WEBVTT - EXCLUSIVE: Stephanie Browitt Survived The White Island Volcano. This Is Her Mother’s Story Too. 0:00:00.200 --> 0:00:01.800 I got to a hospital and I was sat in 0:00:01.800 --> 0:00:05.200 the kitchen with no information, and I continued to ask, 0:00:05.280 --> 0:00:07.400 and they brought up Paul's name and Stephanie's name, but 0:00:07.520 --> 0:00:10.600 Crystal's name was never brought up. And I continued to 0:00:10.640 --> 0:00:13.040 ask about Crystal, and they continued to say, there's no 0:00:13.119 --> 0:00:16.280 such person. Hello. 0:00:16.440 --> 0:00:20.160 I'm Kate Langbrook, host of No Filter, and my guests 0:00:20.200 --> 0:00:25.440 today are Stephanie and Marie Browitt. In December twenty nineteen, 0:00:25.800 --> 0:00:28.480 the Melbourne mother and daughter boarded a cruise through New 0:00:28.560 --> 0:00:33.840 Zealand with their family. During the trip, Stephanie, her father Paul, 0:00:34.000 --> 0:00:37.840 and her younger sister Cristal joined a tour to Wakari, 0:00:38.200 --> 0:00:41.879 also known as White Island, an active volcano off the 0:00:41.880 --> 0:00:48.240 coast of New Zealand. At two eleven PM, the volcano erupted. 0:00:49.200 --> 0:00:54.080 Crystal was killed on the island. Stephanie and her father Paul, survived, 0:00:54.520 --> 0:01:00.560 but suffered catastrophic burns. Weeks later, Paul died from his injuries. Also, 0:01:01.240 --> 0:01:06.680 Stephanie spent months in hospital undergoing surgeries, skin grafts, and rehab, 0:01:07.440 --> 0:01:11.399 while Marie faced the unimaginable reality of caring for her 0:01:11.560 --> 0:01:16.319 surviving daughter while grieving both her husband and youngest child. 0:01:17.480 --> 0:01:20.440 But this conversation is not simply about the eruption itself. 0:01:21.319 --> 0:01:28.360 It's about what happens after survival. It's about grief, visible scars, motherhood, 0:01:28.760 --> 0:01:35.640 survivor's guilt, humor, resilience, and the extraordinary bond between a 0:01:35.720 --> 0:01:39.160 mother and daughter forced to rebuild their lives side by 0:01:39.280 --> 0:01:45.400 side after unimaginable loss. This is Stephanie and Marie Browitt. 0:01:51.280 --> 0:01:55.560 Stephanie Browitt, Marie Browitt, Welcome. 0:01:55.160 --> 0:01:55.840 To No Filter. 0:01:56.760 --> 0:01:58.080 Thank you, thank you having us. 0:01:59.240 --> 0:01:59.720 I am. 0:02:01.400 --> 0:02:02.160 My girlfriend. 0:02:02.240 --> 0:02:04.800 Jane Kennedy, who I know you know, wrote the forward 0:02:04.840 --> 0:02:12.640 to your book and speaks very beautifully of you, and 0:02:13.120 --> 0:02:16.840 she says in the forward this book you may need 0:02:16.880 --> 0:02:21.400 to put down and take a few breaths while you're 0:02:21.440 --> 0:02:29.880 reading it, because both of you have endured unimaginable anguish. 0:02:31.120 --> 0:02:34.760 But you have also both of you fought for your lives. 0:02:36.600 --> 0:02:41.560 And it's an expression that people use, you know, casually sometimes, 0:02:41.600 --> 0:02:47.880 but both of you literally have, and the story of 0:02:48.040 --> 0:02:52.080 your survival both of you strikes me very much as 0:02:52.160 --> 0:02:59.399 a tale of love, a mother's love, a daughter's love, 0:02:59.600 --> 0:03:04.320 a sister love, a father's love, and the love of 0:03:04.440 --> 0:03:10.800 strangers who rose to meet you along the way. Why 0:03:10.840 --> 0:03:15.120 did you decide that now was the time to share 0:03:15.200 --> 0:03:18.079 your story with your book out of the ashes? 0:03:18.960 --> 0:03:22.799 I know for me personally, I needed to be in 0:03:22.840 --> 0:03:29.440 the right headspace emotionally, and I feel like I was 0:03:29.440 --> 0:03:33.320 going through so much still for many years after the 0:03:33.440 --> 0:03:37.640 eruption had taken place, because the recovery and the surgeries 0:03:37.640 --> 0:03:39.840 and operations that I was going through was taking a 0:03:39.840 --> 0:03:43.800 long time, much longer than I anticipated or thought it 0:03:43.800 --> 0:03:47.160 would take. And then we had so much going on 0:03:47.360 --> 0:03:51.560 in our lives in terms of the court case that 0:03:51.600 --> 0:03:56.760 we had, yes, and once that was behind us in 0:03:56.800 --> 0:04:00.760 a sense and we were able to go back to 0:04:01.280 --> 0:04:04.520 New Zealand and Fuckatani and meet some of the locals 0:04:04.560 --> 0:04:09.240 there and my heroes. I feel like that felt like, 0:04:09.400 --> 0:04:12.440 even though you can never know the perfect time, the 0:04:12.480 --> 0:04:16.640 perfect right time, but that felt like it had led 0:04:16.720 --> 0:04:20.840 us to the moment that was right to finally share 0:04:20.880 --> 0:04:21.440 our story. 0:04:22.560 --> 0:04:25.279 How did the conversation come about with your mum? 0:04:26.400 --> 0:04:26.679 Who? 0:04:27.800 --> 0:04:31.599 I imagine Steph that it was you that you lead 0:04:31.680 --> 0:04:33.760 the charge on Is that right, Marie? 0:04:33.839 --> 0:04:39.080 It was always Stephanie's idea. I never planned to be 0:04:39.120 --> 0:04:42.640 a part of it. I'm glad I did, because I 0:04:42.800 --> 0:04:47.960 remained silent throughout the years and was somehow invisible and 0:04:48.400 --> 0:04:51.440 out of the picture. You were busy. I was very busy, 0:04:51.480 --> 0:04:55.359 but I never spoke, so my voice was quite silent. 0:04:55.960 --> 0:05:01.520 Stephanie did. She she took over and spoke out and 0:05:02.279 --> 0:05:05.040 so forth, and she really did want me to partake. 0:05:05.080 --> 0:05:07.919 And a few people said, look, you know, it is 0:05:08.040 --> 0:05:10.760 great that Stephanie has this power and this tool where 0:05:10.839 --> 0:05:15.040 and she has the ability and determination to write this book, 0:05:15.080 --> 0:05:19.320 which she actually started writing in hospital. Ah. She started 0:05:19.320 --> 0:05:22.960 writing it in rehab when I bought her a phone, yes, 0:05:23.000 --> 0:05:25.760 because her fingers, and I thought, I, if I buy 0:05:25.800 --> 0:05:30.120 her this phone or this iPad, we can commence rehabilitation 0:05:30.279 --> 0:05:33.200 and she can reconnect with the world. And because I 0:05:33.520 --> 0:05:36.080 saw a darkness in her eyes at that point, and 0:05:36.120 --> 0:05:38.200 I thought I was going to lose her, and I thought, 0:05:38.560 --> 0:05:41.679 she's completely disconnected. If I can somehow give us something 0:05:41.760 --> 0:05:44.440 back and reconnect her with the world or something or 0:05:44.440 --> 0:05:48.480 friends or anything, maybe she can gain some you know, 0:05:49.440 --> 0:05:52.839 perspective and get a fight back, her spirit back. And 0:05:52.880 --> 0:05:55.479 it did it work. So she started drotting things down. 0:05:55.480 --> 0:05:59.359 Whether it was to maintain memory, I'm not sure, so 0:05:59.400 --> 0:06:01.880 I always knew she wanted it out there. And it 0:06:01.960 --> 0:06:04.200 took a while because, as she said, we did have 0:06:04.520 --> 0:06:07.840 the case, the court case, and we had so much 0:06:07.880 --> 0:06:11.920 happening in Stephanie's operations of just being countless, and there's 0:06:11.960 --> 0:06:15.520 been so much healing, and when I was asked to join, 0:06:15.720 --> 0:06:18.840 I thought, no, this is Stephanie's project. I couldn't possibly 0:06:19.920 --> 0:06:22.279 And then I was convinced that, you know, there's so 0:06:22.440 --> 0:06:25.240 much in a hospital bed, but then nobody knows about 0:06:25.279 --> 0:06:28.080 the flip side of what was happening around her and 0:06:28.120 --> 0:06:30.240 what was happening in the background, and the failures that 0:06:30.320 --> 0:06:33.200 I noticed that took place, well, may failed me or 0:06:33.200 --> 0:06:36.840 the system and the people that came to support us, 0:06:36.880 --> 0:06:40.200 and nobody heard that story, and and you know, it 0:06:40.279 --> 0:06:45.560 was an insurmountable, you know, a tragedy, and it was 0:06:46.120 --> 0:06:49.680 you know, the odds were all against us, and Stephanie's 0:06:49.680 --> 0:06:51.960 fight was incredible, and I'm glad that she put that 0:06:52.040 --> 0:06:55.200 to paper, and that's why I joined you. And I thought, okay, 0:06:55.760 --> 0:06:58.720 I'll tell it as I remember it the word, and 0:07:00.600 --> 0:07:04.360 from what we experienced, I hope it represents us well 0:07:04.400 --> 0:07:07.479 on it. As you said, our family and the love 0:07:07.520 --> 0:07:10.000 that we share in the bond that we have. We've 0:07:10.000 --> 0:07:10.960 always had that bond. 0:07:11.280 --> 0:07:14.280 How was your family, So we're going back to twenty nineteen, 0:07:15.640 --> 0:07:18.680 and it was before the what's known as the White 0:07:18.720 --> 0:07:23.240 Island incident, the volcano, the volcanic eruption, that you were 0:07:23.320 --> 0:07:28.400 visiting as a family, not you, Marie, but on part 0:07:28.440 --> 0:07:30.920 of a cruise that you'd take in a celebratory cruise 0:07:32.080 --> 0:07:36.800 with your beautiful daughter and sister Crystal with Kay that's right, 0:07:37.920 --> 0:07:40.640 and your husband Paul had gone with the two girls. 0:07:40.960 --> 0:07:44.200 What did your family look like, because the sense is 0:07:44.240 --> 0:07:47.320 that they were a very that you're a very beautiful, 0:07:47.480 --> 0:07:48.480 bonded family. 0:07:48.760 --> 0:07:53.080 Well, we were always very, very close, and I mean 0:07:53.560 --> 0:07:55.560 close enough that we could pick on each other and 0:07:55.600 --> 0:07:57.640 fight with each other and then love each other all 0:07:57.760 --> 0:08:03.960 in one day. It didn't matter. But I valued our 0:08:04.000 --> 0:08:08.920 time together so so much, and when it came to 0:08:09.000 --> 0:08:13.080 things like birthdays or celebrations, I didn't care so much 0:08:13.160 --> 0:08:15.640 to catch up with people outside of the family. The 0:08:15.680 --> 0:08:18.720 thing I looked forward to most was our time getting 0:08:18.720 --> 0:08:22.040 out of the house and spending time together because we 0:08:22.080 --> 0:08:24.320 always had so much fun with each other. You know, 0:08:24.640 --> 0:08:29.200 Dad would joke around and act silly all the time 0:08:29.280 --> 0:08:34.680 and do silly things, and then we'd pick on. Mum 0:08:34.679 --> 0:08:41.320 always took everything with great you know, you took it 0:08:41.360 --> 0:08:47.240 really greatly. But we just you could see everyone on 0:08:47.280 --> 0:08:49.040 the outside, I don't know, could see how much we 0:08:49.120 --> 0:08:51.240 loved each other because we were loud, we were happy, 0:08:51.320 --> 0:08:54.840 we were joyous. We always had people at our place 0:08:54.880 --> 0:08:58.120 when we would celebrate or have Christmas East or anything 0:08:58.200 --> 0:09:00.640 like that. Mum would host the gatherings. Mum would cook 0:09:00.679 --> 0:09:04.600 up storm and my friends would always want to come 0:09:04.640 --> 0:09:07.600 around to have some of Mum's food, but also just 0:09:07.640 --> 0:09:10.880 to be around our family because it was infectious. And 0:09:10.920 --> 0:09:15.000 I felt very lucky and fortunate to have a family, 0:09:15.200 --> 0:09:18.320 to have the family that I did, and to see 0:09:18.400 --> 0:09:21.400 how much other people wanted to join and be a part, 0:09:21.559 --> 0:09:26.079 because I knew that not everyone gets that, not everyone 0:09:26.160 --> 0:09:31.280 gets happy family or you know, so I knew how 0:09:32.640 --> 0:09:36.200 valuable and lucky I was to have that as well. 0:09:36.520 --> 0:09:39.400 So at that stage, you were twenty three and Crystal 0:09:39.480 --> 0:09:46.559 had just turned twenty one, you'd had her twenty first 0:09:48.360 --> 0:09:52.920 and to celebrate that, you had gone on a family cruise, 0:09:52.920 --> 0:09:56.040 which you had done before and which was also a 0:09:56.080 --> 0:10:00.760 source of much joy and fun for you. And when 0:10:00.800 --> 0:10:04.400 you're on board the boat, which is a Royal Caribbean cruise, 0:10:04.440 --> 0:10:06.120 you hadn't been on that line before. 0:10:07.640 --> 0:10:11.000 We had. We had taken a Royal Caribbean cruise only 0:10:11.000 --> 0:10:16.560 eleven months before with a different evasion of disease was one. 0:10:16.640 --> 0:10:20.160 The other one was I can't remember the friendship, I continued, 0:10:20.200 --> 0:10:23.079 But you loved cruising. You were a cruising family. Were 0:10:23.440 --> 0:10:25.760 we holidayed. We made sure we took a holiday with 0:10:25.800 --> 0:10:29.120 the killers once a year. We wanted them to have 0:10:29.200 --> 0:10:34.040 a rest. Because of their studies. They worked quite hard 0:10:34.080 --> 0:10:39.160 and very long hours. Crystal especially would work the hours 0:10:39.160 --> 0:10:43.040 of a full time employee, supervising at our local woollies 0:10:43.559 --> 0:10:47.760 and also studying. Ven studied full time. She studied full 0:10:47.800 --> 0:10:54.000 time at university, and she also volunteered with r SBCAS 0:10:54.120 --> 0:10:57.520 And at the time she had just completed her her 0:10:57.559 --> 0:11:00.960 two days placement at Lord Smith Animal Hospital, which is 0:11:01.000 --> 0:11:06.240 where she was supposedly going to work because that's what 0:11:06.280 --> 0:11:08.360 she wanted to do, and I asked her to work locally. 0:11:08.400 --> 0:11:09.800 She said, no, I don't want to be part of 0:11:10.240 --> 0:11:13.320 a veterinary clinic which spends most of its time doing 0:11:13.360 --> 0:11:17.400 small things on euthanasia, which is something like I can't tolerate. 0:11:17.440 --> 0:11:21.080 I would rather be in a hospital saving saving souls 0:11:21.160 --> 0:11:23.960 rather than you know, I want to be part of 0:11:24.240 --> 0:11:29.400 the healing process. And yeah, so and Stephanie too, the 0:11:29.440 --> 0:11:31.800 poor thing. She was coming home so late at night. 0:11:31.920 --> 0:11:34.400 She was she had completed her art's degree and then 0:11:34.679 --> 0:11:38.440 did another hey, I'd find course and that was just 0:11:38.480 --> 0:11:42.480 coming to one end. So literally every year when you know, 0:11:42.760 --> 0:11:45.080 we were all so exhausted because I was also mum's 0:11:45.120 --> 0:11:47.240 care or seven days a week as well as working, 0:11:47.760 --> 0:11:50.000 and I thought it was a good good time to 0:11:50.040 --> 0:11:52.400 have a break with the girls. And we had taken 0:11:52.440 --> 0:11:54.920 this cruise before, but not this particular ship. We were 0:11:54.960 --> 0:11:58.959 constantly looking at upgrading to give the family something more interesting, 0:11:59.040 --> 0:12:02.760 something different, And we'd never been to New Zealand before 0:12:02.800 --> 0:12:05.400 and this was the first time we were going, and 0:12:05.440 --> 0:12:08.640 we were going to be celebrating or continue the celebration 0:12:08.720 --> 0:12:11.040 of my daughter's twenty first birthday. 0:12:11.640 --> 0:12:14.520 And also that was a lovely way for you to 0:12:14.600 --> 0:12:17.880 enjoy the family as well, because the against the backdrop 0:12:17.920 --> 0:12:20.319 of the family is that you also have a mess 0:12:21.240 --> 0:12:25.800 that you had had for a couple of decades. That's right, so, 0:12:26.120 --> 0:12:30.720 and that brings its own attendant issues. So a cruise 0:12:30.840 --> 0:12:33.760 is a perfect environment that you can all kind of 0:12:33.760 --> 0:12:37.360 relax together. And how beautiful that your girls wanted to 0:12:37.400 --> 0:12:40.600 come with you. Oh, they didn't have much choice. 0:12:42.400 --> 0:12:45.400 Always got a choice, Marie, No, they do. We were 0:12:45.559 --> 0:12:50.600 very lucky that we had two beautiful daughters. Very proud 0:12:50.640 --> 0:12:54.600 of both our girls. Very good kids. Actually they never 0:12:54.720 --> 0:12:59.280 posed an issue. They were you know, they were very loving, 0:12:59.280 --> 0:13:02.040 and they were dedicated to their education and to be 0:13:02.120 --> 0:13:04.840 inn a valuable member of society. They were, you know, 0:13:05.160 --> 0:13:07.360 they had very good morals and principles and we were 0:13:07.440 --> 0:13:09.480 very proud of that. As to you know, we did 0:13:09.480 --> 0:13:12.240 our all to install that in them and make sure 0:13:12.760 --> 0:13:15.840 that we were also blinded and connected as a family. 0:13:15.880 --> 0:13:18.800 And to do that, we wanted to make sure that 0:13:18.840 --> 0:13:20.440 we spent a lot of time together and we had 0:13:20.480 --> 0:13:23.520 dinners together rather than one in front of the TV. 0:13:23.640 --> 0:13:26.520 And now they're in the Yeah, so I you know, 0:13:26.640 --> 0:13:29.440 I always said we need to sit down at the 0:13:29.480 --> 0:13:32.679 table and connect. Food in our family was more about 0:13:32.720 --> 0:13:35.679 connecting mother than eating. But I made sure that that 0:13:35.800 --> 0:13:39.520 time was our time. It was a valuable time, it 0:13:39.559 --> 0:13:42.160 was productive. If we had something to speak about or 0:13:42.160 --> 0:13:45.280 something to that needed discussing or sorting out. This is 0:13:45.320 --> 0:13:48.560 the time to do it. Any concerns. And we laughed 0:13:48.600 --> 0:13:50.760 around the table, and we threw food at each other, 0:13:51.600 --> 0:13:54.840 so I had to clean up, of course. And yes, 0:13:54.920 --> 0:13:57.600 I was the source of their banter, and I did 0:13:57.640 --> 0:14:00.440 take it very well. And how we loved a joke, 0:14:00.520 --> 0:14:04.560 and we really value and valued and cherish the laughter 0:14:04.600 --> 0:14:07.320 in our home. We laughed and screamed a lot. We 0:14:07.320 --> 0:14:10.880 were so loud, I think the next suburb could hear 0:14:10.960 --> 0:14:13.560 us because my front door was always open and it 0:14:13.600 --> 0:14:15.199 was open to anyone that entered. 0:14:15.240 --> 0:14:19.000 And they were valued like family. So yeah, and also 0:14:19.080 --> 0:14:23.040 the girls you love nature, Stephanie and your sister, Yes, 0:14:23.080 --> 0:14:25.520 that's right. So then when you're on the on the 0:14:25.560 --> 0:14:30.240 bouche and one of the tours that's offered is an 0:14:30.240 --> 0:14:35.120 extraordinary opportunity really to go see to go to this 0:14:35.200 --> 0:14:39.480 place called White Island. What did you know of that 0:14:39.680 --> 0:14:40.440 at the time. 0:14:42.120 --> 0:14:44.000 Well, we were already on the ship at that moment 0:14:44.040 --> 0:14:46.440 when we came across the tour in one of the 0:14:46.480 --> 0:14:49.440 pamphlets that was on the cruise that was given to us, 0:14:50.560 --> 0:14:55.520 so nothing, we literally knew nothing except what we had 0:14:55.560 --> 0:15:00.120 just come across on that day. Right, We were a 0:15:00.200 --> 0:15:02.200 few days in and we thought we'd have a look 0:15:02.200 --> 0:15:04.280 at the pamphlet just to get an idea of things 0:15:04.320 --> 0:15:06.680 to do in New Zealand, not necessarily to book it 0:15:06.760 --> 0:15:09.960 to our from the ship itself, but just to get 0:15:09.960 --> 0:15:12.480 an idea of things that we could do it some 0:15:12.600 --> 0:15:16.760 of us stops, and that was one we came across, 0:15:16.840 --> 0:15:21.800 and I remember thinking, oh, this just sounds like something 0:15:21.800 --> 0:15:26.280 you can't really does elsewhere, and we may not come 0:15:26.320 --> 0:15:29.080 across this sort of thing again, maybe we can look 0:15:29.120 --> 0:15:31.960 into this one. So that's where my mind went when 0:15:32.000 --> 0:15:36.400 I first saw it. It didn't really say much except 0:15:36.640 --> 0:15:42.000 that we'd be taking a cruise out to White Island 0:15:42.000 --> 0:15:47.000 and enjoy as a beautiful lunch on board, and that 0:15:47.040 --> 0:15:51.640 it would be very scenic, yes, and it had the duration, 0:15:52.040 --> 0:15:55.320 and that we would need to be wearing clothes shoes 0:15:55.400 --> 0:15:58.800 because of the walking that would take place. 0:15:58.720 --> 0:16:01.760 And because of the walking. Your mom didn't end up 0:16:01.840 --> 0:16:05.040 going on that trip, and because of your limitations, you 0:16:05.120 --> 0:16:07.840 were like, this is I won't be able to do this. 0:16:08.520 --> 0:16:12.480 But Paul and the girls said, off, that's right, yes, Paul. 0:16:13.240 --> 0:16:16.720 When they noticed it. It's not like a colored illustration 0:16:16.880 --> 0:16:19.800 or anything like that. It's just a photocopy insert that 0:16:19.840 --> 0:16:21.760 they put in in every day. 0:16:22.840 --> 0:16:25.480 It's like a daily And it was just like a 0:16:25.520 --> 0:16:28.680 paragraph and there was a few to choose from, and 0:16:29.240 --> 0:16:31.920 it just caught Stephanie's eye. It sounded, you know, it 0:16:31.960 --> 0:16:35.400 sounded great. Really. I remember Kristal not being so. She 0:16:35.480 --> 0:16:39.120 was a little apprehensive because christ said, what a ripoff, right, 0:16:39.480 --> 0:16:42.840 because the boat excursions are always expensive. She said, this 0:16:42.880 --> 0:16:44.760 is a ripoff. Why should I pay this money? 0:16:45.120 --> 0:16:46.080 And we did. 0:16:46.160 --> 0:16:48.840 We never did partake in these excursions because we were 0:16:48.920 --> 0:16:51.640 very independent. We liked doing our own thing. But it's 0:16:51.680 --> 0:16:53.240 good to go through them because you had ideas of 0:16:53.280 --> 0:16:55.720 what you can do, and this one wasn't one we 0:16:55.840 --> 0:16:58.640 can It was something that you were forced to do 0:16:58.720 --> 0:17:00.800 with them, or you went with that. And the girl, 0:17:00.920 --> 0:17:05.359 Stephanie was very determined that she this sounded exciting, and 0:17:05.359 --> 0:17:09.439 it said sounded colorfull and life. She actually said, this 0:17:09.480 --> 0:17:11.879 is one since you actually said that. They were your 0:17:11.920 --> 0:17:14.840 actual words at the time. And I remember saying please, no, no, 0:17:15.400 --> 0:17:20.240 you know, and do a different one, and and and 0:17:20.760 --> 0:17:22.840 Paul said, and I'd say, okay, but I'll stay with 0:17:22.880 --> 0:17:24.600 you and I said, you're not staying with me. If 0:17:24.600 --> 0:17:26.920 the girls leave, you leave with them. And I remember 0:17:27.000 --> 0:17:28.920 him saying, I'm not leaving you here on your own, 0:17:28.960 --> 0:17:33.240 and I laughed, thinking, in a ship thousands of people, 0:17:33.640 --> 0:17:35.480 I'm not the one that's going to be alone. The 0:17:35.520 --> 0:17:37.320 girls will be you need. If they go, you go. 0:17:37.480 --> 0:17:40.159 And I said those words, and they did go. And 0:17:40.240 --> 0:17:42.240 I stayed behind on the ship because, as you said, 0:17:42.280 --> 0:17:46.000 because of my mess, my my ability was restricted. And 0:17:46.119 --> 0:17:49.199 in that brochure, in that in that paragraph, there was 0:17:49.240 --> 0:17:53.320 a picture of stairs because they have like yees and 0:17:53.400 --> 0:17:58.160 the only warning, and the only only warning was wear 0:17:58.359 --> 0:18:02.600 comfortable shoes, right. And immediately I said to poor I 0:18:02.640 --> 0:18:06.320 can't go, and he knew, and so off they went. 0:18:06.440 --> 0:18:09.719 And I didn't think that it would be dangerous. 0:18:09.760 --> 0:18:12.399 And in the meantime, Crystal had entrusted you with a 0:18:13.640 --> 0:18:17.320 with a with a mission, which was to get her 0:18:18.840 --> 0:18:20.880 key ring, which she collected from everywhere. 0:18:20.960 --> 0:18:24.439 I gathered that you went everywhere we went in it 0:18:24.480 --> 0:18:26.600 didn't matter where it went we went, which she collected 0:18:26.600 --> 0:18:29.600 a coin, and she collected a carring and souvenirs and 0:18:30.640 --> 0:18:35.920 also the what do you call them? The globes. Yeah, 0:18:35.960 --> 0:18:39.359 she always collected those, and on this particular one, it 0:18:39.480 --> 0:18:41.199 was like, well, if we're going out there, how am 0:18:41.240 --> 0:18:44.239 I going to get a caring? And I remember as 0:18:44.280 --> 0:18:45.840 I was getting pleased, I mean, I said, well, I 0:18:45.840 --> 0:18:48.679 don't really know where the ship stocked from where we 0:18:48.680 --> 0:18:50.600 were facing, you couldn't really see. And I said, I 0:18:50.640 --> 0:18:53.000 don't know it all all depend And she said please, 0:18:53.040 --> 0:18:54.879 and I said, and I know I can't heat and 0:18:54.920 --> 0:18:57.159 I can't do walking, and at the time I couldn't 0:18:57.160 --> 0:18:59.280 walk far. I was with a walking stick at the time, 0:19:00.000 --> 0:19:02.000 and I was using the aid and I said, look, 0:19:02.040 --> 0:19:05.640 I can't promise you. And it wasn't until stephany timing 0:19:05.720 --> 0:19:08.040 much later that she was asking total strangers to get 0:19:08.040 --> 0:19:11.320 this caring for her. But I felt terrible halfway through 0:19:11.359 --> 0:19:12.600 the day and I thought, no, I've got to do 0:19:12.640 --> 0:19:16.240 this for my baby, and I wanted to surprise the girl. 0:19:16.320 --> 0:19:18.639 So I did get off and surprisingly the buses were 0:19:18.680 --> 0:19:22.040 right there. It was all organized and was quite easy, yes, 0:19:22.080 --> 0:19:24.159 and they circled the town and it was either a 0:19:24.160 --> 0:19:26.280 public holiday or a Sunday. I think it was a 0:19:26.320 --> 0:19:29.000 public holiday, and ninety percent of the shops were shut, 0:19:29.200 --> 0:19:32.280 probably ninety five. And I did manage to go in one, 0:19:32.320 --> 0:19:36.960 and I actually found her name with the K, very unusual. 0:19:37.440 --> 0:19:40.840 First on the day. I can't believe it. On the day. 0:19:40.840 --> 0:19:43.639 What are the chances of that? Her entire life, she 0:19:43.760 --> 0:19:47.720 looked for anything carrying anything with a K. Her name 0:19:47.800 --> 0:19:51.960 was always it was always c which was after when 0:19:51.960 --> 0:19:54.240 the Fairies had come out. I remember thirty years ago 0:19:54.320 --> 0:19:57.760 now the products and the show, and it became a 0:19:57.880 --> 0:20:01.400 very popular name. But she's like she named after my grandmother, 0:20:01.800 --> 0:20:04.600 the great grandmother. That's my great grandmother's it's a very 0:20:04.720 --> 0:20:08.359 old Greek name, and it's Costalo. What does it mean. 0:20:08.640 --> 0:20:14.399 It means purity and clarity, and that's what she was. 0:20:15.960 --> 0:20:18.560 She was very crystal clear, just like her name. 0:20:20.160 --> 0:20:23.760 So you're on your mission to get the key ring 0:20:23.880 --> 0:20:30.240 and you're miles away Stephanie doing undertaking what has proven 0:20:30.280 --> 0:20:34.080 to be a really arduous trip, which also was not flagged. 0:20:34.160 --> 0:20:35.480 Yes, how hard. 0:20:35.200 --> 0:20:36.919 It was going to be to get there, that a 0:20:37.080 --> 0:20:40.119 boat ride in which everyone was violently ill. 0:20:40.520 --> 0:20:44.159 That's right, it, yeah, it. We saw the duration of 0:20:44.200 --> 0:20:47.760 the tour. We didn't realize that majority of that duration 0:20:47.880 --> 0:20:52.360 would be just getting to and from. Yes, I had 0:20:52.359 --> 0:20:54.520 no idea that the port we were stopping at was 0:20:54.560 --> 0:20:56.439 so far from where we needed to go for this 0:20:56.480 --> 0:21:01.320 particular tour. So we stopped at Taranga and there was 0:21:01.359 --> 0:21:04.359 a bus ride involved, which we had already become a 0:21:04.400 --> 0:21:07.760 big motion sick from that, and then that led us 0:21:07.760 --> 0:21:14.120 onto this little cruise boat, like a little jetboat. I'd 0:21:14.160 --> 0:21:17.520 say it wasn't very big, which was the one that 0:21:17.880 --> 0:21:20.520 was apparently advertisers being a scenic boat where you could 0:21:20.600 --> 0:21:25.000 enjoy your lunch on it, And it very much wasn't that. 0:21:25.400 --> 0:21:28.200 It left us seasick almost immediately. 0:21:28.560 --> 0:21:30.800 How many people on the boat forty. 0:21:31.760 --> 0:21:35.640 There were forty two of us, Yeah, yeah, forty two 0:21:35.680 --> 0:21:39.200 of us, including some of the guides that were going 0:21:39.240 --> 0:21:43.399 to be running the tours when we arrived. But a 0:21:43.440 --> 0:21:46.280 lot of those people, I'd say at least half were 0:21:46.560 --> 0:21:50.159 very much seasick. It was noticeable pretty much straightaway, with 0:21:50.240 --> 0:21:53.960 vomit bags being handed out, people being moved around the 0:21:54.000 --> 0:21:56.560 boat towards the back because that was apparently a better 0:21:56.560 --> 0:22:00.920 position to be in for the seasickness. But you felt 0:22:00.960 --> 0:22:04.600 it the whole way. It was just awful? Did it feel? 0:22:05.200 --> 0:22:08.120 And I know that to have these conversations in retrospect 0:22:08.320 --> 0:22:12.600 is different, but did it when you arrived at this 0:22:13.160 --> 0:22:18.400 you describe it as like almost a moonscape. Yes, this barren, 0:22:18.560 --> 0:22:26.119 rocky thrust of an island. Did it did anything about 0:22:26.119 --> 0:22:29.560 it other than the illness feel ominous to you? 0:22:29.600 --> 0:22:29.800 No? 0:22:29.920 --> 0:22:34.680 Not when we had just landed there, because I think 0:22:35.080 --> 0:22:40.600 we were so focused on just okay, we're finally on land. Yes, 0:22:41.280 --> 0:22:43.680 that wasn't my first thought, because I had already begun 0:22:43.720 --> 0:22:47.880 to feel bad for dubting Crystal for bringing for tuesdays 0:22:48.520 --> 0:22:51.480 just from the sea sickness. I was already feeling like crap. Yeah, 0:22:52.200 --> 0:22:53.920 and then once we were there, I was like, Okay, 0:22:53.960 --> 0:22:58.359 maybe it's going to be a bit better now, which 0:22:58.400 --> 0:23:02.479 is hard to say now back, but yeah, that's what 0:23:02.520 --> 0:23:04.720 we thought. So our main focus was Okay, let's just 0:23:04.800 --> 0:23:07.000 we're going to feel better now the sea sickness is gone. 0:23:07.560 --> 0:23:10.320 And then we're just taking in our surroundings and looking 0:23:10.359 --> 0:23:13.400 around at what's around and you know, it's very unusual. 0:23:13.440 --> 0:23:16.359 It's not something you see every day, let alone probably 0:23:16.400 --> 0:23:19.680 ever think you're going to see again. So it's cool 0:23:19.720 --> 0:23:23.119 in the moment. Yep, it looks very cool, very different 0:23:23.119 --> 0:23:27.560 and unique, very photographic, something fun to share. So in 0:23:27.560 --> 0:23:30.000 that moment, we're just taking in and you can't really 0:23:30.080 --> 0:23:34.400 I couldn't really see much from the crater itself from 0:23:34.400 --> 0:23:36.359 where we were beginning the tour. 0:23:36.400 --> 0:23:40.919 Right, So then you walked up a path to the crater. 0:23:42.080 --> 0:23:46.640 Yes, So then once the tour began, after the we 0:23:46.640 --> 0:23:50.120 were placed into two separate groups with two tour guides each. 0:23:51.040 --> 0:23:54.240 My family we were in the second group to be 0:23:54.320 --> 0:23:58.880 walking around the island that day. So we were following 0:23:58.880 --> 0:24:00.800 the tour GUIDs with one at the front and one 0:24:00.800 --> 0:24:04.199 at the back in a single file line so that 0:24:04.240 --> 0:24:10.680 we wouldn't separate and get lost. Yeah, so they were 0:24:10.680 --> 0:24:14.640 taking us around a pathway that they said we had 0:24:14.640 --> 0:24:17.640 to follow, which wasn't It wasn't a very clear pathway, 0:24:17.720 --> 0:24:19.240