My gap year was our ‘OE’ (or Overseas Experience) back in 1979…
My new wife (of less than 6 months) was wanting to travel extensively overseas, having spent the last university holiday in Australia travelling all the way up the east coast to Cairns with a group of backpackers. When I met her, she was the happiest person I had ever seen. She told me that although I was a newly graduated military pilot, she didn’t want anything to do with life in the Military, as her parents were WW2 veterans (Dad a Pathfinder Pilot, highly decorated and Mum was in the fighter control centres for No 11 group in the RAF) also her brothers were in the Military in New Zealand.
So, when the time came, I resigned, as I was always away from home in New Zealand and across the Pacific.
I have never regretted this move as I wanted to be there as a partner for my wife and our future family.
So, we packed up, with two packs and departed for the USA, Los Angeles California. There we were, staying with my wife’s mothers’ friends (also a Canadian bomber pilot WW2). He took us to all the theme parks such as Disneyland, Knotts Berry Farm, Universal Studios etc. We had Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner out every day for 30 days.
We departed USA for London and landed in Stanstead as we were flying with Laker Airways. We were met by another family contact, my father-in-law’s Navigator during WW2. They were a great contact. We prepared for out next move, exploring London and buying a vehicle to head off to Wales (Caersws).
Our experience in Wales was shearing and wool handling. Most of this was done in paddocks with small flocks and off the mobile shearing platform. I commenced shearing as a weighty 15 stone, as I had given up smoking the year before and was eating lots and not much exercise!!
The shearing was very hard work. I lost 4 stone (25 Kg) in 2 weeks and was eventually able to achieve more than 200 sheep per day, including the Welsh Jacob sheep which were known to have up to 6 horns!
The most memorable experience for us was in the local pub. While we were in Caersws we drank at the pub every Friday night. When the bar closed at 10.00pm the locals started to sing (as Welsh folk do), the magic end to the night. However, when we had our last night before departure, they closed the bar, made us the centre of attention and sang for us, a beautiful experience and memory.
We went on to travel around UK and Scotland going to northern Scotland near Lochness (no Nessie!!), as my father-in-law had trained at the RAF based in Lossiemouth.
We went back to London and scored a pub job at the Crown at Westerham in Surrey (the owner was a Mosquito pilot in WW2. I must admit that my having been a military pilot and my wife’s parents having contacts in UK meant that we experienced great hospitality at all times.
In October 1979, we booked our airfares to Israel, my wife’s dream, as her mother’s family was Jewish from Australia. This was a wonderful experience. We milked cows, milked sheep, the locals took us on trips all over Israel (always had people with guns with us!) We also travelled across the Negev desert to Eilat down past the Dead Sea.
After 6 months our Israeli experience was over, and we went back to the UK.
Over the next 6 months we worked and travelled all around Europe with a Eurail pass on $10 per day (Arthur Frommer). We both arrived back in UK very skinny and, as the English weather was “normal”, we booked back to the USA and on home to NZ as our siblings were producing babies. as you do!
We spent the next 6 months shearing all over NZ and then booked our one-way trip to Australia in 1981.
That was our Gap Year, a wonderful challenging experience (not enough words….)
James Davey
15 July 2024
My new wife (of less than 6 months) was wanting to travel extensively overseas, having spent the last university holiday in Australia travelling all the way up the east coast to Cairns with a group of backpackers. When I met her, she was the happiest person I had ever seen. She told me that although I was a newly graduated military pilot, she didn’t want anything to do with life in the Military, as her parents were WW2 veterans (Dad a Pathfinder Pilot, highly decorated and Mum was in the fighter control centres for No 11 group in the RAF) also her brothers were in the Military in New Zealand.
So, when the time came, I resigned, as I was always away from home in New Zealand and across the Pacific.
I have never regretted this move as I wanted to be there as a partner for my wife and our future family.
So, we packed up, with two packs and departed for the USA, Los Angeles California. There we were, staying with my wife’s mothers’ friends (also a Canadian bomber pilot WW2). He took us to all the theme parks such as Disneyland, Knotts Berry Farm, Universal Studios etc. We had Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner out every day for 30 days.
We departed USA for London and landed in Stanstead as we were flying with Laker Airways. We were met by another family contact, my father-in-law’s Navigator during WW2. They were a great contact. We prepared for out next move, exploring London and buying a vehicle to head off to Wales (Caersws).
Our experience in Wales was shearing and wool handling. Most of this was done in paddocks with small flocks and off the mobile shearing platform. I commenced shearing as a weighty 15 stone, as I had given up smoking the year before and was eating lots and not much exercise!!
The shearing was very hard work. I lost 4 stone (25 Kg) in 2 weeks and was eventually able to achieve more than 200 sheep per day, including the Welsh Jacob sheep which were known to have up to 6 horns!
The most memorable experience for us was in the local pub. While we were in Caersws we drank at the pub every Friday night. When the bar closed at 10.00pm the locals started to sing (as Welsh folk do), the magic end to the night. However, when we had our last night before departure, they closed the bar, made us the centre of attention and sang for us, a beautiful experience and memory.
We went on to travel around UK and Scotland going to northern Scotland near Lochness (no Nessie!!), as my father-in-law had trained at the RAF based in Lossiemouth.
We went back to London and scored a pub job at the Crown at Westerham in Surrey (the owner was a Mosquito pilot in WW2. I must admit that my having been a military pilot and my wife’s parents having contacts in UK meant that we experienced great hospitality at all times.
In October 1979, we booked our airfares to Israel, my wife’s dream, as her mother’s family was Jewish from Australia. This was a wonderful experience. We milked cows, milked sheep, the locals took us on trips all over Israel (always had people with guns with us!) We also travelled across the Negev desert to Eilat down past the Dead Sea.
After 6 months our Israeli experience was over, and we went back to the UK.
Over the next 6 months we worked and travelled all around Europe with a Eurail pass on $10 per day (Arthur Frommer). We both arrived back in UK very skinny and, as the English weather was “normal”, we booked back to the USA and on home to NZ as our siblings were producing babies. as you do!
We spent the next 6 months shearing all over NZ and then booked our one-way trip to Australia in 1981.
That was our Gap Year, a wonderful challenging experience (not enough words….)
James Davey
15 July 2024
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