke yesterday in Bath to a lovely sunny day. Central heating has the uncanny knack of lulling one into a false sense of security, and of course the minute you step outside the door you are faced with a rude shock and sharply return to your senses! Double layers of everything, including socks and underwear required here.
The house we are staying in is one of the loveliest I have ever seen. I'm not sure how old it is, but it has been recently renovated and is spacious, welcoming and comfortable. As part of the renovations a conservatory was added to the back of the house, and sitting in it with a good book looking out to the sunny garden is incredibly relaxing. Unfortunately, there hasn't been time for that. With only two full days here, we have had to pack everything in and it's been early rising and out the door fairly promptly - well, as promptly as can be expected with two teenagers tagging along!
Yesterday we walked into the centre of Bath - a 5 minute, very brisk walk through lovely gardens towards the Pultney bridge. This bridge is gorgeous - small shops and restaurants are built onto it, and the weir gushes below it. I spent ages watching the ducks paddling around close to the edge of the weir, wondering how on earth they stop themselves plummeting over the edge. There is a memorial plaque on the pavement to someone who died while trying to canoe over the weir...must have been a madman! One of the shops on the bridge is the official Bath Rugby shop, so of course we had to visit and check out the goods for the sake of the rugby fans in the family. Then the terrible teenagers spotted a music store, so we had to wait around while they tested drum kits, guitars and pianos for a short time before continuing on our walk.
I had a mission to fulfil in Bath before we could start sightseeing. I have been having the most horrendous problems with the ACT Nurses Board trying to sort out my initial registration. For those of you who don't know the story, I will tell it briefly here....for the others, sorry, but you can skip this para if you are bored! Before the semester ended, I printed out all the forms required for nursing registration and had them all filled in ready to send off when my results came through. As part of the process, one needs to provide 100 points of identification that has been certified. So I dutifully copied my passport, driver's licence, birth certificate and marriage certificate (to prove change of name) as my ID. This all added up to well over 150 points, but I thought it was better to be safe than sorry! I sent it all off in the first week of December as soon as the results were published. A week before graduation I got a call from the Board to say that there was a problem with my application. All my ID had the surname 'Samara-Wickrama' on it, and I had enrolled at uni with the surname Samara, so the results transcript did not match the ID! I spent half an hour arguing that the surname is not different, but is the common name I am known by. This was not good enough, and I was told to change the enrolment at uni to match my formal ID. With only days until graduation I knew that the degrees would be printed, so there was no way I was going to do that. Instead, they agreed to let me submit further proof of ID in the name Samara. I did this, providing my medicare card, uni ID and credit union debit card. I was told over the phone that these, combined with my birth certificate, would be more than enough. In the days before we left Australia I tried three times to call and make sure it was all ok, and that registration would proceed in time for me to start work on the 5th February. The Board meets on the 1st to approve the registrations, and we don't arrive back until the 31st in the evening. Each time I was only able to reach an answering machine, but since I had a receipt for the registration fee and an official RN number, I thought everything was under control.
To cut a long story short, of course there was a problem and the Board have been trying to contact me. They decided that my birth certificate was not good enough as a form of ID, because I have changed my name and the marriage certificate has Samara-Wickrama, it can't be used to identify me as 'Samara'! So, I have had to photocopy credit cards, and needed to get them signed by a doctor, lawyer, bank manager police officer or registered nurse, and fax them to the Board asap. So, my mission in Bath was a) to find a photocopier (thank goodness for public libraries!) and b) to get the copy certified. Herein lies the rub... I went to a bank and asked the Bank Manager to certify the copies. 20 minutes later, I was told that they would not do it, as the credit card was not from their institution! Off I trotted to the police station, but the police officer on duty told me that they couldn't certify the copy either, as they had not known me for two years and I hadn't proven residency in Bath! She suggested I pop into my doctor's surgery and ask the doctor! I very politely pointed out that my doctor resides in Australia, and I needed this done urgently, but still they refused! By this stage I was really angry - I'd spent an hour of precious daylight trying to sort it all out to no avail. I gave up thinking I would sort it out later, and off we went sightseeing!
First stop, the Roman Baths. As I said when we returned from Rome, those Romans were very clever guys! They managed to find a hot spring, build a temple next to it, put in a complex plumbing network with lead pipes, a hipocaust [ for the uninitiated, here's the definition: Hyp"o*caust, n. - A furnace, esp. one connected with a series of small chambers and flues of tiles or other masonry through which the heat of a fire was distributed to rooms above. This contrivance, first used in bath, was afterwards adopted in private houses.] and have separate bathing rooms, saunas and change rooms for the royalty and the plebs! This is one ancient attraction that is well worth a visit, and very well set up for tourists. There's a free audioguide, and you can listen to a complete history from the building of the baths, to the beliefs of the Romans (which Gods they were trying to please etc) and also a commentary from Bill Bryson with his view on the Baths (a bit boring and too American for my taste!).
After the baths we visited the Abbey, which is an amazingly beautiful church, again with so much stained glass you just can't take it all in. In contrast to the dull Liverpool cathedral, this abbey is built from almost white stone, and is light and airy. There are memorial and tomb stones covering almost every inch of the walls and floor, some so worn out you can hardly read them. By this stage the teenagers were bored, so I set them a challenge to find the oldest date on a tombstone that they could. I had already seen what I thought was the oldest, from 1687, but they managed to find one thirty years older! It also kept them occupied and out of mischief for about 40 minutes...this is my new strategy for cathedral tours from now on!
Next stop, the Circus...a wonderful round street lined with beautiful houses in a perfect circle (http://www.bath.co.uk/_code/sections/whattoseeanddo/walkquick.asp). Many famous people have lived here, and you can see the stones set into the walls above the doors with their names on. After that the Royal crescent, and down to the gardens at the bottom of it where you can see a huge urn that was a gift from Napoleon Bonaparte to the Empress Josephine.
By this time we were bitterly cold and tired, so headed 'home' to Stableford house armed with red wine, cambembert and chocolate. All the essentials for a relaxing evening, and Nola's lovely company into the bargain. After a relaxing couple of hours we defrosted the car, and ventured out into the cold to a wonderful english pub for dinner. The pub was amazing with lots of rooms and a great menu, and a fantastic atmosphere. We returned home well and truly full and ready
for bed!
So, there you have the boring basics of basking in Bath. Stay tuned for the next exciting chapter...
We woke yesterday in Bath to a lovely sunny day. Central heating has the uncanny knack of lulling one into a false sense of security, and of course the minute you step outside the door you are faced with a rude shock and sharply return to your senses! Double layers of everything, including socks and underwear required here.
The house we are staying in is one of the loveliest I have ever seen. I'm not sure how old it is, but it has been recently renovated and is spacious, welcoming and comfortable. As part of the renovations a conservatory was added to the back of the house, and sitting in it with a good book looking out to the sunny garden is incredibly relaxing. Unfortunately, there hasn't been time for that. With only two full days here, we have had to pack everything in and it's been early rising and out the door fairly promptly - well, as promptly as can be expected with two teenagers tagging along!
Yesterday we walked into the centre of Bath - a 5 minute, very brisk walk through lovely gardens towards the Pultney bridge. This bridge is gorgeous - small shops and restaurants are built onto it, and the weir gushes below it. I spent ages watching the ducks paddling around close to the edge of the weir, wondering how on earth they stop themselves plummeting over the edge. There is a memorial plaque on the pavement to someone who died while trying to canoe over the weir...must have been a madman! One of the shops on the bridge is the official Bath Rugby shop, so of course we had to visit and check out the goods for the sake of the rugby fans in the family. Then the terrible teenagers spotted a music store, so we had to wait around while they tested drum kits, guitars and pianos for a short time before continuing on our walk.
I had a mission to fulfil in Bath before we could start sightseeing. I have been having the most horrendous problems with the ACT Nurses Board trying to sort out my initial registration. For those of you who don't know the story, I will tell it briefly here....for the others, sorry, but you can skip this para if you are bored! Before the semester ended, I printed out all the forms required for nursing registration and had them all filled in ready to send off when my results came through. As part of the process, one needs to provide 100 points of identification that has been certified. So I dutifully copied my passport, driver's licence, birth certificate and marriage certificate (to prove change of name) as my ID. This all added up to well over 150 points, but I thought it was better to be safe than sorry! I sent it all off in the first week of December as soon as the results were published. A week before graduation I got a call from the Board to say that there was a problem with my application. All my ID had the surname 'Samara-Wickrama' on it, and I had enrolled at uni with the surname Samara, so the results transcript did not match the ID! I spent half an hour arguing that the surname is not different, but is the common name I am known by. This was not good enough, and I was told to change the enrolment at uni to match my formal ID. With only days until graduation I knew that the degrees would be printed, so there was no way I was going to do that. Instead, they agreed to let me submit further proof of ID in the name Samara. I did this, providing my medicare card, uni ID and credit union debit card. I was told over the phone that these, combined with my birth certificate, would be more than enough. In the days before we left Australia I tried three times to call and make sure it was all ok, and that registration would proceed in time for me to start work on the 5th February. The Board meets on the 1st to approve the registrations, and we don't arrive back until the 31st in the evening. Each time I was only able to reach an answering machine, but since I had a receipt for the registration fee and an official RN number, I thought everything was under control.
To cut a long story short, of course there was a problem and the Board have been trying to contact me. They decided that my birth certificate was not good enough as a form of ID, because I have changed my name and the marriage certificate has Samara-Wickrama, it can't be used to identify me as 'Samara'! So, I have had to photocopy credit cards, and needed to get them signed by a doctor, lawyer, bank manager police officer or registered nurse, and fax them to the Board asap. So, my mission in Bath was a) to find a photocopier (thank goodness for public libraries!) and b) to get the copy certified. Herein lies the rub... I went to a bank and asked the Bank Manager to certify the copies. 20 minutes later, I was told that they would not do it, as the credit card was not from their institution! Off I trotted to the police station, but the police officer on duty told me that they couldn't certify the copy either, as they had not known me for two years and I hadn't proven residency in Bath! She suggested I pop into my doctor's surgery and ask the doctor! I very politely pointed out that my doctor resides in Australia, and I needed this done urgently, but still they refused! By this stage I was really angry - I'd spent an hour of precious daylight trying to sort it all out to no avail. I gave up thinking I would sort it out later, and off we went sightseeing!
First stop, the Roman Baths. As I said when we returned from Rome, those Romans were very clever guys! They managed to find a hot spring, build a temple next to it, put in a complex plumbing network with lead pipes, a hipocaust [ for the uninitiated, here's the definition: Hyp"o*caust, n. - A furnace, esp. one connected with a series of small chambers and flues of tiles or other masonry through which the heat of a fire was distributed to rooms above. This contrivance, first used in bath, was afterwards adopted in private houses.] and have separate bathing rooms, saunas and change rooms for the royalty and the plebs! This is one ancient attraction that is well worth a visit, and very well set up for tourists. There's a free audioguide, and you can listen to a complete history from the building of the baths, to the beliefs of the Romans (which Gods they were trying to please etc) and also a commentary from Bill Bryson with his view on the Baths (a bit boring and too American for my taste!).
After the baths we visited the Abbey, which is an amazingly beautiful church, again with so much stained glass you just can't take it all in. In contrast to the dull Liverpool cathedral, this abbey is built from almost white stone, and is light and airy. There are memorial and tomb stones covering almost every inch of the walls and floor, some so worn out you can hardly read them. By this stage the teenagers were bored, so I set them a challenge to find the oldest date on a tombstone that they could. I had already seen what I thought was the oldest, from 1687, but they managed to find one thirty years older! It also kept them occupied and out of mischief for about 40 minutes...this is my new strategy for cathedral tours from now on!
Next stop, the Circus...a wonderful round street lined with beautiful houses in a perfect circle (http://www.bath.co.uk/_code/sections/whattoseeanddo/walkquick.asp). Many famous people have lived here, and you can see the stones set into the walls above the doors with their names on. After that the Royal crescent, and down to the gardens at the bottom of it where you can see a huge urn that was a gift from Napoleon Bonaparte to the Empress Josephine.
By this time we were bitterly cold and tired, so headed 'home' to Stableford house armed with red wine, cambembert and chocolate. All the essentials for a relaxing evening, and Nola's lovely company into the bargain. After a relaxing couple of hours we defrosted the car, and ventured out into the cold to a wonderful english pub for dinner. The pub was amazing with lots of rooms and a great menu, and a fantastic atmosphere. We returned home well and truly full and ready
for bed!
So, there you have the boring basics of basking in Bath. Stay tuned for the next exciting chapter...
Monday 22 January 2007
Wading through Worcester
It never rains, but it pours. Literally. Coming from drought-ridden Australia, we have not seen so much water in years. Sunday night in Wirral it rained most of the night, and it sounded like the rain was hitting the windows horizontally!
Monday morning we left Wirral and took a drive through Broadheath and Neston, villages that Anura's mother and her family lived in. His grandparents lived in Neston, and the church his parents were married in is at Broadheath. The children have been totally bored by the 'follow the family tree' tour of England, but it is nice for us to re-visit places that have been talked about around the dinner table on Sundays for years!
From Wirral we ventured into Wales and spent some time in a lovely village called Llangolan (don't ask me how to pronounce it!). There had obviously been a lot of rain there also, as the river was raging. The scenery was amazing, particularly ancient ruins of a castle on the top of a hill, and an aquaduct for the canal boats that is the tallest in the country! We had a nice lunch there, and wandered through the main street looking in the shops, before making our way back to the car and heading for Worcester.
For those who haven't travelled to the UK, I will give a quick run-down on the roads here. Looking at the road atlas, blue roads are motorways which are very wide, and very direct and the fastest way to get from one end of the country to the other. These appear to be the only well sign-posted roads in England, as any other road you want to travel on is not clearly marked! The green roads are the next best, usually have overtaking or double lanes, and are almost as good quality as the motor ways but not quite as direct. After that, you can choose to travel the red "A" roads or the yellow "B" roads. The A roads are not too bad, usually wide enough and take you through some lovely countryside and villages. God help you if you take a B road and are in a hurry! Most of them are very narrow, and in some places you need to pull over if there is a car travelling in the opposite direction! These are the roads most likely to have a cattle truck stopped in the middle while they load/unload, great puddles and lots of mud on the edges.
We travelled on A roads to Worcester, and had a lovely drive through the countryside. We arrived in Worcester at about 4pm, in time to visit the tiny village of Tibberton, where Anura's grandmother was born and married his grandfather. The church was unlocked, and we were able to go inside and look at the lovely stained glass windows. Some graves in the churchyard were those of relatives, and we need to come home now and look at the family tree to find out exactly which ones!
After visiting Tibberton we went into Worcester city to find our bed and breakfast that we had booked in advance (wonderful thing, the internet!). We knew it was somewhere near the Cathedral, so it wasn't too difficult to find the general location, but the narrow one way streets were a bit of a challenge in actually finding the B&B! As it turned out, we were totally amazed by the location. The B&B was in the grounds of the Cathedral, and our very large and well furnished bedroom looked straight out at the stained glass windows - literally only 20 metres away from our window and separated only by a cobblestone path! What a view... We had dinner in a portugese restaurant, and then had an early night.
This morning after breakfast we went to visit the Cathedral, which is one of the best we have seen in England. It is very well laid out, with plenty of signs for visitors. This Cathedral has the tomb of King John (after Henry II), and of Prince Arthur (for those who don't know the history, this Prince was the Prince of Wales and was married to Catherine of Aragon at the age of 14, but he died early and never became King so Henry VIII came to the throne, and also inherited Catherine of Aragon as his wife!). Also there are a number of Bishops buried in the tomb. the crypt is also very interesting, the bones of a Norman pilgrim were discovered there during renovations, and you can see his boots and staff on display.
After visiting the Cathedral, we walked around the back to look across to the cricket oval that has been talked about often in the family discussions, to find that it was well under water! The banks of the river Severn have given way with all the rain, and all the sporting grounds are well and truly flooded. Carparks and some houses have also been flooded, and we felt like we were in the city of lakes! Water, water everywhere, but none in Canberra, I'll bet!
After leaving Worcester, we travelled to Droitwich and had lunch with Anura's mother's cousins, Joan and Jim. It is 10 years since we last saw them, and it was lovely to catch up with them and talk about family. Joan is 79, and Jim has just celebrated his 80th birthday. They were amazed at how much the children have grown....thank goodness! It would be a bit of a worry if after 10 years they didn't look any different! Jonathan was 4 when we last visited them.
From Droitwich we visited Upper and Lower Broadheath, where Anura's grandfather was born and lived during his childhood. For those interested in music, this is the village that Elgar was born in (you can do well sign-posted Elgar tours of Worcester and surrounding area http://www.elgar.org/). Grandpa always talked about the fact that he was born in the same village as Elgar, and they both sang in the choir at Worcester cathedral (although I don't think at the same time). We managed to find the house Grandpa lived in as a child, called Elbin Villa, and the pub just across the road where Anura's great grandfather used to play the piano in return for free beer! It still has the same name, but was shut so we couldn't go in and order a pint. Pity.
We saw the church where Anura was baptised in Hanley Castle, and then went to Hanley Swan, and saw the house that Anura can remember staying with his grandparents in as a young child. After that, Catherine and Jonathan were rather fed up, so we ended the Family Tree Tour of England and headed for the motorway to find our way south to Bath.
We arrived in Bath this evening just after dark, and are staying with Nola (Peter's mother) at Stableford House. As it turns out, we drove up this very road 10 years ago (long before Nola lived here) when we were here to get a good view of Bath from the top of the hill! What a coincidence that we have now come back to stay. The house is lovely, and we are looking forward to touring Bath tomorrow. After that, we will venture to Oxford for a day, before making our way to London and the last few days of our holiday.
Two weeks today until we return to reality, school, work and the business of everyday life. In some ways it will be good to get back, but in a lot of ways I wish this holiday could go on forever. We've totally lost track of what day of the week and what date it is, except to remind ourselves when to move on to the next location! Oh well, we can't stay away forever. We will just have to go home and work like crazy to save enough money to come again, particularly as we are already planning what we will see 'next time'!
Better go, the computer is in hot demand!
Monday morning we left Wirral and took a drive through Broadheath and Neston, villages that Anura's mother and her family lived in. His grandparents lived in Neston, and the church his parents were married in is at Broadheath. The children have been totally bored by the 'follow the family tree' tour of England, but it is nice for us to re-visit places that have been talked about around the dinner table on Sundays for years!
From Wirral we ventured into Wales and spent some time in a lovely village called Llangolan (don't ask me how to pronounce it!). There had obviously been a lot of rain there also, as the river was raging. The scenery was amazing, particularly ancient ruins of a castle on the top of a hill, and an aquaduct for the canal boats that is the tallest in the country! We had a nice lunch there, and wandered through the main street looking in the shops, before making our way back to the car and heading for Worcester.
For those who haven't travelled to the UK, I will give a quick run-down on the roads here. Looking at the road atlas, blue roads are motorways which are very wide, and very direct and the fastest way to get from one end of the country to the other. These appear to be the only well sign-posted roads in England, as any other road you want to travel on is not clearly marked! The green roads are the next best, usually have overtaking or double lanes, and are almost as good quality as the motor ways but not quite as direct. After that, you can choose to travel the red "A" roads or the yellow "B" roads. The A roads are not too bad, usually wide enough and take you through some lovely countryside and villages. God help you if you take a B road and are in a hurry! Most of them are very narrow, and in some places you need to pull over if there is a car travelling in the opposite direction! These are the roads most likely to have a cattle truck stopped in the middle while they load/unload, great puddles and lots of mud on the edges.
We travelled on A roads to Worcester, and had a lovely drive through the countryside. We arrived in Worcester at about 4pm, in time to visit the tiny village of Tibberton, where Anura's grandmother was born and married his grandfather. The church was unlocked, and we were able to go inside and look at the lovely stained glass windows. Some graves in the churchyard were those of relatives, and we need to come home now and look at the family tree to find out exactly which ones!
After visiting Tibberton we went into Worcester city to find our bed and breakfast that we had booked in advance (wonderful thing, the internet!). We knew it was somewhere near the Cathedral, so it wasn't too difficult to find the general location, but the narrow one way streets were a bit of a challenge in actually finding the B&B! As it turned out, we were totally amazed by the location. The B&B was in the grounds of the Cathedral, and our very large and well furnished bedroom looked straight out at the stained glass windows - literally only 20 metres away from our window and separated only by a cobblestone path! What a view... We had dinner in a portugese restaurant, and then had an early night.
This morning after breakfast we went to visit the Cathedral, which is one of the best we have seen in England. It is very well laid out, with plenty of signs for visitors. This Cathedral has the tomb of King John (after Henry II), and of Prince Arthur (for those who don't know the history, this Prince was the Prince of Wales and was married to Catherine of Aragon at the age of 14, but he died early and never became King so Henry VIII came to the throne, and also inherited Catherine of Aragon as his wife!). Also there are a number of Bishops buried in the tomb. the crypt is also very interesting, the bones of a Norman pilgrim were discovered there during renovations, and you can see his boots and staff on display.
After visiting the Cathedral, we walked around the back to look across to the cricket oval that has been talked about often in the family discussions, to find that it was well under water! The banks of the river Severn have given way with all the rain, and all the sporting grounds are well and truly flooded. Carparks and some houses have also been flooded, and we felt like we were in the city of lakes! Water, water everywhere, but none in Canberra, I'll bet!
After leaving Worcester, we travelled to Droitwich and had lunch with Anura's mother's cousins, Joan and Jim. It is 10 years since we last saw them, and it was lovely to catch up with them and talk about family. Joan is 79, and Jim has just celebrated his 80th birthday. They were amazed at how much the children have grown....thank goodness! It would be a bit of a worry if after 10 years they didn't look any different! Jonathan was 4 when we last visited them.
From Droitwich we visited Upper and Lower Broadheath, where Anura's grandfather was born and lived during his childhood. For those interested in music, this is the village that Elgar was born in (you can do well sign-posted Elgar tours of Worcester and surrounding area http://www.elgar.org/). Grandpa always talked about the fact that he was born in the same village as Elgar, and they both sang in the choir at Worcester cathedral (although I don't think at the same time). We managed to find the house Grandpa lived in as a child, called Elbin Villa, and the pub just across the road where Anura's great grandfather used to play the piano in return for free beer! It still has the same name, but was shut so we couldn't go in and order a pint. Pity.
We saw the church where Anura was baptised in Hanley Castle, and then went to Hanley Swan, and saw the house that Anura can remember staying with his grandparents in as a young child. After that, Catherine and Jonathan were rather fed up, so we ended the Family Tree Tour of England and headed for the motorway to find our way south to Bath.
We arrived in Bath this evening just after dark, and are staying with Nola (Peter's mother) at Stableford House. As it turns out, we drove up this very road 10 years ago (long before Nola lived here) when we were here to get a good view of Bath from the top of the hill! What a coincidence that we have now come back to stay. The house is lovely, and we are looking forward to touring Bath tomorrow. After that, we will venture to Oxford for a day, before making our way to London and the last few days of our holiday.
Two weeks today until we return to reality, school, work and the business of everyday life. In some ways it will be good to get back, but in a lot of ways I wish this holiday could go on forever. We've totally lost track of what day of the week and what date it is, except to remind ourselves when to move on to the next location! Oh well, we can't stay away forever. We will just have to go home and work like crazy to save enough money to come again, particularly as we are already planning what we will see 'next time'!
Better go, the computer is in hot demand!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)