Goodbye to Australia

Our Car Dies

Hiring an 18-year-old car was always going to be a risk and perhaps we should be pleased that we managed nearly 5000km of trouble-free motoring. We had grown fond of the car – and of Michael, the car's owner.

Our journey had taken us through many places that would have been far worse to break down in than Bermagui – a beautiful small seaside town with a lovely little harbour, safe swimming and great walks.

The coast near Bermagui

Our radiator sprang a leak on the way into town from our campsite about 4km away. We had come in for the Summer Seaside Festival which consisted of a parade and a large number of stalls on the town's oval (playing field for Aussie Rules football).

Tense anticipation of the parade

We bought some stuff to try to fix up the leak and went off to watch the parade while it set. There is something wonderful about small town Australia. The Australian 'can-do' spirit is always very evident. This event had all the hallmarks of a village fête but done Aussie style. In contrast to the Sydney Mardi Gras the previous week, this parade was opened by a group of pupils from the aboriginal pre-school and included the local fire brigade, and the Soldiers Club Pipers (kilts and bagpipes and all).

The 'Scottish' Pipers

In fact it was hardly a parade – more an amble along the main street by a disparate set of organisations, but drawing warm appreciation from the crowd.

Unfortunately for the car, the adhesive didn't work so we searched the town for a garage / workshop - there was only one, but closed on Saturday. So we enjoyed the rest of the day and eventually returned to our camp cabin. Since nothing could be done until Monday we went for some walks near the camp, enjoyed the sunshine and made use of the camp pool.

The coastline near Wallaga Lake

Camel Rock

A phone call to Michael revealed that he was off on holiday and he suggested that we do our best to get the car repaired ...

Oh well, we did our best. We managed to get Conrad, the local mechanic, to come and check out the car. He confirmed that the car's condition was terminal – the cylinder head gasket had blown. We had the car towed to the local garage where Conrad performed the last rites (removal of the tax document and number plates).

We bid farewell

As with the best undertakers this was all done with great sensitivity for the feelings of the bereaved. After a short period of mourning we set about sorting out how to get out of Bermagui.

The recent morning temperatures and shorter days had suggested that our tenting days were numbered and that this was a good time to give away all our camping gear.

Deciding what we can carry (on the left)

A local resident in the camp site offered to take it all, with the promise that it would be of use to a scout group in Nowra. So,with baggage suitably down-sized (although still including 32 books) we felt able to carry it, and relocated to town. We discovered that there was a daily bus connecting with a train to Melbourne (amazing!) but it left at 6:20 a.m. from a town 20 km away. The early morning taxi cost nearly as much as the bus ticket but we made it, although the taxi driver had no idea where the bus stopped. It was somewhat surreal standing in the dark in a completely empty town wondering where to wait.

But it did arrive, and on time, and after a 6-hour bus journey and 4 hours on the train we finally arrived in Melbourne in wonderful sunshine. It was good to be back.

Wednesday 18th March - Jeff's Birthday – and, after a night in a pretty awful motel in Footscray, both of us felt somewhat in need of a 'comfort blanket'. The hire company's replacement car was not really what we wanted and we decided to hire a real car from Budget. This had comfortable seats, everything worked and you could hold a conversation while the engine was running. With spirits lifted, we headed for the Mornington Peninsula towards Portsea. The sun came out and the temperature soared, and we decided that a 'nice hotel' with a bath would be just the ticket. We booked somewhere through the local tourist information office and arrived to find the place really luxurious with spa bath, a large room with satellite t.v., and internet in the room – all the luxuries of life! You may not think this to be a big deal but we haven't seen a real bath for months – only showers.

Nepean Poinr. Just another wonderful beach

... and another

... and another.

After three days of pampering ourselves, we returned to our 'familiar' hotel in Melbourne, the George Powlett Apartments. Situated only about 10 minutes walk from the city centre, it provides all that we need at a very reasonable price. It's our fourth stay here. It was lovely to wander the Melbourne streets and take in the atmosphere. It was the Greek festival weekend and some of the streets had been closed to traffic, stalls set out and Greek restaurants overspilling into the road. Apparently Melbourne's Greek population is second in number only to Athens. Eating souvlaki in the street amongst crowds of Greeks you could indeed feel you were in a Greek town.

Our last few days were somewhat tense – cargo ship trouble again. The ship had originally been due to depart on 20th March, but over the months in Australia we learned that it was running more and more behind schedule. We checked in regularly to be sure we would be in the right place at the right time, and the 26th March kept being confirmed as departure day. Everything was arranged around that. Until on 24th we heard that it would be the 27th March. After these months of travelling, that should have been an easy problem for the Blumsoms to resolve – simply book a room for another night. But 26th March also sees the start of the Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne, with 90,000 people expected to visit the city, all of whom have pre-booked all the available accommodation months ago. Luckily Meg's negotiation skills came in handy. There is a very long tale about how the shipping agent got hold of the captain in the middle of the night, but the outcome of the story is that we were allowed to board on 26th March. The alternative was to have slept in the Seafarers Refuge, which might have been an interesting experience.

We hired bikes, and cycled the wonderful Yarra Valley, noting how summer in Australia was turning to autumn, just in time for Easter. We planned our activities for the cargo ship. Twenty three days out of contact with no television/radio; we figured we needed plenty of books and visited loads of secondhand book shops (including the University bookshops for Jeff to buy maths books); we bought sketching pads and paints (Meg) and a kind friend had sent a tapestry set to keep her occupied. And as a luxury – a key board for our lap top; the luxury not being the cost, but how much we could carry.

We will be out of email contact until 19th April, when we land in Ensenada Mexico. So Happy Easter

PS Megs plan to buy Easter Eggs was fooled, we are not allowed to take food on board the ship with us!

PPS – we are sending this blog on 25th March – and just in case ... we still haven't cancelled our bedspaces (one single bed and a mattress on the floor) at the Seafarers refuge.

Sydney, the Blue Mountains and the South Coast

We returned to Sydney on Tuesday 3rd March. On our arrival we discovered that our cargo ship from Montreal to Liverpool had fallen through. This meant a significant change of plans as Meg had now committed herself to being back for mid-May (she is going to Turkey for three weeks to help set up a Probation Service). The news came like a bomb shell and we spent a lot of time trying to sort out what options we had. We could not find an alternative cargo ship – it had been difficult to find a ship for this leg of the journey - and so our choices were either the Queen Mary or flying across the Atlantic.

The Queen Mary looked possible. There is a voyage leaving at the right time and it's actually cheaper than a cargo ship. We would need some clothes as our current wardrobe could hardly be described as 'formal'. The prospect of Jeff having to wear a tie and jacket just to be allowed to eat his dinner was almost the worst aspect of the trip. It would accomplish something that thirty years of head teachers had failed to do. However, after some searching on the internet we discovered that the carbon footprint for a passenger on a cruise ship is about twice that for the equivalent flight – as well as having many other detrimental effects on the environment.
This really only leaves the option of flying – something that we are not at all happy with. The carbon footprint for a transatlantic flight would still leave us within budget (carbon that is) but only just. And it really goes against the grain. But with no other options we have decided to fly. It just shows how difficult low carbon travel is.

The purpose for our return to Sydney was to take in a performance of the Magic Flute at the Opera House. We used the excuse of my birthday to justify the costs. We have now bought each other Christmas and birthday presents for the next few years and this was mine for 2010. it was quite magical to stand on the terrace of the Opera House with our interval drinks, looking across the water at all the lights. There is surely no lovelier concert venue anywhere in the world.
We also did some walking along the coast from Coogie Beach to Bondi Beach.

Coogie Beach, Sydney

Bondi Beach, Sydney

Our visit to Sydney also coincided with the Mardi Gras parade – the biggest gay and lesbian 'show' in the world. This was quite a spectacle, starting with the 'dikes on bikes' ...

'Dikes on Bikes'

and then an extraordinary number of floats and marchers from the ordinary to the most outrageous. An event with a huge number of scantily clad men (note from Jeff – there were scantily clad women as well) could never have taken place on an evening in autumn in London.

The Parade

It was great fun to see so many people exuberantly enjoying themselves. It is a tribute to the city to hold such an event which appeared to pass of with good humour and no trouble. We didn't go on to the "Sleaze Ball" afterwards – we had nothing suitable to wear.
And then off to the Blue Mountains for some more hiking. Three days, each with a most spectacular walk. Each walk involved a climb down into the canyon and then through the rain forest before ascending to the plateau again. The mountains are a plateau about 1200 m above sea level. So the walk down to the valley involved a lot of steps. We did not count them on the way down, but counted 1239 steps on the way up.

The Three Sisters, Blue Mountains

The Three Sisters, Blue Mountains (2)

View over Blue Mountains, Nr Echo Point

Wentworth Falls

Nr Wentworth Falls

We have seen some remarkable places but the views here are in a class of their own. This must be one of the most beautiful places on the planet. If you ever visit Sydney don't leave without a trip to this area, only 90 minutes form the centre of the City.

We left the Blue Mountains on a wet, misty morning which made us feel th we had made a good decision. The rain stopped and day brightened as we hit the coast and headed south to ovenight at Shoalhaven Heads. From there to Hyams Bay where we stayed with a couple of kayakers we had met further up the coast. We decided long ago that we would always try to say 'yes' to any opportunities that came our way and so we readily accepted their offer of a place to stay. It turned out to be a really rewarding experience and when we left the next morning we felt we had made new friends.

Remarkable trees, Jervis Bay

The weather over these past few days has been very good for walking – not too sunny but quite warm – and the threatened rain did not materialise. We walked up Pigeon House mountain. Pigeon House is classified as a 'hard' walk as the last part is a matter of climbing about 50 metres of metal ladders, so we did feel a sense of achievement.

View from Pigeon House Mountain

However, when we arrived at the top we met up with 65 ten-year old kids, most of whom seemed to be bouncing around as though they had arrived at a playgound (that should provide some sense of perspective)

The kids at the top ...

Depot Beach

We then retraced our steps down the coast, via Moruya where, amazingly, we ran into Rudi who we had stayed with on the way up the coast. He mentioned that there was a festival at Bermagui so we decided to head off there for the weekend.

And there the car's radiator sprang a leak. This problem still has to be resolved - so in the meantime we are stranded in Bermagui ...

Brisbane back to Sydney

Anxious to get some good walks under our belt we set off for Mount Warning – a hike we missed out on the way north because of the rain. Mt. Warning is the remains of the central plug of a 20 million year old volcano, surrounded by an enormous caldera, reputedly one of the finest examples in the world. The drive through this area was one of the best of our trip.

The climb is described as 'strenuous'. We have found that tourist guides generally exaggerate the level of difficulty – but not this time. It is a relentless 2-3 hour climb followed by about 70m of almost vertical rock which (for the likes of us) can only be managed with the aid of a chain attached to the rocks. Arriving at the top, totally exhausted, it was a bit disconcerting to be greeted by a bush turkey.

Bush Turkey

These are all over the mountain and are no doubt a good source of protein for the largish pythons that live in the forested mountain slopes. We didn't see any pythons but just this grey-black one (about 60cm) on the track.

This was about 2 ft long

The view was initially obscured by cloud, but these rose and eventually we had a fantastic 360 degree view. Mt Warning is reputedly the first place that the sun strikes each day in Australia.

View from Mount Warning

A second great hike was to the Minyon Falls.

View from the top of the Minyon Falls

Much improved weather meant that we could camp our way south – 8 nights without rain and good night-time temperatures. The only downside was the mosquitoes that flourished in the wet weather of a week (or so) ago.

Kookaburras can be over-friendly and snatch food from your hand

Camp sites are invariably good – sometimes remarkably so. Some campsites have a huge mossie-free camp kitchen equipped with fridge, freezer, toasters, microwaves, cooker, boiling water on tap and several gas BBQs.

The day we lost the camera - and found it again

It is hardly what Meg remembers from her days as a Girl Guide. Our air mattresses are 'state of the art' and as comfortable as a bed and we have invested in pillows (10A$) which make all the difference. And it is warm enough to sleep most of the night on top of sleeping bags.

From Mount Warning we worked our way down the coast via Brunswick Heads, Evan's Head, Urunga, North Haven, Hawk's Nest and Nelson's Bay – all delightful small towns off the main highway with warm bays to swim in and usually with good hikes (although these are getting shorter!)

Mud crabs (?) at Uranga

The night skies are so clear and sharp – and of course the stars are very different from what we are used to. We have taken to going to bed early – it is dark by 8:30 p.m. and if there is nowhere to sit we just turn in. But we have also taken to getting up at 5:30 a.m. and finding somewhere to watch the sun rise over the sea.

View of Port Stephens from Mt. Tomaree

Before we set off on this phase of our travels (around South-East Australia) we wondered how our stamina would hold out. There is something about travelling as a 'tourist' rather than as a 'traveller' – a change of role and much less well-defined objectives. In the rain we found it more difficult to maintain a sense of purpose but now, with such lovely weather, everything has changed. A day can be as simple as “find somewhere for a coffee, go on a walk for a few miles, find a camp site and organise the evening meal”. This usually involves driving somewhere but on Australian roads driving is not stressful. We usually find people to talk to and this can make for a pleasant evening, exchanging views, ideas and sometimes addresses.

Finally to Brisbane

Jeff was a little disappointed to discover that his immunity to the spider bite was due to the fact that the spider was a non-venomous Golden Orb spider and not because of any super-human resistance.

We completed the final leg of our journey to Brisbane with a gradual shift in weather from torrential rain to occasional showers. After about 10 days of fairly constant rain this was a great relief. With such glorious beaches and warm water we at last began to fully appreciate this area. We arrived in Brisbane after overnight stays in Tweed Heads and Surfers Paradise – the latter in the Marriott hotel at a ridiculous knock-down rate.

Surfers Paradise – and the whole Gold Coast region - is about as close as you get to California life style. Huge high rise buildings, beautiful long beaches, enormous shopping malls. Surfers Paradise boasts the highest building in Australia. Not quite our scene, so we quickly moved on to Brisbane with a call in at Manly (yes there is one in Brisbane as well as in Sydney)

Manly

Brisbane has a wonderful river flowing right through the centre and there are City Cats which are large water taxis to ferry you up and down.

Brisbane from the City Cat

This is a great way to travel and we could travel right in to the heart of the city. We had only one day to explore and focussed on the 'new' Anglican cathedral and the (free) outdoor swimming pools on South Bank.

St. Johns Cathedral was built in Gothic Style but started only about 100 years ago.

St. John's Cathedral

They finished it this year! The main interest for us was that the wood carvings had been done by two generations of Blumsons who must have been part of the diaspora of East Londoners in the 19^th century. It is remarkable to see what the old cathedrals must have looked like when they were (relatively) new.

Brisbane's South Bank is a lovely little park on the river opposite the main shopping mall. It has lovely pools where you can just peel off and swim for free. It woldn't work in England but in Brisbane's climate it is a wonderful way to cool off.

South Bank swimming

Meg teaching a dog (Monty) to swim

Finally, on the 20^th Feb we left Brisbane for Thagoona, just west of Ipswich where we met up with Jeff's second Australian cousin. A special three days followed before we began the long trip back towards Melbourne.

One of the many local residents at Jeff''s cousins

... and another - a Cane Toad

Throughout our travels we have appeared to bring disaster to the places we visit – floods followed our departure from Hanoi and we just left Java before the landslides. Bush fires followed our trail in Victoria and there were more floods in our wake as we passed through NSW. We left Queensland wondering if there might be a plague of locusts to follow, although, as we write this, our fears have proved unfounded.