Time to say goodbye

On a fully packed Saturday, we set off early in the morning towards Devonport. After a three-hour drive in pouring rain, we finally arrive. We look at a van. During the short test drive, we hear a loud bang twice and then quickly decide to leave this little bus with its owner. We wish him good luck and continue driving in the rain. There is another van we want to look at today. The second van, a Toyota Hiace with a pop-up roof, convinces us quickly. The interior is simply fantastic. There is a small table that can be folded into a double bed, a sink with a mechanical water pump, two gas stove burners, a refrigerator that can be powered either by driving with 12V, through a power cable with 240V, or by gas, and plenty of space to store thousands of things. A test drive confirms our decision, and shortly after, we set off towards Launceston in two cars. In Launceston, we meet a guy who happily takes our Holden Commodore off our hands, and together we drive back to Bicheno in our new van. It's already evening, and our thousands of things greet us as we enter our room. On Sunday morning, we pack and organize, sort and store, to once again drive to this wonderful place where I lost my heart almost two years ago...

We drive back to Hobart through the rain and from there into the mountains to the beautiful Huon Valley. Once again, we find ourselves in an oasis of tranquility. The green of the trees almost overwhelms me, and every flower smiles at me. Val welcomes us with open arms and a beautiful warm fire. It feels like coming home. In the evenings, we cook together and sit cozily together. During the week, I work a lot in the van. There are some things I want to change, repair, or adjust. Unfortunately, it's almost constantly raining, which makes organizing a bit more complicated, but we simply set up a tarp as rain protection and don't let the bad weather really bother us. I really enjoy working in the van. Val helps me again and again and lets me use all her materials, colors, and tools. We often exchange ideas and enjoy our time together.

Time flies by, and soon we have to say goodbye. It's an interesting mix of emotions that spread inside of me.
This place which is a home, this woman who gladly shares it with us and really made it a home, the joy of finally leaving Tasmania, and the sadness of already leaving Tasmania behind. The farewell is harder than before, will it be a farewell forever?

From Huonville, we go back to Devonport to take the ferry that will bring us back to Melbourne once again. This time we had to book a cabin. Due to Covid19, only about half of the passengers are accepted, and each group has to stay in a cabin. After boarding, we have to go straight to our cabin and are not allowed to leave until we are instructed to do so in Melbourne. This doesn't make the whole thing any easier. It's very surreal and feels somehow strange. I would have loved to be on deck and watched as my Tasmania slowly disappeared on the horizon...