Australia    was    always    part    of    my life.    I    first    visited    the    country    in 1977,   when   I   took   a   repair   team   to Melbourne     to     carry     out     work aboard   the   navy   frigate   HMS   Rhyl. Little   was   I   to   know   at   that   time that    within    2    years    I    would    be appointed    to    serve    aboard.    But Australia   had   been   part   of   my   life before   then,   because   my   half   sister Joyce   had   emigrated   from   UK   in the   mid   1950s,   becoming   a   “£10 Pom”   as   the Australians   referred   to the   British   immigrants   of   the   time (who   paid   just   £10   for   passage   to Australia). In   the   years   later   I   visited   Australia on   many   occasions,   visiting   Joyce of   course,   but   also   my   aunt   Betty and         cousin         Margaret         in Tasmania,my    second    wife    Sue’s son   Mark   and   his   wife   Sherena   in Hervey    Bay,    Queensland    and    a personal   friend   Shuhong   and   her partner     (now     husband)     also     in Tasmania.   But   my   travels   did   not end   there   -   I   have   also   visited   the Northern    Territories    and    Western Australia,   where   I   stayed   with   my former   naval   colleague   and   friend Charles    near    Perth.   And    Sydney was   always   on   the   agenda   -   one   of my favourite cities in the world. The   last   time   I   visited Australia   was in 2009.