Ein Wochenende ohne Fridolin in Tabulam, Australien

After working for a week on the Blueberry Farm in Tabulam, we had days 9 and 10 off. We initially considered going to Byron Bay, but then discarded the idea and went shopping in Casino. With 4 bottles of ice tea syrup, 1 bottle of apple juice syrup, 2 bottles of cola, 2 bottles of ginger ale, 1 bottle of Sprite, and 3 bottles of wine packed, we headed back to Tabulam. The new plan was to go to the river in Tabulam, where there is also a bathing spot. With thirteen of us, we drove past potholes, free-roaming cows, and even an unfenced horse to a meadow that was used as a parking lot.

We walked across a piece of pasture and down a slope and then arrived at the river - at times we weren't sure if the river was even flowing there. We found a spot where there was enough room for everyone and not so gracefully entered the water on the rough stony ground. Tom went back to the car and fetched sunscreen and the tennis ball we found. The sunscreen from one of the French people was so thick that he looked like a snowman on his face. Afterwards, Tom jumped into the water - along with the car key, as he realized a few minutes later.

After the 'refreshing' dip in the lukewarm water, we played another round of the card game 'knack', which we had taught the French people the night before. When dark clouds began to gather, we started to retreat. When we reached the car, the big question was whether our Fridolin - Tom was trying to introduce the name, which had had moderate to no success so far - would open. Even after pressing the button ten times and holding the remote control against the window, the lock did not open and we stood in front of the locked car without underwear and with wet clothes. One of the French women searched the internet for a way to open the car with a loop. The guys tried to pull the door open and push the shoelace loop through - without success. As it started to rain, we had to leave our car behind and ride back with the others.

In the camp, we thought about what we could do until we realized that we have a car assistant or car insurance that should help us in such a case. Tom called them and 1.5 hours later, someone from Casino came to our car. We were allowed to use William's (one of the French people) car to get to our car. However, the insurance hotline stated a low battery level for the breakdown assistance, so the car assistant only wanted to give us a jump start. However, he was also able to open our car, using the same method we tried, but with better tools. However, he couldn't do anything about our electronic problem with the remote control and only said that we should call a towing service on Monday to have the car taken to Casino.

So for the rest of the weekend, we were without a car and just relaxed at the camp. On Monday, we called the insurance company again, but the problem is that damaged keys are not insured, only lost ones. So we had to pay for the towing service and the repair ourselves. The insurance company also couldn't give us the name of the company that opened the car on Saturday. After Tom called all the workshops and found the right one, the tow truck arrived 1.5 hours later and we were $250 poorer. Tom went with them to Casino to get the car repaired. At the workshop, they removed the electronic immobilizer that prevented us from starting the car. The problem now is that the car can no longer be locked, the only way to open it from the outside is to unlock the rear hatch and crawl into the trunk to open the car from the inside.

When Tom returned to the camp, he left the air conditioning and the radio running after demonstrating the new shortcomings, as we hadn't had any problems with the battery yet.

And our bird is back again, flying around the campsite or sitting on someone and letting himself be fed... finding something to eat on its own doesn't seem to be its strong suit.

So that was our weekend, quite eventful to our taste.