arewethereyet

Australian salt water croc

On Saturday, with idle threats of stringing up wayward children for hungry crocs, we headed off to do some crocodile watching. The old man of the river was 70 years old and over 5 meters in length. The girls hung off every bit of info – we learnt that the female crocodile stays in one nesting place for most of her life, and that male crocodiles ‘own’ a small stretch of the river and do not tolerate rogue males in their territory. The crocs have the most beautiful, unique colourings and patterns.

Tuesday we are heading for Singapore, with a connecting flight to Medan, on the Indonesian Island of Sumatra. Looking forward to visiting the Orangutans. We will spend a week in Sumatra, while our van is in transit between Darwin and Singapore. We are looking at Sept. 19th as the start of South East Asia by road.

As we write, Darwin is having it’s first rainfall since May. The girls are naked, jumping through muddy gutters with big smiles on their faces. Huge relief for these sweaty travellers!

Australian caravan parks have been an experience in themselves – a diverse bunch of characters in each town. There’s a sociology / psychology or anthropology thesis in the making. No shortage of stories here…

Australian salt water croc

Australian salt water croc

White Eagle

White Eagle

Kite

The big open road - lots of it

Wednesday 19th – Sunday 23rd August 2009

The van was ready at 5pm on Wednesday 19th and we headed north. It was a great feeling to be back on the road. We only managed 200 kms before tiredness got the better of us and we camped out at a truckstop just before Port Wakefield.

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FIRST OFF – MANY MANY MANY THANKS to good chums and family who helped us get on the road: Ant (many a late night trooper), David (Cargo door & roof engineering), Nick & Ko, Fred, Horace, Damian, Adrian & Sam(invaluable help with van fit out) – Tina, Felix & Daniel (hosts extraordinaire) – Madeleine (divine curtains) – Mum, Dad & Vicky (pallet builders, packers & moral support), Garry, Micha, Brendan, Bir (moving), Jason, Kellie, Bridget (storage experts), Matt (superb next door neighbour – moving, music & tea) – Fay (brilliant Cafe Koula send-off), Adrian & Grace (kept the coffee coming), Beck&Mick, Sarah&Emma, Tina, Martine, Fernanda, Tina, Horace & Maddy (keeping us fed)… and encouragement from many more we will miss…..

Have we left yet? Well – we left Melbourne. That is a definite. Thing is – we broke down on our 2nd day 70 kms short of Adelaide – and we are still here. The pulley bearing on the secondary belt seized. Thanks to RACV total care – we have spent the last 4 nights in Adelaide – currently roughing it at the Grand Mercure in Mt Lofty up in the Adelaide Hills. It is a tough life! We are waiting for a part to be flown in from Queensland – hopefully heading north by mid-afternoon Wednesday.

A brief overview since our departure:l

DAY ONE: 160 kms – overnight in Beaufort rest stop. Pulled over by the police for Kai’s over enthusiastic use of his new spotlights. No ticket – instead an escort to an overnight rest stop close to town. Small town hospitality at it’s best.

DAY TWO: 500 kms – and that’s pretty much where the van stayed. RACV covered the tow and taxi into Adelaide. Stayed for 2 nights in the city at a lodge funded by the Cancer Council. We were in the minority as most residents were undergoing chemo. Home away from home for a while for some. A good education for the girls. Kaia made friends fast and started inviting herself into other’s units. The stories soon flowed and her innocent questions answered with more honesty than she knew how to process. A humbling experience for all of us! Took a stroll into the city with Aleni from Iraq & chatted with crafts people at the Rumble Street market. Lulu had to be dragged away from the candle makers. Kaia tried to ride away on a wooden rocking horse, while Lulu took some carving lessons.

In the park

Lulu and the carver

Candle making

DAY FOUR: Roughing it a Rydges Hotel and a good roam around the city. Adelaide is an amazing city – great architecture, overflowing with style and culture and very friendly characters about town. Kaia and Lulu wrestled with dumplings in Chinatown in the evening and Lulu announced she wanted to come and live in Adelaide.

DAY FIVE: Out to Glenelg to hang on the beach.

Kaia at Glenelg

Literally in Kaia’s case as she, in typical Kaia style, ripped her clothes off and rolled through the sand into the surf. Again, loving Adelaide’s diversity and abundant sunshine. One more night in luxury at the Grand Mercure in Mt Lofty.
Out for dinner in Hahndorf – mid 1800′s settlement by German Lutherans. We introduced the girls to traditional German fare in a pub that started trading 163 years ago. Dinner of wurst & sauerkraut did not go down well with the girls but the strudel and ice cream disappeared quickly. Back for a daytime visit to the puppet shop in the morning.

Hahndorf

Hahndorf