28 February Visiting Nowra

Part of our assignment this week with the Australia Sydney Mission was to visit and speak in church on Sunday in the little town of  Nowra found along the south coast region.  Nowra supposedly is an aboriginal word meaning "black cocatoo."  So I was hoping we would see some either yellow tailed or red tailed species.  Our thought was to head out early on Friday afternoon, but even so, the traffic was horrendous.  What should have been about a 2 1/2 hour drive took 4.  We were happy to check in to our motel and then take a little stroll around the city.  

The next day we continued exploring in the morning while the sky was cloudy.  We visited a heritage site of the Meroogal House, now a house museum originally built in 1886 by Kenneth Mackenzie for his widowed sister and her 4 unmarried daughters.  A stately home for the time it had several unique features.  Mackenzie designed it from a pattern book of homes from the northeast part of the United States, yet added plenty of his own ideas.  The bay window for instance is situated as one side of the  octagonal  drawing room.  Verandahs, Australian lace iron work railings all add to its unique turn-of-the century design. 

West view of the house

Southern side of the house

The Meroogal Women's Art contest is an event held that invites participants to submit pieces of work in any medium that represent the feel of the historic house , its former occupants, and its meaning within historical context.  We were able to view selected pieces placed throughout the house from contributors.  The windows above show cut paper designs reflecting the iron work so popular on many historic homes.  

 

The furnishings were a mix of Victorian and Edwardian periods.  Also, the antique piano (circa 1839) had been brought from Scotland with the earliest occupants. The window cornices were covered in gold leaf  with all rugs and flooring original to the house.   

More art pieces in the house such as the wall hanging and the lock were intriguing to observe.  The piece below indicates the family's raising of "chooks" or chickens.

Books from the time period indicate the family's literate interests.  Dickens appeared to be a favorite.  The old grandfather clock case had been destroyed in an earlier flood before this house was build.  But the mechanisms and pendulum pieces were retrieved and put into a plainer case.  It is still working and chiming today.

The bedrooms upstairs were all large even by today's standards.  Beautifully hand-stitiched pillow covers and lace collars were laid out here.  Some of the chests reflected meticulous work with in-lay woodwork.  

The balcony off this room would have been a lovely place to sit early in the morning or late into the evening.  The emptying of the chamber pots fell to the youngest member of the family.   

Wardrobes also have carved detailing.

Another bedroom, this one with a prayer chair for daily devotions. 

The main parlor where a wall was removed in the 20th century to give the occupants more living space.  The home was owned privately up until around 1985 when it then was sold  and subsequently obtained by the Historic Houses Trust.  At one time, the family took in borders also so an upstairs bedroom was coverted to a kitchette area.  

Following our tour of the Meroogal House, we walked to the nearby Shoalhaven River and Hanging Rock lookout.  A nice place for picnics and views, it juts out and overhangs the river below.

The morning clouds gave way to clear skies and late summer warmth so it was time to head to our happy place - another wonderful Australian beach.  This time we went to Culburra and Warrain Beaches.  Miles of coastline sandy beaches and very few swimmers on this day.  The water was not especially warm so we were content to sit on the beach and enjoy the spectacular expanse.  

We hiked to the top of the headlands to see the Crookhaven Heads Lighthouse and the views from there.  The lighthouse has fallen into disrepair but the views were still incredible.  

The cockatoos were out in abundance during our visit to Nowra.  We didn't see any of the black cockatoos, but there were PLENTY of the familiar white crested ones.  They covered the trees, the electrical lines, and were swarming, screeching, and entertaining nevertheless.  Almost like a scene from Hitchcock, we watched them kissing, or preening, one another hoping they weren't planning an attack!   

Our motel was right next door to the chapel where we visited and spoke on Sunday morning.  We loved meeting the members here and receiving such a warm welcome.  After church, we returned back home on Sunday afternoon ready to face the first day of Autumn, March 1 here in the Land of Oz.