Days 10, 11 and 12 - Go West

Leaving Airlie was hard. I liked the town, the vibe, the feel. It had a swimmable ocean. Plus, we had a great time at the Great Barrier Reef and seeing what it had to offer. I felt complete. I felt content. And it is hard to leave something that brought so many good feelings. But still, we did. At 7 am we were on the road again. Inland – “Go West” as the Pet Shop Boys would say. We had 2,718 km to drive to get home by Sunday, according to GoogleMaps. Between 9-11 hours straight driving per day. Our first stop would be Cloncurry, about two hours from the Northern Territory border. This time we will have to miss the amazing Mount Isa.

The inland country was as beautiful as before hitting Airlie. Greens, blues, browns. The sort of homogeneous landscape that gave you serenity. The clouds were puffs of white against a blue blue. We went through kangaroo and koala country. No sight of them though. The side roads we took led to beautiful hills, tall eucalyptus trees, sugar cane fields and little sleepy towns where time stops. We stopped very briefly in Charter Towers to get Maccas. Yup, McDonalds. We needed to “hit the road, Jack”, and hit it badly. Ten minutes later we were on the road again.  

Alyson, Queen of Banka Banka. Photo: Alyson's phone

So many times I have been told I am lucky. And everyone who has told me that I have told them I am not. You are lucky when you hit the jackpot and win some money. Or when you play Bingo and the card you got and the haphazard balls gave you a win. Or when you found a 10 dollar bill on the pavement. Luck – for me – is when you have had no saying whatsoever in what comes to you. The biggest decision was to buy the lottery ticket, the bingo card, to take that road to go back  home. Mindless decisions. I am not lucky to have come on this trip and see some parts of Australia I never dreamed of. I made a conscious decision to take a step forward and despite few handicaps, I went for it. And I am glad.

Upon returning from The Great Barrier Reef, I spoke to my dear friend Karina and I just could not restrain my emotions. My happiness. I had just gone diving and had a wonderful time. Yet again, I have met wonderful people and my heart was content. She said I was lucky. I told her I was not. I had said yes to an opportunity, and that is not luck. That is a decision. And decisions don’t come easy. I would have been lucky if there was a draw and I got this opportunities like that.

After 11.5 hours of straight driving, and again, by chance, we met Darren and Birringan in Cloncurry. Two youth workers on their way to their work sites in the NT. They set their tents next to us and apparently I gave them ‘the look’. After our lovely dinner which involved the unheard spaghetti bolognaise, they invited us to play cards and we had a great time. They taught me how to play ‘spoons’ or rather ‘knives’ as we had no spoons nearby. I taught them to play ‘31’. All to the sound of good RnB and Australian country music; the latter much to Alyson’s despise. 

We left Cloncurry at 7 and by 10 we entered the Northern Territory. Before and after the welcome sign to the NT I had a glimpse of what the Red Centre might look like. That vast area in the heart of Australia that is home to red-rich country, rugged mountains and some of Aboriginal Australia's more sacred sites. Alice Springs (famous for being the end destination in Australia's top road trip movie "The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert") is over 500 km South; and we were going North. Still, the iron rich soil is red. The vegetation expands in fields of green. The sky is blue. The blue that you just cannot stop looking at. And the clouds are fairy floss white. There has been quite a bit of rain lately so the final mix is very appealing to the eye. This to the sound of Crowded House and good memories from South Africa came back...

In each of the very-far-and-few-between towns in the Australian Outback stops we made we would find Darren and Birrigan. In Threeways we played some pool and decided to set camp together in the next top. We were all going North, so we might as well stick together. Katherine – three hours South of Darwin – will be the farewell point.

The rockhole. Photo: Alyson's

We stopped at the Banka Banka Station, about one hour north of Threeways. The owner offered us an already-set tent each for the same price of us pitching the four tents. We took that opportunity and had a beer while getting ready to go to a rockhole 2.5 km away. The rockhole was beautiful. Reddish rocks in the background and greenery elsewhere. The water was probably body temperature with streaks of cold that came out of nowhere. Still refreshing though. And that perennial blue sky filled with fluffly clouds. I learnt about Australia's Stolen Generation, abour youth work, about life in country. Both Darren and Birrigan were proud of their jobs and enjoyed them as well. I know I am a small person, petite - as some would way. But in comparison to both guys I felt tiny. It is interesting to refresh one's perspective in life. 

Darren (left), me and Birrigan (right). Photo: Alyson

Back in the campsite we played cards again. I taught them half of the rules of ‘40’ – an Ecuadorian card game that it is different within different parts of the country. Didn't last long and after dinner we went back to playing ‘31’. The music was good and I hummed some sections along while the others sang along. We had a splendid twerking demonstration by Birrigan which left us all with a grin in our faces.

The morning broke even earlier today (Sunday). The mosquitos were vicious and we were on the road again before 7 am. We all stopped for coffee and pie for breakfast and shortly afterward, and without realising we said bye to Birrigan and Darren as we did different stops after that. 

There were long stretches of road surrounded by reds and greens, and whites and blues. The odd sign reminded us that 130 km/hr is the maximum speed along the NT with the presence of cattle and kangaroos as well. We had the morning sun on our right giving an amazing light to a storm in front of us. And around the storm and before the blue sky, two rainbows. It was just a perfect way to finish a wonderful trip.

The last bit of my road trip was happening. I was bound to get home in about three hours. And I will be back in reality. Grown up stuff. But still quite happy with my current grown up status. There are few shit sandwiches but it’s ok, I enjoy them. Laura and Kyle arrived with an ice cream in hand and I went in to say hello to Sombra. She was very happy to see me but still choose to lay on top of Kyle’s feet. That showed that she was loved.

I fell asleep by 9 pm with Sombra lying in the floor next to me. Didn’t do any driving, but navigation is hard stuff. Especially when I have no idea how to do it and keep getting lost. My only job and I messed up sometimes. Sometime I will do it properly, but then sometimes I also prefer to see where life takes you… 

Days 8 and 9 - endorphins

Endorphins. Lots of them. Endorphins are happiness hormones; they cause a sense of euphoria. You get an ‘endorphin rush’ from good food, exercise and sex. My load is from going to the Great Barrier Reef, where I swam, snorkelled and dived. Shared happy moments with Alyson and a couple of new friends while having the amazing opportunity to have Hardy’s Reef without 241 visitors all rushing to get their four hours of bliss.

After much decision-making throughout the trip, Alyson left me with the decision about what to do while at Airlie Beach. The options were simple. Either a day tour or a one night-two days tour to see the Great Barrier Reef. That amazingly beautiful and complex natural structure that can be seen from space. One of the most biodiverse ecosystems on Earth. The sort of picture that high definition TVs show on repeat because of the colours, the movement and the peace it brings. After much consultation with our wallets and, in my case to a generous cash gift from my parents, we settled for the one night two days tour. We popped yet another fine Barossa valley bubbly open and celebrated our next day excursion while getting ready to go out.

We dined on potato and rosemary pizza and drank Sauvignon Blanc on tap in downtown Airlie. Then we moved to a trendy bar that was full of 20-somethings and me. The music was good and free sparkling wine for the ladies. You couldn’t really ask for much more. It was interesting seeing the vibe there. Most people were trying to impress someone. You name it, just someone. The body languages spoke at unison, you didn’t need to be fluent in it to understand it. It was a roaring silence. The colours, textures and shapes matched the body language and the results were interesting.

In one of those chance encounters that this trip is being good at, I met Daniel and Jonas. Travelling, working and learning along their way in Australia. Daniel spoke Spanish as his mom is from Spain, so I was pretty happy when he started speaking Spanish in a nearly perfect Spanish accent. Jonas didn’t, although he knew how to say ‘vamos a la playa’ which was probably good enough when you are in beach country. Then Alyson met them and the conversation got going to interesting topics and places. We ended up chatting until early morning, sharing puffs of smoke and a star filled sky. We all had the common understanding that if you don’t agree totally on something, but you respected the opinion, it was fair enough. We also decided that if there was more ‘fair enough’ attitude, the world will be in a better shape now. So, along with the ‘sand’ dilemma in Moreton Bay, I will be submitting this idea to wherever you submit ideas that you wish were to become true.

After about two hours of sleep we went to the Port of Airlie and with a cup of coffee in hand we were seated in a private booth for ReefSleepers. There were nine of us hailing from Finland, Thailand and Sydney. There were 241 others in the boat that were to be sailing three hours there and three hours back while we would sleep in the pontoon. Upon arriving, we got ready to get into the water and jumped in while dodging screaming kids, grinning grannies, tanned teens and swimming-challenged visitors.

Giant clam and corals 

Immersing in the warm waters of the tropical Western Pacific was bliss. Our stinger suits protected not only about the dreadful jellies (box-jellies and irukandjies) but also from the relentless sun shining above us. Being able to see the reef for the first time was breath taking. My jaw didn’t drop as I had to hold on to my snorkel for dear life, but it dropped in my head. I think my heart stopped a beat. Or two. It was mesmerising. Butterfly fishes dressed in yellow and black, parrot fishes with all the colours of the rainbow, giant clams with turquoise lips, stag-horn corals with shades of blue, spotty sea cucumbers. The blue. That blue that starts clear and goes into deep blue. Strikes of light shining through gave you the impression that you were in an aqueous dream where silence could be felt in your skin.

We tried to escape the 241 tourists taking turns to have their selfies taken, and went to the outskirts of the area open for our enjoyment. The Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority is doing a pretty good job managing the hordes of visitors aiming to catch a glimpse of The Reef. Deckhands in bright red inflatable dinghies herded us like herding cats and quite often a honk from the boat will remind us not to stand on the reef or not to venture outside the authorised area. The areas closer to the pontoon were damaged by the constant flip-flaps of unexperienced snorkelers. Or perhaps from those that really did not understand or did not care about protecting the reef. I don’t know what is worse: lack of knowledge or lack of empathy. Either one is causing damage and not only to The Reef.

At 3 pm, the other 241 left and we had The Reef to ourselves. We were nodding and smiling to our fellow ReefSleepers and we felt like accomplices in an adventure that could only get better. Sort of having a jar of the best cookies ever to ourselves and no tummy-ache at the end of the day. We jumped back into the water. No red inflatable dinghies herding anyone, and only nine pairs of snorkelling fins were splashing around in the surface. The difference was amazing. The Reef was breathing a different life as it was spared of the noise, the crowds, the humans splashing around. I saw fishes I had not seen in the morning outings: spotty groupers, unicorn fishes, cute little cuttlefish flying their wings, blennies, a tiny goby. And it all came back to me. Scientific names of long-forgotten fishes fleeted through my mind. The fishes all ready to ran away if the disruption to its normal routine were to become too much. Cleaning wrasses tidied a big humphead Maori wrasse off parasites. They went deep into its gills while the wrasse was tilted to one side, like in a spa.

Unfortunately we had to leave the warm embrace of the Pacific by 5 pm and dinner was served at 6 pm. I guess that is why some Australians call dinner ‘tea’. We were surrounded by ocean in the most amazing shades of blue. And noddies. Squawking silly and regurgitating noddies. Our dinner drinks and merriment (or ‘sobremesa’ in Spanish) was sort of cut short when the silly noddies starting looking dazed and confused because of the deck lights and kept flying into us. The milky way led the way to our swags (Australian canvas tents with a built-in mattress) and because of the short (or long) night we had the day before, we fell asleep to the squawking of the noddies and the overwhelming silence of being the only humans (plus the crew) in one of the most pristine and natural settings one can hope for.

Source: https://insolemexumbra.files.wordpress.com

A yummy breakfast was served at 8 and by 8:30 we were back in the water. By 10 am I was going diving. My first dive in 12 years. I had stopped diving altogether while still in Galapagos because my ears were not doing quite right. It only took a few extra equalisations for me to feel back at home and to let go of the dive instructor. To remember the bliss that it is to have your bubbles as the only sound and the ability to look at fish into their eyes. I saw this ascidian (or sea squirt) that looked like a beautiful bright yellow heart. It had blue veins running along and the two holes pulsated water in and out, just like we do with our blood. Needle fishes and more groupers; colourful flatworms swimming in an undulating pattern that caught your eye even if you were not looking; a sparkly white nudibranch and a pitch black one with electric blue rims. When you snorkel you get to see the big stuff, the big picture. Like having a wide-angle lens. When you dive you go on macro mode. You can see the detail of the coral polyps, see the indentations on the corals after being munched by parrot fishes. I can dive again. My heart is content. If I were to set a soundtrack to this, I think I could not get any better than Xavier Rudd…

By 11 am we saw the boat approaching the pontoon and we all felt the dread of having 241 visitors ready for a four hour rush. We had been nine, and we were friends now. We had shared moments that perhaps few people understood, we knew how to cherish simple and slow-paced moments. We all gave each other a sympathetic look that was well understood and ventured again into the ocean, this time with screaming kids, grinning grannies, tanned teens and swimming-challenged visitors. We were back to reality, unfortunately.

We arrived back in Airlie Beach at 6 pm and decided to stay the night here and have an early start tomorrow. We start our journey back home, inland. Our next three days will be solid driving, between 9-11 hours per day. We will be home by Sunday. And back to Uni on Monday.

Day 7 - hot chocolate and platypus

Alyson in platypus country

My morning broke really early today, 5:30. Had a cup of hot chocolate and ventured into platypus territory. The heavy and never ending rain of last night increased the river, hence the area where we could see platypuses. We were asking for at least one. But we didn’t see any. They probably went to new found tributaries after the big rain. But honestly, the single idea to be where I could, indeed, find platypuses was good enough. The tall trees, the shorter palm trees in the bush casting shadows over the river, the vines and butterflies. The fact that there are still lowland rainforest amidst the massive extension of sugar cane plantation was a happy moment. We did not see platypuses, perhaps next time.

We went for a hike in Eungella National Park and since I had forgotten my swimmers, Alyson had two dips in a wonderful waterfall. She looked around with my diving mask and saw the blackness of the deep. We were spared from leeches, luckily. Came back to our camping site and had one last swim in platypus territory and started our driving to the Whitsundays.

Photo credit: NASA

The Whitsundays are one of the gateways to see the Great Barrier Reef. That amazing natural ecosystem that can be seen from space and is home to a myriad of species. One of the most biodiverse marine ecosystems on Earth. Where the blue is blue and the white is white. The area that set the backdrop to my dream of being a marine biologist; the cover of many books and subject to many documentaries that led me to follow my – then – passion. No wonder why it is called the Great Barrier Reef… one of Australia’s crown jewels…

We set camp in a caravan park and started looking for options to make the best out of our stop here. We decided on an overnight tour to the outer reef. We probably overpaid the price of our dream, but we feel it was worth it. Aren’t all dreams though? The idea of being able to sleep with the stars as our ceiling and the Reef as our (watery) floor is beyond any wildest dreams I ever had. Alyson’s too. We are going out tonight to celebrate being broke for the rest of the trip, perhaps even the next few months, but very much worth it. I will let you know on Thursday.

Day 6 - warm rivers, fat rain drops

Yuppoon treated us to a wonderful before-breakfast swim. Although still murky, it was not dusk, the sun was shining and it was hot. Locals walked the dogs, a romantic couple went by and we floated in the sea carefree. While in the water, I could only think how much I miss to be able to go swimming. In Darwin we have salt water crocodiles and box-jelly fish, so it is not a good idea to do so. There I venture calf-deep in the water while I take Sombra (our dog) for a walk. And definitely not carefree.

With our next destination in mind – the Whitsundays – we left the warm embrace of the Pacific Ocean and went for breakfast. We treated ourselves to an iced coffee from the coffee shop across the road, Alyson’s wonderful mushroom and tomato omelette and we defined our route for day. We left around 11 am towards Eungella National Park, a lowland rainforest in Central Queensland.

Queensland produces lots of cane sugar. And after leaving Yeppoon we saw vast areas of cane fields. Very similar to what we had seen in previous days. There are rail lines and little trailers to transport the cane to wherever cane gets transformed into things like rum, sugar and molasses. Along the road we passed a billboard with an ad for a politician who recently said that there is no such thing as a bleached coral reef “That all is well, thank you very much”; this while diving at the South end of the Great Barrier Reef. We went over bridges that either covered channels of dry rocks and sediment or passed by others with water of dubious quality. This happens while we are dreaming about being able to go snorkelling in the Great Barrier Reef, perhaps even a night dive. We have been cooking ourselves and limiting expenses so as to have that as an option. And we know that the Great Barrier Reef is not doing well.

It is not doing well because – among other reasons – rivers are taking lots of sediment from agricultural lands that hinders the well-being of the Reef. Coral reefs are complex colonies of tiny animals that host even smaller alga that produces their food. The alga – because it is a plant – needs the sun to do so.  When the river brings sediment, it hangs around the water and handicaps the algae’s ability to catch the sun to produce food and feed the coral. Eventually the alga abandons the coral, the coral loses its food and its colour and die. The white calcareous skeleton remains and the coral is bleached.

We also passed by a massive processing plant. Big chimneys reaching to the sky. Bright light green fields surround everything while the darker green of the remaining rain forests stand guard in the background. And we reached the conclusion that is amazing (in the cynical sense) that science has been able to pin point one of the reasons why the Great Barrier Reef may not be that Great in the future, yet we – as a society – have failed to address that.

Our cynicism is broken with Fred Astaire singing “I’m in heaven” on the playlist and I can’t stop being amazed at the Australian countryside. The contrasting greens; the well planned towns full of trees and gardens; the fact that we are travelling together seeing this, is indeed heaven; if I were to believe in one.  Yes, there are things that upset me, but putting my environmentalist brain on the side, I am extremely happy to be here.

We arrive in Platypus Bush Camp next to Eungella National Park and we are greeted with tall trees with vines, rumbling waters in rocky river beds, bright coloured birds and the possibility to see a platypus. The simple fact to be entering platypus territory brings contentment to my heart and a big wide smile to my face. After setting camp, we stood quietly by the platypus pool for quite a while. We saw bush turkeys, blue kingfishers, an eel, a turtle and tiny fishes. No platypus though, hopefully tomorrow. The rain stopped us contemplating life, contemplating the pool where platypuses live. We ran for shelter while big rainforest drops fell on us, and started our evening to the sound of pouring tropical rain, big fat frogs, beetles seeking the light and the beating of our hearts. 

Day 5 - doing mornings

I don’t do mornings. It’s sort of a fact. I have done them when I have to. But I don’t. If you know what I mean. But when sunrise is at 5:24, you just sort of have to, although I only got out of my tent by 7. The lovely meal at the amazing French restaurant in Hervey Bay led to a good night of sleep. One of those that you go to sleep content. I have had an amazing start of the year. I met lovely new people at a New Year’s party that I sort of gate crashed with a new old friend. I am doing my first long road trip with Alyson and I am now enjoying a cold beer in Yeppoon. We are at a camping and caravan site by the beach. I can hear the waves crashing and a fruit bat just flew by. Really, sleeping with a smile in my face was given, so it was easier to do an early morning.

Yeppoon, sunsetting... Photo: Alyson's

Also, I didn’t have much of a choice as the world was rumbling around me. I packed my sleeping bag and tent and had a lovely cup of hot chocolate. Finally, the weather allows me to enjoy it without breaking into profuse sweat. At midmorning we had a cappuccino and started our journey north. We were heading to Yeppoon under recommendation from Christian, the French chef with a beret. The drive was nice. I still ‘wowed’ to the endless farmland. I sneaked some photos while driving. Alyson gave me the look. And we ate lunch in Gin Gin. Where, despite the name we ate pies at the Travellers Rest Café. They won The 2015 Official Great Aussie Pie Competition. Gin Gin was like the other inland towns I have seen in this trip. Quaint in the sense that they look very much like others inland towns I had seen in this trip. Yet, they had something that made them unique. Their lovely square wooden houses. The wide roads with few cars. The manicured lawns and the funky post boxes. I will probably see plenty more on the way to Darwin. They will be similar and yet so different. And I will still ‘wow’ at them.

The five-hour drive went by very quickly when you have good company. With the soundtrack of my eclectic playlist (it goes from PeterGabriel to Twenty One Pilots to Willie Nelson to Rick Astley) we talked for hours-on-end. We confided. We gossiped. We laugh and grinned. We had some silence too when the soundtrack filled the still space. We were thankful that this was happening and let the soundtrack fill the silence, again. 

We stopped at Rockhampton to buy groceries, snacks and beer. The latter to my request. And we arrived at Yeppoon at 6 pm. The sun was setting and the dark-coloured sand had a bit of shine of the sunset in the far end of the beach. We went for a swim quite happily as we learned that there were no jelly fishes. Spaghetti bolognaise, one of the most homely-feel-good feeds ever for dinner and a long chat. Or ‘sobremesa’ as we would say in Spanish.

The night has settled in and it’s time to hit the sleeping bag.

Day 4 - camping with French cuisine

I woke up to the smell of coffee. Coffee, together with freshly baked bread and the smell of rain on dry ground (or petrichor) are my favourite smells. 

My nose led me upstairs where Valentina was busy in the kitchen. She presented me with ‘humitas’. Humitas are a typical food item from Ecuador made with fresh corn, eggs, and butter. Steamed. I have not eaten one for at least a year. But as if that would have not been enough to make my year, Valentina also made ‘bolones’. Bolones are one of the many things you can cook from green plantain – like the ‘patacones’ we had yesterday. Bolones are my favourite thing. My children love them and I got lots of grief when I sent them the photo. So, for breakfast we had humitas, bolones and Galapagos Coffee from our dear friends Scott and Maria Elena's farm in the highlands of Santa Cruz Island. Talking about warm fuzzy feelings now… Alyson had gone to have breakfast with some friends, but diligently had some when she came back. Our food, plus us breaking into Spanish in the middle of a conversation, I think gave Alyson a crash course on Ecuadorian/Galapaguenian culture…

Noosa, QLD

We left Lazaro and Valentina’s around 11 am and headed to Noosa. Noosa is still in the Sunshine Coast and about 220 km north. A bustling little town full with backpackers, trendy shops, coffee shops in the pavement with all chairs facing the street – like a cinema – and an amazing blue ocean surrounded with greenery. We drove around for about 20 minutes trying to get a parking spot to go to ‘the’ beach. We settled for another one otherwise we would have driven around and around and around. ‘Sunset Beach’ was in the exposed side of Noosa. Lots of waves, lots of people with very little sun protection, and plenty of life guards with jet skis, buoys on yellow and red uniforms. We had a lovely swim. Under the waves, over the waves, in the waves. We waved good bye to Noosa with and ice cream and headed north again.

The drive north was beautiful. Alyson kept looking at me funny every time I ‘wowed’ at the views or tried to sneak a photo while driving. Green farmland with brown cows and white horses. Hay balls and barns. Tractors. Few people around. It was koala country, but I could not see any. I changed the music to fit the scenery: Bob Dylan, Neil Young, Simon & Garfunkel, BuffaloSpringfield; you get the idea. We sang along too and we arrived in Hervey Bay.

Photo: Alyson's

We found a caravan park facing the sea where tents were set, sleeping bags were unrolled and camping chairs were put up. The wind was howling, which although helped keeping the mosquitoes and sand flies at bay, after a while it got annoying. We are back to basics now. Unless a fancy French restaurant is directly opposite to our campsite. So we dined on scargots, Kilpatrick oysters, filet mignon and lamb cutlets. Profiteroles for dessert. An amazing bottle of Sauvignon Blanc from the Marlborough Valley in New Zealand set the scene for one of the most memorable meals I have had in a while. We met the chef – Christian, an eccentric and gentle French man wearing a beret. We met his wife and his 2000 cc motorbike. The bike was happier to have met us. We exchanged stories and crossed the street back to reality. 

Day 3 - Sunshinning

Story Bridge, built in 1935

It is happening. I have started my road trip. Geographically, all of what I see now is new to me. Including the road trip itself. Alyson came to pick me up from Rodrigo's around 3 pm and we left around 3:30 pm after a chat, a glass of water and sort of explaining where we were off to next. The morning was uneventful, I actually worked a bit on my PhD and discussed few ideas around.

Our next stop was the Sunshine Coast. And within the Sunshine Coast, Pelican Waters which marks the start of this area. The Sunshine Coast stretches for about 60 km in Queensland. Pelican Waters is about 100 km north of Brisbane. The drive was good. Lots of catching up to do and although there was traffic, we were still going fast and steady.

I am thankful for GoogleMaps... on the phone. With the talking lady that tells you what to do in case you can't see the display. I am thankful because my sense of directions is dreadful, and whenever I was navigating, I had to turn the map to point it in the way we were going. A left turn, will mean a 90 degree rotation to the left too. I hate maps, well... not really, but... If I were to believe in hell, and if I were to go there, I will be set to fold maps for eternity... Folding maps and untying knows. Although undoing Christmas tree could also be fitted in my doom in hell...

After spending two days full of warm fuzzy feelings at Rodrigo and Sol's in Cleveland, we are now staying with my friends Lazaro and Valentina in Pelican Waters. Lazaro is from Cuba, Valentina is from Galapagos. Friends from 1995 onwards. They came to Perth first and now have settled in Sunny (or Sunshine Coast, Australians tend to shorten words). After the heartfelt hugs, fast flowing Spanish (for Alyson at least) we were greeted with one of my favourite foods on Earth. And one I cannot eat here. "Patacon con queso" - green plantain, mashed and fried topped with cheese. It was a mouthful of heaven... honestly. It is amazing how food brings back memories and feelings. And this one really brought back tons of them. In Darwin, we all crave for it. For 'bolones' which are balls of fried green plantain stuffed with cheese and deep fried. Healthy stuff, really... we all eat it (but my mom) and we are all a happy bunch...

We arrived in Pelican Waters and went straight to the surfing beach to pick up Claudio, Lazaro and Valentina's son. And yup... I could fall in love with Sunny too. Just as I did with Cleveland. Just what I probably would do with every place in this road trip.

Blue ocean, surfing waves, warm weather that invites staying outside and hanging around to watch the sunset. Babies frolicking in the water, surfers galore, that feel good atmosphere that you get in places that have a deep connection with the ocean. The one that you get when you follow your heart. I am thinking of Jack Johnson now. This song sets the soundtrack for Sunny. Perhaps for the entire road trip.

After a wonderful meal which included a bottle of fine Barossa bubbly and a nice bottle of wine, Valentina and I went to the pool. And we talked about the past, the present and the future. The now. The what ifs. Everything. Midnight hit and we actually got cold so we got out but not after me being thankful for this trip. For all this chance encounters. Chance because I could have said 'no' to not so indecent proposal and stayed home. Chance because life is that. Chances. Chances that you either take or not. I am so happy I am here.

[Firsts: I saw my first Eastern Grey Kangaroo - including a mom with a tiny joey (baby kangaroo) in its pouch... and a humongous male]