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Australia Journal and Photos:
We arrived in Sydney on December 28.
Every hotel and hostel was full of travelers, like us, wanting to spend the millenium in Sydney. Fortunately for us, Amber and Lauren, two friends who were living in Sydney, were willing to take us in, and for this kindness we are for ever in debt to them.
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The weather was not very kind but we made the most of it, seeing the sights and making plans for our tour of the continent. Topaz, my brother, and Ari, a friend from home, were also in Sydney for the millenium celebration. We met up at a bar on Bondi Beach and I made plans to spend the millenium with them, also on Bondi Beach. Kevin, Jason, Shaun, Lauren, Amber and Nick, a friend from England, spent new years near the opera house. |
A few days later we bought a car and after a quick fix up and a night living as vagrants on the beach we were headed north. We stopped many places along the way to have a surf. We were unlucky in that no wave compared to those found in Fiji. We spent our nights in caravan parks or on a quiet street. The most memorable places were Coffs Harbor, Byron Bay, Miami near Surfers Paradise, Noosa Heads and finally Cairns. In Cairns, thanks to the internet and some luck we met up with Ari. We organized a boat trip out to the Great Barrier Reef and had a great snorkel. The next day we said good by to Ari, who was returning to Santa Monica, and turned around and headed back down to Sydney. A few hours out side Cairns, our water pump broke, causing are engine to over heat and finally explode. This was the lowest point in our trip. We had to get to Perth in one month and our car blows up at the furthest point from where we needed to be. We took it remarkably well. We spent a few days in mourning, unpacking the car, and carefully deciding what to keep and what to leave. This was a painful time and we spent it by quietly reading and thinking to our selves. Finally the day came when we decided it was time to leave. Kevin, in an act of heroic proportions, took a bus down to Brisbane, rented a car, drove back to pick us up and quit smoking all at the same time. Finally we were mobile again. We did not have the car for long so we drove all night to Noosa Heads. Spent the day and night there and then high tailed it all the way back to Sydney. The path that had taken us a full month, we did in three days. |
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Back in Sydney we stayed at Bondi Beach and considered our alternatives. Kevin came across an advertisement for relocating rented cars. The deal was such. For a minimum fee one could acquire a car and would be able to drive it to another city. The catch was that one could not choose his car and the car must be delivered in a very short allotted amount of time. We were given a four runner camper to be relocated from Sydney to Melbourne. For this trip we were given plenty of time and we managed to see much of the coast between Sydney and Melbourne. |
After returning the car in Melbourne, we took the train too Tourkey. Tourkey is a small vacation town near Bells Beach. Here we stayed for 5 days. If it were not for the kindness and generosity of the Melbourne vacationers we would have spent the five days uncomfortably cramped into two small tents, but thanks to some extremely precious people we lived in comparable luxury. They offered us their annex’s. In side these we found shelter from the wind and rain, a fridge, toaster oven, sink and even a bed. I personally enjoyed the place so much that I purposely did not return the bathroom key, forfeiting my deposit, so that I could say that I had a place in Tourkey. The weather was off and on but we managed to capture some hot sunny days with decent surf.
For our trip to Perth we were promised the flag ship of the Britz Rental agency’s armada. It just so happened that this five star, full sized camper needed to be returned to Perth as soon as it was to arrive in Melbourne. With this in mind we jovially strutted into the Britz Rental agency’s Melbourne office expecting the best. Unfortunately the weather once again was against us. Floods near Adelaide delayed many of the in coming cars, including the one we were meant to return. Due to this delay, Britz was forced to up grade the cars of all its paying customers and chances were that we would not get a car at all. They instructed us to come back at closing time. So we spent the day in Melbourne. A wonderful city that I would have enjoyed on any other day. Returning at closing time the manager told us we were in luck, there was a car that needed to be returned. Hopping for the best we got the worst. It was a two-seater pickup with a cap. With much debate and many attempts we managed to pack the car so that two people could lay in the back. Thus we started our long voyage across the greater part of Australia. For this trip we were extremely rushed. We had to drive long hours and we did not want to drive at night, on account of hitting wild game. On the 18th of February we stopped at the tree top walk in the valley of the Giants. There we walked along the canopy of ancient trees that date back to the time of Godwana, one of the super continents. The next stop was Margaret River. We spent to nights there getting the best surf since Fiji. The true masters of this wave were the wind surfers who came out in the afternoon with the wind.
We arrived in Perth a few days later, dropped off the car and began to prepare for Indonesia.
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This is one of my favorite images
This is my good friend Hal. I took this picture on his birthday. I think he likes to be in pictures. |
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This is one of my favorite images
This is my good friend Hal. I took this picture on his birthday. I think he likes to be in pictures.
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This is one of my favorite images
This is my good friend Hal. I took this picture on his birthday. I think he likes to be in pictures. |
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