Memories of home

On Wednesday afternoon I made my way to Melbourne via Wellington. While not the fastest, more direct route, it did get me into town early evening – early enough to catch up with two close friends, Steve and Pete. Steve and I have known each other for almost a decade. We even shared a flat in Sydney for a brief period.

Cloud covered most of New Zealand as I made my way south. However, Wellington proved to be a delightful exception. The windy capital was enjoying sunny conditions. It was wonderful to fly over Cook Strait watching inter-island ferries making their way along the spectacular Marlborough Sounds. Barrett Reef caught my eye as we came into land. It will be 40 years next April since the Wahine ferry struck these rocks and sank during a raging storm. 52 lives were lost that day.


Steve and Pete were in fine form. They were looking forward to a vacation in California, Las Vega and Alaska, scheduled to start 24 hours after I departed. Dinner was at a wonderful restaurant in Prahran called Souk. The menu was varied, the food delicious and the service; friendly. If only London had more reasonably priced venues of this quality.