Glen and I are back in the Northern Beaches.  We are staying with Gary, Megan and Jackson (Glen's brother, sister in law and 13 year old nephew) We drove about six hours from the North Coast today, arriving at about 5pm, just in time to kick off the beginning of Jackson's summer vacation.  

We told them stories from the road, and it was hard to believe we'd only been traveling for 18 days.  The beginning of the trip felt like it was years ago.  Because we showed up today happy and well rested, it was funny to recount how difficult the first days of the trip were.

When we left Sydney, we headed straight back to Port Stephens, not far from Shoal Bay, the town we fell in love with back in October.  We set up camp and paddled and spent time at the beach.  We drove out on the sand dunes to Samarai Beach, a very beautiful and secluded spot, and had a great day laying in the sun and swimming.  On the drive back, the car got completely stuck in the sand dunes. Realizing how stuck we were was upsetting.  Lucky enough, we were far enough off the beach that we didn't need to worry about the tide coming in.  We tried to dig the car out.  I put my foot on the accelerator and Glen pushed the car.  Then Glen put his foot in the accelerator and I pushed the car.  Finally, Glen looked at me and said "Oh, Jenny, we're in trouble."  We stood on top of a sand dune and called NRMA (Australian Triple A).  They said they don't come to the sand.  We called a towing company that does come to sand.  They said they'd come in an hour and a half and it would cost $450.  

Suddenly, two men appeared in a pick up truck and towed us right out. They were so friendly and nice, we thanked them profusely and drove into town, canceled the $450 tow and planned out the next leg of our trip,  to a town called Forster.  

The following night we packed up for an early departure the next day.  We glanced at our phones only to see in every Australian news outlet that there had been a shark attack on a surfer.  In Forster.  We decided to pass Forster and head farther north.  

As we drove out of Port Stephens the following morning, the 'Check Engine' light in the car came on.  We drove the car to Beuladelah, about 75 kilometres to the north and as we pulled into town, we realised that at low speeds, the car was shaking. We googled the nearest Toyota dealership which happened to be in Forster.  The car was fine at high speeds, so we drove it into Forster where the Toyota dealership was happy to take a look.  

While we waited, we ate a kilo of shrimp at a picnic table.  We walked on the beach.  Not all the beaches were open due to the shark attack. But this particular beach was open...but for obvious reasons, we were the only people on it.  It was so hot out.  We couldn't help it....we jumped in the water....really fast.  We didn't get eaten by a shark.

We were thrilled to pick up the car and even more thrilled to learn it was a simple, seventy five dollar fix.  

So we continued up north, eventually landing in the beautiful town of Crescent Head, in a campsite on the water.  We swam and paddled and walked on the beach.  We had a glass of wine and saw some big clouds building behind us.  We could see a big storm was coming, so we got some cheese and crackers ready and figured we'd have a little party in the tent.  

The wind started blowing.  I got in the tent and Glen came in too.  Suddenly, a pole broke.  Then another....the back side of the tent collapsed.  I ran into the car.  (I'm not very brave).  Glen loaded everything from the tent into the car and took the tent down but secured it to the ground.  We googled hotels in Crescent Head and found a room for $99. 

We drove into town and checked into the room.  The room was situated so it was not near the road or parking lot, so we had to run our things quite a distance, in the rain.  

Finally we were settled in.  We were wet.  All of our stuff was muddy. It was still pouring outside.  We never got to eat.  For the first time since we'd arrived in Australia, we were both completely defeated.  We talked about the move we'd made, and even questioned why we did it.  We said this may have been have a big mistake and we wondered, where do we go from here?  Not just on this road trip, but in life in general.

We barely slept and woke up early.  The day was beautiful.  We drove back to the campground.  People everywhere were re-building their campsites.  Ours was back up by 930am.  We made friends with our neighbors.  We spent the next few days swimming, paddling and surfing before continuing north to Yamba, then even farther north to the Gold Coast and then back down the coast to beautiful Nambucca Heads.

As you can probably guess, as we talked to Gary, Megan and Jackson we loved telling them the stories from the road.  The more trouble we were in, the more fun it was to talk about.  I suppose it's natural for us to question what we've done sometimes.  But at the end of the day, I wouldn't trade this for anything.

At this moment in time we probably should've been tying more ropes off, rather than taking photos in front of the storm clouds that would take the tent down about ten minutes later. 

It's about 90 degrees and being December 12, it's one of the longest days of the year.  The holiday season doesn't seem to be quite as a big a deal here as it is in the US, and I'm not sure if that's because it's summer or because Australians just aren't as into Christmas.  The other day I walked into a movie theater and Jingle Bells was playing and for a moment I thought "why are they playing Jingle Bells!?"

After six weeks on the Northern Beaches, Glen and I have spent the past two weeks camping up the coast.  Although I write this from the Gold Coast (we are at Sharon and Tony's again!) it's hard to believe we're ten hours from Sydney because we never drove more than two or three hours at a time.

Camping in Australia is a completely different experience from camping in Colorado. It's far less rustic.  Campgrounds are called caravan parks,  Caravan Parks consist of cabins, RV sites and tent sites.  We've always had water and electricity. The  campgrounds have camp kitchens, with grills, sinks and sometimes, refrigerators.  Oh, and the campground bathrooms are absolutely, positively immaculate.  The only downside is, campground bathrooms are constantly closed for cleaning.  So, not exactly roughing it (to borrow Beaver Creeks tagline) but I don't mind one bit.

The past two weeks have been filled with adventure, including four wheeling down a sand road to a secluded beach, where we got stuck in the sand on the way back.  Luckily we were pulled out by two friendly guys, who when we thanked them just replied "too easy!"  which I think may be my favourite Australian saying.

Another night, on a campground just off the beach in a town called Crescent Head, a thunderstorm storm came in with so much wind that part of our tent collapsed.  Glen took the rest of the tent down and secured it to the ground, while I helped by hiding in the car and googling hotels.  We spent the night in a hotel, and had our tent back up by 930 the next morning.

We've spent a lot of time at the beach.  I thought I had a great tan until I saw myself in a full length mirror and was shocked....I look like an over cooked turkey!  Glen surfs and I've been playing around on his surfboard a bit...not surfing, just playing on the board, with the thought that one day, I might jump up!  And of course, we've been paddling!

One of the highlights of the past two weeks was a stop in a town called Yamba, about two hours south of the Gold Coast (8 hours north of Sydney). We really fell in love with this beautiful beach town with good restaurants, yoga and a feeling of a great quality of life.

Tomorrow morning we're heading back down the coast and we'll take about five days to get back to Sydney.  We'll be staying in the Northern Beaches til the end of January and then...who knows?  I'm hoping whatever we do includes another visit back to Yamba.

Hello from Shoal Bay!  Shoal Bay is in the Port Stephens region, about two hours north of Sydney.  We pulled in yesterday for some much needed relaxation time.  Just kidding.

Really, though, we wanted to take the new car on a road trip and Glen has always talked about this area.  He spent a lot of time here as a kid and I've heard a lot about the area, but I never realized it was so beautiful.  It reminds me a bit of Hawaii, with mountains rising out of turquoise water. 

The towns of Shoal Bay and nearby Nelson Bay are low key and relaxed, a beach scene with little cafes and shops. We've rented the cutest little cabin here for three days.  

We brought our paddle boards and took them out for a two hour paddle in the bay this morning.  The water was so blue and clear - we could see the bottom the whole time!  The water was wavy and bumpy, but the boards handled great.  

Afterwards, we threw on shorts and t-shirts and went into Nelson Bay.  We went to a local fish market where we bought a kilo of prawns, caught here in Port Stephens last night!  We ate them at a picnic table right across the street.  They were absolutely delicious.  When we were done, we went back to the same market and bought a dozen oysters for dinner tonight.

Dare I say it?  I really, really love Port Stephens, it's the newest addition to my 'favorite towns in Australia' list.  

Cheap red wine and pizza is the way to travel on a budget!  We just discovered 'Lambrusco', a sparkling red wine, served chilled.  Perfect for al fresco dining on warm, Spring nights.

Port Stephens taken from a lookout, at the entrance to the bay.

 The fishing looks amazing, (Dad)!

Purple Trees and Pink Paddle Boards

Australia has purple trees!  They're so beautiful!  I've never been in Australia in Spring before, and it is completely unreal.  Everywhere you look the trees and flowers are pastel colored, and the air smells of gardenia's and honey suckle.  My favorite, the purple tree, aka the jacaranda, sprouts purple flowers in the spring.   Glen and I parked under a jacaranda tree yesterday and I was thrilled when we walked out to see our white car covered in purple flowers this morning.  (A less thrilled Glen purposely didn't park there tonight, because the car was "stained and sticky" from the night before).  

We also took our new paddle boards out this morning.  Last Friday, we bought them at a shop at a place called Narrabeen Lake.  We tried two boards out, a 10'6 board and a 9'6 board.  We both preferred the 10'6 board, so we asked if they had another 10'6 for sale and the sales guy ...Matt...or Nat (I still have trouble understanding people) said  "yes, but it's bright pink."  Glen asked if I'd use the pink one if we bought it. I rolled my eyes and mumbled "sure."  But I'm going to tell you a secret....I love it!  The 9 year old girl in me, oh hell, the 38 year old woman in me loves my white paddle board with hot pink decals! Don't tell Glen though, he still thinks I'm a trooper for using the pink board.  

Anyway, we took the boards to Manly Dam today, a beautiful, peaceful place up in the trees.  We used to paddle a lot in Summer in Colorado, so it was exciting thinking that we'll be able to use the boards year round here.  Paddling made me feel like my old, Colorado self.  

Not to say that I feel like I've changed, but life has changed.  Now, everywhere we go is a place I've never been and everything we do is something I've never done.  I love it.  At the same time, it was fun to enjoy one of my old favorite activities, paddle boarding,....in a new place, of course!

Planes, Trains and Automobiles

Annandale

G'day, Glen here! We thought it was time for me to share some thoughts and adventures on the blog. So here goes!

After our month up north in tropical Queensland (good times but too many crocodiles nearby for our liking, maybe 20 years in the States softened me?) we totally changed up the scenery and moved into Bevan and Celia's place for three weeks while they are off exploring China.

Bevan and I went to the same kindergarten, primary school and high school and lived in the same neighborhood, so I was surprised when they invited us to take care of their beautiful home, given he still remembers our antics the first time my parents left my older brother and I home alone for a week back in 1978.

Their home is in an old historic inner city neighborhood called Annandale which is about 3 miles to the city center. My mother, Bev, grew up in Annandale so we thought it would be nice for her to come over for dinner and stay the night, which she did this week. Bev had not been back to Annandale for many years.  Even though she only lives about 9 miles from here, the harbor and some serious traffic make the trip challenging.

Anyway, we were blown away by how excited she was while exploring all her old haunts including her childhood homes, elementary school, high school, church, the halls she went to dances in and even the one where she made her debut. She shared many stories of life in the neighborhood including all the hot spots for kissing boys.

Our time in Annandale has been very urban and we have used the bus and train system to explore the city including hip Saturday markets, China Town and a Food Festival.  We even went to an Art Gallery exhibition opening in Paddington last night as guests of Zach's girlfriend, Nikki, who works at the gallery.

While we have been enjoying the inner city energy, the driving has been full on. Our primary mission while here has been to buy a car and equip it with the accessories we will need for our future traveling. Annandale is on Parramatta Rd which is probably Sydney's busiest. It's busy because it is a main artery into and out of the city but also because it has a huge amount of car yards and many other businesses on both sides. The good news is we have been able to find everything we needed within five or six miles of driving Parramatta Rd, but this involved many missed turns, back street re-routes, tight parking and I'm sure annoyance to the drivers trying to get through their work days behind us. Monday we get the stereo changed out to a blue tooth ready with reverse camera set up, then hopefully we are finished with Parramatta Rd and Jen's lessons in colorful Aussie language can be shelved for the time being.

This weekend we have started our physical and mental transition from urban/city back to a beach life mentality. We bought paddle boards yesterday and met with the family we will be house/dog sitting for in January. Talk about "The grass is greener".  They are heading to Colorado for a month of skiing, while we can't wait to watch over their home that is perched on a hill over looking Curl Curl Beach (the same beach I was a junior lifesaver " nipper" way back when).

Next month we'll be looking after my mum's place for a month while she travels and holidays in Queensland. Mum's place is about a quarter mile to both Freshwater and Curl Curl Beaches. It's still spring in Sydney so the weather varies greatly but we are hoping the water temps and weather will warm up for lots of paddling and beaching through November.

So this is Glen signing off. As you probably guessed we are not missing the snow but we both miss our wonderful friends and family back in the US. We are not big on posting on Facebook but we do enjoy hearing from all ya'll through F.B messenger and please know we are browsing F.B and stalking you.

Mum's back home after so many years

Town Hall and Mum's high school

Spring bloom

Mum, in front of her high school. Built in 1897.

Our new (used) Landcruiser, in front of Bevan & Celia's

Ready to paddle

"The Abbeys"  Annandale

A local church in Annandale

Classic neighborhood fire station

Local Town Hall

The street Mum came home to when she was born.  Not much has changed on the outside.

Planes:  Annandale is close to the Sydney Airport.  Great fun plane-spotting.  Qantas is our favorite!

Whenever I'm upset, I don't sleep.  Worries that seem solve-able during the day wake me up at night and bring me out to the couch.  On Tuesday night, I didn't even bother trying to sleep.  I brushed my teeth, washed my face, grabbed a pillow and blanket and went straight to the couch. 10pm in Sydney is 7am in New York.  My parents, sisters, brother-in-laws and nieces were all at my parents house, on their way to my Grandma's funeral.  I was filled with regret.  I regretted moving 10,000 miles to Australia.  I regretted leaving New York in 1996 to move to Colorado.  I regretted that since I'm eighteen, I've always lived far away from my family.  Most of all, I regretted not being there.  I slept on and off through the night. 

On Wednesday morning, I talked to my Mom, who told me I'm being ridiculous and she loves that I'm happy. 

Then, I tried not to feel regret, because in spite of it all, I am happy.  Each day is exciting and different from the last. 

This past week we had a goal:  Buying a car.  Glen and I drove around, scoping dealerships and researching, before finding the car for us - a 2003 Toyota Landcruiser Prado.  The car buying experience is different than in the US.  We had an inspection done, which in turn the dealership fixes any problems that are found.  One leaking rear shock, a broken fog light and new windshield later, the repairs are being made and the car should be ours tomorrow. 

In the meantime, I'm learning Sydney's public transportation and have been catching ferries, buses and trains.  I've also been driving Celia's car.  Today, I drove across the city to the Northern Beaches.  I drove across the Harbour Bridge...on the left side of the road...Australians are so picky about that!  ;-) 

I've also found a new passion:  Shopping.  (Unfortunate timing, considering we don't have jobs.)  I went shopping with Nikki in Bondi on Thursday night. It was so nice to spend time with her, and when we were done we went to eat at what looked like a little hole-in-the-wall Japanese restaurant, only to be served the greatest sashimi I've ever eaten.  Ever. 

Glen and I went to the super trendy Paddington Neighborhood and the Paddington Markets on Saturday.  Luckily, I don't have expensive taste...but I did manage to snag a pair of tiny boots that I've noticed women all around Sydney wearing.   

One morning, I video chatted with my friends Larissa, Peyton and Sarah in Breckenridge while they drank wine and I sipped coffee.  They put the phone on the table and we chatted like I was right there with them.   

On Friday morning, Glen and I had a huge run on Bondi Beach.  Just when we thought we were too tired to run anymore, we realized the parking meter would expire in 20 minutes.  I grabbed the car keys and ran ahead another three kilometers, arriving at the car with three minutes to spare, making me the hero of the day.

That night, we went into the city to sample the Noodle Markets (Local Asian Restaurants set up booths, where you can sample tastings from their menu).  It was a blast, but in usual Friday night event fashion, it quickly got crowded and the lines became so long, we wandered the city in search of a restaurant that served noodles...and found one without problem.

On Sunday, I drank (too much) wine with my sister-in-law, Megan.  I stopped drinking when, to my horror, I heard myself saying "I've never seen Drach Zunk."

I've called and video chatted with my family more than I ever did in Colorado, because I miss them so much. 

This week has been an emotional rollercoaster, filled with sadness, happiness, excitement and regret.  That's okay.  Those emotions are all a part of living, and living life is exactly what I came here to do. 

Beautiful Bondi Beach, start and end of the longest run I've done in Australia, 15 kilometers/9 miles!

Hopefully we'll have this car tomorrow!  That bar on the front is called a 'Roo Bar.'  So if you hit a kangaroo, it doesn't hurt the car...but likely hurts the kangaroo.  Even so, I really, really, don't want to hit a kangaroo. 

The ultra cool Paddington Neighborhood, home of the Paddington Markets! 

Last night (Sunday night) at about midnight my phone started buzzing.  Half asleep, I squeezed my phone to make it stop and put it under my pillow.  A minute later it was buzzing again.  Glen woke me and said 'you'd better check that, something might be wrong.'  There were messages from my parents asking me to call. 

I quickly called my Mom, who told me that my Grandma had gone to sleep the night before and never woke up.  

This was coming. At 98, she wasn't well.  Two weeks before I left for Australia I said good bye knowing very well that may be the last time.

I went out to the living room to call my sisters.  It was Sunday morning in NY and I wasn't going to sleep while my family was going through this.  We were going through it together.  

My family and I had discussed this before I left and agreed that if this happened, I wouldn't come back.  But for the first time since I arrived, I didn't want to be in Australia.  I wanted to be home, in New York, with my family.  

I texted and talked with my sisters through the night and one of us always had an update of where my parents and Aunt and Uncle were, what they were doing and the arrangements they were making.  

My Grandma Jean and Grandpa Manny (who died twelve years ago) were such special people.  They had four grandchildren and we each had such a great relationship with them.  

My Grandma was always giggling and so happy. She hugged or kissed everyone, in fact, a lot of other family friends referred to her as Grandma Jean, too.  I realize that living to be 98 is a privilege, but I will miss her forever.

Which leaves me here in Australia, sad and a little bit homesick.  

Mom, I'm so sorry I'm not there for you right now.  I can't believe I'm not going to be able to hug you.

Grandma Jean, as always, I love you big bunches, with hugs, kisses and pinches. 

Here's to you, Grandma, on a life well lived.