5th August 2022, and it is finally ours. Perhaps finally isn’t really the right word given that I only stumbled across the listing on the 20th June (while procrastinating on realestate.com for that multi-million dollar mansion I’m going to buy when the book I haven’t finished writing becomes a bestseller and a movie…) And there it was—a village—an entire village for the same price as a unit in the suburbs! We viewed it two days later, had an offer accepted within the week, and six weeks later here we are—the proud owners of this amazing piece of history. Who wants a multi-million-dollar mansion anyway...
There is so much to explore, so much to understand and so much work, it is hard to know where to begin. But a quick reality check sets us onto job number one.
There is wood everywhere. And this is Australia, where our greatest fear (after spiders and snakes) are the dreaded termites. Being a city girl, the mere word sends shivers down my spine, so it isn’t reassuring to find two nests of termites in the garden after only being there an hour. Plan number one—to hunt out all the important historic artifacts—is replaced with hunting out all the rotten wood left on the ground. And it is everywhere. Apart from the 100 plus tree stumps, there are numerous woodsheds, wood fencing, wooden borders and just piles and piles of wood. This place is a smorgasbord for termites.
The Trunk
Enough of termite hunting. I just need to explore. I find my reward tucked in one of the tumbling down sheds—a cash register and a trunk.
I force the trunk open. Unfortunately, it isn’t filled with gold/ money/ jewels but a pile of documents. Sadly, much of it is destroyed—nibbled by mice and insects and damaged by damp. But there are lots of unusual documents some dating back over hundred years: grant applications from the 1920s, dog registrations from the 1930s, and a wonderful little jewellery reference book from the SA police filled with pages of pocket watches and wristlets to help describe and identify stolen goods.
It is a fascinating find, but one I must explore in depth when time allows.
In the meantime, it is back to rotting wood!
The First Sunset
I can’t begin to describe how beautiful it is here at night. It's like a sunset over the African savannah (or at least what I imagine the sunset over the African savannah would be like). And so quiet and tranquil.
Then the stars come out.....
