15&16&17|12|2019, Traveling is like riding a roller coaster 🎢

Hi guys,

Traveling can be a real up and down sometimes!

Since we have now arrived in the region around Brisbane, we naturally had to make a little detour to Wellington Point. As attentive readers may already know, it was not the beautiful beach of the small town that brought us here, but a visit to Sonja and her family.

So, around noon, we rang the doorbell. Just like last time, we were warmly greeted and felt very welcome. Sonja and Dave were kind enough to provide us with their address for some matters that required an address, so we were able to pick up some mail that had accumulated over the past few weeks. Of course, we also shared some stories about our experiences during our trip, although Sonja, who also follows this blog, was already quite up to date.

We took a refreshing dip in the pool, and fortunately, we were able to use the shower again, which is always a real luxury. Then, we said our goodbyes and left.

If you are reading this, Sonja, thank you very much for your help and hospitality. You have been a great help to us!

Afterwards, we went to Aldi, because Sonja gave me the tip that they have German Christmas Stollen there. And since Christmas is not really Christmas without Stollen, I couldn't pass up this opportunity and found one! A Christmas Stollen baked in Germany, in the middle of Australia, with an outside temperature of about 36 degrees Celsius. That definitely brings a bit of Christmas spirit! (It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas, at least a little bit.)

We spent the afternoon at IKEA, mainly because we honestly didn't know what else to do. The Australian version of the world-famous IKEA hotdogs was a huge disappointment, but strolling through IKEA was still nice, even though we couldn't find any suitable furniture for our home.

Then, we returned to the campsite, where we had some food and soon went to bed, tired from the day.

Soon, the sun was rising again, and we were peacefully awakened by the gentle chirping of birds. After a bit of morning exercise, I had my first coffee of the day and prepared breakfast, waking up Ann-Estelle as well.

Up to this point, it was a morning just as you imagine a perfect camping morning.

During breakfast, we discussed our plans for the day and decided to head a bit further south.

So, we slowly packed up our things and I took care of folding up our rooftop tent again.

Every morning, we have to take the pillows from our bed because they can't stay in the tent when we fold it up, but that's not a big deal.

So, I climbed up the ladder and just as I was about to put my foot into the tent, there was a sudden crash beneath me. To avoid falling backwards from a height of 2 meters, I found the last support and "fortunately" found it. It was the ladder, because it unexpectedly collapsed from one second to the next.

Although nothing happened to me, the rooftop tent looked pretty demolished after the fall. Not only was the ladder broken into two pieces, but also all the tent poles had suffered from the lack of support due to the ladder and my desperate search for stability. It quickly became clear to us that this rooftop tent couldn't handle another night with us.

After a bit of despair, we decided to go to a nearby camping equipment dealer, who also had our rooftop tent in stock.

So, things can change quickly, and a seemingly perfect start to the day can turn into desperation.

We had no other choice, as the ladder for our tent was not available as a separate part and our tent was completely destroyed due to my fall, so the only option left was to find ourselves a new sleeping place.

After much consideration, we decided to get a new rooftop tent, as we had actually grown fond of ours. We like sleeping in a rooftop tent rather than on the ground amidst all the critters that crawl here in Australia, and our car is simply not big enough to sleep in.

We both enjoy the rooftop tent life, so we decided to continue with it.

Since our previous owners had bought our old rooftop tent used, there was unfortunately no warranty claim left, but now we have a 12-month warranty on our new model, and it was immediately attached to the roof, although we had to pay for it. We were able to have our old rooftop tent disposed of, and so we returned to the same campsite where the accident happened in the morning, with our new tent on the roof. Plans change quickly, even when it comes to traveling further south.

Our new rooftop tent is essentially the same model, but it has a few improvements compared to our old one, which we all like so far!

Our first night in the new tent was fantastic. The new mattress definitely allows for much better sleep, a treat for our backs!

This morning, we set off well-rested and refreshed to Gold Coast, a city with a population of 600,000 right by the sea.

The city is truly like something out of a movie. With a skyline leading directly to the sea and a beach called "Surfers Paradise," we felt like we were in an Australian film and were completely thrilled. Unfortunately, we could only stay for 2 hours, as that was the maximum time allowed for free parking in the city. We would have considered paying for parking because we liked the city so much, but at a price of around 5-8€ per hour, we were a bit too stingy. Instead, we preferred to go to a nearby beach in Burleigh Heads, where we could cool off and still enjoy a great view of the city with free parking.

From there, we drove a short distance inland to a campsite located in the middle of a huge forest, which is beautifully situated. Although we have to pay here as well, we have unlimited access to drinking water and, after all the excitement of yesterday, we also have a shower again.

We had a great dinner and played a game of Skip-Bo.

Despite a small low point in our journey, we didn't let it ruin our mood and together, without treating each other badly, we also overcame this, which actually makes me very proud.

As the highlight of the day, an email arrived in my inbox that we had been waiting for a long time!

We have a job, and it's exactly the one we've been aiming for from the beginning.

After a lot of effort, a few phone calls, and lengthy email exchanges, we now have a job at an apple packhouse. With very good pay and a guaranteed 40-50 working hours per week, we hope to replenish our travel funds a bit in the coming weeks.

Although we can't start the job for another 10 days, which wasn't quite planned due to a somewhat weakened financial situation caused by the unexpected expense of a new rooftop tent, at least we have the job, and that already makes both of us feel a lot better!

Tomorrow, we plan to go to Gold Coast again and explore the city a bit more.

We're doing great!

Greetings from Bonogin, Australia!🇦🇺

Your Tim!😊

Highest temperature of the past days: 42 degrees with 55% humidity☀️😳