Letters From Abroad - Whop Whoop 3 Channels

Mr. and  Mrs. P Schultz                                  Mrs. G Wrightson
72 Derwent St                                                186 London RD
Island Bay                                                      Twickenham
Wellington NZ                                                Middlesex UK

Sat Nov 11th 1967

The Weather here is like a normal NZ winter

Dear Sandy and Pete

In answer to your letter, which we collected from the bank today.
First Tim does live in East Sheen. I laughed when I heard it. I immediately thought of Tony Hancock and East Cheam.

This became our Pub with Tim Dobbie and his friends set in East Sheen

We have already been in touch with him and he got us tickets for the All Black Match.
In the stand, what’s more.
He’s in good health and in a good flat.
Better than his NZ ones.
I received a letter from Frances last week so I presume, you have heard of our news till then, as I answered her straight away. I am an excellent letter writer lately, I have written so many. Did Dave Holey get my letter before he left? I hope so. He should arrive here soon we are expecting to hear from him.
Glad to hear about Marilyn, Give her my love and tell her I want to hear from her sometime, I already know about Mr. Barr, Don Markwell told me.
We went to dinner at his house a couple of weeks ago. It is very nice.
A detached house, you don’t see many of these in England they are nearly all joined together. We had a lovely evening and he arranged an interview for me at Unilever Research Lab in Isleworth. I went and was offered a job in bucket chemistry (Product Development) on shampoo, that’s about all they do there. I accepted and start on Monday. Tell Grant and Colin, whoever is in charge, I will write and tell them when I am settled. Salary £700 a year. Not too bad for here, I was quite pleased.

Once again a young crowd and I am working with a young chemist Mike Whiteside. They have a pub in the building everyone goes there for lunch.
Below: Bit of a sing a long with my workmates at Unilever Isleworth

Here are my workmates that I left behind in Petone

 Every Christmas Unilever put on a Stunning Christmas for the kids of the people working there
This years theme was Peter Pan

More about that later.
Dale too has a job, in an agency in Knightsbridge. (Harrods the Posh Store is close by).
His office overlooks Hyde Park. He doesn’t start till Monday week.
It is funny starting a job here you have to get National Insurance and the tax is shocking.
I hate to think what wage I will bring home.

We have a flat that we have been in for week now, in Twickenham.
Once again a detached house. Nice and big.

 Above: Dale outside of our flat with our mini hire car
We have what used to be the billiard room. One large lounge, bedroom same size, kitchen, (plus washing machine and drier, most uncommon here, everyone uses the Launderette) and our own bathroom and toilet.
Below: Guess who? in the Kitchen

 Bringing the food through to the dining room/lounge

 

 To the right was the bedroom
Isleworth is about 2 miles from here and the bus passes the gate.
We are 3/10 mile from the rail station and shops. Quite a good position. £9 a week.
Meat is a terrible price but canned foods are cheap.
Everyone lives out of cans even boiled new potatoes.
Mushrooms we eat a lot only 4/- a pound.
I have so much to tell you Sandy and so little room. We love London.
We are even accepting the fumes in the city. You come home from town filthy.

Today we went up to see the Lord Mayor’s parade, This is a big parade.

Train fares are expensive cost us 16/- in traveling. Today was expensive, my first trip on public transport. We went on a train, the tube and a double decker bus. How about that for one day? You see, we handed over our hire car on Thursday.
What a tragedy. From now on we walk. Can you imagine it.
TV is marvelous, I sit in front of it every night and swap channels.

 Above: The other end of the lounge, yours truly in the favourite place watching TV

With 3 channels you get a good night entertainment.
I have changed my drink from Whisky Sour to Rum Punches. We had them in Trinidad. You would love them, even Pete would. I could drink them all day and get rotten as well, they are rather potent.
We are working out how to mix them. When I have the recipe I’ll send it.
Glad to see you move to Auckland is working our fine.
Today we saw the All Blacks beat Wales on TV, we couldn’t get seats unfortunately.
A great match. To beat Wales is a big thing.
Tell Murray not to worry himself into a frazzle about the wedding. Tell him it’s nothing
You know!
How’s dozy Joan? Still with you? Hope she is behaving.

Above Poor Dozy Joan...second on the right, seeing us off.

We went to Hyde Park Corner the other Sunday. What a laugh, the speakers are hilarious, we must go up again soon.

 The Hilarious Speakers above, and below, yours truly in Hyde Park

Soho was disappointing. Not half as sordid as Acapulco or Panama.
Rick Christie is here and Eddie Bisdee, hope to see them soon. I’m afraid you can’t say much in aerogrammes but it is a bit expensive to send ordinary air mail to everyone. give my love to Nan and Grandy. Did they get my card. Hope to hear from you soon.

Love Gillian and Dale

Letters From Abroad - Life in Thames Ditton

Mr. & Mrs. P Schultz                  Mrs. G Wrightson
72 Derwent St                                     C/O Bank of New South Wales
Island Bay                                           Sackville Street
Wellington NZ                                    London W1 UK
20th October 1967


Dear Sandy and Pete
We have been in England now for 1 week and today, is the same weather as the day we arrived. Overcast, a bit cold. It has been fine for about 3 days. quite an achievement apparently. Even though the weather is bad I am not moaning, because England really is great.

We have been lucky living with Phil and Chris. remember him. he was the chap who came over a couple of years ago. Chris is terrific fun and I get on with her good oh. She is pregnant and it is called Fred, It even has a casting vote in an argument. They have been terrific to us. put a party on for us and all.

Actually Chris and I are slowly picking up one and others accents. She is sounding like a Kiwi and me a Pom. God forbid.

Above from Left; Moi, Chris (with Fred) and Phil

Very impressed, actually the first Rolls Royce Convertible we'd ever seen, in fact probably the first Rolls Royce we had ever seen.

Sandy I received your letter at Curacao and very pleased I was to receive it I might add, as Mum didn’t write there.That photo of us in the paper I reckon I looked like the original Billy Bunter but it was still fun to see it,

 There ya go Billy Bunter, face round like a dinner plate, as my Mother said

I am just running a bath at the moment they have a great system, when the hot tap comes on it turns on the gas and it heats the water while it runs.Never out of hot water. I think that is quite good.

Chris and Phil have their own house, in Thames Ditton, very nice. Housing is expensive here especially in London. They own a terraced house like Coronation Street but they have got some garden. It is quite big inside, Lounge, DR Kitchen, Bath, Toilet and 3 bedrooms upstairs. A very cosy little home. Well as you might guess I could live here easily for quite a while. 

Happiness in Thames Ditton

 Another plus for Thames Ditton, Hampton Court Home, of Henry VIII, close by.
We haven’t got jobs yet. I haven’t looked, Dale had an appointment yesterday to see this chap had any vacancies. He missed out on a job on BP account, (just what would have suited him) by 2 weeks. The chap said he would have hired him too so the chap is looking around different agencies for Dale, so we just sit back and wait.

Today we have to take our hire car back £13 for 1 week, a Morris 1100, no mileage charge and we have been all over London. But we read in the paper a place which hires Morris same conditions so we are going to try there as we need a car for flat hunting.
Looks like we are going to have to pay about £10 a week for a decent flat suits us. Haven’t seen Tim yet but we are going to NZ House today so I will look in the visitors book. It is best if you write to us c/o the Bank. I will put the address on the back.

Sandy you would go mad like me in the shops. I bought a pair of beige patent chunky shoes for 89/11 and these were expensive. New woolen long sleeve frock £6
Expensive too. Good bra 15/-. Panty hose I won’t now wear anything else/ 9/11 marvelous invention, no good for tubbys though. Heavy knit beige polo net woolen 42/6 from Marks and Spencers.

At the Tower of London, attired in said Woolen dress, (red it was) and the chunky beige patent shoes

Above: The Red Dress now in Carnaby Street

Now Dale in shot, continuing our early sightseeing. The Royal Town of Windsor
Hooray I have long nails again. Send my regards to Lab Staff, Bruce, Owen, Mr Williams etc and also Dave Holey. Tell him I will write to him shortly.
How is Julie managing with Willie away.
Love to Darielle and Skid I will also write to them soon plus must tell Frances all about Tahiti as we were going to go there for a holiday. So inform all these bods that I will keep in touch. I will write again soon, Sandy.
Pete, the girls with their mini skirts are quite something. Dale loves them
Love Gillian and Dale
Fred turned out to be Graham, cute as a button and now a Facebook Friend

Letters from Abroad - Innocents At Sea

In September 1967 we set sail for the big OE adventure.
We made the local paper's social page. It was big deal leaving to go Overseas in the 60's...Look how many people took time off work, to throw streamers, sing "Auld Lang Syne" and "Now is the hour".
Bringing lots of tears to our eyes.
My dear friend Sandy kept all the letters, that I wrote to her over the period we were away. All twelve of them. What memories. I can't thank you enough Sandy.

So here is the first letter, interspersed with photos, from our albums.

 George Clarke, Liz Miller , Dale, Yours truly, Lou and Craig

Front from left, My Brother Jack. My Mum Nora, Dale's Mum Faye, Joan from work, Auntie Glad and with the white hair in the rear George Shapland

From left; Smidgen of George Shapland, Joan, Auntie Glad, Liz, Sandy, Dave B and George C

Half of My Mum, Lou at rear, in front of her, Mr Dave Williams from work, Top of Craig's head,Dale's Mum. Auntie Glad and From my work, Joan, Liz and Sandy.


Mr & Mrs P Schultz                                  Mrs G Wrightson
72 Derwent St                                           Passenger,
Island Bay                                                 Northern Star
Wellington NZ                                          Shaw Savill, London

22nd Sept 1967

Dear Sandy and Pete

(Election Day Tomorrow. Hope we win)
I just remembered I forgot to ring Nan, Do apologise for me, I’ll send her a postcard possibly from Trinidad .

 Moi with a Calypso Singer in the a fore mentioned Trinidad
Below: The Hotel where we had our first ever Rum Punch. Immediate conversion.

We can’t send anything but these things (aerogrammes) from Acapulco and I am writing as few letters as possible. Thank God tomorrow we land in Acapulco. 8 days at sea is too long, everyone is getting scratchy.

 Acapulco - You can just pick out the diver wonderfully talented stupid young men.


The day life is great I can stand any amount of that,

Life on board - Dale with unidentified playmate in the deck sports.

the weather is hot not too hot, and we are both sporting good tans but even Dale admits this, ‘the night life is boring’. We’ve had 2 movies since Tahiti ,TV and every night, boozing in the tavern. I haven’t been drunk once yet, I very rarely have more than one drink We’ve made some good friends,on board and mix in with four or five different crowds. There is certainly some weirdies on board. One American chap, fortyish, they put off at Tahiti because he was always drunk and there is a group of NZ boys who were threatened that they would go into
the brig if they didn’t behave. We have a very nice married couple at our table called Rikki and Terry Yearbury, who come from Auckland.

She is a school teacher and they are really fun.

Blair Harkness, Ricki Yearbury, Yours truly and Nigel? in our cabin. Cop the nice traveling rug on my bunk. A 21st birthday present

The Crew have had a few amusements this past week, Last Saturday night there was Tahitian night, Everyone went native and had a wow of a time,

Ahh so sweet.
Another Big Fancy Dress night below

Looking more Mexican than Tahitian, Senor Dale.

Sunday was Quiz night Ricki, Terry Dale and I nearly won first prize., then Bingo what a laugh, That is you should hear the funny sayings ‘No 2 small duck on a pond’ and everyone goes Quack quack…’No 8’ Big fat lady, ‘Legs 11’ and all the men whistle.

Tahiti was fun. We didn’t go on a conducted tour, we made our own, we ended up on a native bus where the driver couldn’t speak English and very little French but somehow we communicated with him and he took us on his usual run up this valley which was lovely, streams and waterfalls. Only cost is 20 francs each (1 franc =1 penny) and other people paid £5 to see what the tour guides wanted them to see. 

From left; Moi, The 'Kindly' Driver and Ms Ricki
We saw a lot of poverty but colourful poverty(!). The people are very happy, until they are drunk, then they are like the Islanders at home, Stroppy. At night we went to the Tahitian Hotel. Fabulous place 10/ to get in and 8/4 for a drink, any drink Coco Cola, beer anything…all 8/4

Dr Dale
We crossed the Equator on Wednesday didn’t even feel the bump! Dale played a part in the ceremony, he was horrible and funny. He was the Doctor throwing kidneys and livers and bones around. Fresh ones too. Let Nan and Grandy reads this letter as this is for them as well as for you. Give my love to all at work. It really seems years since I left. Amazingly enough I don’t feel homesick I think that might come at Xmas. Thank Joan and Mr Williams, as well as you Sandy, for seeing us off. I was thrilled, Won’t write again till we arrive in the UK

Lots of love Gillian and Dale

More random shots
On Deck round the pool

(It seems as now, no matter where we go, we take Bad weather with us!)
Below Acapulco again - Could be Wellington?

Curacao, still raining

Below: Going through the Panama Canal

 Last Stop before the UK -  Lisbon

Below; And here we are in Southampton with the hire car. Do you think England was ready for us?