You know that feeling when life is just screaming something at you? Like, it just keeps popping up, over and over, saying, "Pay attention to this message!!"
I used to think that this kind of stuff was coincidence. Now I prefer to view it as synchronicity.
My trend has been Peru, and Machu Picchu in particular, for a few years. I have been aware of it, and I have let it sit at the back of my mind, knowing that at some point I would be in the situation to go see it for myself. It's a strange feeling to look at pictures of a place you have never been and feel like you took them. Eek.
Lately, Mexico has been coming up more and more. And the Mayans. And for some reason, butterflies and their migratory patterns (to Mexico) has been the theme of my day.
I don't believe in coincidences anymore, but I'm not exactly sure what I do believe when it comes to this kind of stuff. Is *someone* sending me a message? Or is there a predetermined path for me? Or has it all happened already and I'm just remembering the whole thing? Am I really the only one who exists, and this is all my big elaborate dream? Or is there a chemical in the brain that makes things *seem* familiar or meaningful that actually aren't? In that case, why would it choose specific incidents? Like the migratory patterns of butterflies?
Showing posts with label travelling. Show all posts
Showing posts with label travelling. Show all posts
06 November 2010
30 October 2010
Guess who forgot to take pictures
My trip was great. I didn't even leave the resort, but that was ok; I only had a very limited time there, and I was more than happy to be able to spend it hanging out with people instead of seeing sights. I would love to go back and see the sights, of course. I am bummed to have missed Chichen Itza and the other Mayan ruins, but I have the rest of my life ahead of me. Yes I do.
I remember every time I'm in a plane that is taxi-ing the runway that I am terrified of the takeoff. Conveniently I forget until then, so I have no dread until we're in motion. Then I'm like, "Oh yeah." And when we're making the final descent, I'm also pretty sure that I'm going to die. Every time. Each way to and from Playa del Carmen, I had three flights - 6 near death experiences. It was stressful. And I'm finding that over time, I am more and more fearful, even though I have spent a whole lot of time in the air. I used to find it all very exhilarating. Now, not so much
Needless to say, I made it alive. I witnessed the sunrise en route to Phoenix, and the sunset en route from Mexico City to Cancun. Long day, but it was pretty ok as I had a book to read and an iPod to listen to. What more could a woman want? I speak enough Spanish to understand where the signs are pointing me and when someone is asking me if I have any bags to check (NOPE!) or any connections, so the layovers were easy and carefree. I enjoyed the Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) decorations all around the airport. (I enjoyed them immensely, actually. I could write a whole blog post about how awesome I found them, and how awesome I find the whole idea of Dia de los Muertos.)
Cancun was warm, rainy, and really humid (which turns my hair into crazy frizzy Gene Wilder hair - thanks to Melissa for pointing out the spot-on resemblance). My ride took me past myriad resorts and golf courses, all with impenetrable fortress-like entrances. My resort was 45 minutes away and appeared to be bigger than the sun.
Melissa said she would leave a message at the front desk for me with her room number, but lo and behold, she happened to walk up as I waited at reception to check in. I was given The Bracelet (the color of which determines one's class and therefore where one is permitted to eat and drink). We joined the others at dinner, hugs all around (I love hugs, and I give them away indiscriminately). I was thrilled to meet Melissa's husband-to-be and her brother's awesome girlfriend (I fell a little bit in love with her right away). And it was wonderful to see Melissa's parents who feel a bit like a second set of my own. I've known them for nearly 20 years.
We ate, we drank, we mingled and chatted, and then I went to my room (on the other side of the sun) to drop off my stuff. Walking into the room made me feel profoundly lonely, immediately. You have to remember that I spend a lot of time surrounded by people (especially children), so the big roomy luxury seemed a bit excessive without anyone to share it with. At least it did on that first night, hehe. King sized bed, huge jacuzzi tub, I could have lived there.
Melissa called the next morning while I was in the tub (I could have lived there specifically). We met and headed to breakfast. We spent the whole pre-wedding day together and with the brother, his lovely girlfriend, and the fiance. I do fifth-wheel well - when I'm comfortable I'm enough person to make up two people. We spent a long time in the bathwater ocean (I could have lived there too). The sky to the east, out over the sea, was almost purple with storm clouds. It started to rain as we were walking back to our rooms to get changed. The rain was warm. Incredible.
The wedding was beautiful. It was a casual, beachy thing. The bridesmaids wore purple dresses that made us "feel beautiful" which is perhaps the loveliest thing a bride has ever done for her bridesmaids. We were in a gazebo on the beach and there was a lovely warm wind (hello, Gene Wilder!). Declarations of love were exchanged, tears were shed. Life is good.
Post-wedding we drank, ate, mingled, and drank. At some point after dark we changed into swimwear and headed to the beach and drank some more. A resort security guard guy hung around to make sure we didn't get ourselves into trouble with the ocean and our alcohol. As my Spanish improves immensely when I have had a few drinks, I chatted with Aurelio (said security guard) and tried to convince him that since one of us was a certified lifeguard (or so I was told), we would be ok. He had heard this song and dance before. We negotiated wading up to our rodillos (knees - I had to ask while pointing). The rest of the night was a bit, um, foggy.
Melissa ordered me a wake up call, bless her. I was disappointed to find that I was still inebriated when I received that call, and hardly in a state to pack and travel. The rest of the day was a bit long and awful as I traveled back home. I got to my train station about 21 hours after I woke up, and even though I was wearing the warmest clothes I had taken with me, it was still a late October night in Portland and I was cold.
Eli was so sweet when he woke up and realized I was next to him. He said, "Hi Mommy" about 15 times and just hugged me and stroked my face. When the other two woke up, they ran in and we snuggled and loved eachother. It was great to be home.
I remember every time I'm in a plane that is taxi-ing the runway that I am terrified of the takeoff. Conveniently I forget until then, so I have no dread until we're in motion. Then I'm like, "Oh yeah." And when we're making the final descent, I'm also pretty sure that I'm going to die. Every time. Each way to and from Playa del Carmen, I had three flights - 6 near death experiences. It was stressful. And I'm finding that over time, I am more and more fearful, even though I have spent a whole lot of time in the air. I used to find it all very exhilarating. Now, not so much
Needless to say, I made it alive. I witnessed the sunrise en route to Phoenix, and the sunset en route from Mexico City to Cancun. Long day, but it was pretty ok as I had a book to read and an iPod to listen to. What more could a woman want? I speak enough Spanish to understand where the signs are pointing me and when someone is asking me if I have any bags to check (NOPE!) or any connections, so the layovers were easy and carefree. I enjoyed the Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) decorations all around the airport. (I enjoyed them immensely, actually. I could write a whole blog post about how awesome I found them, and how awesome I find the whole idea of Dia de los Muertos.)
Cancun was warm, rainy, and really humid (which turns my hair into crazy frizzy Gene Wilder hair - thanks to Melissa for pointing out the spot-on resemblance). My ride took me past myriad resorts and golf courses, all with impenetrable fortress-like entrances. My resort was 45 minutes away and appeared to be bigger than the sun.
Melissa said she would leave a message at the front desk for me with her room number, but lo and behold, she happened to walk up as I waited at reception to check in. I was given The Bracelet (the color of which determines one's class and therefore where one is permitted to eat and drink). We joined the others at dinner, hugs all around (I love hugs, and I give them away indiscriminately). I was thrilled to meet Melissa's husband-to-be and her brother's awesome girlfriend (I fell a little bit in love with her right away). And it was wonderful to see Melissa's parents who feel a bit like a second set of my own. I've known them for nearly 20 years.
We ate, we drank, we mingled and chatted, and then I went to my room (on the other side of the sun) to drop off my stuff. Walking into the room made me feel profoundly lonely, immediately. You have to remember that I spend a lot of time surrounded by people (especially children), so the big roomy luxury seemed a bit excessive without anyone to share it with. At least it did on that first night, hehe. King sized bed, huge jacuzzi tub, I could have lived there.
Melissa called the next morning while I was in the tub (I could have lived there specifically). We met and headed to breakfast. We spent the whole pre-wedding day together and with the brother, his lovely girlfriend, and the fiance. I do fifth-wheel well - when I'm comfortable I'm enough person to make up two people. We spent a long time in the bathwater ocean (I could have lived there too). The sky to the east, out over the sea, was almost purple with storm clouds. It started to rain as we were walking back to our rooms to get changed. The rain was warm. Incredible.
The wedding was beautiful. It was a casual, beachy thing. The bridesmaids wore purple dresses that made us "feel beautiful" which is perhaps the loveliest thing a bride has ever done for her bridesmaids. We were in a gazebo on the beach and there was a lovely warm wind (hello, Gene Wilder!). Declarations of love were exchanged, tears were shed. Life is good.
Post-wedding we drank, ate, mingled, and drank. At some point after dark we changed into swimwear and headed to the beach and drank some more. A resort security guard guy hung around to make sure we didn't get ourselves into trouble with the ocean and our alcohol. As my Spanish improves immensely when I have had a few drinks, I chatted with Aurelio (said security guard) and tried to convince him that since one of us was a certified lifeguard (or so I was told), we would be ok. He had heard this song and dance before. We negotiated wading up to our rodillos (knees - I had to ask while pointing). The rest of the night was a bit, um, foggy.
Melissa ordered me a wake up call, bless her. I was disappointed to find that I was still inebriated when I received that call, and hardly in a state to pack and travel. The rest of the day was a bit long and awful as I traveled back home. I got to my train station about 21 hours after I woke up, and even though I was wearing the warmest clothes I had taken with me, it was still a late October night in Portland and I was cold.
Eli was so sweet when he woke up and realized I was next to him. He said, "Hi Mommy" about 15 times and just hugged me and stroked my face. When the other two woke up, they ran in and we snuggled and loved eachother. It was great to be home.
21 October 2010
It's getting so close.
I leave for Mexico in less than 48 hours! I am so excited. Looking so forward to temperatures in the high 80s, swimming in the ocean (assuming that part of the Gulf of Mexico is swimmable...), and mostly hanging out with my bestie. Not looking forward missing the kids, and looking forward to missing the kids. If that makes any sense. Four days and three nights of looking after nobody but myself. Putting nobody to bed but me.
I'll be desperately missing my family by the end of it, and that will be pretty great.
But first I get to see Sam Harris, and that's going to be awesome.
I'll be desperately missing my family by the end of it, and that will be pretty great.
But first I get to see Sam Harris, and that's going to be awesome.
03 September 2010
¡México!
Thanks to my bestie Melissa for planning her wedding next month in Playa Del Carmen, Mexico. I'm making my travel arrangements. Mine. My own. I'm going solo. It is so insanely exciting.
My last (and only) solo international flight was in 2002 when I flew home from Australia knocked up. I didn't yet appreciate what a treat it is to make that kind of flight by oneself. Since then I have made 9 round trip overseas flights, all of them with at least one child. One trip to America I even did as a solo parent with three kids, aged 6, 3 and 17 months. Whoever is handing out the awards for superhuman accomplishments missed me on that one.
So the prospect of going to Mexico without children feels so... free. Adult. Independent. I only feel a teeny tiny bit guilty because I'll only be gone for a few days. It will be my first time away from Eli, but I have done the separation thing before; when I came home to help my mom through her chemo, I spent a month away from Nate and Maya - she was only two months older than Eli will be - so three nights doesn't seem like quite such a big deal.
I only just looked at the map this morning to see where Playa Del Carmen is exactly. I had no idea. Depending on who you ask, it is a 40-60 minute drive from Cancún. The closest capital city is Havana, and it is only about 200 miles away from the Belize border. Three hours away is Chichén-Itzá, the spectacular Mayan ruins. I kind of feel like - how can I just go for a few days when there is so much to be explored? I'm thinking I'll have to get to Chichén-Itzá, even if it means spending an extra day. How could I not? I mean, it'll just be me. One backpack, one bottle of water. Nobody else's capacity for hiking or sightseeing longevity to take into consideration.
No checked baggage. No carseats. No games and toys and children's books. No complaining. No boredom. Ahhh, I could get used to that kind of traveling.
My last (and only) solo international flight was in 2002 when I flew home from Australia knocked up. I didn't yet appreciate what a treat it is to make that kind of flight by oneself. Since then I have made 9 round trip overseas flights, all of them with at least one child. One trip to America I even did as a solo parent with three kids, aged 6, 3 and 17 months. Whoever is handing out the awards for superhuman accomplishments missed me on that one.
So the prospect of going to Mexico without children feels so... free. Adult. Independent. I only feel a teeny tiny bit guilty because I'll only be gone for a few days. It will be my first time away from Eli, but I have done the separation thing before; when I came home to help my mom through her chemo, I spent a month away from Nate and Maya - she was only two months older than Eli will be - so three nights doesn't seem like quite such a big deal.
I only just looked at the map this morning to see where Playa Del Carmen is exactly. I had no idea. Depending on who you ask, it is a 40-60 minute drive from Cancún. The closest capital city is Havana, and it is only about 200 miles away from the Belize border. Three hours away is Chichén-Itzá, the spectacular Mayan ruins. I kind of feel like - how can I just go for a few days when there is so much to be explored? I'm thinking I'll have to get to Chichén-Itzá, even if it means spending an extra day. How could I not? I mean, it'll just be me. One backpack, one bottle of water. Nobody else's capacity for hiking or sightseeing longevity to take into consideration.
No checked baggage. No carseats. No games and toys and children's books. No complaining. No boredom. Ahhh, I could get used to that kind of traveling.
07 March 2010
Unlucky streak? Unfortunate, at least.
It started with things slowly happening to the motorhome. First it was the house battery and battery charger, which wasn't cheap to fix. We broke a key and had to get a new one made at a locksmith's. We popped some screws out of the awning and it hasn't been quite right since. There was the ding on the back bumper from backing into a tap, yet to be fixed. Then there was the broken lid on the bathroom vent - whenever it rained, it rained in our bathroom. We got that fixed. The leak upstairs was a big one, but Nick fixed it (temporarily) with duct tape. So then we developed a new leak in the back. It's not as bad as the first one, but still. Now our house water pump has gone, and we have no running water. Also, there is a fuse up front blown (I hope it's a fuze anyway) and our chargers, light and radio aren't working. And our rego runs out this month. Aaarrgghhh. We don't like not having running water, and all of this is making us even more eager to get back to Sydney, where we can check the motorhome in for repairs and not have it be our only home.
So we drove. We left Cairns on Thursday after our pancake breakfast, and drove to Bowen, a good effort. Friday was Bowen to Rockhampton, and we watched the scenery changing. Saturday we hoped to make it to the Sunshine Coast, but with the cooler weather (the first two driving days were hot and sweaty) the kids were quite happy in the car, so we drove straight to the Gold Coast. Straight to Treasure Island again for us. We decided to stay for two nights so that we could have a nice day off driving. The kids spent Sunday enjoying the kids club activities and the pool.
It's not just the motorhome though. When I was opening up the hard drive to put some pictures on my Kuranda blog post, it gave me an error message and froze up. We were unable to open it again. I figured I wouldn't worry. We would take it into an IT person to check it out. The data - an emotionless, technical term for all of the thousands of photos we have taken since we moved to Australia in 2004, three children's baby pictures, 6 years of life, Christmases, birthdays, overseas visits - had to still be there.
We took our little hard drive to a "data recovery specialist" this morning, and he was unable to recover said data. Ever the optimist, my first thought was, "So he couldn't get into it, but at least he didn't get in to see there was nothing there!" He gave us the contact details for Australia's data recovery people for our brand of hard drive, and we'll call them once we get to our friends' place. Then we'll have to do something that makes me really nervous: We will have to send this little box that contains so many memories off in the post to some computer geeks who don't know us and don't particularly give a shit about our photos. Dear computer geeks, please please pleeeeeeease recover our data.
So we drove. We left Cairns on Thursday after our pancake breakfast, and drove to Bowen, a good effort. Friday was Bowen to Rockhampton, and we watched the scenery changing. Saturday we hoped to make it to the Sunshine Coast, but with the cooler weather (the first two driving days were hot and sweaty) the kids were quite happy in the car, so we drove straight to the Gold Coast. Straight to Treasure Island again for us. We decided to stay for two nights so that we could have a nice day off driving. The kids spent Sunday enjoying the kids club activities and the pool.
It's not just the motorhome though. When I was opening up the hard drive to put some pictures on my Kuranda blog post, it gave me an error message and froze up. We were unable to open it again. I figured I wouldn't worry. We would take it into an IT person to check it out. The data - an emotionless, technical term for all of the thousands of photos we have taken since we moved to Australia in 2004, three children's baby pictures, 6 years of life, Christmases, birthdays, overseas visits - had to still be there.
We took our little hard drive to a "data recovery specialist" this morning, and he was unable to recover said data. Ever the optimist, my first thought was, "So he couldn't get into it, but at least he didn't get in to see there was nothing there!" He gave us the contact details for Australia's data recovery people for our brand of hard drive, and we'll call them once we get to our friends' place. Then we'll have to do something that makes me really nervous: We will have to send this little box that contains so many memories off in the post to some computer geeks who don't know us and don't particularly give a shit about our photos. Dear computer geeks, please please pleeeeeeease recover our data.
02 March 2010
Good hair day
Yesterday Nate and Eli and I took advantage of the courtesy shuttle and hung out at the big Stockland shopping centre for a few hours, just as long as we had to until the shuttle was due back. Maya wasn't feeling well (and had her second fever of our travels, maybe because of the close quarters?), so she stayed at the tourist park with Nick while he moved us into OUR VILLA. She is the dearest little sick person - curls up in bed and chats through her stuffy little nose, drifts off to sleep when she needs it, looks at books, listens to her body.
The shoe curse is still with us and has now taken my recently aquired black thongs. The toe strap snapped on the Great Barrier Reef boat. I haven't even had them for two months! Haviana is going to hear from me. In the meantime, however, I needed a new pair of shoes to wear. I borrowed Nick's new mock-crocs for the trip to the shops, and am now the proud owner of some $6 pink thongs. Pink? It was the only plain pair (like, without bedazzling or sequins or bows). Nick said it's like being married to a 12 year old. I've never been a pink person, but now I have a pink bag and matching pink shoes. Who am I???
We did a big shop, anticipating our full villa kitchen! Plenty of room in a full sized fridge for lots of fruit and veg - it all needs refrigeration up here in Cairns. All the fixings for an Indian dinner and a pizza dinner for the two nights we're here. An oven! Yay! We'll be baking cookies today.
It was so nice coming back to our villa. Yesterday was really hot and insanely humid, so we kept the air con set at 24 degrees and the overhead fans on low, and it was so nice in here. The villa has two bedrooms, one with a queen bed, one with two bunks, and the couch folds out into a bed as well. It isn't big, but it is a lot bigger than our motorhome, so we're feeling a bit luxurious and spread out. We brought in all of the toys and books and the kids really got into being less cramped.
We have also had the telly on a lot. The kids haven't watched any TV for weeks, but they have watched movies from our hard drive in the motorhome, and it's been the same things over and over. It's been nice for sick Maya to just chill out watching stuff she hasn't seen before while the boys hung out at the water park with Nick.
I loved taking a shower yesterday afternoon without having to pack and tote everything I would need off to a public shower, and without dripping with sweat on the way back to the motorhome. I washed my hair and noticed that last night it was all dry and silky smooth and relatively straight. Due to the humidity, I have been sporting a frizzy fro framed by some Maya-like ringlets since like Brisbane. But yesterday I was inside all afternoon.
Last night I heard the weatherman announce, "The humidity today was pretty atrocious, and it will be more of the same tomorrow." I'm really appreciating the opportunity to hang out inside.
We have clocked 5000 kilometres, which means it is time for a minor service to maintain the warranty. I'm hoping that won't be too expensive, although we have completely abandoned keeping track of the budget as of last week. We spent an insane amount of money with the reef tour, our trip to Kuranda (which I'll write about soon), and now the villa. Since we have been in Queensland we haven't been free camping - it rains at night and our windows let the rain right in so we have to close everything up, and then it becomes stifling inside with no power to run a fan or air con. All of the accommodation charges have really added up.
We will be heading back south, recharged and ready for the motorhome once again, and we won't be spending any more money on tours or theme parks or fancy accomodation or anything big like that. So we're giving up on the budget thing. We're no good at it anyway.
The shoe curse is still with us and has now taken my recently aquired black thongs. The toe strap snapped on the Great Barrier Reef boat. I haven't even had them for two months! Haviana is going to hear from me. In the meantime, however, I needed a new pair of shoes to wear. I borrowed Nick's new mock-crocs for the trip to the shops, and am now the proud owner of some $6 pink thongs. Pink? It was the only plain pair (like, without bedazzling or sequins or bows). Nick said it's like being married to a 12 year old. I've never been a pink person, but now I have a pink bag and matching pink shoes. Who am I???
We did a big shop, anticipating our full villa kitchen! Plenty of room in a full sized fridge for lots of fruit and veg - it all needs refrigeration up here in Cairns. All the fixings for an Indian dinner and a pizza dinner for the two nights we're here. An oven! Yay! We'll be baking cookies today.
It was so nice coming back to our villa. Yesterday was really hot and insanely humid, so we kept the air con set at 24 degrees and the overhead fans on low, and it was so nice in here. The villa has two bedrooms, one with a queen bed, one with two bunks, and the couch folds out into a bed as well. It isn't big, but it is a lot bigger than our motorhome, so we're feeling a bit luxurious and spread out. We brought in all of the toys and books and the kids really got into being less cramped.
We have also had the telly on a lot. The kids haven't watched any TV for weeks, but they have watched movies from our hard drive in the motorhome, and it's been the same things over and over. It's been nice for sick Maya to just chill out watching stuff she hasn't seen before while the boys hung out at the water park with Nick.
I loved taking a shower yesterday afternoon without having to pack and tote everything I would need off to a public shower, and without dripping with sweat on the way back to the motorhome. I washed my hair and noticed that last night it was all dry and silky smooth and relatively straight. Due to the humidity, I have been sporting a frizzy fro framed by some Maya-like ringlets since like Brisbane. But yesterday I was inside all afternoon.
Last night I heard the weatherman announce, "The humidity today was pretty atrocious, and it will be more of the same tomorrow." I'm really appreciating the opportunity to hang out inside.
We have clocked 5000 kilometres, which means it is time for a minor service to maintain the warranty. I'm hoping that won't be too expensive, although we have completely abandoned keeping track of the budget as of last week. We spent an insane amount of money with the reef tour, our trip to Kuranda (which I'll write about soon), and now the villa. Since we have been in Queensland we haven't been free camping - it rains at night and our windows let the rain right in so we have to close everything up, and then it becomes stifling inside with no power to run a fan or air con. All of the accommodation charges have really added up.
We will be heading back south, recharged and ready for the motorhome once again, and we won't be spending any more money on tours or theme parks or fancy accomodation or anything big like that. So we're giving up on the budget thing. We're no good at it anyway.
24 February 2010
That's how the other half live
We were blessed with wonderful weather for our cruise around the Whitsundays.
Our day started out with a courtesy coach picking us up from our caravan park. Five nights there and we didn't move the motorhome once! On to Abel Marina to hop onto The Voyager.
Now that we're out of the peak tourism season, a lot of things either aren't running or are different to their usual. Our tour was one of them, but it was a good change. The big, new boat was being fixed up, so we went out on the older boat. As one of the crew said, "Same head, different hat." We got the same tour, just on a smaller older boat and at a cheaper price. I'm not complaining.
We "set sail" and stopped first at Daydream Island to pick a few more people up. Off again, and onto Hook Island. We disembarked and marvelled at all of the colourful tropical fish in the clear waters just under the pier. One of the crew threw in some bread for them (and gave some to the kids to do the same) so we could get a really good look. There were even a few Maori wrasse down there, which are very distinctive, big blue fish with huge lips. We got into the Coral Viewer, a semisubmersible, and headed out to look at the fringing reef. There weren't a huge amount of fish on the reef (that we could see anyway) but the different varieties of coral were more interesting and beautiful than I would have thought. Spaghetti coral, stag coral, plate coral, brain coral, elephant ear coral.
Back on shore, we walked to the resort for a bit of snorkelling. Now as I have mentioned before, it is stinger season, so we were all given lycra stinger suits to wear in the ocean. Even little ones for the kids (well you would hope so!). How cute are they? Maya reminds me of Cathy Freeman circa 2000:
We fitted the kids with life vests so they could float around with their snorkelling gear, not having to worry about the swimming part. Most of the group headed out with some of the crew to feed the fish, so Nick went to have a look while I stayed shallow with the kids. Maya looked incredible, floating face down, kicking around - she didn't come up for air for ages! Eli didn't like the sensation too much and wanted me to hold him. After awhile, Maya and Eli were ready to get out (and into the resort pool), so Nick and Nate went out to the fish feeding together. Nick was surprised how nice snorkelling was. He hadn't thought it would be anything special. Nate was so high on the experience afterwards that it was all he could think or talk about. He is very much looking forward to snorkelling on the Great Barrier Reef.
Once we got back on the boat, we headed for Whitehaven Beach. It was voted (by whom I'm not exactly sure) as one of the top 10 beaches in the world. With all of the hype, it was anticlimactic getting there. Nick wonders how a beach can be in the top 10 when you can't even swim in the water without a special suit on. It did have the necessary components: white sand, tick; turquoise bath water, tick; free from development, tick. It unfortunately also had loads of leaf litter all over that white sand which really took away from the scenery. It was fun to watch all of the little fish in the shallows though, and at one point I could see a dark thing about 10 metres away, moving in our general direction - so I stood up and found myself looking at what looked suspiciously like a small shark. It was pretty cool.
Our next port of call was Daydream Island again, but this time to get off and have a wander around. The kids posed with the mermaid:
We enjoyed a smoothie at the bar, a swim in the lovely resort pool, and a play at the cool playground.
Nate snapped some pictures on the trip back home, including this candid one of Maya and me making funny faces:
It was a good day, especially the snorkelling. It was fun (and shocking) to see the multi-million dollar mansions and $6000 per night resorts on Hamilton Island from our boat. The scenery was beautiful - tropical islands popping up out of the clear blue sea. It was something to do once, to see what all the fuss is about. If I ever go back to the Whitsundays, it will be to stay on Hamilton Island.
Our day started out with a courtesy coach picking us up from our caravan park. Five nights there and we didn't move the motorhome once! On to Abel Marina to hop onto The Voyager.
Now that we're out of the peak tourism season, a lot of things either aren't running or are different to their usual. Our tour was one of them, but it was a good change. The big, new boat was being fixed up, so we went out on the older boat. As one of the crew said, "Same head, different hat." We got the same tour, just on a smaller older boat and at a cheaper price. I'm not complaining.
We "set sail" and stopped first at Daydream Island to pick a few more people up. Off again, and onto Hook Island. We disembarked and marvelled at all of the colourful tropical fish in the clear waters just under the pier. One of the crew threw in some bread for them (and gave some to the kids to do the same) so we could get a really good look. There were even a few Maori wrasse down there, which are very distinctive, big blue fish with huge lips. We got into the Coral Viewer, a semisubmersible, and headed out to look at the fringing reef. There weren't a huge amount of fish on the reef (that we could see anyway) but the different varieties of coral were more interesting and beautiful than I would have thought. Spaghetti coral, stag coral, plate coral, brain coral, elephant ear coral.
Back on shore, we walked to the resort for a bit of snorkelling. Now as I have mentioned before, it is stinger season, so we were all given lycra stinger suits to wear in the ocean. Even little ones for the kids (well you would hope so!). How cute are they? Maya reminds me of Cathy Freeman circa 2000:
We fitted the kids with life vests so they could float around with their snorkelling gear, not having to worry about the swimming part. Most of the group headed out with some of the crew to feed the fish, so Nick went to have a look while I stayed shallow with the kids. Maya looked incredible, floating face down, kicking around - she didn't come up for air for ages! Eli didn't like the sensation too much and wanted me to hold him. After awhile, Maya and Eli were ready to get out (and into the resort pool), so Nick and Nate went out to the fish feeding together. Nick was surprised how nice snorkelling was. He hadn't thought it would be anything special. Nate was so high on the experience afterwards that it was all he could think or talk about. He is very much looking forward to snorkelling on the Great Barrier Reef.
Once we got back on the boat, we headed for Whitehaven Beach. It was voted (by whom I'm not exactly sure) as one of the top 10 beaches in the world. With all of the hype, it was anticlimactic getting there. Nick wonders how a beach can be in the top 10 when you can't even swim in the water without a special suit on. It did have the necessary components: white sand, tick; turquoise bath water, tick; free from development, tick. It unfortunately also had loads of leaf litter all over that white sand which really took away from the scenery. It was fun to watch all of the little fish in the shallows though, and at one point I could see a dark thing about 10 metres away, moving in our general direction - so I stood up and found myself looking at what looked suspiciously like a small shark. It was pretty cool.
Our next port of call was Daydream Island again, but this time to get off and have a wander around. The kids posed with the mermaid:
We enjoyed a smoothie at the bar, a swim in the lovely resort pool, and a play at the cool playground.
Nate snapped some pictures on the trip back home, including this candid one of Maya and me making funny faces:
It was a good day, especially the snorkelling. It was fun (and shocking) to see the multi-million dollar mansions and $6000 per night resorts on Hamilton Island from our boat. The scenery was beautiful - tropical islands popping up out of the clear blue sea. It was something to do once, to see what all the fuss is about. If I ever go back to the Whitsundays, it will be to stay on Hamilton Island.
22 February 2010
Long overdue... PHOTOS!
Waaaay back at the Gold Coast, we lost our camera case which also housed the cord needed to upload photos to the computer. Remember that? I certainly do, because my blog has been seriously short on photos for a long time! I just checked and saw that the last photos I posted were of our Mt Warning climb back on 27 January. Yikes! I am in the process of remedying that situation now, starting with this post.
If you're interested in the pictures, have a look from 3 February onwards. Hopefully I'll get it done tonight! That would make way for the new photos we'll surely be taking tomorrow...
I'm so excited. We have been hanging out at the caravan park, waiting for our camera cord to arrive, before booking anything that we would want to have photos of. (Coincidentally, I have been fairly ill for the last few days with a throat infection, but I'm on the mend now.) Now we have said cord and have booked our Whitsunday Island Adventure! One day on the sea, enjoying the beautiful scenery, with a few stops along the way for snorkeling (stinger suits included!). The kids are so excited, and so are Nick and I! And I'm so glad we'll be able to take photos.
I asked Nate the other day what his favourite thing about travelling has been, and he said Fraser Island. Cooool, I'm so glad I didn't just go by myself!! In particular, Lake Mackenzie - and I discovered that Nick did take a few photos before the camera died! I'll upload those in the appropriate post, post haste. Maya said that her favourite was the Great Barrier Reef. I said, "But we haven't seen it yet" to which she replied, "But I'm going to love it!!"
Nick has the kids in the pool and I'm going to now go make us some vegetable soup for dinner. Just what the doctor ordered.
If you're interested in the pictures, have a look from 3 February onwards. Hopefully I'll get it done tonight! That would make way for the new photos we'll surely be taking tomorrow...
I'm so excited. We have been hanging out at the caravan park, waiting for our camera cord to arrive, before booking anything that we would want to have photos of. (Coincidentally, I have been fairly ill for the last few days with a throat infection, but I'm on the mend now.) Now we have said cord and have booked our Whitsunday Island Adventure! One day on the sea, enjoying the beautiful scenery, with a few stops along the way for snorkeling (stinger suits included!). The kids are so excited, and so are Nick and I! And I'm so glad we'll be able to take photos.
I asked Nate the other day what his favourite thing about travelling has been, and he said Fraser Island. Cooool, I'm so glad I didn't just go by myself!! In particular, Lake Mackenzie - and I discovered that Nick did take a few photos before the camera died! I'll upload those in the appropriate post, post haste. Maya said that her favourite was the Great Barrier Reef. I said, "But we haven't seen it yet" to which she replied, "But I'm going to love it!!"
Nick has the kids in the pool and I'm going to now go make us some vegetable soup for dinner. Just what the doctor ordered.
18 February 2010
Jumping ship
Ahhhhhh. We are centimetres away from turning tail and heading back to Sydney.
1) It's the wet season! My plan to speed things up a bit rather than meandering so much doesn't fit with Mother Nature's plans of raining a lot and often.
Why this is a problem: Today we headed from Hervey Bay (which I haven't even written about yet! And if I don't, there was some incredible nightly bat activity that I still want to research a bit. I'm talking thousands upon thousands of bats flocking south every evening at dusk. Anyway...) through Bundaberg and towards Town of 1770. What a name. At least, we intended to go to 1770, but we were thwarted by water on the road. We braved a few floodways, but then we came to one that the ute in front of us wasn't even willing to try and we realised we weren't going to make it. We chatted with said ute driver and he shared his local knowledge with us - there are at least four more parts of the road that would have water over them at least as high as this between where we were and Miriam Vale which was at the Bruce Highway, our outlet. We weren't going to make it to 1770, and we weren't even going to make it through that way to Rockhampton. We had to turn back towards Bundaberg and cover that almost 70 kilometres all over again. Bummer. Annoying. Frustrating. All of that.
Also a problem because: That leak upstairs? It is a leak. Nick took some duct tape (the white kind, classy folk that we are) to the seal on the outside, hoping that this would at least temporarily alleviate the problem. When we stopped for lunch, however, he checked for water upstairs and found it. Plenty. We need to have it seen to by a professional, and we plan to do that tomorrow morning.
And one more wet season issue: Laundry is expensive. We'll pay the $3 to wash a load rather than hand washing - that's worth it to us, especially as we recycle our clothes as much as possible so don't create that much laundry. But the standard fee for drying is $1 for 10 minutes! Robbery! Tonight, for the first time, we are paying to dry our clothes because it has been raining since we left Suzy's house and nothing will dry. My Ergo got soaked through on the Fraser Island tour bus and won't dry. All of the towels we have been using to soak up the leak upstairs (under some plastic to keep the mattress dry) are in need of washing and drying. We are paying $18 for two loads of laundry.
2) F*&^ing mosquitoes. They are getting worse and worse. Maya and I look like we have gnarly skin conditions. It's gross and itchy and annoying and uncomfortable and maddening and frustrating, etc etc etc. And it isn't going to get any better in the direction we're going.
3) The beaches are from here on up are unswimmable, or so we're told. Stinger season, mate, from Rockhampton north. No fun. Oh well, it's raining anyway. Who wants to go to the beach?
4) Long stretches of driving ahead. There was a whole lotta nothing between Bundaberg and Rockhampton, just 340ish kilometres of driving. This is the longest we have gone in one stretch (besides from Sydney to Urunga), made especially long by our backtracking. We could have stopped, there were a few tiny places along the way, but we just weren't interested today - we wanted to get to a place where we could have our leak seen to. That place was Rockhampton, nothing closer. It is equally far to Mackay, then to Townsville, then to Cairns. Cairns is still over 1000 kilometres away! 1000 wet, dreary, wet, humid kilometres. The long distance driving part isn't the most fun in the world, and even less fun for the kids, especially little Eli. I can either be sitting up front with Nick, keeping him company on the lonely roads, or sitting back with the kids trying to keep them entertained. I find that I much prefer sitting up front. I just need to work harder on finding the joy in sitting in the kiddie section.
5) Close quarters. I'm not naming names, but one of my children is really hard to be around this closely for this long. Okay, maybe two of them. It's not doing any favours for our marriage either.
We're not going to give up the dream just yet though. I just don't know how we can keep it up when it is seeming more like hard work than the rewarding adventure we had hoped for. We're going to stick it out to Cairns. We're looking forward to the Whitsundays and the reef, and I'm still holding out hope that some Cape York miracle tour will fall in my lap. I think after that though, we might retreat with our tails between our legs. Maybe we'll say hello to our friends in Sydney and keep heading south. Not sure yet.
1) It's the wet season! My plan to speed things up a bit rather than meandering so much doesn't fit with Mother Nature's plans of raining a lot and often.
Why this is a problem: Today we headed from Hervey Bay (which I haven't even written about yet! And if I don't, there was some incredible nightly bat activity that I still want to research a bit. I'm talking thousands upon thousands of bats flocking south every evening at dusk. Anyway...) through Bundaberg and towards Town of 1770. What a name. At least, we intended to go to 1770, but we were thwarted by water on the road. We braved a few floodways, but then we came to one that the ute in front of us wasn't even willing to try and we realised we weren't going to make it. We chatted with said ute driver and he shared his local knowledge with us - there are at least four more parts of the road that would have water over them at least as high as this between where we were and Miriam Vale which was at the Bruce Highway, our outlet. We weren't going to make it to 1770, and we weren't even going to make it through that way to Rockhampton. We had to turn back towards Bundaberg and cover that almost 70 kilometres all over again. Bummer. Annoying. Frustrating. All of that.
Also a problem because: That leak upstairs? It is a leak. Nick took some duct tape (the white kind, classy folk that we are) to the seal on the outside, hoping that this would at least temporarily alleviate the problem. When we stopped for lunch, however, he checked for water upstairs and found it. Plenty. We need to have it seen to by a professional, and we plan to do that tomorrow morning.
And one more wet season issue: Laundry is expensive. We'll pay the $3 to wash a load rather than hand washing - that's worth it to us, especially as we recycle our clothes as much as possible so don't create that much laundry. But the standard fee for drying is $1 for 10 minutes! Robbery! Tonight, for the first time, we are paying to dry our clothes because it has been raining since we left Suzy's house and nothing will dry. My Ergo got soaked through on the Fraser Island tour bus and won't dry. All of the towels we have been using to soak up the leak upstairs (under some plastic to keep the mattress dry) are in need of washing and drying. We are paying $18 for two loads of laundry.
2) F*&^ing mosquitoes. They are getting worse and worse. Maya and I look like we have gnarly skin conditions. It's gross and itchy and annoying and uncomfortable and maddening and frustrating, etc etc etc. And it isn't going to get any better in the direction we're going.
3) The beaches are from here on up are unswimmable, or so we're told. Stinger season, mate, from Rockhampton north. No fun. Oh well, it's raining anyway. Who wants to go to the beach?
4) Long stretches of driving ahead. There was a whole lotta nothing between Bundaberg and Rockhampton, just 340ish kilometres of driving. This is the longest we have gone in one stretch (besides from Sydney to Urunga), made especially long by our backtracking. We could have stopped, there were a few tiny places along the way, but we just weren't interested today - we wanted to get to a place where we could have our leak seen to. That place was Rockhampton, nothing closer. It is equally far to Mackay, then to Townsville, then to Cairns. Cairns is still over 1000 kilometres away! 1000 wet, dreary, wet, humid kilometres. The long distance driving part isn't the most fun in the world, and even less fun for the kids, especially little Eli. I can either be sitting up front with Nick, keeping him company on the lonely roads, or sitting back with the kids trying to keep them entertained. I find that I much prefer sitting up front. I just need to work harder on finding the joy in sitting in the kiddie section.
5) Close quarters. I'm not naming names, but one of my children is really hard to be around this closely for this long. Okay, maybe two of them. It's not doing any favours for our marriage either.
We're not going to give up the dream just yet though. I just don't know how we can keep it up when it is seeming more like hard work than the rewarding adventure we had hoped for. We're going to stick it out to Cairns. We're looking forward to the Whitsundays and the reef, and I'm still holding out hope that some Cape York miracle tour will fall in my lap. I think after that though, we might retreat with our tails between our legs. Maybe we'll say hello to our friends in Sydney and keep heading south. Not sure yet.
17 February 2010
Fraser Island
Will you believe me when I say that we took two pictures on Fraser Island before the camera battery died? I guess that cord is good for more than uploading photos - it's also necessary for charging the camera. Crap.
BUT! Go right ahead and type Fraser Island into Google Images, and you'll see what we saw today, and pretty close to the pictures we would have posted. I considered jacking some pictures to post here as "stock photos" but, well, reconsidered.
EDITED TO ADD: I was wrong! There were a few more than I thought, and I'm posting them below.
Our day started out with the bus picking us up from our caravan park at 7:20am. No problem, we're early risers around here. Nate was thrilled to see that it was a double decker bus, so up to the top we went. There were a few stops after us, picking up more people along the way, and then we were at the vehicle barge to take us to Fraser Island.
The ferry ride lasted about 35-40 minutes (according to the announcement). You can see Fraser from the mainland, but you're seeing the wild side, not the beach side, so it's hard to believe that under all of those trees is sand. We got off the ferry and onto our big 4WD bus for 40 people, and it was full. We were the only family with kids so we got to sit right up front, Eli and Maya safely strapped into their carseats, to avoid the worst of the bumpiness.
The "street" sign read "Speed limit 30 on tracks, 80 on beaches". You don't see that every day. The track was pure sand. Our driver/guide/commentator (Brad) said that the rain we have had over the last few days makes it much easier to drive on sand since it compacts down. Well there's one plus anyway. It also encourages little bugs that like to suck blood, but I swear I'll try to avoid the topic for the rest of this post :o)
Our first stop was Central Station. Not a thriving train station as its name might have you believe, but an old ranger station. We went for a walk on the boardwalk admiring some amazing trees and plants, and there was little Wanggoolba Creek on our left. Brad explained that this creek is a sacred spot to the local Aboriginal women - because it is crystal clear and maintains a steady temperature of 18 degrees, it is where they traditionally give birth (or I dare say WAS where they traditionally gave birth, now that there are steady streams of tourists to break up the peaceful solitude).
Next stop, the amazing Lake Mackenzie. Wow. Please Google it and check out the pictures. Here, I'll make is easier for you. It really does look like that, except that today was very overcast. The sand is white, the shallow water is that tropical light blue, and the deeper part is sapphire. The water is absolutely crystal clear. It is warm and clean and wonderful. Nothing feeds it except rain water, and nothing goes out either. We had a swim there for about an hour, and it was awesome. Nate said, "I'm having such a great day! Thanks for bringing us here!"
Here are some photos:
Fraser is famous for its wild dingoes. The only two pictures we took before the camera battery died were of some dingo safety signs. One illustration on the safety sign was of some parents frolicking in the water while a small child played alone on the beach with some sand toys, silently being stalked by a pack of dingoes. Brad said that recently a 7 year old boy was "taken" by dingoes because his parents hadn't been watching him. I felt a bit sick about that for awhile. Sobering stuff. We learned that if you find yourself in a confrontation with a dingo, you should maintain eye contact with the dingo, fold your arms across your chest, and slowly back away. Never turn and run. Never wave your arms and yell or do anything else that might excite the dingo.
We did see one dingo today. Brad said he hoped to find one feeding at the tip (where the rubbish from the resort goes) or on the beach, but there were none to be found. We chanced upon one (don't panic Mom, it was from a distance!) as we walked to the bathrooms to put our swimmers on before hitting Lake Mackenzie. It was in a parking area and there were people all around. It only had eyes for one thing though - the bag of rubbish that someone had left behind their car (despite all of the warnings not to leave food or rubbish about for this very reason). But a man got to the bag first and put it on top of the car, and the dingo took off. I must say, we were very vigilant at the beach.
After Lake Mackenzie we got back into the bumpy bus for a drive to Eurong Resort for lunch. Buffet! Too bad the food sucked. No fruit, no veggies aside from the iceburg lettuce, tomato, cucumber and grated carrot salad. Pasta bake, pasta salad, weird curried potato salad, scarily pale looking Asian beef something, cold chicken, stodgy white bread rolls, unrecognisable cold cuts. It was all very below average. Nate got himself a bunch of pasta salad (which was actually the tastiest thing) and ate half before saying he was still hungry but didn't want anymore of that. I extolled the benefits of a buffet, and he took a new plate to suss out his next move. He examined everything carefully and came back with a large mound of grated carrot. It was a bit like that. The upside is that I usually overeat at a buffet, but not when the food is crap.
From lunch we headed up the east coast of Fraser via 75 Mile Beach, which also happens to be the main highway. Brad told us about what's happening in the ocean - stingrays and bluebottles in the shallows, a few varieties of sharks a bit deeper, and a treacherous tide that wants to carry you right out to sea.
We went right up to the Coloured Sands, aka The Pinnacles and got out for our photo op. Well, those of us with working cameras did anyway - the rest of us got out for a closer look. Google it, a picture is worth a thousand words.
Next, down to the Maheno shipwreck. In 1935, the ex-luxury liner had been sold for scrap and was being towed when an out of season cyclone broke the rope and it ran aground. It's really incredible. I've seen bits of sunken ships, like a mast sticking out of the water at Byron Bay, but never a whole ship on the shore, partially buried in the sand. It is all rusted out now, but you can imagine how impressive it would have been 70 years ago.
Just another few minutes' jaunt in the bumpy bus to Eli Creek! We had about 40 minutes there to frolick in some more crystal clear water. The guy at our caravan park that sold us the tour told me that the water that flows into the creek takes 4 years to pass through the sand, all the while absorbing the abundant minerals and being filtered to perfection. If there weren't so many people traipsing through it every day, it would be beautiful to drink. It was a lovely traipse as well. Eli was crazy for it. We stripped him down to his undies because he pointed at the water and shrieked, "Water! Jump!" and off he went, happily doing just that. Maya and I walked along the creek on the boardwalk and then walked back down in the creek. Gorgeous.
And back again into the bumpy bus, back towards the ferry to take us back. It was at about this time that Brad asked if there was anyone French on the bus (it was in context, trust me), and Eli exclaimed into the silence, "Meeee!" It was very funny.
We all had a really wonderful time. It was a nice change, letting someone else do the planning and researching and driving. I had never been on an organised tour before and I kind of loved it. If I ever come to Fraser Island again, it will be in a 4WD camper, I'll bring all of the supplies I need, and I'll stay for 4 or 5 days and check it all out slowly. I'll fish in that treacherous ocean, hunt for pipis on the shore, and bring lots of toxic mozzie spray. Oh come on, you really didn't think I'd make it through the whole post without saying "mozzie" did you?
BUT! Go right ahead and type Fraser Island into Google Images, and you'll see what we saw today, and pretty close to the pictures we would have posted. I considered jacking some pictures to post here as "stock photos" but, well, reconsidered.
EDITED TO ADD: I was wrong! There were a few more than I thought, and I'm posting them below.
Our day started out with the bus picking us up from our caravan park at 7:20am. No problem, we're early risers around here. Nate was thrilled to see that it was a double decker bus, so up to the top we went. There were a few stops after us, picking up more people along the way, and then we were at the vehicle barge to take us to Fraser Island.
The ferry ride lasted about 35-40 minutes (according to the announcement). You can see Fraser from the mainland, but you're seeing the wild side, not the beach side, so it's hard to believe that under all of those trees is sand. We got off the ferry and onto our big 4WD bus for 40 people, and it was full. We were the only family with kids so we got to sit right up front, Eli and Maya safely strapped into their carseats, to avoid the worst of the bumpiness.
The "street" sign read "Speed limit 30 on tracks, 80 on beaches". You don't see that every day. The track was pure sand. Our driver/guide/commentator (Brad) said that the rain we have had over the last few days makes it much easier to drive on sand since it compacts down. Well there's one plus anyway. It also encourages little bugs that like to suck blood, but I swear I'll try to avoid the topic for the rest of this post :o)
Our first stop was Central Station. Not a thriving train station as its name might have you believe, but an old ranger station. We went for a walk on the boardwalk admiring some amazing trees and plants, and there was little Wanggoolba Creek on our left. Brad explained that this creek is a sacred spot to the local Aboriginal women - because it is crystal clear and maintains a steady temperature of 18 degrees, it is where they traditionally give birth (or I dare say WAS where they traditionally gave birth, now that there are steady streams of tourists to break up the peaceful solitude).
Next stop, the amazing Lake Mackenzie. Wow. Please Google it and check out the pictures. Here, I'll make is easier for you. It really does look like that, except that today was very overcast. The sand is white, the shallow water is that tropical light blue, and the deeper part is sapphire. The water is absolutely crystal clear. It is warm and clean and wonderful. Nothing feeds it except rain water, and nothing goes out either. We had a swim there for about an hour, and it was awesome. Nate said, "I'm having such a great day! Thanks for bringing us here!"
Here are some photos:
Fraser is famous for its wild dingoes. The only two pictures we took before the camera battery died were of some dingo safety signs. One illustration on the safety sign was of some parents frolicking in the water while a small child played alone on the beach with some sand toys, silently being stalked by a pack of dingoes. Brad said that recently a 7 year old boy was "taken" by dingoes because his parents hadn't been watching him. I felt a bit sick about that for awhile. Sobering stuff. We learned that if you find yourself in a confrontation with a dingo, you should maintain eye contact with the dingo, fold your arms across your chest, and slowly back away. Never turn and run. Never wave your arms and yell or do anything else that might excite the dingo.
We did see one dingo today. Brad said he hoped to find one feeding at the tip (where the rubbish from the resort goes) or on the beach, but there were none to be found. We chanced upon one (don't panic Mom, it was from a distance!) as we walked to the bathrooms to put our swimmers on before hitting Lake Mackenzie. It was in a parking area and there were people all around. It only had eyes for one thing though - the bag of rubbish that someone had left behind their car (despite all of the warnings not to leave food or rubbish about for this very reason). But a man got to the bag first and put it on top of the car, and the dingo took off. I must say, we were very vigilant at the beach.
After Lake Mackenzie we got back into the bumpy bus for a drive to Eurong Resort for lunch. Buffet! Too bad the food sucked. No fruit, no veggies aside from the iceburg lettuce, tomato, cucumber and grated carrot salad. Pasta bake, pasta salad, weird curried potato salad, scarily pale looking Asian beef something, cold chicken, stodgy white bread rolls, unrecognisable cold cuts. It was all very below average. Nate got himself a bunch of pasta salad (which was actually the tastiest thing) and ate half before saying he was still hungry but didn't want anymore of that. I extolled the benefits of a buffet, and he took a new plate to suss out his next move. He examined everything carefully and came back with a large mound of grated carrot. It was a bit like that. The upside is that I usually overeat at a buffet, but not when the food is crap.
From lunch we headed up the east coast of Fraser via 75 Mile Beach, which also happens to be the main highway. Brad told us about what's happening in the ocean - stingrays and bluebottles in the shallows, a few varieties of sharks a bit deeper, and a treacherous tide that wants to carry you right out to sea.
We went right up to the Coloured Sands, aka The Pinnacles and got out for our photo op. Well, those of us with working cameras did anyway - the rest of us got out for a closer look. Google it, a picture is worth a thousand words.
Next, down to the Maheno shipwreck. In 1935, the ex-luxury liner had been sold for scrap and was being towed when an out of season cyclone broke the rope and it ran aground. It's really incredible. I've seen bits of sunken ships, like a mast sticking out of the water at Byron Bay, but never a whole ship on the shore, partially buried in the sand. It is all rusted out now, but you can imagine how impressive it would have been 70 years ago.
Just another few minutes' jaunt in the bumpy bus to Eli Creek! We had about 40 minutes there to frolick in some more crystal clear water. The guy at our caravan park that sold us the tour told me that the water that flows into the creek takes 4 years to pass through the sand, all the while absorbing the abundant minerals and being filtered to perfection. If there weren't so many people traipsing through it every day, it would be beautiful to drink. It was a lovely traipse as well. Eli was crazy for it. We stripped him down to his undies because he pointed at the water and shrieked, "Water! Jump!" and off he went, happily doing just that. Maya and I walked along the creek on the boardwalk and then walked back down in the creek. Gorgeous.
And back again into the bumpy bus, back towards the ferry to take us back. It was at about this time that Brad asked if there was anyone French on the bus (it was in context, trust me), and Eli exclaimed into the silence, "Meeee!" It was very funny.
We all had a really wonderful time. It was a nice change, letting someone else do the planning and researching and driving. I had never been on an organised tour before and I kind of loved it. If I ever come to Fraser Island again, it will be in a 4WD camper, I'll bring all of the supplies I need, and I'll stay for 4 or 5 days and check it all out slowly. I'll fish in that treacherous ocean, hunt for pipis on the shore, and bring lots of toxic mozzie spray. Oh come on, you really didn't think I'd make it through the whole post without saying "mozzie" did you?
06 January 2010
Coffs Harbour
7 January, 2010
We are loving Coffs Harbour. It is a really easy place to free camp. Check out our room with a view - it was so nice we stayed there two nights in a row:
What a way to wake up.
There's us up there, our view from our morning swim:
We spent ages digging canals and pools in the sand, frolicking on the rocks, and discovering caves. The tide came in and the boys had a little pool to play in.
And here's us doing the touristy thing at the Big Banana:
Last night we decided to stay at a caravan park so that we could plug in overnight to recharge our new battery (via our new $400 battery charger which our warranty didn't cover *insert big frowny face here*), fill up with water, drain our grey water, and empty the toilet. A few things we have learned:
We are loving Coffs Harbour. It is a really easy place to free camp. Check out our room with a view - it was so nice we stayed there two nights in a row:
What a way to wake up.
There's us up there, our view from our morning swim:
We spent ages digging canals and pools in the sand, frolicking on the rocks, and discovering caves. The tide came in and the boys had a little pool to play in.
And here's us doing the touristy thing at the Big Banana:
Last night we decided to stay at a caravan park so that we could plug in overnight to recharge our new battery (via our new $400 battery charger which our warranty didn't cover *insert big frowny face here*), fill up with water, drain our grey water, and empty the toilet. A few things we have learned:
-We actually need to have some sort of idea how much power we're using so that we can keep track of when we need to recharge our battery. If it runs completely flat, it takes days to recharge at the battery shop.
-The $35 food quality water hose is worth the money. We paid $6 for a hose at Big W, and our Brita-filtered water all tastes like, well, a hose. So we'll be forking over the cash for the better hose.
-Don't think you can just empty your portable toilet every day and that will negate the need for toilet chemicals. The toilet chemicals are completely, absolutely necessary. And yes, you can buy 100% biodegradable, septic-safe, "green" chemicals for only a bit more money.
-Despite their assurances to the contrary before we bought the wireless broadband modem, there is no 3 network coverage in Coffs Harbour. It's a bit ridiculous really. And the people at the other end of the phone haven't even heard of Coffs Harbour because they are in India, so they don't understand just how ridiculous it is that there is no coverage here. Go with the big players - Telstra or Optus.
-Five people fit quite comfortably into two double beds, as long as two of them are very short.
23 December 2009
Wife Swap
The friends we are staying with have Foxtel (cable TV for all of you non-Aussies), and the other night after the kids were asleep, we flipped through the stations until we came across this episode of the UK Wife Swap. Jackpot.
This episode featured two English families that living in Spain. One family (we'll call them The Posh Family) are financially loaded. Four kids, three paid staff, a dad who works 12 hour days at his jet-ski business. The oldest girl, 15, has her own credit card with a 300 POUND a WEEK shopping allowance. The youngest, a 3 year old boy, has a full time nanny and speaks as much Spanish as English because of the time he spends with her.
The other family (we'll call them the Hippy Family) lives on a houseboat on the river and has a small plot of land on the shore. Their entire weekly budget, for a five person family, is something like 6 Euros. They grow their own veggies, raise their own animals for meat, and homeschool. They don't use any chemicals in the house and aim to be self-sustainable.
I watched this episode with mainstream friends who both happen to be school teachers, so there was some conversation to be had. The slaughtering of a chicken and the saving of urine as fertiliser would have been a bit confronting to watch for a lot of people. It seems a lot more normal in our society to just go to the shops for synthetic fertiliser and clean-looking chicken flesh packed in sterile plastic, easy to separate from its history. The Posh mom thought it was all a waste of time. Why spend all of that time doing it yourself when you could go to work for the money to pay someone else to do it for you?
But the Hippies chose a life together over the modern commercial life, plain and simple. The Posh mom said that her marriage and family are so strong precisely because they hardly see eachother. Yikes.
The Posh mom sent the Hippy dad out to work while she took the kids shopping for food they would have never bought otherwise - Fanta, ChocoSomething breakfast cereal, harsh chemical cleaning products. The dad was portrayed as lazy since he wasn't working outside of the home and "earning a living", and man that shits me. He spends half of the day working around the house planting and harvesting food for his kids - isn't that the same thing? Isn't that providing?? - and the other half is quality time together. I daresay the Posh children would trade some of their possessions for more quality time with their dad. They said it themselves.
The Hippies were so inspirational. They live within their means, spending quality time with eachother rather than farming out their kids. Yeah, I prefer my bathroom to be a bit cleaner than theirs, but hey. A little baking soda, vinegar and elbow grease, and you're golden.
Maybe in a few years we'll be in Spain. I love that it is a very distinct possibility.
This episode featured two English families that living in Spain. One family (we'll call them The Posh Family) are financially loaded. Four kids, three paid staff, a dad who works 12 hour days at his jet-ski business. The oldest girl, 15, has her own credit card with a 300 POUND a WEEK shopping allowance. The youngest, a 3 year old boy, has a full time nanny and speaks as much Spanish as English because of the time he spends with her.
The other family (we'll call them the Hippy Family) lives on a houseboat on the river and has a small plot of land on the shore. Their entire weekly budget, for a five person family, is something like 6 Euros. They grow their own veggies, raise their own animals for meat, and homeschool. They don't use any chemicals in the house and aim to be self-sustainable.
I watched this episode with mainstream friends who both happen to be school teachers, so there was some conversation to be had. The slaughtering of a chicken and the saving of urine as fertiliser would have been a bit confronting to watch for a lot of people. It seems a lot more normal in our society to just go to the shops for synthetic fertiliser and clean-looking chicken flesh packed in sterile plastic, easy to separate from its history. The Posh mom thought it was all a waste of time. Why spend all of that time doing it yourself when you could go to work for the money to pay someone else to do it for you?
But the Hippies chose a life together over the modern commercial life, plain and simple. The Posh mom said that her marriage and family are so strong precisely because they hardly see eachother. Yikes.
The Posh mom sent the Hippy dad out to work while she took the kids shopping for food they would have never bought otherwise - Fanta, ChocoSomething breakfast cereal, harsh chemical cleaning products. The dad was portrayed as lazy since he wasn't working outside of the home and "earning a living", and man that shits me. He spends half of the day working around the house planting and harvesting food for his kids - isn't that the same thing? Isn't that providing?? - and the other half is quality time together. I daresay the Posh children would trade some of their possessions for more quality time with their dad. They said it themselves.
The Hippies were so inspirational. They live within their means, spending quality time with eachother rather than farming out their kids. Yeah, I prefer my bathroom to be a bit cleaner than theirs, but hey. A little baking soda, vinegar and elbow grease, and you're golden.
Maybe in a few years we'll be in Spain. I love that it is a very distinct possibility.
15 December 2009
As promised...
Have a look at this beauty.
Here is Nick starting her up (and a goofy excited me in the window reflection) for a test drive to the petrol station. Diesel, diesel, diesel. We have seen enough episodes of The Amazing Race to know what happens when you put petrol in a diesel.
Here are our gorgeous, amazing kids. They were just as excited as their parents to go on our first drive around the neighbourhood. The table is so awesome because they can use it for colouring or whatever else while we're driving. And at night we remove the table and fold down the seats... viola, double bed.
The view looking back. That back double bed can also turn into another sitting area with table. Just behind Eli and Maya is the bathroom, and on the right is the "kitchen" - a grill, a stove, a sink, and a little fridge.
And the view forward from the back:
We were happy to discover that there is a mesh guard rail preventing the sleeping parties in the bed above the cabin from falling to grumpy painful messes on the floor.
Now we're working on fitting ourselves in. Tomorrow we hope to get a storage box fitted to the back to hold the tent and camping chairs and stuff. Not sure where we're going to put the bike unless we can get a rack that sticks out far enough to accommodate the storage box... It might get to ride on board.
I love this thing.
Here is Nick starting her up (and a goofy excited me in the window reflection) for a test drive to the petrol station. Diesel, diesel, diesel. We have seen enough episodes of The Amazing Race to know what happens when you put petrol in a diesel.
Here are our gorgeous, amazing kids. They were just as excited as their parents to go on our first drive around the neighbourhood. The table is so awesome because they can use it for colouring or whatever else while we're driving. And at night we remove the table and fold down the seats... viola, double bed.
The view looking back. That back double bed can also turn into another sitting area with table. Just behind Eli and Maya is the bathroom, and on the right is the "kitchen" - a grill, a stove, a sink, and a little fridge.
And the view forward from the back:
We were happy to discover that there is a mesh guard rail preventing the sleeping parties in the bed above the cabin from falling to grumpy painful messes on the floor.
Now we're working on fitting ourselves in. Tomorrow we hope to get a storage box fitted to the back to hold the tent and camping chairs and stuff. Not sure where we're going to put the bike unless we can get a rack that sticks out far enough to accommodate the storage box... It might get to ride on board.
I love this thing.
We are the proud owners of a motorhome.
And we're even members of the Campervan & Motorhome Club of Australia! How cool are we. We will take lots of pictures of our new home on wheels tomorrow, and I'll post them here, so stay tuned.
Yesterday was awesome. We got a call at 7am from a woman who wanted to buy our car (which was the last stressful thing on our agenda - it needed to be sold because we had plans for the money we would get from it). This woman didn't want to come see our car or test drive our car, she wanted to BUY it. She asked if we were negotiable on the price, which we were, and if she could bring us a bank cheque. Nick asked her if maybe she wanted to at least come and look at the car first, but she said that she has an Avensis already and knows how great they are (and they really are), and her daughter wanted one too. Nick insisted, and they came sans cheque to see it in "person", dings and scratches and all. We do have three kids after all. They were rapt with the car and shortly returned with a bank cheque. Goodbye car! Now we're back in the old Daewoo which has been our dedicated market car for quite some time now. It is very reliable but completely worthless, so there is no rush to sell that one.
After our happy morning, we headed off to our weekly homeschooling play group. We have been going for a few years now, and for the last year or so it has been our Monday, every Monday, rain or shine, for the better part of the day. It has made Mondays a highlight of my week, where my kids could run wild through this big wonderful park they knew so well while I chatted with their intelligent, like-minded, thoughtful, amazing, inspiring adult parents. Yesterday was to be our farewell, and rather than leaving at 4ish, we planned to stay for a barbeque dinner as well. It was after 9 when we left. What an incredible day. I feel so surrounded by love, and the kids thought it was so special to be at their beloved park at night in the dark!
After a late night and a sleep in for some of us, we had a very busy and productive day today. Collecting of settlement cheques, visiting banks, paying off loans, and of course the picking up of our motorhome (which Maya is still calling a "camphorban" - and I remind her with a smile "it's a motorhome honey, not a campervan"). We showed the kids all that we had learned from Barry the motorhome guy - the appliances, the toilet, the shower, the beds that become tables and chairs. Nate noticed the TV which had escaped his view on our first tour, but I'm hoping we'll be able to avoid the topic in the future. Maybe we won't, and that'll be ok too.
Yesterday was awesome. We got a call at 7am from a woman who wanted to buy our car (which was the last stressful thing on our agenda - it needed to be sold because we had plans for the money we would get from it). This woman didn't want to come see our car or test drive our car, she wanted to BUY it. She asked if we were negotiable on the price, which we were, and if she could bring us a bank cheque. Nick asked her if maybe she wanted to at least come and look at the car first, but she said that she has an Avensis already and knows how great they are (and they really are), and her daughter wanted one too. Nick insisted, and they came sans cheque to see it in "person", dings and scratches and all. We do have three kids after all. They were rapt with the car and shortly returned with a bank cheque. Goodbye car! Now we're back in the old Daewoo which has been our dedicated market car for quite some time now. It is very reliable but completely worthless, so there is no rush to sell that one.
After our happy morning, we headed off to our weekly homeschooling play group. We have been going for a few years now, and for the last year or so it has been our Monday, every Monday, rain or shine, for the better part of the day. It has made Mondays a highlight of my week, where my kids could run wild through this big wonderful park they knew so well while I chatted with their intelligent, like-minded, thoughtful, amazing, inspiring adult parents. Yesterday was to be our farewell, and rather than leaving at 4ish, we planned to stay for a barbeque dinner as well. It was after 9 when we left. What an incredible day. I feel so surrounded by love, and the kids thought it was so special to be at their beloved park at night in the dark!
After a late night and a sleep in for some of us, we had a very busy and productive day today. Collecting of settlement cheques, visiting banks, paying off loans, and of course the picking up of our motorhome (which Maya is still calling a "camphorban" - and I remind her with a smile "it's a motorhome honey, not a campervan"). We showed the kids all that we had learned from Barry the motorhome guy - the appliances, the toilet, the shower, the beds that become tables and chairs. Nate noticed the TV which had escaped his view on our first tour, but I'm hoping we'll be able to avoid the topic in the future. Maybe we won't, and that'll be ok too.
12 December 2009
And goodbye, house
Our house settles tomorrow. We have been sleeping at our friends' place for two nights now, and Nick has been going back to sort out the stuff he was eBaying (because he's awesome) and cleaning (did I mention he's awesome? I only had to look at the unmentionables under the fridge for like 5 minutes before he whisked them away), so I hadn't been there for a few days.
Let's go back to the last time we moved out of "our place" which was in the US, when we decided to move to Australia. We moved in with my mom about 6 months before we set sail (so to speak - I wish we really could set sail rather than fly through LAX, but that's another blog post), leaving behind our first place, our first home together, Nate's first home. I was excited about the future, as I tend to be, and didn't bother sentimentalising our little apartment. Nick went back to clean it up, and I never looked back. He was peeved that I didn't go see the empty place, but I didn't really see the point. We were, after all, leaving it behind and going on with our lives.
I was happy this time as well to just let Nick clean it up and to move on. But our house has been good to us, and we lived there for over 5 years - actually the second longest I have ever lived anywhere in my life, and that's only by a small margin. It was the only home Maya and Eli ever knew, and probably all that Nate remembers. So I went back for the final walk through and clean, and I was a whole lot more sentimental than I thought I would be. I could picture my little children running around at the various stages throughout their lives. I could see little Nate, little enough to walk under the counter without bumping his head - something Eli has been too tall to do for quite a few months now. Their varying heights were marked on a wall for goodness' sake, and that's where I lost it a bit. And it occurred to me that that is precisely why I wasn't in a big rush to get back there. I feel sad. And nostalgic. And bloody sentimental. And that's ok.
Goodbye house. Thank you for never bursting a pipe or letting the rain seep through your roof. Thank you for being our safe haven for so long. Thank you for the memories you will always hold for all of us.
Let's go back to the last time we moved out of "our place" which was in the US, when we decided to move to Australia. We moved in with my mom about 6 months before we set sail (so to speak - I wish we really could set sail rather than fly through LAX, but that's another blog post), leaving behind our first place, our first home together, Nate's first home. I was excited about the future, as I tend to be, and didn't bother sentimentalising our little apartment. Nick went back to clean it up, and I never looked back. He was peeved that I didn't go see the empty place, but I didn't really see the point. We were, after all, leaving it behind and going on with our lives.
I was happy this time as well to just let Nick clean it up and to move on. But our house has been good to us, and we lived there for over 5 years - actually the second longest I have ever lived anywhere in my life, and that's only by a small margin. It was the only home Maya and Eli ever knew, and probably all that Nate remembers. So I went back for the final walk through and clean, and I was a whole lot more sentimental than I thought I would be. I could picture my little children running around at the various stages throughout their lives. I could see little Nate, little enough to walk under the counter without bumping his head - something Eli has been too tall to do for quite a few months now. Their varying heights were marked on a wall for goodness' sake, and that's where I lost it a bit. And it occurred to me that that is precisely why I wasn't in a big rush to get back there. I feel sad. And nostalgic. And bloody sentimental. And that's ok.
Goodbye house. Thank you for never bursting a pipe or letting the rain seep through your roof. Thank you for being our safe haven for so long. Thank you for the memories you will always hold for all of us.
06 December 2009
I am so excited to be unemployed.
Today was our last day at the markets. It was a great day and I felt so appreciated and loved. What a wonderful send off - I was lavished with gifts and well wishes by many. Nick brought the kids to the markets and we had a post-market picnic with some dear friends. We found appreciative new homes for all of our market gear and came home with significantly less than we went with. Ahhhh, stuff disappearing left and right, it is so awesome.
I feel so free! Don't get me wrong, working for myself is fantastic and rewarding beyond words, but when you have something to look forward to like travelling around Australia, and you're in the middle of the biggest cleanout of possessions ever, and you're me, you don't want to be functioning a kitchen and turning out hundreds of cupcakes, muffins and brownies every week. The chaos has been getting to me, big time. Nick and I have swapped roles a bit - he has been very lovingly reassuring me that we only have another week left in this house, and after that our lives will be much more organised. I'm looking forward to that.
At the moment I just look around at all that we have left to do. Admittedly, there isn't a whole lot. We can now pack up the kitchen. My uber-clever husband organised the bed auctions to finish this weekend, so all of the beds have been picked up, their underneaths vacuumed, and new floor beds made up in their places. It's cute. And spacious.
This afternoon we had much left post-market cleanup to deal with. Feeling ultimately relaxed, we all settled in and watched Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs while munching on cut up fruit and veggies. The movie was hilarious, especially the first half. Much fun was had by all.
So this is our last week in our house!! I can't believe that we're only a few weeks away from a completely different life. A slow, low-stress life. Spending time together, doing whatever we want, whenever we want.
Life is good.
I feel so free! Don't get me wrong, working for myself is fantastic and rewarding beyond words, but when you have something to look forward to like travelling around Australia, and you're in the middle of the biggest cleanout of possessions ever, and you're me, you don't want to be functioning a kitchen and turning out hundreds of cupcakes, muffins and brownies every week. The chaos has been getting to me, big time. Nick and I have swapped roles a bit - he has been very lovingly reassuring me that we only have another week left in this house, and after that our lives will be much more organised. I'm looking forward to that.
At the moment I just look around at all that we have left to do. Admittedly, there isn't a whole lot. We can now pack up the kitchen. My uber-clever husband organised the bed auctions to finish this weekend, so all of the beds have been picked up, their underneaths vacuumed, and new floor beds made up in their places. It's cute. And spacious.
This afternoon we had much left post-market cleanup to deal with. Feeling ultimately relaxed, we all settled in and watched Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs while munching on cut up fruit and veggies. The movie was hilarious, especially the first half. Much fun was had by all.
So this is our last week in our house!! I can't believe that we're only a few weeks away from a completely different life. A slow, low-stress life. Spending time together, doing whatever we want, whenever we want.
Life is good.
27 November 2009
Goodbye, Scooby
Yesterday we said goodbye to our cat.
The kids understood that we couldn't take him travelling around Australia with us, and that it would be easiest on him for us to find him a new, loving home before we go. Luckily our dear friend A decided to take him in! We are so, so grateful that we get to still keep in touch with him, and that he is in a house so full of love and peace. Hopefully it won't take too long for him and A's other cat to become great mates.
Other than a sad moment saying goodbye as we were leaving A's house, the kids have been remarkably ok about the whole thing. I was expecting... something, I'm not sure what, but something. Them being ok certainly makes it easier for me to be ok. This is one of those things where if anyone broke down, we all would.
Scooby was definitely the most sensitive of our "things" to find a new home for. Everything else is just stuff! We're that much closer to setting off, just 29 sleeps until we leave Sydney...
The kids understood that we couldn't take him travelling around Australia with us, and that it would be easiest on him for us to find him a new, loving home before we go. Luckily our dear friend A decided to take him in! We are so, so grateful that we get to still keep in touch with him, and that he is in a house so full of love and peace. Hopefully it won't take too long for him and A's other cat to become great mates.
Other than a sad moment saying goodbye as we were leaving A's house, the kids have been remarkably ok about the whole thing. I was expecting... something, I'm not sure what, but something. Them being ok certainly makes it easier for me to be ok. This is one of those things where if anyone broke down, we all would.
Scooby was definitely the most sensitive of our "things" to find a new home for. Everything else is just stuff! We're that much closer to setting off, just 29 sleeps until we leave Sydney...
20 November 2009
Preparations
It's hot. HOT. Hot. Like oven-hot.
Preparations are in full swing. Tomorrow is garage sale day. Our neighbours have already been through - the proverbial early birds - and we'll be up bright and early to find new homes for all of our stuff. We have a LOT of stuff.
I'm so looking forward to getting rid of all of these possessions. Yeah a lot of it is handy, and sure there are a lot of memories here. But I'm seeing that the memories won't disappear just because I don't have these things to remind me. I won't forget giving birth to Eli in this house just because we won't live here anymore. In fact, maybe my poor memory will realise it needs to work a little harder without all of these crutches. It will feel so free, having so few things.
I am already so happy and privileged. We live in a relatively cheap place in exchange for being able to work less and spend more time with eachother, watching our kids grow up from up close rather than waving them goodbye through schoolbus windows. We have our own small business, make our own hours, boss ourselves around rather than letting someone else do it. Our kids get to see it all, our priorities laid out on the table. Life. Love. The path, the journey, not just the far off destination.
But now our house is sold, our stuff is going, our car is next. And in just over a month we will be moving into our next adventure - travelling around Australia. I am so bloody excited. We all are really, and it's so exciting to all be excited about the same thing. We're heading north from Sydney, stopping first at a friend's uncle's farm just south of Coffs Harbour, then north, and that's all the plan we have. We will go to the beach and swim in the ocean and walk through rainforests and drive. We'll stay a little longer at places we love, and just pass through places that we don't. We'll talk and draw and laugh and read and sleep and learn and live.
I have never been a hot weather person until, well, now. It's not even summer yet and we're having a heat wave, and I love it. I'm looking forward to really diving into the experience, spending a summer in the north of Australia.
Preparations are in full swing. Tomorrow is garage sale day. Our neighbours have already been through - the proverbial early birds - and we'll be up bright and early to find new homes for all of our stuff. We have a LOT of stuff.
I'm so looking forward to getting rid of all of these possessions. Yeah a lot of it is handy, and sure there are a lot of memories here. But I'm seeing that the memories won't disappear just because I don't have these things to remind me. I won't forget giving birth to Eli in this house just because we won't live here anymore. In fact, maybe my poor memory will realise it needs to work a little harder without all of these crutches. It will feel so free, having so few things.
I am already so happy and privileged. We live in a relatively cheap place in exchange for being able to work less and spend more time with eachother, watching our kids grow up from up close rather than waving them goodbye through schoolbus windows. We have our own small business, make our own hours, boss ourselves around rather than letting someone else do it. Our kids get to see it all, our priorities laid out on the table. Life. Love. The path, the journey, not just the far off destination.
But now our house is sold, our stuff is going, our car is next. And in just over a month we will be moving into our next adventure - travelling around Australia. I am so bloody excited. We all are really, and it's so exciting to all be excited about the same thing. We're heading north from Sydney, stopping first at a friend's uncle's farm just south of Coffs Harbour, then north, and that's all the plan we have. We will go to the beach and swim in the ocean and walk through rainforests and drive. We'll stay a little longer at places we love, and just pass through places that we don't. We'll talk and draw and laugh and read and sleep and learn and live.
I have never been a hot weather person until, well, now. It's not even summer yet and we're having a heat wave, and I love it. I'm looking forward to really diving into the experience, spending a summer in the north of Australia.
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