Fair dinkum town

[Ian Adrian Millar]

FAIR DINKUM TOWN

Farewell to old Sydney, you fair dinkum town,
The spirited sheilas with never a frown.
Goodbye to the parties, Bondi as well,
We're going to sea and headed for Hell.

A sad day for sailing, all there could see,
Heavy the hearts at Circular Quay.
They say given time, all good times must end,
A mention of letters we promised to send.

Thirty days later amid ice and snow,
No matter the miles or where we might go.
We remember you Sydney, you fair dinkum town,
No matter how long or where we are bound.

Ian Adrian Millar

[j.sabourn]

#1 I spent just over 6 months working out of Sydney from August 1998 onwards. Starting a survey just off Bondi beach and ending in Auckland after my time. But did get some time ashore there in Sydney. . Went for a haircut one morning and the barber during the conversation had never heard of Fremantle but had heard of Perth. JS
Ship was the Mermaid Raider. JS.

[Ian Adrian Millar]

Thank you for the comments, many fond memories of Australia even all these years later. In most places we visited our money was wanted but we were not. With the exception of BA Argentina no one wanted to become friends with the Yankees. Of course we had those among the crew determined to be the Ugly American at all costs but for the most part we were just sailors far from home and we were astonished at the friendly attitude toward us at both Sydney and later Wellington. Still exchange Christmas cards with some.

[j.sabourn]

#4. America like Australia Ian has a mixture of people . Due to the fact that my wife was into country and dancing the various folk dances of around the world she had contact who we or should say she keeps in contact with. The Americans were mainly from all over the U.S. so all had different views on everything, the same as most people variety is the spice of life. Anyhow one couple we still keep in contact with , he was a bloke in his 30s at the time , he gave up his job in a bank and joined the USAAF , he became a navigator and he and his wife were stationed at the US Air Force base in Lincs where the bombing raid on Gaddafi was made from. At the same time we were invited to spend a weekend on the base. It was like being in the US itself , the place was set up like a mid western town , even had their own sheriffs department , their food and stores were flown in direct from the USA .Most of the families living on the base never stepped outside the gates , so never even knew they were in England. Some people are very introverted fortuanetley our friends were not and used to spend any vacations they had with us , and were extroverts if anything. Myself at the other end of the scales have met plenty of Americans in the offshore world of the oil industry and it was their expertise that originally set up the likes of the North Sea. I sent my daughter to the USA for her eighteenth birthday to stay with friends who lived in Hillbilly country ,it opened her eyes, the stories she came back with emulated some of the scenes from the Beverley Hillbillies . Cheers JS

[Ian Adrian Millar]

While in foreign countries I very often found that using common sense and having an open mind opened many doors and making new friends. It is easy to sit back and say "It's better back home" but not everyone came down the same road as you did. Having been to England etc. I cannot imagine living on a US military base and not getting out to see the country and people. A real loss for that sort of person.

[Fred Walkden]

The aircraft that flew to Libya were F111 fighter bombers from RAF Lakenheath in Suffolk. They flew out over Felixstowe whilst I happened to be working at the port. Seeing them caused me to wonder what they were doing, it was not until news later that it became clear that they had targeted Libya, They were refuelled by tankers from RAF Mildenhall off the Spanish coast. The F111s have since been replaced at the base by the F15 Eagles.

[j.sabourn]

So the base is still there ? The living quarters as said were just like a town in the US . The only place we couldn’t buy from was their PX, the same as the US base in Cuba. But cinemas , bowling alleys milk bars and such were all open to us to use . Although we may have been their only guests at the time. What struck me with the American forces they all seemed to be older than our own , their Air Force guards on the gates for example all seemed to be middle aged . JS

[Tony Taylor]

So the base is still there ? The living quarters as said were just like a town in the US . The only place we couldn’t buy from was their PX, the same as the US base in Cuba. But cinemas , bowling alleys milk bars and such were all open to us to use . Although we may have been their only guests at the time. What struck me with the American forces they all seemed to be older than our own , their Air Force guards on the gates for example all seemed to be middle aged . JS

In Sasebo drydock, we got a lift in the US shore patrol paddy wagon (where stayed ashore was off limits to US personnel) back to our hotel. We got an invite to the PX where I bought a Seiko watch, which I still have.

[j.sabourn]

Maybe the customs were more lenient in Japan , but was restrictions in Guantamino Bay and the UK bases , maybe if you paid the duty might have been different but never tried . JS.

[Kim Bicknell]

My Father In Law was based at Lakenheath while serving with 149 Squadron during WW2. He was a Navigator in Short Stirling heavy bombers.
His last mission left from Lakenheath only to be shot down over Mannheim. He was captured, put in Stalag Luft lll and was there when the great escape occurred.