E-mail exchange

1. The Brainstorm
I make this project alone.

I will be contacting with Suzanne and Barry Henningsen. Suzanne is the cousin from
my father. She is married with Barry Henningsen and they live together in Brisbane,
Australia. We always call Suzanne ’Sue’. Suzanne and Barry were here for the last
time in the summer of 2018. I like to have contact again to know how they are doing!

Topics I would like to know more about:

- Forest fires; descriptions of surroundings.

I would like to know if there are still forest fires in Australia and if the fires
came/come close to the house from Barry and Suzanne. Do/did they have some
damage and was/is it dangerous to go outside? Was/is in their neighbourhood a
lot of nature burned down due to the forest fires and looks it therefore different
or is nothing in their surroundings changed? What consequences were there
because of the forest fires?

- How is Australia dealing with the Corona-virus and is it changing your

life?; food (recipes), descriptions of surroundings, family life, spare time
activities, politics, school.

I would like to know more about how Australia is dealing with the Corona-
virus and if the normal living habits from Suzanne and Barry have been
changed as a result. Which rules made the politics? Are their grandchildren still
going to school? Have Suzanne and Barry more spare time? Can they still go
outside and visit amusement parks or is everything closed? Can vacationers still
visit Australia? Is it quiet on the streets or are there still a lot of people going
outside? Do Suzanne and Barry visit their family or can they only go outside to
visit places which are necessary like the supermarket?
I have some spare time because of the Corona-virus so I would like to get some
recipes. Do Suzanne and Barry have some recipes from typical Australian
dishes? Then I can make these dishes!
 2. First Contact

31-3-2020

19:50

Dear Sue and Barry,

Nice to have contact again! There is a reason why I am contacting you. We have to do
a project for school: an e-mail exchange with someone from another culture. I thought
right away about you. Australia is a really different country than the Netherlands with
other lifestyles and traditional things. So I would like to do this project with you. I will
ask some questions about how things went and are going. I will put this mail on my
website to show to my teachers so remember to be safe and protect personal info! It
would be nice if we can have a kind of conversation via mail and send a few mails to
each other. Like this we get to know more about how things are going on. Let’s start!

How are you doing? There are some things going on the last time. Of course the
Coronavirus, but also a subject like the forest fires is an awful thing. The whole world
empathizes with these kinds of moments.

I have some questions about the forest fires. Are there still forest fires in Australia and
did they come close to your house? I heard that sometimes people had to leave their
houses because it was too dangerous! Did you have some damage? I hope you didn’t
had much damage! On the television I saw a lot of animals and people which where
affected. This was really sad! I could also see that a lot of nature was burned down.
Was in your neighbourhood a lot of nature burned down due to the forest fires and
looks it therefore different now or is nothing in your surroundings changed? I also
heard that people had to stay home because it was dangerous to go outside! Was it
dangerous to go outside because of the fires? Did you noticed a lot of consequences
because of the forest fires or was it not that strict? I hope that the forest fires will not
come back again.

Everywhere in the world people know about the Coronavirus. Some countries are
more severely affected then others. And some countries are almost out of the process
while others have yet to embark on a hard journey with infected people. But how is
Australia dealing with the Coronavirus? Are normal living habits from you changed as
a result? Which rules made the politics in Australia? In the Netherlands a lot of rules
were made: we have to stay (at) home except for going to the supermarket and
pharmacy. There are some exceptions because you can for example go to someone else
but then you can only go with two persons and you have to hold everywhere 1.5
metres distance (except in one household because otherwise it would be impossible!).
Are your grandchildren still going to school? I don’t go to school anymore. I follow
online lessons from my school. Sometimes it’s a bit boring because I can’t see my
friends and it is not wise to visit my grandparents. But I call a lot with them! Do you
have more spare time? And can you still go outside and visit amusement parks or is
everything closed? In the Netherlands there is nothing fun to do outside. If you break
the rules, for example to hold 1.5 metres distance, you can get a fine of 400 euros! Can
vacationers still visit Australia? In our country it isn’t allowed for everyone to visit. Is
it quiet on the streets or are there still a lot of people going outside? And do you still
visit your family or can you only go outside to visit places which are necessary like the
supermarket and pharmacy?

I have some spare time because of the Coronavirus so I thought it would be fun to
exchange some recipes. Do you have some recipes for me from typical Australian
dishes? Then I can try to make these dishes! I have also found a typical Dutch recipe
for you. I don’t know if you already know this one, but if you would like you can
make it while you are bored! It is in Dutch so I hope you understand!

Stay health and take care of yourself. Thank you for your time!

Kind regards,

Amber.
 3. The Exchange
1st respond from Suzanne:

3-4-2020

02:47

Hello Amber

It is lovely to receive your email and I will be happy to do exchange emails for your
school project. These Email projects are far easier than when I went to school (A long,
long time ago). Way back then we had “Pen Pals” where we wrote letters to someone
in another Country. However, this is also referred to as “Snail Mail” as our letters
often took a long while to get to their destination. Thank heavens for the Technical age
and Emails!

You asked about our Bush Fires. They seem so long past now as this horrible Covid19
has taken over the World and News. As the fires stopped, this Corona Virus has taken
over.

We were very fortunate because of where we live in the suburbs, the fires did not
threaten our property. I was a little concerned though as we have Council land on our
fence-line and if someone had been irresponsible and tossed a cigarette in the dry
conditions, we may have had a bit of a problem. However, we were fine, as were our
married children who also live in the suburban area. We did have a lot of smoke haze
drifting in with the winds which was not good especially with people with Asthma and
respiratory illnesses and for that reason people were told to stay indoors for their own
good.

There was however, across the Country, major fires resulting in loss of family homes,
businesses and of course Animal life. Unfortunately, a few people also lost their lives.
Some refused to leave their homes to try and fight the fires, while others fleeing the
fires, had trees fall down, crushing their cars and having fatal results. Thankfully these
were in the minority.
We have some amazing Animal hospitals in this Country and without them we would
have lost more of our precious animals. One such place is about a 20 minute drive
north from our home here in Brisbane. You may have heard of the Steve Irwin
Australia Zoo and they have an amazing animal refuge for the rehabilitation of sick
and injured wild-life. If you are not familiar with this place you can Google it and it
will explain what they are about.

The fires lasted approximately 6 months across our vast Country. Every day, there was
a new spot fire located in a different area which intensified and spread very quickly
because of our very dry conditions. We were in need of a lot of rain, which eventually
came in March of this year. And like you, I hope these fires don’t come back again.
Extremely distressing even though we weren’t directly involved.
We live in the State of Queensland and we were not as much affected as the State of
New South Wales. They were affected throughout; North, South, East & West of the
State. As I write, people are still trying to rebuild their homes and lives.

Now as we deal with the current world-wide situation of Covid19, our home-life rules
are very similar to yours.

We must stay home isolated as much as possible. I do any grocery shopping one day
per week. And we are allowed to go to the Pharmacy.

Barry & I go for a 45 minute walk a couple of times a week around the neighbourhood
for a bit of exercise. We manage to still play golf with severe rules and regulations
now in place, however, we are not sure how long this will last. It’s a day by day
situation with the rules and regulations.

The State Government of Victoria has banned all outdoor activities including fishing,
boating & golf. So as you see, some rules differ State by State.

We cannot visit our children/grand-children, The 1.5 metre rule applies; Online School
lessons at home for Uni and School children (although some schools remain
open… State Government Rules…. Not Australia Government Rules); All
Amusement parks have been closed for some time now. Shopping Centres are like
ghost towns. Most shops have closed down.

Cafes are only to sell take-away food and drinks. As for travel, our Queensland
borders are now closed so no more Interstate visitors allowed and definitely no
overseas holiday vacationers allowed into the Country. The Country is having a few
issues with Cruise Ships as this is the time of the year they visit the Southern
Hemisphere and there are a few Ships hovering around our coastline and creating a bit
of a problem for the Australian Government. This is current and head-lining our news
today.

In our spare time Barry & I have been doing some gardening and painting our fence.
We can only do this when the Sun goes down because between 10am and 3pm it is far
too hot. Yes, we are in Autumn but the temperatures are still in the high 20
degrees. I’m hoping the warm conditions continue for a while as this
Virus apparently does not like the Cold conditions.
We moved house last year in May so we are still putting our touch into this home.
We are also still playing golf a couple of days per week, while we are allowed!
I will be happy to exchange some recipes with you Amber. I have only just found
these in a Supermarket Magazine this week and was thinking of cooking one of them.
Thank you for the one you sent me. I am a little restricted with my Coeliac problem
but I usually substitute Gluten Free Flour for the normal flour and it is often is okay.

Well next week is is Easter … your Pasen …. So in the next email you can tell me
what your plans are for that. I think it will be a quiet Easter for most people this year.

Till next time, stay safe and healthy.

Love from Sue… Australia

My respond on the 1st e-mail from Suzanne:

5-4-2020

15:26

Hello Sue and Barry,

I´m happy that you both are doing fine while the Coronavirus is controlling the world.
I´m also doing fine but become a bit bored and want to see my family and friends
again!

Last Tuesday the government from the Netherlands decided that we have to follow the
rules from the Coronavirus until the 28th of April instead of the 6th of April. This is in
our May-break. Everyone who planned a vacation is not able to go because everything
is closed! We planned no vacation in the May-break but we did in the summer-break. I
hope that the Coronavirus is gone by then. We will go to school again on the 6th of
May. This is on a Wednesday. On the Monday (the 4th of May) we have a study-day
and are free. On the Tuesday (the 5th of May) it is Ascension Day and we are also free.
On the 4th of May it´s my birthday so I hope that the heavy rules for the Coronavirus
are then no longer necessary so I can have a party and see my grandparents, friends
and family again! Until when do you have to follow the rules from the Coronavirus in
Australia?

How is Joan, your mother, doing? In the Netherlands we are not allowed to go to
nursing homes anymore. This is really sad but they want to make sure that the older
people have as little chance as possible to get the Coronavirus.

How is it going with your new house? Already finished everything? It is obvious that
because of the Coronavirus a lot of people are doing chores. We are also doing a lot of
chores in, and around the house like making an outdoor-kitchen, clean the walls
outside, etc. Today it is 19° so it really becomes spring. Next week we can also expect
nice weather. Like this we have still a little bit of cheerfulness instead of just gloomy
weather!

You asked about my plans for Easter. Normally I search for chocolate eggs, have a
´Easter brunch´ , decorate our ´Easter branches´, go to my family on both sides and
chat about a lot of things with them. This year it will be like you already said ´a quiet
Easter´. With the rules the government made, we are not allowed to do all the
traditional things with Easter. I think that we will still search for chocolate eggs,
decorate our ´Easter branches´ and have a ´Easter brunch´ , but we will not visit our
family and chat with them! This is unfortunately but we have to make the best of it!
What are your plans for Easter?
Thank you for the recipe you send me. I will try to make one! Because of the Coeliac
problem I have another recipe. I hope you are able to eat this one. It is called
‘arretjescake’. It is not typical Dutch, but fun to make with Easter (or any other time
you want)!

https://maakhetglutenvrij.nl/glutenvrije-arretjescake/
https://www.eatpurelove.nl/recepten/glutenvrije-arretjescake/
(With both you can add things you want like chocolate eggs for Easter)

Stay health and safe. Thank you for your time!

Kind regards,

Amber.
2nd respond from Suzanne:

14-4-2020

09:26

Hello Amber,

Here I am back again. Like you, Barry & I are a little bored as well. Thankfully, our
golf is still permitted as long as we follow the strict regulations. Many of our members
are happy to follow these rules just to get out of the house for a few precious hours a
couple of times per week. And it is also good for the Golf Club because if they don’t
get people to play, the course could shut down for good from lack of money.

Our Easter was quiet but we were able to see the family for a short while. It is
permitted to have 2 people to come and visit, so Barry & I decided to take advantage
and make a short visit on Sunday and give the Grand-children their Easter Eggs from
us. Sunday was the first time we have personally seen them all since everyone has
been asked to stay home. I hope you and the family had a nice Easter. It certainly has
been different this year to what you have been used to. One Easter that you will always
remember.

We, as a Country, haven’t been impacted as much as some overseas Countries have
with this Virus. Yes, we have had many cases but, at this stage thankfully, only around
65 deaths. Of course, every time the News comes on, it is all about the Virus. It has
even taken over our News Bulletins!! I assume it is the same in Holland….. and
everywhere!

Barry & I have been doing more bits and pieces around our house just to keep busy.
Our next big chore is to wash down the outside of the house and windows. Otherwise,
we have been watching a lot of TV and reading a few books. Barry is easy to keep
entertained as he loves watching Movies, Sports Shows and every afternoon watches
the Political News from around the Country. Yeah, that Political bit is a bit boring, I
must admit!!
I also have so many photos to sort out and am trying to get in the mood to start sorting.
You would probably be more involved with digital photographs, but before digital
photography became popular, we had the “old fashioned” paper photographs. For us,
and given our age, you can imagine the number of photos we probably have stored in
albums and boxes. It is a good opportunity to do this, but the job is so big, I haven’t
been able to bring myself to get started. But, I will…soon!! Ha, ha!! It’s a little like
homework from school that you put off as long as you can because it is not really to
your liking.

What year are you in at school now, Amber? We have a Grand-daughter, Keely who
is 13 years old, she will be 14 in September and she is in year 8 at High School. All
the children in Australia are on a 2 week holiday for over the Easter. When the
holidays finish, next weekend, most of the children will be starting their next term via
computer at home. The schools will be open only for those children whose parents are
both still able to go to work.

As for my Mum, she is in strict lock-down. I cannot visit her but the nurse who is
looking after her, face-times me a couple of times a week. Because of her advanced
Dementia, she is quite confused, but at the same time she is quite content and
healthwise she is well. Conversations with Mum are particularly hard as she is unable
to say much anymore, so I have to create all the talk when we facetime. I told her that I
am writing to you. I don’t think she fully understands, but I thought it is nice for her to
know that I am in contact with family in Holland.
The Nursing Homes are being closely monitored at the moment, as a couple of places
(around Australia) have been compromised with workers who have been diagnosed
with the Virus. The residents are so weak and frail that it would only result in death if
they got ill with this disease.

You only have around 3 weeks before your birthday and, with any luck, some
restrictions may be lifted so you can celebrate with your family and friends. I really
hope that you can. It would not really be fair to be locked down on your special day!
Like you and Iris with May birthdays, our 2 daughters, Debbie & Kylie have
birthdays in May as well. Though they are similar ages to your Mum and Dad.

You mentioned how lovely your weather is at 19 deg. Well, in Brisbane where we live,
that is our daily Winter temperatures! Very occasionally does it get lower but the
daily average in Winter is anywhere around 18 to 24 deg. During the nights and early
mornings it can dip to 12 deg. though. We are in Autumn now and our average is
around 27 deg. You can imagine then how hot our Summers are. Nearly all the time in
the 30 deg in the middle of Summer. Fans and air-conditioning working most of the
time. But that is in Brisbane. The temperatures get cooler as you travel South to
Sydney (NSW) and Melbourne (Victoria).

I know too that you can get very hot Summers as well!

Anyway, Amber, not much has really happened since my last Email as everything is
still pretty much the same. Living in hope that soon we can get on with our normal
lives and put this Corona Virus behind us and someone will come
up with a Vaccination so we can all be safe.

I have attached another simple but yummy recipe. I have made this
and it is very nice.

Stay safe, stay well. Barry & I send all our love and best wishes to
you Amber, Iris, Mum, Dad and your Oma, (my Tante Fem).

Love… Sue (&Barry). xoxo

My respond on the 2nd e-mail from Suzanne:

25-4-2020

20:10

Hello Sue & Barry,

I’m glad that everything is still going fine. I’m also fine but want actually to go to
school again (I never wanted that before). Just like you, not really much changed since
my last e-mail. I still miss my friends and a lot of other things. I hope that we can fast
live our normal lives again!

We are able to sport again. Children until 12 year, can do sports which also include
contact. Children above 12 year, can also sport but only with 1.5 metre distance. This
is sad, because I am 13. On the 4th of May, when I become 14, this rule will start.
Because I play korfball it is not really possible to hold 1.5 metre distance. The matches
between different clubs do not continue because then parents have to drive and too
much contact is taking place. The last few days I am cycling on my mountain bike
with my dad. We found some nice trails with small hills in the forests. Instead of
korfball this is a good solution to come outside and get some fresh air.

Until the 1st of September all the events are cancelled. This is not nice, but I hope the
vacation can still continue. On this moment we have May-break. It is two weeks.
Yesterday we drove with the car through the Netherlands to visit some highlights. We
went for instead to the ‘Veluwe’ and walked true the forest. You could see wild
horses, deer, and a lot of other animals. One problem during the day was that you had
to find a toilet but every restaurant and cafe was closed, so it was difficult to find one!
At some petrol stations there where toilets so it was fine but not practical! Because
everything is closed, it is a little bit a boring May-break, but we make the best out of
it! We also play a lot of games like ‘Kolonisten van Catan’ and ‘Levend stratego’. Do
you have this games also in Australia?

On Monday it is ‘Koningsdag’ and we will celebrate the birthday of our king. We have
to celebrate this at home because of the coronavirus. This is of course different than
the other years, so they are thinking of an online ‘Koningsdag’. I am curious what they
will invent!

After the May-break elementary school children have to go to school again. It is not
sure if they will go halve a day, once every two days, or just every day full but they
will go back to school again. Because the results showed that children are not so
sensitive for the coronavirus they were the last few weeks already able to play together
outside. Now they also think that they are able to go to school again. The children
from the secondary school, like me, have to wait a while. For now they think we will
go to school on the 1st of June. But they want a 1.5 metre distance school. This is not
easy if you are with 2000 students on the same school, so they still have to invent
something. Until then, we will continue with online lessons.

On this moment, I’m in the 2nd year of the secondary school. Our elementary school
exist out of 8 years and you start when you are 4. So when you are 12 you go to the
Secondary school. This is divided in different levels and for each level you study
longer. I’m doing bilingual gymnasium and have to study for 6 years. So I follow 70%
of the lessons in English. Math, biology, geography, physical education (PHE),
music…. I follow it all in English! Only subjects like Dutch, French, German and
other languages are of course not possible to follow in English. Because I do
gymnasium, I get Greek and Latin. So actually I’m a bit older than Keely, right?

The Netherlands has already 4289 deaths because of the coronavirus. This is horrible!
There are a lot of old people which died because of the coronavirus which are not
showed in the data from the deaths. So actually we have more deaths because of the
coronavirus then 4289! Every day about 800 people are tested positive on the
coronavirus and 100 people are received in the hospital. I hope that this will become
less because for instead people with vital professions also have to get some rest! Like
in Australia, the only thing on the news is the coronavirus.

I’m happy that your mother, Joan, is doing fine. It isn’t of course nice that you are not
able to visit her, but if she is in lock-down I think she has less change to get the
coronavirus! Give her greetings from us, the family from Holland, and I hope she
understands it.

I always love to see old photos from myself and others. Fun to see how people
changed. I understand that it is a big job for you to sort out all the photos, but I think it
is fun to do. I have also sometimes a problem that when something is very big, I don’t
know where to start. Then you just don’t want to start.

I hope, just like you, that we can soon get on with our normal lives and put this
coronavirus behind us.

The recipe you sent me looks delicious and I will make it for sure!

Stay health and take care of yourself. Thank you for your time!

Kind regards,

Amber.