2/18/18 Thursday Island, Australia

Welcome to Thursday Island.

Pilot boat picking up pilot.  He is the man in the white shirt.  

Morning view upon arrival at Thursday Island, Australia on 2/18/18.  Love the color of the water in the Torres Strait.  

The first lady playing the ukulele is Cessa Mills.  She and her sisters were a singing group from the 1950's to the 80's that left the Torres Strait area and performed all over the Pacific and in the Europe.  

The green hill to the left in the background is the location of  Green  Fort Hill.

Anglican Church of Australia is credited with "Bringing the Light" to Thursday Island in 1874.

Our ship anchored in the harbor of Thursday Island.  This view is from Green Fort Hill.  

Green Fort Hill

Indigenous women dancing in ANZAC Park on Thursday Island.  Each tribe will do their own dance and wear different costumes.  We spoke to a preschool teacher and she was honored to be invited to dance with the women this past year.  The teacher said the children's education is Montessori-based.  Children come from nearby islands by dinghy and are frequently late for school. The teacher lives in housing provided by the community and food is her only expense.  She is originally from the Australian mainland and has been teaching here for three years.   She has adult children on the mainland and is very happy here at this time. 

Our Lady of the Sacred Heart Catholic Church  1886

Anglican Church of Australia

We walked up to Green Fort HIll which  was built to defend against a Russian invasion, then became a communication station.  There were amazing views from this site in three directions.  .  

We stopped by the local ANZAC park to see entertainment provided by indigenous people  and arts and crafts. Natives came from Melenesia and Polynesia.  Clothing and body decorations reflect New Guinea.  Pacific and missionaries influenced natives’ dress.  Locals go barefoot out of respect for the spirits believed to live on the island. 

FACEBOOK  Thursday Island, Queensland, Australia.  As you can see in the picture this island is beautiful.  The population is 3,500 people living on 3.5 square km.  Until the 1950's, the pearl industry was thriving here.

We were given maps and explored on our own. We walked up to Green Fort Hill which was built to defend against a feared Russian invasion in the 1890's, it closed thirty years later.   The fort became a communication station during WWII.  This island was not bombed during WWII, possibly out of respect for the Japanese pearl divers buried on the island.  A neighboring island was decimated.  

It is 58 feet above sea level, there were amazing views in three directions.  An artist colony is located here in town. Because it was Sunday, most shops and the art gallery were closed.   We were able to visit the church.   We did not swim here due to sharks, crocodiles, jelly fish, etc.

Local indigenous people provided entertainment and sold arts and crafts at the local ANZAC park. Each tribe does their own dance and wears different costumes.  Natives came from Melanesia and Polynesia.  Clothing and body decorations reflect New Guinea.  Missionaries influenced natives’ dress.  Locals go barefoot out of respect for the spirits believed to live on the island. 

We spoke to a preschool teacher and she was honored to be invited to dance with the women this past year.  The teacher said the children's education is Montessori-based.  Children come from nearby islands by dinghy and are frequently late for school. The teacher lives in housing provided by the community and food is her only expense.  She is originally from the Australian mainland and has been teaching here for three years.   She has adult children on the mainland and is very happy here at this time.