My parents bought a house with a couple beautiful camelias that were growing on the side of the house along a narrow brick path. I was 8 years old at the time. I went back over 30 years later and got a tour of the old house and saw the camelias still there!I too, love camellias. They last a long time - their life expectancy that is.
In 1989, I was a single mother and bought a house in San Jose. There were two mature tall camellia bushes there. Fast forward to today, and my sis owns that home and those two shrubs are still just as gorgeous!