ALAN CARLTON
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Karen Wong

Picture
Karen Wong. She is a smiling, happy, popular, dentist. I spoke to her and I learnt two things. Her journey to Hobart was circuitous. The future of dentistry is looking good.  

Alan: I get the impression that you enjoy your work and you are happy with your job and I want to find out why.

Karen (laughter)

Alan: Nothing wrong with that. We like that. Can we go back in time? You were born in…

Karen: Malaysia. The part close to Indonesia, not Singapore. A lot of bush around there. You get orangutangs.

Alan: So, when you were growing up in Malaysia you had a regular dentist.

Karen: No, actually.

Alan: What did you know about dentistry?

Karen: Nothing about dentistry. I always wanted to be a doctor like my sister and my uncle.  But my elder sister finished her medical school before I finished high school and she advised me not to do medicine but to go for dentistry. Because if she could choose again, she would have done dentistry.

Alan: When you were young you must have occasionally seen a dentist.

Karen: The school dentist and they are very scary.
Laughter
Karen: The school dentist comes to the school and we had a toothbrushing exercise and we had to brush our teeth in front of the school dentist.

Karen: I went to school in the UK for matric and I had to choose where and what to study and my sister said do dentistry. She said it’s better for women. Better for your family. It’s a nice job. You don’t have to be on call.

Alan: You studied in Belfast.

Karen: I really enjoyed those five years. It was hard but worth it.

Alan: Tell me something about Belfast.

Karen: Northern Irish have really cute accents.

Alan: Where did you go after Uni?

Karen: Scotland. They have got lovely, lovely accents.

Karen: The area where I worked was pretty tough. I spent a lot of time educating them. Most of them just want to pull their teeth out. Because it’s easier.

Alan: How did you go from Scotland to Tasmania?

Karen: I was planning to move to be closer to my family. But Covid came. The borders were closed. My sister didn’t know when the borders were going to open up again. We have no idea when we are going to see each other again. It was the middle of the night, I was sleeping. My sister called me and said pack a suitcase, go the airport straight away, and buy a one-way ticket to Melbourne. Right now. Forget about all your stuff. Just rush right now and you’ll get the last flight into Australia and I did that. And that’s why I ended up in Melbourne.

Alan: Why Hobart?

Karen: I am a temporary resident so I have to work in rural areas.

Alan: How often do you see your sister?

Karen: Every weekend. I fly to Melbourne.

Alan: Every weekend. I find that a bit unusual.

Karen: To me family is the most important. My mum is living with me in Hobart.

Alan: Does she go to Melbourne with you?

Karen: Yes.

Alan: When you go back to Melbourne at the weekend what do you do?

Karen: Shopping and watching movies. My sister is starting up a new business. Catering for post-partum ladies.

Alan: How do you find the Australian accent? Is it easier to understand than the Scottish or Irish accent?

Karen: My sister has been in Melbourne for quite a while and she speaks with an Aussie accent.

Alan: Can we go back in time to a young girl at school in Malaysia. What would you tell her about life as a dentist?

Karen: I really enjoy what I am doing now. I sometimes think about what if I had of done medicine.

Alan: Can we stay with this young girl in Malaysia. What did she know about Tasmania?

Karen: Nothing. Never heard of it.

Alan: And Australia?

Karen: Kangaroos and very poisonous animals like snakes, spiders and sharks.
laughter

Alan: And koalas.

Karen: Yes, they are nice.

Alan: Today after a day’s work, why have you enjoyed yourself?

Karen: The patients are very nice. They appreciate what you do.

Alan: Where do you see yourself in the future?

Karen: I think I will settle in Tassie. Because I like Tassie. The pace in general. I like what I’m doing now.

Alan: You’ve got a good place to work.
​
Karen: Yes. A good place with good people. 

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  • Home
  • Photos
    • photos >
      • All Saints Church
      • Anglesea Barracks
      • Art Mob
      • Boer War
      • Botanical Gardens
      • Brooke Street Pier
      • Brunswick Hotel
      • Campbell Street
      • Castray Esplanade
      • Cenotaph
      • Constitution Dock
      • St David's Cathedral
    • photos >
      • St David's Park
      • Elizabeth St Mall
      • Elizabeth St Pier
      • Franklin Square
      • Hadley's Hotel
      • Hobart GPO
      • Hobart Congregational Church
      • Hobart Rivulet
      • Hobart Town Hall
      • Holy Trinity Church
      • Heading South Sculpture
      • Hutchins Old School
    • photos >
      • Kunanyi / Mt Wellington
      • MacQuarie Street Primary School
      • Maritime Museum
      • MacQuarie Wharf
      • Parliament House
      • Penitentary
      • Railway Roundabout
      • Regatta
      • RHH
      • Royal Visits 1868 1901 1920 1927 1934
      • Royal visit 1954
      • Salamanca Place
    • photos >
      • Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race
      • Theatre Royal
      • Victoria Dock
      • Saint David's Cathedral
      • Saint David's Park
      • St George Anglican Church
    • Street art: photos >
      • Bidencope Lane
      • Criterion Collins Liverpool Streets
      • Elizabeth Street North Hobart​
      • Kemp Despard Streets
    • Streets: photos >
      • Argyle Street
      • Barrack Street
      • Bathurst Street
      • Brisbane Street
      • Brooker Highway
      • Campbell Street
      • Collins Street
    • Streets: photos >
      • Davey Street
      • Elizabeth Street
      • Goulburn Street
      • Harrington Street
      • Hunter Street
      • Liverpool Street
      • Macquarie Street
      • Murray Street
  • Places
    • Places >
      • All Saint's Church
      • Anglesea Barracks
      • Atheneum Club
      • Baha’i Centre
      • Boer War Memorial
      • Brook Street Pier
      • Brunswick Hotel
      • Boats in the docks
      • Constitution Dock
      • The Drunken Admiral
      • Franklin Square
      • Gas Works
    • Places >
      • Hadley's Hotel
      • Heading South Sculpture
      • Hobart GPO
      • Hobart Synagogue
      • Hobart Town Hall
      • Holy Trinity Church
      • Hunter Street
      • Ingle Hall
      • Old Wool Factory
      • Ordnance Stores
      • Parliament House
      • Penitentiary
      • Princes Park
    • Places >
      • Princes Wharf 1
      • Scots Memorial Church
      • Saint David's Cathedral
      • Saint David's Park
      • Saint George Anglican Church
      • St Michaels Collegiate School
      • Supreme Court
  • History
    • History >
      • Tasmanian Timeline
      • Early Tasmania
      • Mid Nineteenth Century
      • Late Nineteenth Century
      • 20th Century
      • Tasmania’s aborigines
      • Convicts
    • People >
      • John Lee Archer
      • William Bedford
      • Andrew Bent
      • Louis Bernacchi
      • James Blackburn
      • William Bunster
      • William Buckley
      • Thomas Bromfield
      • Luke Castray
      • William Champion
      • David Collins
    • People >
      • John Colvin
      • Charles Darwin
      • Governor Eadley
      • TT Flynn
      • John Franklin
      • Lady Jane Franklin
      • Charles Gaylor
      • Haig: Elizabeth and Andrew
      • Henry Jones
    • People >
      • James Kelly
      • Robert Knopwood
      • Lachlan Macquarie
      • Douglas Mawson
      • Charles McLachlan.
      • George Mure
      • Pearce: Henry and John
      • Robert Pitcairn
      • Poulett-Harris
      • Reid: Arthur and Alison
      • James Clark Ross
      • Ikey Solomon
      • Phillip Smith
      • Abel Tasman
      • Mark Twain
      • AJ White
      • Andrew and Elizabeth Haig
  • Community
    • Hobart Marathon Festival
    • Hadley's Hotel
    • history is not set in bronze
    • Wooden Boat Festival 2019
    • What do you think of Hobart?
    • Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race
    • The Mountain
  • Walking Tours
    • Dave's Walking Tour
    • The Tench Walking Tour
    • Botanical Gardens Circuit
    • ​Alfred’s feeling religious walk
    • Battery Point Sculpture Trail
    • Lachlan gets to the point
    • Street art: Luffy paints the town
  • Blog
    • healing through living
    • This website
    • about another website
    • Acknowledgement
    • Contact
  • The Full Complement
    • Alan Carlton
    • Daniel Frank
    • Paul Barrington
    • Jodi Sutton
    • Jodi Sutton talks about mistakes
    • Jodi Sutton: The phone
    • Ann Heath
    • Maddie Atkins
    • Karen Wong
    • Jo-Anne Cherry
    • Jo-Anne Cherry: Retirement
    • Errol Kilov
    • Garry Owen
    • Katherine Janney
    • Jacques Cawood
    • John Chung
    • Gordon Henry
  • Songs
    • Forty Years Ago
    • Tomorrow
    • Clouds in the River
    • I Woke Up
    • Hold My Hand
    • Cornelian Bay Boathouses
    • Dance on the Deck
    • Eucalyptus Globulus