Weihnachten in Australien - Jervis Bay and Canberra

Our first stop after the Blue Mountains on December 21, 2018 was the Glowworm Tunnel in Helensburgh. And yes, once again we made the mistake of wanting to see glowworms during the day. Of course, it didn't work. Instead, we saw a few strange teenagers, they looked like they had something planned, but we weren't there long enough to find out what it was.

After that, we continued to the Wollongong Contemporary Art Gallery. It was especially great for Krissi. It was also impressive to see the incredibly high prices paintings were sold for. We were particularly impressed by a tiny piece of wood that was supposed to cost 200$. Why don't we do that too? :D

On the way to the highlight of the day - the visit to the Nan Tien Temple - we stopped briefly at the Sublime Lookout and enjoyed a beautiful view of the coastal region.

The Chinese Buddhist Nan Tien Temple is also located in Wollongong and is the largest temple of its kind in the Southern Hemisphere. It was simply beautiful, colorful, interesting, and very calming. We learned a lot about the faith, including calligraphy and offerings. Unfortunately, we had little time in the end and couldn't see the huge adjoining garden. Highly recommended. :)

We then briefly stopped at the Coomaditohi Lagoon. It sounded promising, but it wasn't. It was just a lake in a village. So we quickly headed to the freecamp for the night, the Mungarry Rest Area just before Kiama. We arrived relatively early and managed to find a pretty good spot despite our sleeping place right by the highway. During the night, a nasty storm raged and we felt sorry for the two Dutch people next to us in their rooftop tent.

Saturday morning started for Krissi with a free hot coffee and delicious chocolate cookies at the Driver Reviver Station. Before we left, we helped the two Dutch guys next to us, whose cable to the second battery had broken. Well, when we say "helped," we mean we stood there and watched. :D

Then we headed to Kiama. Here we found the 'little' Blowhole. Directly in the cliffs by the sea, a hole has formed in the rock, through which a water fountain shoots up with every somewhat larger wave. We watched the spectacle longer than necessary, but it was exciting to observe the water.

We then went to the Mount Pleasant Lookout. The view there was mediocre and it was just really windy. By the way, we should mention that we're really glad that we write down what we've experienced in a notebook almost every day. Otherwise, we would just forget what we've seen and quickly mix up the various numerous viewpoints. We first wanted to assign yesterday's Sublime Point to this one.

Next stop was the 7 Mile Beach. As mentioned before, it was unfortunately quite cool and windy on that day. So we settled for dipping our feet into the water, well, Krissi did, Kenny found it too cold. But Kenny did his daily backflip on the beach. By the way, it's not really daily, more like every 2-3 days. :D

You're probably familiar with wooden posts that are used to block paths, etc. Well, on the way to the beach, we hopped from post to post. After our trip to the beach, Kenny discovered an area where they were connected by bars. So we then walked across them. On our way back to our starting point, we noticed that some of the bars were not quite secure and were turning. Maybe we should have noticed at that point that balancing might not be the best idea. And of course, what had to happen, happened. Krissi caught a turning bar. Unfortunately, she didn't land on a flat surface but on a tree trunk. So she twisted her ankle and scraped along the wooden path on which the railing stood. The result was a sprained foot, bruises on the thigh, butt, and shoulder, and a nasty bump on the back of the head... her own fault, but not a big deal. Kenny describes the situation as hearing a sudden bang behind him and knowing exactly what had happened. He just had to save himself from the railing before he could turn around to see what had happened. It was a shock and he felt really guilty.

To process all of this, we had delicious pancakes on the beach. We were a little puzzled by an older man who kept changing parking spaces in his car, never got out, and kept the engine running..

Afterwards, we drove to Vincentia Beach in beautiful Jervis Bay. Kenny bothered a crab in the water, we saw a strange creature in the sand (Kenny says it was just sand, for Krissi it was an animal), and we saw numerous colorful parrots again. Then we had some time before dinner and we wanted to take a quick look at the town center of Vincenia. But there wasn't really anything to see. The center seems to consist of a square with shops, but they were all closed. A bit strange for such a popular holiday destination.

We had dinner at Blenheim Beach. A beautiful, small, and secluded beach. We also slept in Vincentia.

(By the way, writing this blog is really difficult at this point, because Kenny is sitting next to me, doing nothing, and singing strange songs to the melody of 'Go down Moses' :D)

We had breakfast on December 23, 2018, at Nelsons Beach Park. Afterwards, we wanted to spend the first half of the day at the Scottish Rocks & Beach. However, there was a small traffic jam right at the park entrance. The admission fee was supposed to be $13, but since we weren't sure if it was worth it, we turned around. We continued to the famous Hyams Beach. Here, supposedly, the whitest sand beach on the Australian East Coast can be found. Another mile-long beach. Due to the pre-Christmas season, many people came to relax there. Finding a parking spot in the small village was already difficult, all three streets were completely full of cars.

At the entrance to the beach, all the tourists were gathered in one place. So we decided to walk along the beach to avoid the crowds. Suddenly, a helicopter flew over, circling loudly above the beach. But there was no announcement. Most of the bathers got out of the water. We wondered what it meant - maybe a shark in the water? Two other German backpackers right next to us noticed that we are German and approached us. We then walked along the beach together and sat down in a quiet corner in the sand.

We chatted for a while until the two of them decided to have a late lunch. For us, it was time to go into the water briefly and then it was time for us to eat. We then met the two of them again on our way back to the car, as they were just heading back to the beach. Unfortunately, we missed each other. But we saw them briefly before we left and ended up chatting for ages again, the chemistry was just right. Unfortunately, they are traveling north, not south like us. For us, it was time to continue to Mollymook, where a nice warm and free shower awaited us. The Australian cities have great names, by the way. :D Here, Krissi's sunburn was on full display - beautifully red like a tomato. :D

We had dinner at the Rotary Park in Ulladulla. It is located directly by the harbor and there are supposed to be huge stingrays to see in the water. We didn't see them. Then we simply slept in Ulladulla in a side street.

Our Christmas was a bit different this year. Without family, at 35 degrees, and at the beach. Our destination of the day was Pebbly Beach. On the way, we spontaneously stopped at Burill Lake. It is formed by a sea estuary and is quite shallow. So we walked along and inside the lake. Not only we had this idea, many Australians also spent the hot day by the water.

Our next stop was Tabourie Lake, also formed by a sea estuary. However, we enjoyed the sand dunes in the area because the water was full of algae and little crabs in snail shells. At low tide, you can walk from there to an island, but we couldn't do that because the water was quite high.

Then we finally went to Pebbly Beach. Here, there are supposed to be wild kangaroos that you can even pet. When we arrived, we had to find 8$ for the national park fee. Apparently, it could only be paid in coins. So we walked around the adjacent campsite and found someone who had collected a lot of change over the years in the ashtray of their car.

First, we had homemade burgers while looking at the kangaroos. They were really unimpressed by humans - as long as there were no screaming children around. At first, we only approached a small kangaroo. The larger ones looked threatening up close with their huge paws, sharp claws, and strong tails.

After the kangaroo petting session, we went down to the beach briefly and then went directly into the water due to the incredibly high temperatures. Behind the breakwater, we enjoyed the calm but sometimes quite high waves. As a farewell to this great place, we petted the kangaroos again. This time, we also dared to approach the larger ones, as they were positioned on the meadow as if they were the parents of the smaller one. By the way, the fur of the kangaroos is incredibly soft. :)

Afterwards, we unfortunately had to drive a bit further south because we had booked a camp from December 24th to 26th, the Pleasurelea Tourist Resort and Caravan Park in Sunshine Bay. After checking in, we took a walk to Batehaven, one town over. Here we discovered a fair. We believe it's a thing here to have a fair over Christmas. :D Just like it seems that all of Australia rushes to the campsites during the Christmas holidays. By the way, the Australians celebrate Christmas on December 25th, and the 26th is Boxing Day. Boxing Day used to be the day when employees received a gift box from their boss. Gift-giving within families, however, takes place on the morning or before noon of the 25th.

We spent the evening comfortably with a few cans of cider in our camp. So that was our Christmas this year.

We spent almost the entire day on December 25th in our camp. It was incredibly hot. Our main task of the day was laundry. :D In the afternoon, we only drove to Batehaven briefly to have ice cream.

We chatted with our camping neighbors here and there, Australians and Nepalese. It was nice to have a lazy day for a change, usually we're always on the go.

On Wednesday, it was time to check out. One of our neighbors expressed her interest in possibly buying our car from us in March. We exchanged numbers. Well, let's see. :D To Krissi's delight, we went to Scoop in Batehaven again. We had huge delicious milkshakes and planned our onward journey to Canberra - the capital of Australia.

After 2 hours, we arrived in the hot and windless Canberra. First, we had lunch in Telopea Park. Even in the shade, it was super hot, maybe chili con carne wasn't the right food for these temperatures. Currently, it is always over 30 degrees every day.

Afterwards, we parked in Lennox Park. And walked for about half an hour in the sun, only to arrive at the Parliament House and see that due to the holiday, we could have parked for free right in front of the door. :D First, we were scanned at the entrance, like at the airport. But here it was cool inside thanks to the air conditioning. We saw the main assembly hall, the Senate, the House of Representatives, and various art galleries. Unfortunately, nothing was happening on that day, after all, it was a holiday. Otherwise, it would have been really interesting. Australian politics is apparently difficult for both Australians and outsiders to understand. Nevertheless, everyone in Australia must vote, otherwise there are high fines. If you want to be exempted from the obligation to vote, you have to register in writing beforehand and need a pretty good excuse.

After the Parliament House, we visited the Canberra Beijing Garden. It was nice. :D

We wanted to enjoy the sunset from Mount Ainslie. In our naivety, we thought we would be almost alone up there. But we weren't. :D The entire viewing platform was full of people. But the sunset was beautiful anyway.

Then we continued to Kings Park right on the riverbank and had a great view of the colorfully lit Parliament Park with the High Court and the Carillon, the National Carillon. A really beautiful end to the day. Then we slept in a street in Kingston. :)

We started December 27th with our typical breakfast - muesli - in Bowen Park right on the river and then spent an hour on the phone with the lovely Franzi in Germany. :)

Then we went to the National Gallery in Canberra. We were supposed to visit several museums on this day, and each time, it was already a great experience due to the existing air conditioning. :) On this day, our car showed a maximum temperature of 42 degrees. But in Canberra, there is no warm breeze, but luckily, it's dry heat. The National Gallery already impressed us from the outside, as there was a huge floating ball above the entrance.

We were impressed by a work in which Aboriginal people expressed their thoughts on the theme 'If I was white...'. It was really depressing. :( The problem of the Aboriginal people in Australia is really big, even if you hardly notice it in your normal everyday life. We have the feeling that no one really knows how to deal with it or how to solve it even in the slightest. The Aboriginal people were practically deprived of their land when the English arrived around 1700. Today, they are more or less 'fighting' to get their land back and to be recognized as an independent people. One big problem of the Aboriginal people is often alcohol and lack of education, which gives the impression that many people don't really care about their situation. Unfortunately, we know too little about the topic, but even in museums and major literature, there is very little to find about the situation of the people.

In contrast, the museum also had many galleries that dealt with the topics of sexuality and nudity.

On our way back to the car, we also passed the High Court. Without the colorful lighting, it still looks impressively large, but more like a huge concrete block. We then walked along Queen Victoria Promenade (river promenade) and saw the Captain Cook Memorial Jet in Lake Burley Griffin. It's a simple water fountain, but it shoots up to a height of 114m.

We then walked past the Australians of the Year. We were hoping for a story about them, but their names were only mentioned, so we didn't find out why they were awarded.

We then walked to the Old Parliament House and past the Tent Embassy. It's the only place where Aboriginal people can publicly express their demands. Unfortunately, like most places inhabited by Aboriginal people, this place also gives a slightly neglected impression. By the way, the Aboriginal indigenous peoples lived without ownership claims and without leaders for many centuries, peacefully, until the Europeans arrived.

On our way, we also saw the Canberra National Library and the Questacon Museum (science).

We had lunch again by the river. That means, in the city center, the river is more like a lake. Because when Canberra was designed as a city, the river was dammed to create an 11km long lake, which now forms the center of the city.

After lunch, we went to the recommended National Capital Exhibition. Here, the creation and history of Canberra were presented. Since 1901, the individual states of Australia have been a united nation. So there also needed to be a capital city. Over a period of 11 years, various cities throughout NSW were considered. Criteria such as being at least 100km away from Sydney, not too close to the sea (due to attacks), and good water resources were taken into account. Canberra was chosen in 1911. At that time, however, it was still a small village. So designs for cities and names were requested. There were numerous name suggestions at the founding, such as: Cookaburra, Kangaremu, Sydmelperadbrisho, etc. It became Canberra because this name was already in use in the region. By the way, Canberra was geometrically designed in the shape of a triangle, which is supposed to represent the democracy of Australia. Quite an interesting topic, but it would probably go too far at this point. ;)

The final item on the agenda was the National Museum of Australia. We mainly enjoyed the children's section again here. Here, you could design a robot on the computer and then play a game with it. Due to lack of time and an information overload on this day, we only hurried through the remaining galleries.

Then we went to our beautiful freecamp, halfway back to the coast is the Warri Reserve Rest Area. It's right by the highway, but also right by the river. The high temperatures also drove us directly into the water. So we sat in the evening sun in the river and enjoyed a few more or less cool drinks. :) We couldn't complain. :D