The Tingle Factor Box

Roaming Roy Is Anti-Submarines - Anti-Submarine Boom Net, Green Point

This week, with the anniversary of the Japanese submarine attack on Sydney Harbour so close, Roy decided it was time to take his online friends somewhere related to submarines in Sydney. There were a few choices, the place where the torpedoes hit, the tunnel at Luna Park people hid in during the attack, but one stood out above the others, the anti-submarine net which stretched across Sydney Harbour.

Roaming Roy Is Across Land - Crosslands Reserve

This week, Roy decided he wanted to visit one of the places he knows about close to home, but which he had never visited. Although Roy loves to spend time in the great outdoors he, like so many others, doesn't always make the time to visit places in the local area, often going further afield. He had heard and read a lot about Crosslands Reserve, and had been told that it was a beautiful place, but he didn't remember ever visiting, so thought this would be a good time to change all that.

Roaming Roy Remembers The Kokoda Campaign

This week, with ANZAC Day just around the corner, Roy wanted to visit somewhere which would allow him to reflect on the people who have fought and died to protect our nation and our way of life. He knew it was the 70th anniversary of the Kokoda Campaign, and thought it would be nice to visit a memorial to these brave soldiers who worked and fought along the Kokoda Trail. The Kokoda Trail, a notorious track in Papua New Guinea, is the site of one of the most famous and bloodiest campaigns Australians were involved in during World War 2. Roy remembered seeing signs to a memorial in Concord, so went to investigate and was touched by what he found.

Roaming Roy Feasts On Fish - Doyles at Watsons Bay

This week, with the sun making a welcome appearance, Roy decided it was the perfect day to head to the coast and enjoy some traditional seaside fare. Roy loves fish and chips, and thinks that, on a nice sunny day, there is nothing better than sitting beside the sea, soaking up the sun, enjoying a delicious lunch. There are many fantastic places to enjoy fish and chips, but Roy thinks one of the best, as well as the most interesting, is Doyles in Watsons Bay.

Roaming Roy Takes A Seat - Gordon Library

This week, with his online friends going back to school, Roy thought it would be a perfect time to take them to a place which they might be able to visit in the course of the school year. He thought a library would be a perfect place to visit because it is the sort of place people might need to go for school work. Many libraries have fascinating secrets, from statues and works of art, to secret nooks and crannies and Roy loves them all. This week he thought he would show you the secrets of Gordon Library - a secret garden and a tiny museum!

Roaming Roy Makes Camp - Camp Cove

This week, with Australia Day just behind us, Roy wanted to visit somewhere important in Australia's early history. There were plenty of choices of places to visit, but Roy wanted one which not only was important, but which his online friends might visit without realising its history. We discussed a number of places, but Roy was all for the beach, despite the recent soggy weather, and so I suggested Camp Cove. He thought this was a great idea. Even the weather was perfect!

If you would like to visit Camp Cove it is located on inner South Head near Watsons Bay. You can stop  to see The Gap on the way, and perhaps even try the famous Doyles fish and chips. There is also a kiosk at Camp Cove beach where you can buy drinks and ice creams. On a nice day, parking can be difficult to find, so be prepared to walk a little to get to the beach. There is a monument in the park above Camp Cove to mark this first, important visit to the Cove, and Roy and I are sitting on it in the photo above.

Camp Cove may be a popular beach today, but it is also a very important place in the history of Australia. Originally it was used by the Cadigal (Gadigal) people as a place to launch their canoes and camp. There was a fresh water pool behind the beach, which Roy thinks was probably in this little park we found, and there was easy access to the harbour waters which made it a perfect place to live. In fact, some people think that the Cadigal name for Camp Cove was Cadi, and that this is where the name Cadigal comes from, though this is controversial. It was to be a place where some of the earliest interactions between Aboriginal and European Australians occurred though.

On January 21, 1788, after declaring Botany Bay unfit for settlement, Captain Phillip sailed around South Head into what was to be called Port Jackson (Sydney Harbour). The first place he landed was in Camp Cove. At the time is was nearly dark, and the cove with its freshwater pool provided a good place to make camp. This was the first landing of the First Fleet in Australia, and the camp set up in the area is why the cove is now known as Camp Cove. Although the settlement didn't stay in Camp Cove, it was often revisited by people who came on the First Fleet. In fact, only 2 days after the settlement at Sydney Cove was declared, Bradley and Hunter returned to Camp Cove where they met with the local Aborigines. This meeting was described as 'cordial' by Bradley and Hunter, but later meetings were not to go so smoothly. In March, David Collins met with another group of Aborigines who were much more unwilling to approach. When he finally encouraged one of the men to approach he discovered that he had been beaten and hurt by escaped convicts or sailors. Later still, in July, Bradley revisted Camp Cove again and found Aborigines in bad health, starving, fearful and hostile towards the Europeans. If you would like to read more about Camp Cove, click here.

Roaming Roy Finds A Rocky Place - Lucinda Memorial

Today, January 1, is a very important day in Australia’s history. January 1 is the anniversary of the day Australia became a federated nation, instead of lots of separate colonies. Roy wanted to visit somewhere which could commemorate this important day. There are lots of places which commemorate the history of Federation, and choosing just one was difficult, but then Roy remembered a sculpture, The Lucinda Monument, he had visited while at The Spit earlier in the year. He thought it was a beautiful sculpture and decided it would be the perfect place to visit.

Roaming Roy Looks After The Salvos

Today, Christmas Day, is traditionally a day for family, gift giving and fun. Roy loves Christmas, but he never forgets that gift giving isn’t just about the people you know. Sometimes the nicest gifts are the ones which help others. Many of his friends leave gifts under communal ‘giving trees’ to be sent to those who are less fortunate and others donate food or toys to charity to be distributed. Yet all too often, charity is something people think about only at Christmas time.

You might remember that last year, for New Year, Roy made a piggy bank. He named her Petunia and decided to fill her up throughout the year and then donate her to charity. All year, Roy and I have been filling her up with loose change, money left on the end of the bench and coins we found. She was a very heavy, healthy little pig by this Christmas! A few weeks ago Roy donated Petunia to his chosen charity and this week he wanted to tell you who that charity was and why he chose it.

When Roy was thinking about charities he could donate Petunia to, shortly after he finished making her, he kept thinking back to something my Great Grandma used to say; ‘always look after the Salvos, because they always look after us’. Her husband had been in the fledgling Australian Airforce during the First World War and the Salvation Army provided him much support and assistance. He told her 'you must never turn your back on the Salvos'. Roy decided that Gran and Great Grandpa would like it if Petunia went to the Salvos, but then began to wonder what else the Salvation Army did during Gran's lifetime which made them so well loved. Gran was born in 1903 and lived through two World Wars, the Great Depression and a variety of other hardships. Throughout these times, the Salvos were always there, and their dedication to helping people made them very important to many Australians.

The Salvation Army are a specific denomination of Christian Church. They believe that they can best express love for God through helping people. Although they are Christian, and are religious people, they don’t only help those who share their faith. In fact, they are one of the biggest and most active social welfare providers in the world! The Salvation Army has been active in Australia for well over 100 years. Edward Saunders and John Gore met accidentally in Adelaide in 1880 and decided to start the Salvation Army movement in Australia. They wrote to the General in England for help and held the first Salvation Army meeting in the Botanic Gardens in Adelaide, 1880. Within two years they had established congregations in Sydney and Melbourne. Throughout all of their history, they have emphasised the importance of helping people. Even at the first ever meeting an invitation was extended to anyone who hadn’t had a good meal to go home with Gore to share his tea! During the wars they provided physical and spiritual support to soldiers, and in the photo above, which Roy owns, you can see them distributing doughnuts to servicemen in France. Similarly, during the Depression they were there to help where possible, distributing aid and support without discrimination. As Gran said ‘always look after the Salvos, because they always look after us’.

Roaming Roy Finds A Princely Resting Place - Prince Henry Cemetery

This week, Roy decided that with such beautiful weather it was time to take his friends for a bushwalk. His grandmother had many years ago told him about a cemetery near the old Prince Henry Hospital. She once worked at the hospital and remembered walking to the cemetery and looking at the old graves. She also remembered being fascinated by the overgrown Chinese burials and suggested Roy and I should our visit from earlier in the year.

Roaming Roy Has A Brush With History - Brush Farm

This week, Roy decided it was time to visit another of the beautiful old buildings he loves so much. Roy loves the old houses dotted around Sydney, and is always very happy to discover that one is open for him to visit. One he particularly loves is Brush Farm. This house for a long time looked very rundown and unloved, but recently has been beautifully restored and is now open for visits and also for art exhibitions. In fact, the first time we visited, it was open for a quilt show.