Well back again we went to see if I could find any records of my Grandad … seeing as he was the last jailer at the prison after the war … But having spoken to a few people at the records department they all said the same thing. Post War records were not kept at all 🫤😓 Sad but I’m not surprised 🤔 This is a memorial to all Freedom Fighters which is fitting 🙏 I did leave a note in the visitors book so having walked the footsteps of my Grandad I have left a mark to commemorate his being a part of Cellular Jail History 🤍
I met my husband in Kolkata & yet our lives were entwined through history through our parents & grand parents!!! My grandad and grand uncles knew Jonathan’s dad when they lived in Port Blair …. 6 degrees of separation take on a new meaning for the two of us !!! Time has brought us together with our ancestors and we feel very Blessed to be able to witness this together 🤍 30 years of being married has a special note to it 🎶🎵🎶
Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose Island, formerly known as Daniel Ross Islands, was occupied by the British Colony during the pre-independence era. In the early 1850s, the British government took control of Ross Island, and the island became the centre of British power. The British ruled on the island for almost 80 years and built a lot of infrastructures like a bakery, church, water treatment plant, tennis court, hospital, cemetery, and many more. In 1857, the Indian Government built a prison on the island where they would send the most dangerous prisoners to isolate them from the rest. Ross Island,Andaman was under British power until 1942, when the Japanese Government took it over. It was just nine months when the Japanese Government claimed the land, but in 1941, the land went through a massive earthquake which resulted in the abandonment of the island. In 1945, the Indian allies reclaimed the property and rebuilt some of the buildings like the bakery and local stores where you can buy souvenirs to recollect the memory of Ross Island. Taking a tour of Ross Island, a charming little island, will take you back in time as you can still see the historic ruins on the islands, which date back to the British occupation. Some buildings are still in great condition, giving you a clear picture of how things were during the British and Japanese ruling periods.
A few hours well spent on this island and we travelled around in an electric buggy.
The island is teeming with deers Fresh coconut water 🤩. There’s warning of coconuts falling off the trees so to be very careful!Trees dating back hundreds of years Youngest daughter having a good time too 🥰
I am in the land of my birth & today India celebrates Independence Day ! How utterly wonderful that I should be standing on the soil I was born into .
My post is a short one as we are in a tiny little town in the foothills of the Himalaya’s called Leh & the internet 🛜 is not good.
We have just finished an epic trip with Two Wheel Expiditions on a motorcycle around the foothills of the Himalayas…. It’s been a dream of ours for many years and we have done it ! I still think the last 9 days of riding is a figment of my imagination 💭 Thank goodness for pics ☺️
It’s called the Land of High Passes and believe me we did some very high Passes…. 18000ft to be exact !
This was the last of the four Passes we did and the air was very very thin!
Before I left I had to do a small piece of sewing to keep me going for the month I’m away from. It’s a simple mat with a sample Dresden Plate I was trying out as I had never made one.
Hidden away deep in a steep valley in Gippsland, Victoria, Australia, Walhalla was once a rich gold mining town with over 3,500 people calling it home. Now it is home to just 20 or so permanent residents.
Gold was first discovered in Walhalla by Ned Stringer in 1862, in a small creek running into the Thomson River. Ned quickly laid his claim and word spread of his find. With the lure of gold to be found the town quickly grew, becoming a thriving community. There were 10 hotels, 3 breweries, 7 churches and over 30 shops. Walhalla was even the first country town outside Melbourne to have electric street lighting, courtesy of the boilers which generated power to run the machinery in the gold mines.
The railway arrived in 1910, just a few short years before the closure of the mines in 1914. Ironically, instead of being used to bring new buildings to Walhalla and grow the town, the railway was used to remove many of the buildings after the mines closed.
For many years Walhalla slept virtually abandoned in its deep valley.
Today many buildings have been meticulously recreated, including the Mechanics Institute, the old Post Office, Fire Station, and the Corner Store/Museum. Take a stroll up the main street past the original stone retaining wall and the fire station straddling Stringers creek, and explore spectacular views of the township from the tramline walking track, once used to transport ore carts.
Hear about the lives of Walhalla personalities like Catherine “Kitty” Cane, a sly grog tavern owner, and Doreen Hannan, the Postmistress who refused to leave her post staffing the town’s communications while a bushfire threatened Walhalla.
WALHALLA is in a time capsule as far as I’m concerned. We have visited this place four times in the last 30 years and nothing has changed. The town has been beautifully preserved and is kept meticulously.
It’s that time of month again and we are officially into the second half of this year!!!
Life has been crazy busy as always and again my quilting projects are kinda on the back burner coz’ of grandbaby duties…… not that I’m complaining 🥰
These two scrappy pieces were made experimenting with my new machine when Kate was here. I’m glad I sat and did some experimenting at the time seeing as I’ve only been able to do some FMQ on a few pieces getting ready to assemble another quilt….. let’s see when I have time to finish that one !
As much as I loved making this I found it a waste of some good pieces of material…
Well here’s to the next month of ScrapHappiness ❣️
Time is creeping up slowly and our trip is coming closer & closer.
We leave to head to India on 3 August and then ….
We meet up with the Expidition group in New Delhi to start the trip.
It’s something we have wanted to do for many many years and as we are getting older trips on a motorcycle in rugged conditions and at high altitudes will get more and more difficult… so it was time to bite the bullet and get this ticked off our bucket list !
This is the route
It’s a 12 day Expidition and each day will take us to another small town closer to the foothills of the Himalayas…. Base camp to Mount Everest !
This is a preview of the adventure pending and I will blog at each place we go to. The history attached to each place is superb and being born & having lived for the first 27 years of my life in India it’s epic that we can go back and do this 😍
Cannot believe it’s been another month !!! And we are back to ScrapHappy posting.
It’s been a very busy month for this Nana and my heart overflows with love & joy for my granddaughter 💝
It’s been super hard to find time to devote to my sewing but I do make time as it’s a love I cannot put aside.
I’m not sure about the rest of the world but we here in the land down under celebrate Mother’s Day … and I had a project in mind for my son in law’s grandma who has come down to visit from Malaysia.
She is used to warm tropical climate and coming here in winter isn’t the best, so I made her a quilt to put over her knee as she sits and watches tv.
It’s a simple design and is made from scraps from a quilt cover I had made a year ago but never use as the colours are not to my hubby’s liking. So I cut it up and still have pieces left to make smaller things.
I have used the Rag Quilting style as it’s warm and cosy 🩵
Here’s to the next ScrapHappy post and hopefully I can make something else in between 🤩
Good morning friends, it’s that wonderful time again.
I have had a few weeks of absolutely no sewing or creating as I’ve been on mummy/nana duty to my elder daughter who is a brand new mum 😍. She is doing well but I’m there as all Nana’s are as back up 🤍 My granddaughter is doing well & needless to say we are besotted.
I did get a little time to do a couple of scrappy projects. I’ve been wanting to try out these as I’ve seen them made on YouTube.
The first one is a set of coasters. Mother’s Day is coming up and I wanted to make something for my friends and I will put a teabag with each and wrap it up with a lot of love and give it to them.
The second project is a basket. Again something I have seen made on YouTube and wanted to try it out. I’m very happy with the result and this ScrapHappy Basket will be a present for my future daughter in law’s mum who loves everything I make and loves the colour green.
Every piece I’ve made has been made from scraps. I have a few 5” squares that have been lying in a box for a long time with not enough to make any large quilt. The fabric for the basket was given to me by a friend as an off cut she found at a market and picked it up as she knew I’d make something with it. I made a baby blanket with the piece and this was the leftover scrap which I had to join in a few places to make one piece to cut out the basket.
ScrapHappy days are days I like coz’ I don’t have to overthink what I’m going to make & the projects are small and doable in a short time. I love the creative side that comes out in me and even though these days I’m fighting to get decent sewing time I’ve still got a bit of time to make something pretty & best of all I can present them to my friends.
Here are the links for everyone who joins ScrapHappy from time to time (they may not post every time, but their blogs are still worth looking at). The list below is the most current one I have, so if you’d like me to update something, let me know in the Comments. This month, we’re welcoming back Lynn after taking some time off from blogging, and Tierney, who’s creating something spectacular for you all to enjoy. Be sure to drop by and say hello!
I have always loved baking. I’m self taught and almost everything I make is Not perfect but my family loves eating what I create & so do I.
I don’t bake as much as I used to when the kids were in school . There were always after school snacks and freshly baked goods for after school sports. Not only did my kids enjoy the treats and gobble it all up but also my kids friends and their mums used to look out for my after school baking.
Hungry kids are the best …. They devour everything put in front of them and I enjoyed watching them relish it all 🤍
The one thing I have not stopped doing is making Hot Cross Buns on Good Friday. I get up at 6am and do the first mix and leave it to rise & go back to bed. I have been doing this from the first time I came to Australia 30 years ago and it starts my Days of Prayer till Easter Sunday perfectly.
Prayers for me is not only the traditional way …. Being kind to another person…. Helping wherever you can… & cooking and baking is another form of prayer for me. So today I Prayed…. With my heart & with my hands 🙏
HAPPINESS IS..... 