Helen and Tom's excellent bike adventures

Well, what can I say other than ‘where the hell did that six months go?’ Here we are at the start of June staring at the final couple of weeks of our Aussie adventure and, as lovely as it will be to be home in Cornwall, we can’t help but feel that it has come around too soon. But before I have to try and find a way to say goodbye to the loveliness that has been Australia and all our experiences here again, there is still lots of great stuff to tell you about and adventures still to enjoy. So, before we ‘get outta here’, lets consider things that need to be outed: outstanding sights, outback, out there and outlaw.

Outstanding Sights

Now we’ve had lots of these as I’ve mentioned before, but sometimes these outstanding sights don’t have to be big vistas or unusual landscapes. Sometimes they can just be so compelling that it evokes a strong emotional response that leaves you short of words (not that common for either me or Timmo). So let’s start with a bit of culture.

Timmo was off on a road trip to Melbourne with his mate John and I was van/tent-alone in Narrabeen in the Northern Beaches above Sydney, when I espied a promo ad for the Australian Ballet company performing at the Opera House. It was for a double bill of both classical and contemporary works and, given that Timmo would probably not be up for it, it presented an ideal opportunity for a solo trip into the big city. Tickets purchased, off I set on the fantastic B-Line bus from Narrabeen straight into the city and, after a bit of a mooch and a lovely lunch and glass of wine at the now regular haunt of the Lord Nelson pub, off I set for the beautiful edifice of the Opera House.

The first act, Etudes (French for ‘studies), is a classical piece which takes a dancer’s regular rituals of the ballet class and transforms it to the stage It’s great for ex-dancers like me who recognise the exercises used to warm up the body and align it for performance and the development of steps which are the building blocks from which classical ballet performances are constructed. This I knew I would enjoy and I was certainly not disappointed. What was more of a surprise was the outstanding contemporary piece, Circle Electric. It was gobsmackingly good – their energy and vitality left me on the edge of my seat. The act lasted an hour and a half, there must have been up to 50 dancers on the stage at some points and they were rarely off it. Unbelievable to be honest and probably best summed up in a promotional piece about the Australian choreographer Stephanie Lake who had produced the piece: “… Stephanie’s artistic energy brings the audience pulsing along on her rollercoaster of dance” There you go, an outstanding sight and a nice dose of culture.

A second dose of theatrical culture came when we both enjoyed a visit to the Theatre Royal to see Death of a Salesman starring the Australian actor Anthony LaPaglia (who was Barry the Blade in the John Grisham novel film The Client starring Tommy Lee Jones and Susan Sarandon which we had to watch the following night even if he was at least 30 years younger in it!!) A really emotional piece of acting from all performers and, again, one that left you a little bit teary-eyed.

Other cultural delights of note were:

• the ‘Distinguished Gentleman’s Ride’ (DGR) in Sydney – lots of riders and some fab bikes but, without doubt, one of the most iconic routes of any DGR in the world
• The Australian Museum – a real fave of Caden’s due largely to the fantastic interactive play space and the awe-inspiring dinosaur exhibition with full size reconstructed skeletons. ‘Wow!’ as Caden would say. Another fantastic benefit of visiting was the fact that after a couple of hours of dinosaurs, playing, food and drink, we would then be able to let Caden have a well-earned sleep in the pushchair whilst we walked through the beautiful parks and Botanical Gardens around to The Rocks which, on the whole, were amazingly quiet given that we were in the centre of the city – fantastic!

Outback

A definite highlight of this Australian adventure was the long-awaited trip on the Indian Pacific train from Sydney to Perth. As a special treat for Timmo’s notable birthday (let’s leave it there shall we?), it certainly did not disappoint. From arrival at Central Station in Sydney (complete with fizz and lunch) to getting settled in our cabin, it was all that we had hoped it would be. What was more exciting was the fact that it was a 4 days/3 night trip – told you it was a big country!

The first day was all about getting settled and accustomed to the train and the facilities – especially the free drinks in the bar – hurrah!!! After some lovely scenery going through the Blue Mountains, we enjoyed a lovely meal in the restaurant and then made ready for our first overnight in the cabin.

Now, I’m pretty certain the publicity info stated that during our overnight experience we would be able to ‘… let the rhythm of the tracks sway you to sleep ahead of your next adventure’. Bull. Shit. If the rhythm of the tracks was meant to sound like a full brass band blowing down your earhole, then OK, but I’m pretty certain that wasn’t the intended ambiance. On top of that, if ‘being swayed to sleep’ meant to enjoy the equivalent experience of the new Nemesis ride at Alton Towers, then fair dinkum (as they say in these parts) but, frankly, had this have been made clearer, then I would have strapped myself in and taken appropriate ‘mal de mer’ medication. I kid you not. If I managed an hour’s sleep then that was it. Thankfully (?) almost all other passengers said they had had the same experience, so it wasn’t me being a big girl’s blouse. Just to add to the mix was the 6 am start to the day to explore the city of Broken Hill which was our prearranged off-train excursion. To say that the overall exuberance of the previous evening was now a little more subdued would be an understatement.

HOWEVER. To dwell on this would be a mistake as the visit to the Trades Hall – a heritage building that was home to the city’s first labour movement – to enjoy an interactive performance of the early mining story and life in Broken Hill was lovely. Under the ‘United we stand’ banner, the Union successfully championed the 35-hour working week and created the safer and fairer working conditions that Australian workers enjoy today. This was followed by a visit to the Miner’s Memorial that stands on the city’s highest point on the line of the lode and which commemorates the 800 plus miners who have lost their lives working there. It also afforded a great, and unique, view of the Indian Pacific train stretched out below. Back on board for a lovely breakfast and kip and all was well with the world.

Another off-train visit later in the afternoon to McLaren Vale and specifically the Coriole Vineyard and then dinner in Star of Greece (named after a ship not style of food), resulted in the formulation of a new and successful equation:

several nightcaps once back on the train + deployment of ear plugs + use of a goodly bit of folded card to stop the door rattling + raised window blinds to stop them slapping around between the two panes of glass (lets face it, very little could be looking in on us from the Nullabor Plain) = MUCH improved sleep.

Nb I have since mentioned in feedback that a much more realistic outline of what to expect would enable passengers to arrive more prepared for their first night’s accommodation, but I doubt that will make it into the brochure…!

The views across the Nullabor were outstanding and were very much the highlight of the whole trip. This was particularly apt as it was Timmo’s birthday!! Stops at the, now, largely abandoned town of Cook and pre-dinner drinks and live music on the lantern-lined siding at Rawlina, the largest sheep station in Australia were special indeed. The star-filled massive skies were a great treat and with a lovely dinner and special birthday cake for the birthday boy, it was truly a memorable experience and perfect day.

Out there

You’ve already been subjected to my enthusiastic accounts of the great outdoors which is such a big part of why we love exploring Australia, but there’s just a couple of others to share in this missive.

We have usually used Lane Cove campsite as our base when in Sydney for its ease in being around the kids. This time we have also used another site in the Northern Beaches area at Narrabeen. A really nice site – especially since we had our own en-suite facilities (get us!) – which is close to some lovely walks, cycle routes and is just across from the beach and the ocean pool.

For 4 of the days I was ‘home alone’ whilst Tim was off down to Melbourne, the weather took a bit of a down turn and to say it persisted with rain was an understatement. Not complaining as it wasn’t cold rain, just wet rain, and unlike Cornwall, it did stop from time to time, so I could still swim, cycle and walk from the lovely Bob with no dramas. One funny experience was when on one occasion when it was well and truly lashing down and I was lovely and dry in the tent, a couple of ducks came under the van and were clearly looking for an invite in to join me. No thanks, said I, but I wish I’d had my camera at the ready. The not-so-funny experience was discovering that my waterproof coat wasn’t. Subjected to several heavy downpours on a lovely walk around Narrabeen Lagoon, it proved less than capable and I soon resembled a drowned rat. Ha, ha I heard the ducks quack as I walked past on my way back to Bob. C’est le temps des canards indeed.

Another bit of outdoors excitement in Narrabeen was the presence of the World Surf League GWM Sydney Surf Pro championship. With events all around the world, it was quite something to be able to watch the professionals in action especially since Aussies Isabella Nichols and Jordie Lawler claimed the top spots. Lawler, a local bloke, had a particularly rousing reception and fullon celebrations on his win. A few sore heads the next day me thinks!

Out Law

Just to finish on a slightly dubious note…..

I mentioned previously about my solo exploration on the bicycle in Narrabeen. Well, I’d put my big girl pants on and sorted out a great route, managed to get the bike off the new bike rack without breaking it, remembered the lock, etc etc. Full of a sense of adventure off I set on, even if I say it myself, was a peach of a route. Pretty much all off road on cycle tracks through Middle Creek reserve, (only went the wrong way once) through a number of parks (only went the wrong way once) and mid-way through one of said parks it started to rain. No dramas, just pull the jacket hood over the helmet……

Whaaaat??? I’d only forgotten to take off my cap and put on the bike helmet which, law abiding citizens, you are required by law to wear securely fitted and fastened on the old bonce.

Now, I hear you say (or maybe I don’t) what’s all the panic about woman? Well, let me explain.

As a mere slip of a girl I used to do a paper round. My friend Joanne and I would cycle off together down to Top Town to collect the papers then cycle back going our separate ways to do the delivery bit. On one such cold and dark winter’s morning (bring on the violins), I was bombing round only to be stopped by the Police. The Police I tell you.

“Where’s your lights me lad?” (I wasn’t very developed in those days and still had short hair). “Sorry” whimpers I, “me batteries are dead and I forgot (aka hadn’t bothered to spend my well earned cash on any) to put the new ones in”.

“Well, it’s very dangerous for you to be riding around in the dark without them. We take these matters very seriously”

At this, my whole life flashed before me. I envisaged being thrown against the cop car, handcuffed and taken away to be ‘processed’… Well, actually, it was more like I thought, ‘Shit, he’s about to ask me where I live and then he’s going to go and tell me dad’ Luckily for me neither of these two scenarios actually happened, just a strict ticking off and sending on my way.

Now, ever since that little run in with The Law, I have been a paragon of virtue and a model citizen (stop laughing, Emma, and definitely stop laughing, Tim) and so the thought of actually being stopped by an Aussie policeman and thrown in the clink made me go all of a dither. So, cunningly, I pulled the hood of my jacket over the peak of my cap so that it LOOKED like it was over a bike helmet. Then, at any road crossings, I held back until no traffic was coming so that I didn’t come under any close and unwanted scrutiny. It was a bit of a bugger when the rain stopped and the sun came out as I was a) roasting like the proverbial spud and b) looking even more dodgy with my hood up looking like a dodgy teenager on a drugs run.

When I got to my final destination, I surreptitiously, slid the cap into my bag, locked up the bike and walked away quickly hoping that nobody had noticed the lack of helmet. The bad news was I like a convict enjoying my last meal (well, coffee and cake) knowing that I had to negotiate the full 8 or so kms back to Bob!!! What a stress. No, actually, what an arse, but you are who you are and I think you’d be fair to assume that I’m not likely to join anyone thinking of any illegal activities any time soon.

Well, there you are. That’s it for now and having re-lived my non brush with the law, I need a lie down. We’re very close to the end of our trip – and an exciting adventure to Rottnest Island and Margaret River, so until the next time, Hasta la vista baby!