Travel company Lonely Planet has released their 'ultimate' travel destinations list, and it's left us (and we're sure many others) itching to book a flight and check out the world.
Travel company Lonely Planet has released their ‘ultimate’ travel destinations list, and it’s left us (and we’re sure many others) itching to book a flight and check out the world.
The publisher rounded up some of the world’s best travel authors and experts to rank “mega-sights and hidden gems in a definitive wish list of the 500 best places to visit on earth.”
There are some obvious mentions on the list, but also a couple of destinations you’ll need to freshly add to your bucket list.
And as for Australia? We did alright. The Twelve Apostles came 12th, the Sydney Opera House came 57th and Uluru clocked in at a cool 33rd.
It wasn't until after Keisha was convicted of drug charges she learned she was pregnant. The Weekly’s Clair Weaver goes inside Australian prisons to see what life is really like for mum and bub.
New mother Keisha is a natural as she attends to her baby son Jack*, instinctively responding to his grumbles and fostering a gentle playfulness before planting a series of kisses on top of his soft head.
When nap time comes around, the little boy settles quietly in his cot with soothing words from mum in his cool darkened bedroom. The mother-son bond is clearly secure and loving.
On the surface of it, little Jack’s surroundings are pretty idyllic. He has a comfortable cot, stimulating toys and a pram for walks.
Outside is a well-kept green lawn with colourful playground equipment. There are other mums and babies nearby, an indoor play area and he undergoes his regular infant checks by health workers.
To Jack, the world looks pretty good. And yet in truth his environment is anything but typical. For Keisha, 22, and Jack are living within the secure confines of Jacaranda Cottages mothers and babies unit at Emu Plains Correctional Centre in Sydney’s west.
Inside Jacaranda Cottages where Keisha is raising her son, Jack.
While some may baulk at the idea of a baby living in prison, the alternative – a newborn being separated from their mother, even if circumstances are safe for them to be together – is arguably worse.
Being imprisoned as a new mum still has its challenges, such as having no freedom or autonomy and being constantly monitored by government departments, but it’s also an opportunity for inmates to take part in parenting programs and build an important bond with their baby.
At Jacaranda Cottages, babies and young children up to school age can live with their mum while she serves her sentence.
Here Keisha, who began taking drugs after falling in with the wrong crowd as a teenager in a NSW country town, tells The Weekly what her life is like in jail and how the experience is shaping her future.
“My life is good at Jacaranda Cottages because I have been able to bond with my newborn son,” she says. “I was lucky to get onto the program as obviously there are some [inmates] who don’t meet the criteria. My daily routine is just like any other mother apart from having a head check [a headcount to ensure all inmates are present] at 6.30am. I then prepare my son’s day and the Mothers and Children’s program runs groups that we must attend, including parenting courses, art therapy and playgroup,” she says.
“I get constant support from staff and other inmates too. [When I was pregnant] I had pre-natal checks through the health clinic at Emu Plains. After [Jack was born at the local public hospital under the guard of a prison officer], my family came down and stayed in a hotel in the area. This enabled them to meet my child and also gave me comfort of having them around at this special time.
“[If I hadn’t been able to keep Jack with me] the alternative would have been for my baby to be cared for by my sister who is completing a nursing degree. She would have had to put her studies on hold until I was released.
“I’ve been able to address my drug abuse issues while I serve my sentence and I feel confident when I am released that I will be a good mother and citizen.
Now I’m looking forward to getting back into the community. I’m going to create a positive future for myself and my son. I’m planning to do a TAFE course in business and I hope to bring my child up to be a fine young man.”
For more on life inside a women’s jail, read our upcoming feature in The Australian Women’s Weekly magazine
James’s younger brother Michael sadly disappeared on Mt Everest in 1999 after becoming the youngest Brit ever to conquer the world’s highest mountain at the age of 22.
Tragically, he was the 162nd person to die on the mountain and his body was never found.
Michael Matthews
“His loss was devastating for the family and over time, this became worse because the circumstances surrounding Michael’s death have never been fully explained,” the family’s youngest member Spencer Matthews wrote in his 2014 autobiography, Confessions of a Chelsea Boy.
Made in Chelsea star and younger brother, Spencer Matthews
It’s believed Michael’s death was caused by the negligence of his mountain guides, Mirror reports.
Trending video: Shannen Doherty tearfully opens up about her cancer diagnosis
Host of Today Extra and The Voice, Kruger is also the face of Target, Porsche’s Woman With Drive campaign and Swisse – all three of which are reportedly reviewing their relationship with her.
Porsche spokesperson Paul Ellis said: “The unfortunate comments Sonia made are not in line with Porsche’s values in Australia, or our values globally.”
“We will take the situation into consideration and assess our relationship with Sonia, and what we may do about it.”
A Targer spokesperson also jumped in, saying: “In response to the recent comments from Sonia Kruger, we would like to stipulate that these views are hers only and do not represent those of Target Australia.”
Advertising expert and executive creative director of Campaign Edge, Dee Madigan, told news.com.au that Kruger is no longer a ‘safe’ choice for organisations associated with her.
“Brands choose someone like Sonia Kruger because she doesn’t really stand for anything. She’s quite harmless, she’s nice and she’s non-offensive. But she’s gone totally out of safe territory,” Madigan said.
“Her whole brand is the inoffensive nice girl and she’s managed to offend a whole lot of people this week. She’s gone off brand and that’s very damaging.”
Public backlash continues to grow after she made an emotional clarification on the Today Show, and Waleed Aly defended her on The Project.
The mother of a toddler who drowned over the weekend has said her son’s death was a “tragic mistake.”
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15-month-old Junior Paul Donley was taking a bath on Sunday when his mother Kelly-Anne, 33, went to unload the washing.
However, when she returned, little Junior was dead.
“He was very waterwise, as you can see in the photo (taken several months ago) he could stand up. At times he could slip but was able to pick himself straight back up,’ she told The Advertiser.
“(As a parent) we know what our children are capable of and not capable of. I just took that risk and that chance which I shouldn’t have,” she said.
Police confirmed the child’s death, but would not release details, saying only that there were no suspicious circumstances.
According to neighbours, police had been called to the home at least five times in the past four months.
The family is also known to Families SA, according to Education and Child Development officials.
Trending video: Shannen Doherty tearfully opens up about her cancer diagnosis
A Sydney primary school has banned clapping in a bid to respect students who are ‘sensitive to noise’.
Instead, students at Elanora Heights Public School can silent cheer, pull excited faces and punch the air – but only when teachers say it’s ok to do so.
The new rule was introduced in a school newsletter, with claims it ‘reduces fidgeting’.
The newsletter reads: “The practice has been adopted to respect members of our school community who are sensitive to noise.
“When you attend an assembly, teachers will prompt the audience to conduct a silent cheer if it is needed.
“Teachers have also found the silent cheers to be a great way to expend children’s energy and reduce fidgeting.”
There are also other Australian schools that have banned hugging, celebrating Australia Day and the word ‘black’ in the nursery rhyme “Baa Baa Black Sheep”.
Shannen Doherty has been determined to raise awareness for breast cancer since her diagnosis with the disease in August.
And her battle has just taken a very personal turn, when she shared the moment she shaved off her hair with her social media fans.
In an intimate series of six pictures, the former Charmed actress revealed the emotional moments as she went through the process of chopping off her locks.
In the first photo, she can be seen looking extremely distressed and exhausted, being held by a friend.
Shannen tears up when talking about her diagnosis in the clip below. Post continues.
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Shannen was seen getting extremely emotional before the shave began.
Then she began, taking a pair of scissors to her tresses as her friends watched on and documented the whole thing.
Her friends continued to support her through the process, taking photos and assisting her with the cutting as needed.
She soldiered on, chopping her locks off first.
Shannen was determined to show her followers what she was going through to raise awareness of the disease.
The star had hinted she would be making the big change earlier in the day, posting a cryptic message alongside an assortment of seemingly mismatched objects.
“Cupcake pan, chocolates and a razor… Stay tuned. #cancersucks #thankgodforfriends,” she said.
Dr Oz explains why he things Shannen will beat her cancer in the clip below. Post continues.
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The Beverly Hills 90210 star is set to have surgery later this year, following drug treatment and chemotherapy to shrink the tumor.
“They’re just breasts,” the star had said previously. “I mean I love them… Mine, and everyone’s they’re beautiful but they’re just breasts.”
With their immaculate hair, carefully-pressed uniforms and lipsticked smiles, flight attendants appear pure and wholesome. But behind the cabin curtains lies a world of sex, alcohol and dirty tricks. An ex-hostie lifts the lid on what really goes on when passengers aren’t looking.
A light and a tampon for attracting attention
New cabin crew have initiation tricks played upon them, ranging from having the lifejacket whistle replaced with a tampon (awkward when you’re supposed to mime blowing into it during the safety demonstration) to the Captain ordering them to go to the middle of the plane and jump up and down to help get stuck wheels to come down before landing.
You’d be surprised how many people “do sex” on a plane.
Sex in the air
At the very back of long-haul aircraft, there’s a little door resembling a cupboard that opens into a tiny stairway leading to some in-built bunk beds. This is where cabin crew sleep on long flights. Some enthusiastic crew have been known to have sex in there.
Jungle juice
There’s a concoction known as “jungle juice” a potent combination of spirits and juice or soft drink that cabin crew make for drinking when they go away. If you see a flock of flight attendants swaying gently as they check in at a hotel, it may be an indication they drank it on the bus from the airport.
Getting too boozed on board is a big no-no.
Your room or mine?
Talking of hotels, crew may have room parties to decompress after a flight. This can include various drinking games, getting to know each other better and other shenanigans. Many a photo of a dishevelled hostie wearing a captain’s hat has emerged from such parties.
Are you going to eat that?
The cabin crew might not be eating the same food as you. On occasion, they might even be tucking into a spare lobster from first class or smoked salmon from business class. Perhaps some untouched posh chocolates re-appropriated from passenger trays. Official crew food, however, isn’t all that different from economy fare.
Thou shalt not fart
There’s an unwritten rule that crew must never break wind in the galley. In such a constricted space, that would be downright anti-social. Instead, there’s an unofficial long-haul manoeuvre known as crop-dusting, in which the offending flight attendant slowly releases the pressure from their gut while wandering through the cabin. This is not covered during training but learned on the job.
Sneaking up for an upgrade Bridesmaids’ style won’t work.
In the event of an emergency
If you hear the pilot say something like “will the senior cabin crew member report to the flight deck immediately” over the PA system, say a prayer read your safety card. This is an alert for an emergency, before the pilots brief cabin crew on a plan of action. Don’t start screeching and grab your lifejacket yet though — your best chance is to stay in your seat and listen to the crew’s instructions.
Feeling hot?
If you feel rather flushed on a night flight, it may be because the crew have turned up the heating as a way of getting passengers to go to sleep instead of ringing those damn call buttons with relentless requests for drinks. This is generally quite an effective technique.
Vomit and much, much worse
The job can be dirty for cabin crew: being handed bags of vomit or dirty nappies, for example. Or dealing with bathrooms that have been mistaken for squat toilets or thrown up in. There are stories of burst colostomy bags and violent gastro bugs. You get the picture.
The Mile High Club
Passengers do join the Mile High Club. Most often in the toilets. The giveaway is the flimsy door vibrating (plus occasional grunts and queue outside). On more than one occasion, I had to interrupt with a knock and innocent “Are you okay in there?” Sexy? Romantic? Hygienic? I think not. Get a room.
Fancy an upgrade?
You might slip through the curtain, sink into the back row and think you’ve got away with it. But trust me, you haven’t. The crew have a passenger list that tells them exactly who is sitting where. If you get an upgrade, that’s fine, but otherwise don’t take what you haven’t paid for. And beware the walk of shame as you’re marched back to your rightful seat.
**the author’s flying career was based in the UK and ended in 2000, so some of this information may be out of date/location.*
We’re all guilty of it: you get home and the first thing you do is peel off your bra before chucking it on the ground (or, ‘The Chair’ where all loose items of clothing live).
And then the day after, you pick up the same bra and wear it again.
The cycle goes on for days –sometimes weeks – before you finally muster the strength to chuck it in the wash.
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So how often should you really be washing your delicates?
“The need to wash your bra varies and depends on your personal hygiene and how often you wear each bra,” Carol Rashleigh from Bendon told The Weekly Online.
“In general, I think it’s ok to wear it a few times before you wash it.”
While we’re sorry to add another chore to your life, caring for your (often expensive) bras will make them last longer, saving you cash in the long run.
So what’s the best way to go about washing them?
“Cold water,” says Carol. “Washing your bra in cold water will help preserve elasticity. Follow the care instructions and for machine washable bras, use a delicates bag and fasten the hooks.”
“Also, don’t use strong bleaches or detergents and try to hand wash your more delicate pieces.”
Storing your bras is just as important as washing them.
If you’re guilty of just throwing them into your undies drawer, it’s time to break the habit.
“When storing contour or padded bras, don’t fold the cups into each other as this will ruin the fabric and eventually break down the pad.”
“It’s best to lay them flat in a drawer or hook over a hanger.”
Like most material goods in our lives, the more love your give it, the longer it’ll last… so start taking care of your bras!
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“My mother used to say, ‘I wish I could tell you, but it’s too distressing’,” says Janis.
“Ever last year, when she was dying, I said, ‘Don’t take it to the grave, Mum. Whatever it is, tell us, you’ll feel better’, but she would not budge.”
Janis, 64, her sister, Bev, 59, and the rest of the large and loving family now know what that secret was: they’re directly descended from Louisa Collins, a 41-year-old mother of 10 children who was hanged for murder at Sydney’s Darlinghurst Gaol in 1889.
Louisa’s case is astonishing. She as a beautiful woman who was twice married and twice widowed, and she was at various times accused of killing one or both of her husbands. Although hanged for her crime, it’s entirely possible that she was innocent.
The case against Louisa was circumstantial. Nobody ever saw her do it and there was nothing concrete to tie her to the case.
Worst still, some of the key evidence used against Louisa came from her only daughter, May, who was just 10 years old when she was asked to take a Bible in her hand and testify against her mother.
Little May – described in court as pretty and particularly intelligent – told one of the judges she had seen a box of Rough on Rats (essentially pure arsenic) in the kitchen of their home. It wasn’t much, but it was enough to get a conviction.
Louisa protested her innocence all the way to the gallows.
I came across Louisa’s case by chance.
About five years ago, I was working on a different murder trial for The Australian newspaper. There had already been one mistrial, so one of the editors asked me to find out whether anybody had ever been tried more than one for murder.
I had a look in the archives and up came Louisa’s case. She had been tried once, not even twice, but an extraordinary four times for the Crown managed to get a conviction.
The case began to trouble me: how compelling would the evidence against Louisa have been? Who in the annals of English law had ever had to face four trials before being hanged?
I went looking for the original forensic reports, not really believing I would find them.
Yet there they were, stored in an old and dusty box at NSW State Records, which is a cool building under the gum trees in a lovely paddock more than an hour from Sydney.
Some of those records were more than 120 years old, but had been preserved, as had some of Louisa’s letters from jail, in which she begged for her life.
From there, I went looking for records from the old Supreme Court, for whatever notes had been taken by police and for original statements from witnesses who lived in Louisa’s street.
Some of the evidence was strongly suggestive of Louisa’s guilt, but I had doubts.
The case was full of strange tics and annoying coincidences. Before long, some of the characters, including the ghastly hangman, began to haunt my dreams.
After five years obsessing about the case, I took the results to HarperCollins, who agreed to publish Last Woman Hanged, the first full-length examination of the case, so readers could make up their own minds. Yet before I could publish the book, there was one more thing I needed to do – track down Louisa’s descendants.
I didn’t know where any of them had ended up, or whether there were any of them alive, but I knew I couldn’t in good conscience publish a book about Louisa without trying to find them. I also knew readers would want to know what happened to Little May, after she had been made to take the stand.
The task of tracing Louisa’s family tree was at times deeply frustrating. There were so many red herrings and dead ends.
I knew from searching the archive at the NSW Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages that Louisa had given birth to 10 children, seven of whom were still living when she died. What had happened to them?
A report from a 120-year-old copy of The Sydney Morning Herald suggested that three of Louisa’s children, all with the last name Andrews, were allowed to see her on the evening before she died, so they – and she – could say goodbye. Her eldest son, Herbert, who was in his 20s, took May and another son, Frederick, to Louisa’s cell in
Darlinghurst Gaol, where they all wept and prayed.
In the days after the execution, Herbert and Frederick went north to Adamstown, near Newcastle, where Herbert found work as a butcher. A search of the records turned up an old certificate that showed he married his sweetheart, Annie Henry, in Adamstown in 1893.
According to state archives, Herbert and Annie had three children: Frederick was born in 1897, but he lived for just two years. They had better luck with their daughters: Mabel and Pearl survived their childhoods, but then married and changed their names.
One of the biggest stumbling blocks when researching a family tree is that Australian women, upon getting married, almost always change their names. From then on, their children appear in the records under their father’s name. Some digging through The Newcastle Herald turned up the fact that Mabel had married Tom Civill in
1918 and had a son, Douglas Civill. He had gone on to have two boys, twins Howard and Arthur.
Howard Civill died a few years ago, but a search of the White Pages turned up the fact that Arthur Civill – Louisa’s great-great-grandson – was alive and living in the Newcastle area.
The temptation was to immediately call him, but how much did he know about his family history? Had anyone ever told him his great-great-grandmother , Louisa, had been hanged for murder at Darlinghurst Gaol?
I nervously called, introduced myself and asked, “Mr Civill, has anyone ever talked to you about your family history?”
“No,” he said, “I can’t say they have. Why do you ask?”
“Would you mind if I wrote you a letter?” I said, coming over all shy.
“A letter?” he said, “I suppose that would be alright.”
So I wrote it all down and then I waited, wondering what Arthur would think. By chance, I was in Queensland visiting my own family when he telephoned.
I braced myself, thinking, now he’s going to say, “We don’t really want to be connected to this story”, but happily, wonderfully, he said, “You’ve certainly got
everyone talking, haven’t you?”
I was so relieved. We laughed and talked about the case, and then Arthur dropped a bombshell.
“Now, you won’t believe what I’ve got in front of me. It’s an old family photo of Herbert Andrews. Would you like to see it?”
Would I like to see it? Oh yes, I would love to see it!
“I’ll see if we can’t get a nice copy,” Arthur said.
Less than a week later, a copy of that photograph landed on my desk at The Australian Women’s Weekly and I couldn’t stop looking at it. There was Herbert, son of
Louisa Collins, all grown up with his wife, Annie, and their two beautiful daughters, Mabel and Pearl, dressed prettily in white dresses.
“I have strong memories of those two ladies,” Arthur said, “I spent a great deal of time with them when I was a boy, but I had no idea about Louisa. I suppose it was the kind of thing people used to cover up, like having a convict in the family. I remember Aunty Pearl saying a few things and I wonder if she knew, but as children, we
were never told.”
Arthur has now read Last Woman Hanged and “it was like a pendulum for me, thinking, at first, she’s guilty and then she’s not guilty. But, to have four trials, that’s not justice. The last jury, I think they just gave up and gave everyone the verdict they wanted.”
His wife, Barbara agrees, “To think they put that little girl on the stand to testify against her mother… I suppose things were very different in those days, but it seems very cruel.”
Like everyone, Arthur was curious about what had happened to Louisa’s other children and to May in particular. The search had proved frustrating.
The newspaper archives had turned up one article, dated Saturday, January 12, 1889 – that is, just four days after Louisa was hanged – in the old *Richmond and
Windsor Gazette*, which said, “We understand that Mr James Geehan and his good wife has determined upon adopting the little girl, May Andrews, daughter of Louisa Collins. The child is pretty and intelligent, and Mr and Mrs Geehan are to be compliments on (their) kindness of heart…”
May had been adopted out, in other words. I didn’t doubt the accuracy of that story. The Geehans lived at Freemans Reach and the Richmond and Windsor Gazette had carried a number of stories of the family over the years, including the fact that nine of their 10 children had died before they adopted May, but what happened from there?
I searched all the available records, even checking with the Catholic Church to see if May had perhaps become a nun – but I kept hitting a brick wall. I knew May might have changed her name from Andrews to Geehan, but there was no record of either a May Andrews or a May Geehan getting married, or having a baby.
There was nothing to suggest that she had died, so I was stumped. How could a little girl simply just disappear?
Then, from an old court report dated 1894, came this, “On the 3rd of April, Beatrice Tierney did beat and assault Mabel Andrews at Freemans Reach… Mabel deposed that she resided with Mrs Geehan at Freemans Reach; on the 3rd of April, [the] defendant came to the yard of Mrs Geehan’s… and beat her on the face with both hands, blackening both eyes…”
So May had changed her name to Mabel Andrews. That made things easier. I began my search again and discovered that as soon as May – or Mabel – tuned 18, she moved away from Freemans Reach to be closer to Herbert and, in 1898, she married a fettler on the railways, John McGuiness, and begun having his children.
The first of them was a little girl. Achingly, May called that child Alice Louisa. She also had a boy, Edward, but tragically, both Alice and Edward (and possibly a third child, John) died when they were infants, leaving May with no living children until 1909, when she gave birth to another daughter, Thelma.
It would have been lovely to leave the story there, with May happily married, the mother of a healthy little girl, but I knew I would have to keep going.
What, ultimately, happened to her and her daughter?
I searched for a year, finding no trace of any other descendants.
Then, in July 2013, just as I was preparing to write the final draft of Last Woman Hanged, a death notice appeared in The Newcastle Herald, giving me all the information I needed.
Thelma had grown up and married, and there were descendants. Some were called Cairney and some were called Thompson.
They were inviting people to attend a wake for Mabel Thompson, Louisa’s great-granddaughter, and so I contacted Pettigrew Family Funerals in Newcastle and they agreed to pass a message onto the family.
It was Janis who got in touch and I’ll treasure her letter forever.
“Dear Caroline, firstly, let me thank you for tracking us down… it’s very exciting to finally read some background on the history of our dear grandmother [Louisa’s granddaughter, Thelma], who was much loved by us all.”
“I’ve shared this story with our Aunty Margaret and her younger brother, Victor. They had no knowledge of Louisa, but I’m not so sure about my own mother. She once told us she knew a family secret, but wouldn’t share it with us because it was too distressing. Even in her later years, she wouldn’t tell us and I can’t help but wonder
if Louisa was indeed the secret… You have created great excitement in our family so it would give us enormous pleasure to meet some more of Louisa’s descendants.”
Caroline Overington’s book on the story.
And so, The Australian Women’s Weekly invited Louisa’s descendants – the Thompsons, Cairneys and Civills – to lunch in Newcastle so they could finally meet each other.
No words can describe the moment they all came piling through the door. There was no awkwardness.
On the contrary, there were hugs and tears.
By the end of the lunch, it was like they had known each other for 100 year – which, in a way, they had. All were related and yet knew nothing about their fascinating family history.
Hours went by in what seemed like minutes, as three families shared their stories. The Australian Women’s Weekly team stood back as much as possible, to allow everyone time to come to terms with their emotions.
From the outside looking in, what was most apparent was how far the Andrews family had come. Just over a century has passed since young Herbert departed Louisa’s cell, knowing she would be hanged. Hundreds of women protested the execution, but their plea for mercy had fallen on deaf ears and there was no longer anything that Herbert or anyone else could do to stop the hanging.
Herbert and his brother went North to Newcastle, probably on horseback and with no more than his swag and the tools to light a fire to keep them warm at night.
They returned to work: Herbert qualified as a butcher and Frederick worked as a miner. Herbert also built his own house in Newcastle, by hand.
As tough as it must have been surviving the loss of their parents – one apparently murdered, the other hanged for the crime – there were moments of great joy.
Herbert married and had children, and so did May, and the family stayed tight in those years after their mother was executed, working hard and supporting one another into the new century.
All knew the secret, but kept it from their children, choosing to forge on, as they determined to make life easier for generations to come.
Four generations on, Louisa’s descendants stood proudly for these photographs, celebrating the lives of their shared ancestors and the rich and fulfilling lives they made for themselves.
“The emotion of this day will never leave me. I feel that the gaps in my past have been filled,” said Vic Cairney, 69.
“My grandmother was a lovely woman, a joy, but there was a sadness in her sometimes and I never knew why.
“This helped me put a picture together and I feel more complete. The women in my family tree, they were wiped from the history books, but they are home now and we can honour them.”
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