Lets see how good my memory is

When we arrive in Norfolk and a bus took us from the airport to the hotel. It was like stepping back in time. both Cam and I kept looking at each other like what the frick..... hard to explain but nowhere near advanced in architecture and just the general feel of the place. After we checked in we drove around the island which as I mentioned is only 5x8 kms big so we had fun exploring.

Next Day - we decide to go to main street and pay for our tours. Walk into one place and the woman was amazingly wonderful. Her name was Alison Christian.

Now for a quick tidbit on Norfolk Island - the island is mostly populated by 8 main families. These eight families are from the men who held Mutiny on the Bounty and their families. 3 of these men - Fletcher Christian, John Adams and the other had slipped my mind (bloody memory), all married and had children with women from Tahiti while they were there (dont want to explain too much into that but the Bounty spend 3 months in Tahiti before they left and then half the ship men on the Bounty held a Mutiny and turned around to go back to Tahiti to get their women).

anyway back to Alison Christian. We were sitting there having some laughs and paying for our tour when she and another gentleman named John Christian (yes seriously... everyone just about has the same last name) made a smart ass comment about the Evans family.

Now of course being an Evans I got defensive and of course lippy back. WELL... this is where it all began.

I wish I was better at writing and able to tell you all the amazing events that happened over the next 4 days. When Alison found out I was an Evans she had me on the phone within 2 minutes with another family member Nellie Evans. SERIOUSLY!! 2 minutes I am not exaggerating. I spoke with Nellie and then another Evans named Mitch. It was all very strange and overwhelming so i just rolled with the punches and went with whatever happened next. Well what happened was Cam and I went hiking (sooooooo beautiful) and when we got back to our hotel room.... the phone was ringing. SERIOUSLY!! it was hilarious. We answered of course and I spoke with Lou Evans. All these Evans are related somewhere in my past. Lou arranged for Cam and I to sit with the Evans table the next day at Bounty/Anniversary Day.

This day was the whole reason Cam and I went to Norfolk when we did. Every year on June 8th they celebrate the arrival of the mutineers of the bounty and their families arriving on Norfolk Island. Its a huge day where they re-enact the arrival (everyone is all dressed up in old school gear) and then march through town. Go to the grave yard and remember their loved ones and then go to Government House for morning tea. Then all the families have a lunch and celebrate and pig out. Now the amazing thing about this whole day is you must be a family to take part which of course I am. So we were able to join the lunch with all the other families.

Honestly the next day I was really quite nervous. I didnt know what to expect and I felt like I was about to have the answer to soo many questions I have always had about my life which was exciting but freaky as well. We went down to watch the re-enactment and the whole march. Then we waited for the lunch to start.

The lunch was held in this open air compound and when you walked in the main families could be found in each corner with the smaller families in the middle. The Evans were in the back left corner. As we walked up I could tell they knew exactly who I was. They were super friendly and the introductions took forever. There were TONS of people. and TONS of food. It was great to hang out and get to know each other and really for me to sit back and observe everything happening. It was great. In good islander style there were many many beers and drinking became the number one activity. It was fun.

In this whole process we met members of the other families and one man in particular named Norm Quintall. Such a nice man. He was head of security at the Norfolk airport. Again they were very generous and we talked with the Quintalls and Norm for about an hour before we took off. Norm was really adamant that we take his car keys and use his car instead of the rental. I mean this island the the people are something else. Something I have always hoped there was somewhere like this out there. So friendly. Safety is never a concern. generous, respectful, very culturally involved and proud. The highest speed limit is 50kms/hr, there are 4 street lights on the whole island, everyone is definitely on island time and cows have the right away. And they do not like moving for you. they take their time that for sure. Its my absolute favourite place.

Over the next few days I met more Evans family, got to see our family flag (aka family tree that is on a flag) and would be walking down main street and have people calling my name out to come meet and talk to me. SOOOOO COOL!!!

I learnt more about where I come from in 5 days than I thought was possible. If we had stayed longer I would have met so many more family members and learnt so much more about my background. But now I know which sailor from the Bounty I am from and that he has one of the main men involved with the Mutiny. he is also one of the 3 men who fell in love, married and had babies with one of the Tahitian women and I even know her name. So I can now connect my blood line to my family in Tahiti. I learnt how my looks is soooo very Tahitian and is still very predominant in my appearance and now I must go to Tahiti to finish my search. Cam has made me promise I dont book a trip to Tahiti while he is still in school so he graduates Oct 17th so close after then I MUST go to Tahiti and keep researching and discovering my (Evans) history. Anyone want to meet us in Tahiti?? Towards end of the year??

And to finish the perfect trip……. We had checked in at the airport to return to Australia and were going through security and you’ll never guess who we ran into…our buddy Norm. So it was nice to say our goodbyes to him and of course spoke of staying in touch and hopefully meeting again one day. Right before we were to board the plane, a man came up to us and told us we had to wait till last to get on and they had moved our seats to 1A and 1B. So I was pumped thinking we got an emergency exit. Well when we went through and entered the plane we had been bumped to business class. OH YEAH BABY!!!! It was AMAZING!! It was the best flight I have ever had and business class is bloody amazing. Now I don’t know if I can ever go back…ha!!

Pictures from Norfolk

Me at Bird Rock Point. This was so bloody beautiful there arent words to expalin

Cammo having fun at the Arches. Extimated to be from the 1850s

Me with Philip Island behind me. Its another little island about 7 kms from the Norfolk shore

My roots

well I have just had the most amazing experience so far in my life. And Cam says the same. We have just returned from Norfolk Island. Its a tiny (only 5x8kms) island off the coast of Oz, closer to New Zealand. Bout 2.5 hour flight from brisbane.
Now why would we go to this island?? Well for anyone who really knows me, who I am, my skin colour and appearance and where I come from has always been HUGE questions and parts of my life. Well Norfolk was my first step into finding out some answers to questions I have always had. Here's some history for you.
Most people know about the H.M.S Bounty or most know it by The Muitny on the Bounty. Well I m a direct descendent of John Adams (who went under the name Alexander Smith, which is a whole other story in itself....ha!!) who was one of the seamen that took mutiny over this ship. Anyway the reason they mutinied was because they had been in Tahiti and there the men had fallin in love with the Tahitian women. 2 of the men (Fletcher Christian and John Adams) had married and their wives were pregnant when they left Tahiti to continue their journey to the West Indies. BUT of course the men wanted to go back so they held a mutiny took over the ship and turned around and went back for their women.
Now they were smart enough to know they couldnt stay in tahiti cause they would come looking for them. So they took their wives, 12 tahitian women, 6 tahitian men and feld. Long story short they ended up in Pitcairn Island. where they stayed for many years until the island which is also extremely tiny was becoming to over populated and the left and arrived in Norfolk Island on June 8 1856. This date is known as Bounty Day or Anniversary Day. This is a large part of why Cam and I went over at this time so we could see and be apart of the day and celebrations.
How our trip unfolds I will have to write again tomorrow. its a long but awesome funny story I will share. But I am dead tired right now so dont feel up to wirting tonight. Until tomorrow......