speculating as to what they would find down south.
Norah was glad that Irene and Freddie were in their group, but to her dismay, the Grenvilles were in it as well. She tried not to let her feelings show, but Bert was as sour-tempered as his wife and she didn’t trust him, though he’d given her no reason for this.
They set off early in the morning, snatching a quick breakfast of bread and jam, and taking with them a package of sandwiches and metal bottles of water.
The journey seemed very long indeed and even with the windows open, the railway carriage soon grew unbearably hot. They’d got used to hot weather on board the ship, but there had usually been a sea breeze. Today the air was still and heat seemed to press down on you like a heavy weight. The children drank their water then complained about being thirsty.
‘Keep hold of those bottles and we’ll fill them every time we stop,’ Andrew said. ‘I’ve been in hot countries before and you need to drink a lot more water.’
Luckily the train stopped several times and at each stop they were able to buy something to eat and drink, pies, sandwiches or cakes, and cups of dark, stewed tea, which normally she’d have turned her nose up at. They were also able to refill their water bottles. Indeed, the station staff seemed to expect that.
Norah had never in her whole life felt as thirsty as this. But then, she’d never experienced such heat in England. Her face was glowing and her hair felt damp with sweat.
Some people grumbled, but one or two seemed to love the heat, and to Norah’s surprise, Irene was one of those. Freddie, however, looked desperately uncomfortable and complained several times.
As if that would make any difference! It wasn’t setting a good example to the children to see a grown man grumbling like that.
The scenery between stops seemed to consist mainly of ‘bush’ as everyone called the countryside that hadn’t been settled. There were trees with dull green leaves, some very tall, and sparse undergrowth, very unlike that in England.
The first time the children saw a kangaroo hopping across a piece of open ground as the train passed by, they got very excited, but after they’d seen a lot of them, they lost interest. It was a relief when they fell asleep one by one.
Andrew gave her a weary smile and said in a low voice, ‘Bit of an endurance feat, isn’t it?’
‘It is rather.’ She fanned herself with a newspaper they’d bought at the station, knowing her cheeks were still flushed.
‘It only gets this hot in the summer, thank goodness. Eh, I’ll be glad to get there.’ He leaned his head back and soon he too was asleep.
Norah wished she could drop off so easily, but she’d never found it easy to take naps in the daytime so she stared out of the window and day-dreamed of having her own kitchen, of looking after her family, cooking, washing, doing all the familiar chores which added up to making a home .
And then there were the unfamiliar things ahead of her, not just milking cows and living on a farm, but sleeping with her new husband.
No wonder she couldn’t sleep.
It was late at night and had long been dark when they arrived in Pemberton, because you didn’t get long summer evenings nearer the equator, Andrew Boyd had said. They’d been expecting a town, but this place didn’t seem more than a village to Irene.
She shook Freddie awake and they got ready to leave the train, but before they did, a man walked up and down shouting, ‘Leave your luggage on the train. Leave your bags on the train. They’ll be quite safe and you’ll need both hands to eat and drink.’
They found some people from the towns waiting on the platform with corned beef sandwiches and cups of tea. The tea had been brewed in a big square tin labelled Laurel Kerosene. Irene hoped it had been thoroughly washed out. She accepted a cup from a smiling woman, who’d scooped it out with a jug.
‘Where do we sleep?’ Freddie asked a man who
Norah was glad that Irene and Freddie were in their group, but to her dismay, the Grenvilles were in it as well. She tried not to let her feelings show, but Bert was as sour-tempered as his wife and she didn’t trust him, though he’d given her no reason for this.
They set off early in the morning, snatching a quick breakfast of bread and jam, and taking with them a package of sandwiches and metal bottles of water.
The journey seemed very long indeed and even with the windows open, the railway carriage soon grew unbearably hot. They’d got used to hot weather on board the ship, but there had usually been a sea breeze. Today the air was still and heat seemed to press down on you like a heavy weight. The children drank their water then complained about being thirsty.
‘Keep hold of those bottles and we’ll fill them every time we stop,’ Andrew said. ‘I’ve been in hot countries before and you need to drink a lot more water.’
Luckily the train stopped several times and at each stop they were able to buy something to eat and drink, pies, sandwiches or cakes, and cups of dark, stewed tea, which normally she’d have turned her nose up at. They were also able to refill their water bottles. Indeed, the station staff seemed to expect that.
Norah had never in her whole life felt as thirsty as this. But then, she’d never experienced such heat in England. Her face was glowing and her hair felt damp with sweat.
Some people grumbled, but one or two seemed to love the heat, and to Norah’s surprise, Irene was one of those. Freddie, however, looked desperately uncomfortable and complained several times.
As if that would make any difference! It wasn’t setting a good example to the children to see a grown man grumbling like that.
The scenery between stops seemed to consist mainly of ‘bush’ as everyone called the countryside that hadn’t been settled. There were trees with dull green leaves, some very tall, and sparse undergrowth, very unlike that in England.
The first time the children saw a kangaroo hopping across a piece of open ground as the train passed by, they got very excited, but after they’d seen a lot of them, they lost interest. It was a relief when they fell asleep one by one.
Andrew gave her a weary smile and said in a low voice, ‘Bit of an endurance feat, isn’t it?’
‘It is rather.’ She fanned herself with a newspaper they’d bought at the station, knowing her cheeks were still flushed.
‘It only gets this hot in the summer, thank goodness. Eh, I’ll be glad to get there.’ He leaned his head back and soon he too was asleep.
Norah wished she could drop off so easily, but she’d never found it easy to take naps in the daytime so she stared out of the window and day-dreamed of having her own kitchen, of looking after her family, cooking, washing, doing all the familiar chores which added up to making a home .
And then there were the unfamiliar things ahead of her, not just milking cows and living on a farm, but sleeping with her new husband.
No wonder she couldn’t sleep.
It was late at night and had long been dark when they arrived in Pemberton, because you didn’t get long summer evenings nearer the equator, Andrew Boyd had said. They’d been expecting a town, but this place didn’t seem more than a village to Irene.
She shook Freddie awake and they got ready to leave the train, but before they did, a man walked up and down shouting, ‘Leave your luggage on the train. Leave your bags on the train. They’ll be quite safe and you’ll need both hands to eat and drink.’
They found some people from the towns waiting on the platform with corned beef sandwiches and cups of tea. The tea had been brewed in a big square tin labelled Laurel Kerosene. Irene hoped it had been thoroughly washed out. She accepted a cup from a smiling woman, who’d scooped it out with a jug.
‘Where do we sleep?’ Freddie asked a man who
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