I can't believe it, in one single day Lillie has started toilet training and is sleeping in a toddler bed instead of a cot. I thought I might be jumping the gun a little bit but over the past few weeks she has shown interest in watching Judd go to the toilet. I bought a potty a couple of months ago but she didn't like sitting on it so last week I bought an insert to go on the toilet to make the seat smaller for her little bottom and then yesterday I took her shopping and we bought some little cotton knickers for her to wear around the house and when we got home I popped them on her and within 30 Min's I asked her if she needed to go to the toilet and she said yes and I sat her down and she peed straight away, I was amazed. For the rest of the afternoon she went another 4 times with no accidents.
Yesterday I noticed the latch holding the side rail of her cot in place was loose and about to break so I thought that maybe if she can tackle the toilet then she may understand me when I explain to her how to sleep in a toddler bed without falling out. I went through the same process that I did with Judd when he was about the same age, I had her watch me while I dismantled the cot and removed the side completely then we remade her bed with blankets and pillows and teddies and after we picked up Judd from school we all went into town to buy her a "big girl" pillow. Then at bedtime, after visiting the toilet of course, I popped her in a sleep nappy and showed her the bed and told her to stay put and remarkably she did. I think I heard her talk to herself and a small cry for about 2 minutes then silence and she was out cold.
This morning at 5.30am she woke us up with her chatter and then her crying. Normally I would leave her cry it out but since it was her first time in the bed i thought it best to go and she if she was ok or if she had fallen out. I am not sure why she woke so early but at least I got her to stay in bed until 6.30am when Judd woke. I couldn't believe that she slept the entire night without rolling out of her bed, but if I think about it Judd never fell out either.
Today her toilet training is going well, we are staying home all day so she can wear her knickers around the house I only have to go out later to pick up Judd from school then we might all go swimming if it doesn't rain again. We did have a first poop accident in the lounge room, but I caught her before she could squish it. I think if I keep my cool and try to stay around the house more then we might be successful in having her trained before our trip away for Songkran in April.
WOW imagine not having to lug a portable cot and countless nappies everywhere we go. But (and don't tell Marcus) but I am still seriously thinking about when to have another baby. I don't want to be pregnant in May when we have our trip to Phuket but after that I think would be a good time, that way Lillie will be about 2 and a half when the baby is born and if all goes well fully toilet trained too. Marcus is still uncertain about having a third child, he thinks I am too stressed out with the 2 we already have, but like I said to him the other night, we don't know what goes on behind other families closed doors, what he thinks is stressful might be just the norm. But I do agree that I could do with some more patience and not be so quick to yell, but I find that when I do try to talk normally and patiently the kids don't respond but if I raise my voice and make it known that I am to be listened to and obeyed then they hear me and whatever naughty behaviour is happening stops. We don't smack the kids (other than a last resort) but we do use the naughty spot and I find it works very well, even with Lillie. They both understand that no matter where we are whether we are home or out shopping or in a restaurant there is always a naughty spot available should they choose to misbehave.
I think the turning point as to whether or not we do have another child will be after Marcus' boss visits in March and they discuss whether or not they will continue his contract here in Thailand or if there is another project they want to send him to and depending on where it is me and the kids will end up back in Melbourne and Marcus will fly in fly out for his work which will mean that he will be away for up to 4 weeks at a time, that is a long time to be away from ones family, but he enjoys the work, it pays well and it gives him (and us) many opportunities to travel that we otherwise would not have had. So I am counting the days until March so we know if we will be staying or leaving......I would be happy to stay another year but I also would be happy to visit another country as long as it is as civilised as Thailand and safe. So we will see.
Friday, February 25, 2011
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
Hail in Thailand
It is hailing in Thailand in what should be the end of winter (the dry season). Over the past 2 weeks we have had 3 HUGE storms that have shaken the houses and filled the streets. The storms here in Thailand are big and loud. Compared to the little pissy storms in Victoria Australia, these guys are monsters. Now I grew up in a tropical area and have had my fare share of tropical storms and cyclones but never have I heard thunder this loud before. No wonder I am sitting here in the dark when the power went out after the first big crack about 30 minutes ago and it's still coming down hard and fast. I started to hear tinging on the roof and windows and looked out to see HAIL! The only time I have ever seen hail is in Victoria, we never got hail where I grew up and I honestly didn't think they got it over here either. But these are pretty big pieces of ice, about 5mm round, but not enough is falling for it to gather in piles for me to get a decent photo of, it is melting too fast.
I love a good storm, always have. As a kid I used to play out in the rain in my bikinis until the first crack of lightning when mum and dad would call me in. And I used to love swimming in our pool during while it was raining. The sound of the rain hitting the water while I held my breath underneath was really cool.
Lillie doesn't seem to mind the storms either, she has slept right through this one but poor Judd is at school and I am supposed to go and pick him up in 30 mins but I don't really want to drag Lillie out of bed and into this weather, plus the roads flood right outside our village even after a small rain shower so I can't imagine what they will be like now after this down pour. I only have to drive 2km but that could be an awfully long way if the water is too deep for my little Corolla.
But I will say that despite the terrible sewerage systems that Thailand has, the water does tend to drain away pretty quick, I mean it takes less than 5 mins of rain to overflow them but once the rain stops it does dissappear leaving behind all the piles of rubbish over each grate in the road that couldn't fit into the holes as the water drained through. It is not very refreshing after the rain here either, the mud smells and the mosquitos appear and it gets real humid real quick and then the drains in all the bathrooms start to smell as the sudden flush of water down the pipes stir up all of the methane gasses in the sewer pits and I have to burn incense and open the windows to freshen the air.
I love a good storm, always have. As a kid I used to play out in the rain in my bikinis until the first crack of lightning when mum and dad would call me in. And I used to love swimming in our pool during while it was raining. The sound of the rain hitting the water while I held my breath underneath was really cool.
Lillie doesn't seem to mind the storms either, she has slept right through this one but poor Judd is at school and I am supposed to go and pick him up in 30 mins but I don't really want to drag Lillie out of bed and into this weather, plus the roads flood right outside our village even after a small rain shower so I can't imagine what they will be like now after this down pour. I only have to drive 2km but that could be an awfully long way if the water is too deep for my little Corolla.
But I will say that despite the terrible sewerage systems that Thailand has, the water does tend to drain away pretty quick, I mean it takes less than 5 mins of rain to overflow them but once the rain stops it does dissappear leaving behind all the piles of rubbish over each grate in the road that couldn't fit into the holes as the water drained through. It is not very refreshing after the rain here either, the mud smells and the mosquitos appear and it gets real humid real quick and then the drains in all the bathrooms start to smell as the sudden flush of water down the pipes stir up all of the methane gasses in the sewer pits and I have to burn incense and open the windows to freshen the air.
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| This was a big billboard out the front of our village |
Todays storm has now blown over a bit, the rain just stopped but the thunder is still pretty loud and it is eerily quiet outside in the street, no sounds at all except for the last rumbles and drips. It wont take long though for people to emerge and start cleaning up the mess, as the wind blows the rain in every direction everything that doesn't have four walls and a roof is soaked, our poor dog nearly broke down the door when it started trying to get in, I ended up putting her in the spare bathroom to keep her calm. And yes Lillie is still sound asleep and I am still sitting here in the dark, not sure how long for this time until the power is back on, the last big storm like this blew the transformer out in the village and it was hours before we got any power and that was only because the owner of all the developments lives here and called in some favors otherwise they said it could have been over 24 hours to fix. Thank goodness for people with connections.
I best go and open some windows now as I have no fans, no air con and I reckon the temperature will ramp up in about 20 minutes. Ah the joys of living in a hot and humid climate, I miss my Melbourne with its seasons and reliable electricity connections.
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| Fallen debris on the corner at 7-11. |
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| the rain from my front window |
Monday, February 21, 2011
A normal week, I suppose.
After 2 weeks of busy busy and driver and car dramas we seem to be back to a relatively normal routine. Sue (Ninny) flew home last Thursday night and Judd was so sad he couldn't even bring himself to say goodbye. It was so nice having company and the kids really enjoyed having someone else to play with and go for walks to the park with. I liked having someone to shop with who actually enjoys shopping. Marcus is no fun to take shopping, as soon as he gets in the door he gets the grumps and cant wait to leave. As Marcus had to work the entire time Sue was visiting I tried my best to show her around Pattaya and the markets, as much as one can do when I have to work in between Judd's school hours and Lillie's nap time. But I think we did pretty good.
Marcus has promised that for her next visit he will take time off and we will check out a bit more of Thailand.
I had a bit of an experience yesterday when I went into town to get a leg wax. A Thai lady recommended a salon in Carrefour to me so I wandered in to try and find it and after 10 mins of looking I found it. It was this little lean-to stall like what you would find in a market and the girl said "yes yes, we do wax" and told me to sit on a bench in the corner of her store and proceeded to get ready to wax my legs. I had to stop her to ask about the people that can walk past and see me and she said "Oh OK, put on" and gave me a floral skirt which I could then pull up so my undies weren't showing. So I tucked myself into the corner so the only people that would see me would be the other customers who walked into the store. Then another sales girl came up and started helping, so I had one girl on each leg while I sat spread eagle on a bench. It was weird, normally for a leg wax you get to lay down in a private area so the world cant see your underwear. BUT they were so quick and thorough that only one other customer came in, so really no one saw me. It would have to be the best leg wax I have ever had and despite the uncomfortable way they do it, I may have to go back.
Now this week I want to make plans for a trip away in April for Songkran, Thai New Year. We have been advised to leave Thailand for this time as the water throwing festival gets crazy and very messy, but our visas are only for a single entry until May when we renew, then we will be able to have multiple entry visas again. It doesn't mean that we cant leave the country but it does mean that we will have to go back onto a 90 day visa when we return, so I feel it is best if we wait until after May then we can plan our trips back to Australia or somewhere.
So I want to spend the entire week of Songkran up in Chiang Mai, northern Thailand. It is meant to be really pretty up there and a total change of weather and environment. The crafts and markets are meant to be great as well. I just have to find some tours and sightseeing places that are suitable for small kids. Thailand is not built for toddlers unfortunately so taking them out to see the "sights" is not always an easy stress free thing to do.
Marcus has promised that for her next visit he will take time off and we will check out a bit more of Thailand.
I had a bit of an experience yesterday when I went into town to get a leg wax. A Thai lady recommended a salon in Carrefour to me so I wandered in to try and find it and after 10 mins of looking I found it. It was this little lean-to stall like what you would find in a market and the girl said "yes yes, we do wax" and told me to sit on a bench in the corner of her store and proceeded to get ready to wax my legs. I had to stop her to ask about the people that can walk past and see me and she said "Oh OK, put on" and gave me a floral skirt which I could then pull up so my undies weren't showing. So I tucked myself into the corner so the only people that would see me would be the other customers who walked into the store. Then another sales girl came up and started helping, so I had one girl on each leg while I sat spread eagle on a bench. It was weird, normally for a leg wax you get to lay down in a private area so the world cant see your underwear. BUT they were so quick and thorough that only one other customer came in, so really no one saw me. It would have to be the best leg wax I have ever had and despite the uncomfortable way they do it, I may have to go back.
Now this week I want to make plans for a trip away in April for Songkran, Thai New Year. We have been advised to leave Thailand for this time as the water throwing festival gets crazy and very messy, but our visas are only for a single entry until May when we renew, then we will be able to have multiple entry visas again. It doesn't mean that we cant leave the country but it does mean that we will have to go back onto a 90 day visa when we return, so I feel it is best if we wait until after May then we can plan our trips back to Australia or somewhere.
So I want to spend the entire week of Songkran up in Chiang Mai, northern Thailand. It is meant to be really pretty up there and a total change of weather and environment. The crafts and markets are meant to be great as well. I just have to find some tours and sightseeing places that are suitable for small kids. Thailand is not built for toddlers unfortunately so taking them out to see the "sights" is not always an easy stress free thing to do.
Friday, February 11, 2011
Driver Dramas
I couldn't believe it, the driver who disappeared for 2 days because he felt "uncomfortable" showed up for work Thursday morning! I don't know what he was thinking but Marcus simply returned his belongings that he had left around the house and in the car, paid him what he was owed for his 2 weeks of employment and said goodbye. Not the best way to start your working day, sacking someone at 6.30 a.m. I am grateful that he did it and I didn't have to, I hate confrontations. So that morning I went with a friend to a car rental agency in town who she rents her car from and has done for the past 3 years and speaks very highly of and I hired a little Toyota Yaris hatch for Marcus to drive to work. We got it for a pretty good price, 15000baht per month which is about $460 a month. It includes full insurance and all maintenance. My friend who recommended them said she has had a couple of minor accidents and the lady who owns the rental company has helped her through everything and made sure she hasn't had to "pay" anyone except for the insurance companies excess fees which are minimal. I found this quite reassuring as I can't imagine anything worse than being involved in a accident, even a small one, and having to deal with people and police who don't speak English.
So today we could all sleep in and take our time this morning and then once we were all up and dressed I had to take my car in for a wash and there is a Golf Driving Range over the road so Sue, the kids and I walked over and hit a few golf balls around until the car was ready, it was a good way to spend the morning and the kids got to run about a bit too. This afternoon we can take our time and drive into town without having to rush the car back in time to pick Marcus up from work. I want to take Sue into Tuc Com and show her where we can go to buy our copy DVDs and CDs and phones and anything else we might want. Then tonight Sue has kindly offered to babysit the kids for us so we can go out for dinner and some beers on I guess a sort of date. We haven't been out without the kids for a while now, we are definitely due some adult time.
Now that the car and driver problems are sorted I hope things start to settle more around here and we can start enjoying Thailand more, without being burdened with unnecessary stresses.
So today we could all sleep in and take our time this morning and then once we were all up and dressed I had to take my car in for a wash and there is a Golf Driving Range over the road so Sue, the kids and I walked over and hit a few golf balls around until the car was ready, it was a good way to spend the morning and the kids got to run about a bit too. This afternoon we can take our time and drive into town without having to rush the car back in time to pick Marcus up from work. I want to take Sue into Tuc Com and show her where we can go to buy our copy DVDs and CDs and phones and anything else we might want. Then tonight Sue has kindly offered to babysit the kids for us so we can go out for dinner and some beers on I guess a sort of date. We haven't been out without the kids for a while now, we are definitely due some adult time.
Now that the car and driver problems are sorted I hope things start to settle more around here and we can start enjoying Thailand more, without being burdened with unnecessary stresses.
The Aftermath
Well there is an angel looking down on my parents house. My mum and dad drove up to Cardwell from Townsville on Monday morning to find the house with only minor damage but very messy and wet. The downstairs area was mostly storm damaged with the tilter doors having been completely blown off and alot of sand and mud was washed underneath but the ute and the downstairs furniture was undamaged, amazing. The table downstairs which even has a glass top on it was pushed sideways but was not broken at all and the ute's windows are all still in one piece. The backyard was another story, the garden and all the trees were a wreck, the backyard shed was completely flattened and the rear awning of the patio upstairs was blown off. While they were attempting clean up the Army arrived and cleaned up the backyard for them, cut away all of the fallen trees and branches and took the demolished shed away. They helped my folks so much, we are very grateful to the Army for all of their help. My mum told me that they were going through the entire town house by house repairing what they can and clearing away as much as they could. The upstairs section of the house had minor water damage from a broken window and the Whirly Bird on the roof was blown off leaving a pretty big hole which the SES covered with a tarp for them to prevent any further damage if it happened to rain again.
All in all mum and dad have came out of this extraordinary cyclone remarkably well, I am so relieved, as are they. My mum was thinking the worst, she was thinking that they may have to just shut the doors (if there were any) and walk away and attempt to start over somewhere else at the ripe old age of 62. Not an easy thing to contemplate. But thankfully that wont be necessary, as soon as the water is running and the power is back on they will return home permanently and clean up the mud and sand and resume life as best as they can.
The town of Cardwell did not fare so well unfortunately. Majority of the town is in ruins, so I am not even sure how it will recover from this or how long it will take. My parents have friends and colleagues who have literally lost everything, their homes and belongings flattened or blown away. It must be devastating to return to such carnage.
I can relax a bit now knowing that they will be OK and I wont have to plan a hasty trip back to Australia to help relocate them. My mother in law is here visiting and we have been for a bit of shopping, visited some markets and she has had some real good play time with the children, which is the most important part of her visit as the kids have missed their family so much these past 6 months.
We had dramas yesterday also, our new driver who has been giving us some grief these past 2 weeks told me that he was taking 2 days off, just like that. I asked Marcus to go out and talk to him about it before he left for the night and the driver wouldn't even look at him, he just rode away on his motorbike. We called our Thai friend and he made a call to the driver to ask him in Thai what the problem was and he told him that he felt "uncomfortable working for us" as Marcus made a comment about his driving when he ran a RED light and that he needed 2 days off. We couldn't believe it. This guy has been working for us for 2 weeks and in that time he has ran the car battery flat twice, was late to take Judd to school nearly everyday, ran our petrol bill up, broke down because he broke the key less remote and the car immobilised the engine and he didn't call us he just took it upon himself to pull the dash apart to try and fix the so called problem when all he had to do was press a small button and it would have started the car. Then he failed to show up to work last Thursday and I believe he was hung over from the Chinese New Year celebrations and finally the drama we had last night with him running off. So we decided to sack him. But he wont answer his mobile so we don't even know if he plans to show up for work or if he has quit. I am hoping he has quit so we don't have to be the "bad" guys.
These problems seem to be never ending. I am sure some people back home would say " Oh poor baby her driver isn't working out" but what they don't realise is that this driver is our equivalent of a second car. Every time he doesn't show for work I have to pile the kids in and drive the 80min round trip to take Marcus to work so I can then have the car to take Judd to school and run my errands. Having a driver sounds fancy but its not. Having to rely on that person to show up everyday and to drive your loved ones safely around a foreign country is alot to get used to especially when we have come from a 2 car family and having the freedom for each of us to go about our business without burdening the other. Also I am a control freak and I prefer to be the one behind the wheel, I know how to drive and I believe I drive well and very safely and if something was to happen and I wasn't in a position to prevent it I don't think that would sit well with me, especially if someone got hurt.
However the other reason Marcus wants us to use a driver is to prevent us being railroaded by the Thai police if one of us happened to get into an accident with a car or a motorbike. The westerner always pays no matter who was at fault and the rules here are that if you are in an accident, no matter how big or small with a motorbike the driver of the car is ALWAYS at fault. Even if the driver of the motorbike is drunk and rams his bike into your parked car, you will be at fault and YOU will pay. So to have a Thai driver is a good precaution against losing alot of money. Friends of ours were is a small accident with a Thai person on a motorbike who hit them and our friends had to pay over 40 000 baht compensation to the motorcyclist. Weird huh, but that is how it works over here.
All in all mum and dad have came out of this extraordinary cyclone remarkably well, I am so relieved, as are they. My mum was thinking the worst, she was thinking that they may have to just shut the doors (if there were any) and walk away and attempt to start over somewhere else at the ripe old age of 62. Not an easy thing to contemplate. But thankfully that wont be necessary, as soon as the water is running and the power is back on they will return home permanently and clean up the mud and sand and resume life as best as they can.
The town of Cardwell did not fare so well unfortunately. Majority of the town is in ruins, so I am not even sure how it will recover from this or how long it will take. My parents have friends and colleagues who have literally lost everything, their homes and belongings flattened or blown away. It must be devastating to return to such carnage.
I can relax a bit now knowing that they will be OK and I wont have to plan a hasty trip back to Australia to help relocate them. My mother in law is here visiting and we have been for a bit of shopping, visited some markets and she has had some real good play time with the children, which is the most important part of her visit as the kids have missed their family so much these past 6 months.
We had dramas yesterday also, our new driver who has been giving us some grief these past 2 weeks told me that he was taking 2 days off, just like that. I asked Marcus to go out and talk to him about it before he left for the night and the driver wouldn't even look at him, he just rode away on his motorbike. We called our Thai friend and he made a call to the driver to ask him in Thai what the problem was and he told him that he felt "uncomfortable working for us" as Marcus made a comment about his driving when he ran a RED light and that he needed 2 days off. We couldn't believe it. This guy has been working for us for 2 weeks and in that time he has ran the car battery flat twice, was late to take Judd to school nearly everyday, ran our petrol bill up, broke down because he broke the key less remote and the car immobilised the engine and he didn't call us he just took it upon himself to pull the dash apart to try and fix the so called problem when all he had to do was press a small button and it would have started the car. Then he failed to show up to work last Thursday and I believe he was hung over from the Chinese New Year celebrations and finally the drama we had last night with him running off. So we decided to sack him. But he wont answer his mobile so we don't even know if he plans to show up for work or if he has quit. I am hoping he has quit so we don't have to be the "bad" guys.
These problems seem to be never ending. I am sure some people back home would say " Oh poor baby her driver isn't working out" but what they don't realise is that this driver is our equivalent of a second car. Every time he doesn't show for work I have to pile the kids in and drive the 80min round trip to take Marcus to work so I can then have the car to take Judd to school and run my errands. Having a driver sounds fancy but its not. Having to rely on that person to show up everyday and to drive your loved ones safely around a foreign country is alot to get used to especially when we have come from a 2 car family and having the freedom for each of us to go about our business without burdening the other. Also I am a control freak and I prefer to be the one behind the wheel, I know how to drive and I believe I drive well and very safely and if something was to happen and I wasn't in a position to prevent it I don't think that would sit well with me, especially if someone got hurt.
However the other reason Marcus wants us to use a driver is to prevent us being railroaded by the Thai police if one of us happened to get into an accident with a car or a motorbike. The westerner always pays no matter who was at fault and the rules here are that if you are in an accident, no matter how big or small with a motorbike the driver of the car is ALWAYS at fault. Even if the driver of the motorbike is drunk and rams his bike into your parked car, you will be at fault and YOU will pay. So to have a Thai driver is a good precaution against losing alot of money. Friends of ours were is a small accident with a Thai person on a motorbike who hit them and our friends had to pay over 40 000 baht compensation to the motorcyclist. Weird huh, but that is how it works over here.
Sunday, February 6, 2011
Cyclone Yasi
I thought last week was busy, it was nothing compared to this week. We were plodding along getting ready for our very first visitor from Melbourne, Marcus' mum. We were all excited and I had grand plans for us to go to all of these fabulous places but then 1 day before she was due to arrive I got a message from my mum to say that there was a cyclone looming off the coast and they may have to evacuate. I hadn't seen any news headlines or anything about a cyclone and as soon as I googled Cycylone Yasi I discovered that not only was it heading for the towns between Townsville and Cairns (my home town being Townsville where majority of my family live) that it was also a category 5 cyclone and it was being compared to hurricane Katrina that wiped out New Orleans a couple of years back. So of course I called mum on skype to find out the exact details and she told me that they had already packed as much as what they could and where to leave their town of Cardwell that afternoon. A relief for me, sort of, the real concern now was where this cyclone would hit and how much damage there would be. So that evening the Australia Channel that we get over here was broadcasting live throughout the night and tracking Yasi. There was only so much of that that I could watch before giving up and going to bed.
Upon waking up the next morning I found out that the eye of the cyclone hit the small coastal towns of Mission Beach, Tully and Cardwell and basically wiped them off the map. I immediately called mum on her mobile using Skype again (it gives the best and clearest reception) and she said that they were OK, staying in a motel in Townsville but there was no power and no reports on how Cardwell had fared overnight and if their house was still standing. The house they rent is one street back from the water but with direct access and views straight ahead so there would be no wind break or anything to protect the house from the full force of the storm. So of course we are all fearing the worst.
Over the next few days I waited and googled for as much information as I could find but in the end we all gave up and realised that we wouldn't know anything about the house until the roads were cleared and repaired and they could drive back up there. So today I called and she told me that they just found out that the roads are open and they will be heading up to Cardwell first thing tomorrow morning to assess the damage and salvage what they can of their belongings. Or best case scenario is that the house is still structurally sound and all that will be lost will be the appliances and stuff that they stored downstairs that would have been damaged by the storm surge that washed through the entire town, about 5 meters high they say the flood might have been. As 99% of the residents of Cardwell were evacuated the information coming out of the town is sketchy.
So now we wont know until tomorrow the level of damage on the house and what mum and dad are going to have to do. As mum has talked about wanting to move to NSW to be with her parents in their senior years this may be now a serious option for them if the house is uninhabitable.
During all of this Sue arrived and we had plans to do great touristy things but between Marcus becoming really busy with work and me sitting on Skype all day we haven't been able to do much. But we did manage to do some shopping, eat out on the beach and visit a Floating Market in town and today we went and had a massage which was lovely (until the girl doing mine started talking to me and woke me up) that spoiled it a bit for me, but it was still good. This week we will do some more markets and hopefully we will go to Bangkok this weekend and take the kids to Dream World.
Now I am just waiting for tomorrow to get news on the house and if it is really bad I think I should fly home to help them salvage what they can and find them somewhere else to live, at least temporarily.
Upon waking up the next morning I found out that the eye of the cyclone hit the small coastal towns of Mission Beach, Tully and Cardwell and basically wiped them off the map. I immediately called mum on her mobile using Skype again (it gives the best and clearest reception) and she said that they were OK, staying in a motel in Townsville but there was no power and no reports on how Cardwell had fared overnight and if their house was still standing. The house they rent is one street back from the water but with direct access and views straight ahead so there would be no wind break or anything to protect the house from the full force of the storm. So of course we are all fearing the worst.
Over the next few days I waited and googled for as much information as I could find but in the end we all gave up and realised that we wouldn't know anything about the house until the roads were cleared and repaired and they could drive back up there. So today I called and she told me that they just found out that the roads are open and they will be heading up to Cardwell first thing tomorrow morning to assess the damage and salvage what they can of their belongings. Or best case scenario is that the house is still structurally sound and all that will be lost will be the appliances and stuff that they stored downstairs that would have been damaged by the storm surge that washed through the entire town, about 5 meters high they say the flood might have been. As 99% of the residents of Cardwell were evacuated the information coming out of the town is sketchy.
So now we wont know until tomorrow the level of damage on the house and what mum and dad are going to have to do. As mum has talked about wanting to move to NSW to be with her parents in their senior years this may be now a serious option for them if the house is uninhabitable.
During all of this Sue arrived and we had plans to do great touristy things but between Marcus becoming really busy with work and me sitting on Skype all day we haven't been able to do much. But we did manage to do some shopping, eat out on the beach and visit a Floating Market in town and today we went and had a massage which was lovely (until the girl doing mine started talking to me and woke me up) that spoiled it a bit for me, but it was still good. This week we will do some more markets and hopefully we will go to Bangkok this weekend and take the kids to Dream World.
Now I am just waiting for tomorrow to get news on the house and if it is really bad I think I should fly home to help them salvage what they can and find them somewhere else to live, at least temporarily.
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