Monday, June 28, 2010

Jun 21-25: I loathe goodbyes

I returned to Australia on a Monday, with 4 days to cross any remaining items off my list. I wandered Sydney aimlessly, packed and repacked my bags, and read furiously to try to finish a fantastic book that Oscar had loaned me that I didn't want to steal (Jitterbug Perfume - read it, you'll love it). My last afternoon was spent wandering the Botanic Gardens, watching the sun set over the Sydney Opera House and the imposing Harbor bridge. I've taken more than 12,000 pictures over the last 6 months, and I wouldn't be at all surprised if I had taken 500 of that one iconic building.

I have never been good at saying goodbye. Sometimes it feels easier to sneak away without bothering anyone, and avoid subjecting everyone to the emotional distress. Why does it always seem easier to start things than to end them? I got a chance to say a final so long to some of the people I met along my travels. As I reflect back on the 6 month adventure now, I am not going to miss the country. That is to say I won't miss the beaches, and the sunshine.

But I am going to miss all the wonderful people...

Jun 11-21: My Fijian Detour

With a handful of days left before my flight home, I decided to squeeze in a quick trip to Fiji. Amazing diving, wonderful beaches, and great sun... it seemed like a very relaxing way to spend the tail end of my trip. Why not?

Fiji is a collection of islands in the south Pacific. I opted for a budget backpacker tour, starting from the main island moving to the northernmost of the Yasawa group of islands, then stopping at islands for a day or two on the way back. This type of touring is generally jam packed with youngsters, looking for a fun way to see the world.

There were 6 people in our core tour, 3 German fellows, an Australian, an English lady, and me. We spent a week together, riding the big yellow boat (the Yasawa Flyer) as though it was some sort of giant smelly bus reeking of the same colorful odor of a wet towel left in a pile in the bottom of the closet. We stayed at 4 islands in 6 nights, each with its own special charm.

Coral View is a scrappy resort with incredible scuba diving on the northernmost island. Koruvu is a charming spot with a nice outdoor pool, and the most incredible manta ray snorkelling experience you can imagine. Kuata is a tiny island, where they will take you snorkelling while feeding white tipped reef sharks (I liked it so much I went twice). Beachcomber is a tiny island the size of the resort, known as a party island with a ridiculous 200 bed dorm.

The cool part about touring Fiji was that every resort was small. With somewhere between 30 and 40 guests (excluing Beachcomber), all eating the same meals at the same time, it was easy to get to know new people. At every port we would meet new people, some on similar tours, some doing their own thing. We met a handful of Canadians, some lovely English folks, the odd Australian and oodles of Germans.

I was in Fiji when the world cup started. It was wonderfully refreshing to see an international sporting event with people from around the world. The first game of the tournament was England vs USA. A group of 3 English guys were up (and drinking) at 6:30am. They had improvised a little, using markers to draw jerseys on their backs, cheering loudly whenever anything of note happened in the game.

I have exercised much restraint in my curio shopping over the past 6 months, staying away from all of the shops and stands selling tacky tourist items I would just shove in a box when I got home... But passing through downtown Nadi on a Saturday morning, I picked up the greatest souvenir at a car parts store... an authentic Fijian Taxi sign. I can't wait to mount that on my car back home.

Thursday, June 10, 2010

Jun 1-10: Peaches gets a new home... and so does Oscar!

I've spent the last 10 days at Manly Beach in Sydney... It turned out that Peaches the Pajero was going to need a couple of days with the crack team of mechanics at Midas, which meant I had some time to kill.

So I decided to invest my time...

Oscar, my host in Sydney, has been a great friend to me and has put me up on a number of occaisions. In order to show him how much I cared, I decided to play a little joke on him. While he was away in Tasmania on a diving cruise, his lady friend and I played a game of "While you were out". Celebrating Oscar's special ageless quality, we converted his bedroom into a child's playroom, complete with a basketball hoop, a new space invaders duvet cover, and a rubber floormat. This is exactly why you should never leave your buddies with your house keys.

In other news, I found Peaches a new home! I met a Kiwi couple at the airport, and handed over the keys. It was a bit on the shady side... a cash deal, with no test drive, done in the dark...

And so I'm down to my last two weeks. I have decided to spend some time in Fiji before I make my way back. I'm getting pretty excited about coming home. It feels like I've been away forever.

Tuesday, June 1, 2010

May 30-31: Last Stop - Sydney!

Last planned stop on the Australia tour... Sydney!

I have arrived bright and early in Sydney to see my friend Oscar off to Tasmania. I offer to give Oscar a ride to the airport, should Peaches the Mitsubishi Pajero decide she wants to start... but she politely declines. Despite my many attempts to convince her, she sits quietly, resolutely, obviously tired from her long adventure and pleased to be home.

In a way, I feel fortunate. In the entire 31,000km trip, there has been no better place for a breakdown than Sydney. And had I not broken down, I would never have got my money's worth out of my roadside assistance coverage.

Enter Chris, NRMA roadside assistance technician. After exhausting almost every one of his alternatives, he busts out a fancy trick. Connecting a spare battery directly to the starter motor bypasses the ignition and the inhibitor switches, effectively hot-wiring Peaches back to life. Nice move Chris.

Being back in Sydney feels a little like a mini-homecoming. I am so happy to see everyone again.

My plans from here are to:
a) fix Peaches
b) sell Peaches (or give her away if required)
c) find a great way to spend the next 3 weeks. Bali perhaps?

I'm off to visit the mechanic to see how much it costs to repair an inhibitor switch!

May 27-29: The Gold Coast

The Gold coast is a very nice area along the east coast of Australia located between Sydney and Brisbane. I am venturing through familiar territory now which is (paradoxically) an unfamiliar feeling.

I spent a night in Coffs Harbour and a night in Port Macquarrie. Both are sleepy weekend holiday destinations for folks from Sydney. Were I not on a backpacking budget, nearing the end of my tour, I would have gladly stayed longer.

Peaches is starting to act up a little. I'm having less and less success trying to start her. When I turn the key, I need to wait for 10 seconds to see if anything happens. If not, I begin a methodical set of experiments in a trial and error sort of method, beginning with changing the gear I'm in, to adjusting the steering column, ending in me wiggling my butt to shake the Pajero back and forth. On separate occaisions, each of these strategies have worked. I've recently discovered a new trick... if I leave it in neutral, turn the key and then slam it into park, the car starts. I can't wait to explain this to the mechanic.

I popped into Newcastle to see Will, Leah and Hugh once again. In the 5 months it has taken me to circumnavigate Australia, they have had a baby (Hugh), Will switched jobs, and they moved about 1500 km from Melbourne to Newcastle. It is so great to see them to catch up again.

May 24-26: Rolling down the Sunshine Coast

On my way south from Fraser Island I got a chance to pop in to see Terry in Woombye. For those of you who have read the whole blog so far (that would be you Mom), you'll recall that I met Terry and his wife Bec about 40 blog posts and 3 months ago on my way back from my first trip to the Great Barrier Reef, a week before Terry's wedding. Unfortunately Bec was away for work thistime. This meant we got to spend some quality guy time together drinking beers and cooking on the barbecue.

Leaving Woombye, I made my way past the Glasshouse Mountains. Last time I came through it was pouring rain, and I didn't get a chance to do any hiking. I'll tack in a picture or two of the spectacular view.

I spent one night in Byron Bay, the most easterly point in Australia. Byron is a very cool little surf town with a bohemian zest to it. It is popular with backpackers and Aussies alike. It was in Byron that I FINALLY got a picture of the rainbow lorikeet. A very brightly colored little parrot, it that seems to know when you're about to take a photo and does this fancy Houdini kind of a move to avoid being caught on film... or on disk... or whatever...