Category Archives: Australia

Dymocks rock!

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French-speaking ahoy. Today’s been a very good one. I had to swap rooms this morning, theoretically into the 10-bed I’d originally booked into as it was cheaper. Only I’m in a 6-bed instead, which is strange. It’s more cramped than the 8-bed I just left, but who cares? It’s clean and comfy.

Breakfast was a $6 eat-all-you-can continental affair downstairs, so I wolfed through some Coco-Pops and raisin toast smothered in jam while talking to a girl from England on a gap year before she start on a Events Management degree. Smart cookie – she’s timed things so that her placement year will be 2010 so someone with her skills will be ripe for the picking for the Olympics!

Next up was a quick walk down to Dymocks, the bookstore. I’d spoken to a nice lady on reception last week about scrounging a free European road atlas for the 1000 Mile Walk, and as I was staying less than five minute’s trudge from their head offices, thought I may as well make an appearance.

I was greeted by a nice lady called Janet O’Hanlon who’s PA for one of the big cheeses in Marketing (if I picked things up right). They’d basically decided “hey, why not? He’s not asking for much and it’s a good cause”.

It took a bit of a trawl, but another the nearby branches had the exact tome I was after and it was handed to me gratis for which I am hugely grateful. Anyone in Australia – buy all your books from Dymocks because the rule!

Back at the hostel I popped online briefly and tried to book cheap advance tickets for the Opera House walking tour tomorrow. Unfortunately, their web page was chuffed so I might be skipping the tour again. I’m not paying $26 to walk round a theatre!

Then I caught up with Delphine and Sophie. Sophie’s parents and another random Belgian (Jerome – hi!) are visiting, and I spent the afternoon with them. We bought an all-day monorail pass and circled the small area it covers twice before getting off at Darling Harbour to walk around the Maritime Museum. All very pleasant – it’s a decent way to spend an hour or two.

Somehow, Sophie located a box of treasure in one of the exhibits which contained a note to inform the staff at reception. This netted the whole group of us free tickets (worth $18 a pop) to walk around the submarine and ship they have moored up outside. Bonus!

On the way back, the heavens opened again and we got drenched. All in good fun, though. I wonder if Australia would refund the cost of my visit because it rained?

Sophie’s parents located a nice pub restaurant near their hotel and we went there for dinner. Mixed grill, $12.95. Bargain. And it was nice!

We finished with a couple of beers and wandered “home” in the comparitive warmth and delightful lack of rain.

Drought? How?

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Today was stinking hot. And humid. I woke far too early and enjoyed a bacon sarnie for breakfast/lunch followed by an absolutelty divine chocolate cake laced with raspberries. Will someone please explain how Dion is not someone’s wife yet? A PhD student with a great sense of humour and the ability to bake and cook circles round Delia – and she reads comics. My thanks to mein hostess for the last couple of days!

Dion gave me a lift to the station via a milkshake and chips at a cafe and I suffered the sweltering journey – more uncomfortable than Bangkok to Kanchanaburi, I swear – before arriving at the Town Hall stop in Sydney and strolling to the xBase backpackers’.

After checking in, I walked to Hungry Jacks and wolfed down a $5 meal and several refills of Coke. I desperately needed the fluids. Got to love a country with free refills on soft drinks.

Back at the hostel a lovely American girl called Sarah fed me spaghetti so she could use up some of the food she would otherwise be chucking out – and gave me a Dean Koontz book I’ve not read yet. Thanks, Sarah! Enjoy the WWOOFing in Byron Bay!

I’d booked into the same hostel as Delphine and Sophie who I met in Tasmania, and I met Delphine in the lounge for a natter. Lovely to see her again, though we were both exhausted. With any luck we’ll catch up again before I shoot off back to Canberra.

At that time I intended to crash in bed, but Lorna (an Italian girl in my otherwise German dorm) convinced me to go out for a beer. It didn’t take much convincing, I’ll be honest.

The bar at the hostel was closed for two nights, so we started walking towards the harbour. After five minutes, I stopped a random man and asked if he knew where there was anywhere open to get a drink. I chose my source of information well – the man turned out to be a Geordie so was obviously very capable of locating alcohol.

We ended up not far from the Bridge in the Oldest Pub in Sydney. As we enjoyed our single bevvie, the rain started. It had been threatening on the walk down with flashes, flickers and sheets of lightning showing through the clouds and buildings. The rain was torrential, flowing down the gutters and splashing up onto the pavement.

Fortunately, most of the walk back was under awnings so we didn’t get as wet as we otherwise would have, but it still makes you wonder why this place has water problems. In fairness, this is one night of rain after two days of scorching sunshine, but still. The rain was welcome, though. Ignoring the amazingly loud thunder which would disturb my sleep if I cared, the air is now a lot less humid.

Plodge and spa

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I woke up fairly early considering the late night with Dion and the morning to early afternoon was spent chilling out and enjoying Dion’s baking and cooking. Not a bad way to while away the time!

Around 3pm, two of Dione’s friends turned up and – along with her sister – we went for a walk in the woods and mountains which back onto her house. It’s hard to believe people can live this close to such spectacular scenery as we hiked across streams and up tracks into the mountains.

Our guides weren’t 100% sure of the directions once we reached the summit, though, so we spent quite a while clambering over rocks and falling down before settling on somewhere slightly shady to drink wine and guzzle little tarts. All very civilized! And more fun than following some silly trail.

After munchies, we started our walk back trying to beat the sunset – and failing. By the time we fought our way through the brush and onto the trail it was starting to get a little hazy and about a kilometre from the house we were navigating by moonlight. Two if our group marched “point” (that is, they were faster than everyone else) and when we caught up with them they were armed with big sticks. It seemed some kind of animal had wandered onto the path, then stopped and growled at them. Understandably they were a little perturbed by this.

We survived the trek, getting back to the house around 8pm – it had been a long afternoon. But what a way to chill out afterwards – outdoors in a spa pool with bubbles and 35-degree water to soothe away the aches and wash the scratches. Accompanied by vodka and cranberry juice with raspberries floating in it. Then some wine. And more wine. And then some wine. I believe more wine may have been involved.

At around midnight I had to excuse myself as I was nodding off in the tub. I went upstairs, collapsed in bed and sat up till 6:30am messing about on the internet and following the Premiership goals. I’m English. Deal with it.

Next stop, Wollongong

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I got up early this morning to get some things done before the 10am checkout. Basically, this involved checking my email and failing to buy breakfast. Oops.

Before I checked out, I handed out the usual cards and asked Anita if she would donate the value of her meal to BDCF once she had some cash. Everyone happy!

Then a rush to get a train from Kings Cross down to Central and a panicked dash to get the connection to North Wollongong. A very pleasant and scenic journey for around 90 minutes before arriving at the station to meet Dion, who I met in Sri Lanka. Lovely to see her again!

Dion’s a smart cookie PhD student with a ton of work to do, so after a bite to eat in the university canteen we managed to get my laptop online so I could update blogs while she studied.

I then discovered a nice student union bar ($5 for two drinks – about the least I’ve paid in Oz anywhere) before we picked up one of Dion’s colleagues for dinner in a very nice Mexican in town called Amigos. The meal I ordered – Bandito’s Basket – was big enough for two very greedy people but I did my best and managed to get through maybe 2/3 of it.

Then off to another bar on the coast (though it was too dark to see the see) where we nattered until midnightish and headed home.

All in all, just nice and chilled. After a week or so of almost constant motion from hotel to hostel to new city to airport, the next couple of days are going to be nice and chilled. Dion’s got a couple of walks and visits planned, but I get a room to myself (no dorm!) and a guide to take me places. All good!

Blisters and Balboa

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My feet were aching this morning. After all that trudging around Tasmania with neither a blister nor a whinge, my feet were punished by the wet weather and destroyed footware yesterday. In fairness, I spent an hour walking around the town centre looking for an open shoeshop, but due to the storm damage there wasn’t a single one open. OK, that’s a partial truth. I found one, but much as I have the legs for them, a pair of high heels just wasn’t what I needed.

Fortunately, most stores had reopened today so I first located a McD’s for breakfast and then a Big W in the mall for a pair of shoes. I changed footwear in the mallway and dropped my knacky old SIN$18 trainers into the trash. Much better!

After checking out of the hostel and storing my bags in a secure locker ($6) I plotted out my day. Some information was gathered from local bus companies and I decided to walk around the Canberra Museum and Gallery. Unfortunately the main permanent gallery was closed due to flooding, but I saw an art exhibition (yawn) and an interesting display detailing the recovery of artifacts from a fire in a university building 20 years ago. Archaeological techniques applied to a modern-day setting to try and figure out what was left in the rubble after bush fires destroyed a storage warehouse.

One thing I’d like to point out about the museum is the loo. Each cubicle had a sign on the door relating to the artwork painted on the inside. Very novel.

I managed to get a sew-on patch for Canberra (I wanted an ACT one, but they’re nigh on impossible to find) and sent some postcards. I have one state to visit – South Australia – and I’ll have been round the whole country.

Next up was lunch with Rach and her husband, more of my online friends, in Mooseheads. Less than ten bucks for a huge chicken burger and chips. Thank you for the beer, folks! As ever, they were the shining example of Aussie hospitality. I’ll be returning to Canberra next week and now have both a room for the night and a lift up to Newcastle! Seriously, folks – thank you so much!

I had a couple of hours left before my bus, which was nowhere near long enough for the Parliament Buildings, Botanical Gardens or Museum so I went to see a film instead. There’s an $8 cinema in the town centre and it was showing Rocky Balboa at just the right time so I popped in. Hard to believe I’ve been alive for all six Rocky films and this is the first one I’ve ever actually seen all the way through. It was OK, though. Not a classic, but enjoyable enough. I think I’d have appreciated it more if I’d seen the older ones.

Then just collecting my bags, back to the bus station and onto the coach for the 3-ish hour jaunt to Sydney during which I snoozed like a baby.

Being a cheapskate I opted to walk from Central to Kings Cross where my hostel was located. What an eye-opener. With the Mardi Gras on Saturday, Sydney is buzzing with people. All the clubs I walked past were heaving, and the sex shows and shops all had staff on the door trying to convince people to go in. Thankfully with two rucksacks, they didn’t seem to want to target me!

It took almost an hour to check in at the hostel – it seemed someone had failed to put any details of any of the bookings onto the system. The couple in front of me had a booking, but no room alloted to them so they ended up in a dorm rather than a private room. I got my chosen 10-share and met four very nice German people. The one in the room when I arrived was a girl (Anita, I think – again I apologise for being rubbish with names) who had just arrived, flat broke, from seeing her boyfriend back off to Germany from Bangkok. She was hungry, penniless and I’m a soft touch. So against her protests I dragged her to McD’s. If she hadn’t come with me I’d have brought something back for her!

While we were there we were nattering about our travels and those of friends, and a guy at the table overheard us talking and joined in the conversation. He was African – from Sierra Leon – and wondered if we’d been there. I think Hans may have, but don’t quote me. It made for great chatting, so thank you Moses! It’s always good to talk to new people from new places with new viewpoints.

The rest of the evening – till 2:30am – was spent on the roof and in the lounge at the hostel just gassing about where we’d all been and were all going. A very pleasant evening after a lot of plodding and footache.