Jekka's Australia Tour - October 2008
Sitting here at home on a crisp late autumn morning it is already hard to imagine the warmth and inspiration of spring that I was enjoying a few weeks ago whilst undertaking a promotional tour to launch both ‘The Complete Herb Book’ and ‘Seeds’ in Australia.
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I am very grateful to Kyle Cathie Ltd, the UK publishers, for sponsoring the flight and to Simon and Schuster, the Australian publishers, for organising the tour and their generous hospitality.
Having never been to Australia it was a very exciting prospect. I only have a small knowledge of the vast country from reading books and watching films and of course television programmes. But to actually be there and see the country and experience some of its sheer size was a pleasurable experience. |
Tuesday 30th September |
Our guide, mentor and now friend, the publicist from Simon and Schuster, Anabel Pandiella, picked us up from the Sydney Airport after our 22 hour flight. As we arrived at 5am Australian time (7pm UK time) we were allowed to spend the day quietly wandering around the iconic sites, which were all in easy walking distance from our hotel, and adjust to the 10 hour time change. |
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This was the view from our Bedroom window showing
the entrance to the Botanic Gardens. |
Sydney Bridge taken from the harbour side near the Opera House. |
Wednesday 1st October |
After 3 press interviews and a podcast recording in the morning it was time for the official book launch which took place in the Botanic Gardens in Sydney.
The first speech was given by Tim Jackson, President of the Friends of the Botanic Gardens, as I would be giving (during our 10 days in Australia) five lectures in aid of the Botanic Gardens in Sydney and Melbourne and a further two lectures for the Australian Garden History Society in Tasmania. |
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This was followed by François McHardy, the MD of Simon and Schuster, who welcomed me to Australia.
Then it was my turn. It is a long time since I felt that nervous, standing there in the warm sunshine, talking to the press and dignitaries, probably partly due to tiredness as a result of the time change.
Nerves conquered, it was a most enjoyable event. After which the Simon and Schuster team took Mac and I to a great welcoming dinner at the Glebe Point Diner, one of Sydney’s first slow food restaurants. |
Thursday 2nd October |
After a breakfast radio interview and a magazine interview at the hotel Anabel drove us to our first Gardening Australia ABC and Gardening Australia Magazine Lunch with talk.
The drive was interesting across Sydney Bridge and out to the suburbs. It is a confusing city as it is built on a river with many inlets so you think you know which way you are going, then, even though you have gone through underpasses and tunnels and over bridges, you realise that you have only just gone around the corner.
That evening I met up with old friends from the Royal Horticultural Society, both of whom used to work as part of original Shows department team. One now lives and works in Sydney, the other was on holiday. It was a great reunion and we ate in a restaurant in the shadow of Sidney Harbour Bridge. |
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Friday 3rd October |
The day started early with an interview for Home and Beautiful Magazine, followed by my first lecture for the Friends of the Botanic Gardens on planning a herb garden. |
The lecture went well despite feeling as if I was in bit of a time warp due to the 10 hour difference. After the lecture the first question asked totally floored me. It was "How do I keep Possums out of my garden?"! As I have never seen a Possum I had no idea. The next question was equally confusing, "‘What herb would you recommend for keeping ‘Blow flies’ out of the house?"! That one I did manage after I had ascertained that ‘Blow flies’ were rather like our blue bottles. I suggested Tansy, Tanacetum vulgare, as I had seen it growing in the Botanical Garden and it was traditionally used by butchers to keep flies off the meat.
As soon as the lecture was over it was off to record three radio programmes: two in Sidney and one for Perth. Then in the evening Mac and I met up with Ruth, a very old friend of the family who has been living and working in Australia for the past 20 years. |
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This is the Curry Tree, Murraya keonigii, which grows profusely in the Botanic Gardens herb garden.
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Saturday 4th October |
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The morning started early with two radio interviews done over the telephone from the hotel. Then it was off to the ABC studios to do an hour long Gardening radio programme from what is called a Tardis studio, as it was being transmitted live in Perth.
This was great fun! James Lush the show's host is joined weekly by the Soil Sisters, Andrea Whiteley and Sabrina Hahn. I became an honorary ‘Soil Sister’ standing in for Sabrina who was away on a well earned holiday.
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After the interview we returned to the hotel to be picked up by Tim Jackson. We had a well earned afternoon rest in her boat house which had spectacular views over the Sydney Harbour.
In the evening we went to supper with Ros and Bill. Ros is a trained herbalist and also on the committee of the Friends of the Botanical gardens. Sadly we arrived too late to see their garden, but the food and company made up for the disappointment. |
Sunday 5th October |
| After a peaceful night in Tim’s boat house, we had lovely croissant for breakfast and then she took us off to see a local garden centre called ‘Eden’. |
This is a very interesting centre as it has constructed a high walkway through the garden centre over looking their display gardens, a very clever idea as it enables you to have a birdeye view. I was totally gob smacked to find my name being used in vain on a bed label in the herb sales area! |
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We then met up with Anabel and her husband Alex.... |
| ...for a visit to the famous Bondi beach as featured in ‘Home and Away’. We went for a cliff walk followed by a great meal sitting outside a restaurant overlooking the beach enjoying the warmth of the sun. |
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Monday 6th October |
Off to the Botanic Gardens for the second of three lectures. This was very well attended despite it being a public holiday.
As a thank you, after the lecture, the Friends of the Botanic Gardens took Mac and I to the famous restaurant called ‘The Pier’ It was wonderful, a meal to remember. |
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Anabel had then kindly arranged for us to have an evening cruise around Sydney Harbour.
It was a perfect spring evening and for the first time I understood the magic of Sydney’s water ways. |
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