102. - 106. Day 26.12.-30.12. Roadtrip for two

ପ୍ରକାଶିତ |: 28.01.2019

Wednesday 26.12.

In the morning, after breakfast, we played another round of Wizard before we started packing everything up. I rearranged María and Carina gathered and packed all of her stuff. We wrote in the guestbook and said goodbye to Peter and Petra.

Diary Entry
Guestbook entry
Carina
Carina's guestbook entry

At 11 o'clock we started our trip to Dorrigo National Park. There, we visited the Dangar Falls, very impressive waterfalls.

Dangar Falls
Dangar Falls

You could even walk behind the big ones, which was truly fascinating, the power of the water in such large quantities.

Swimming under the waterfall
Swimming under the waterfall

We then went to a Skywalk, which offered an impressive view of the area.

View over the region
View over the region

We decided to take the hiking trail there, a total of 6km, which led through the forest, over bridges, and through the beautiful nature.

Natural swing
Natural swing
Where am I?
Where am I?
Afterwards, we went to a nearby rest area and spent the night there. In a tent under the starry sky.

Thursday 27.12.
After a hearty breakfast, we drove to South West Rocks and had a relaxing day at the beach. Carina spontaneously approached a Brazilian guy, as Carina speaks fluent Portuguese. We all got into a conversation and exchanged numbers since Daniel lives on the Central Coast. In the afternoon, we went to Trial Bay Gaol, an old prison on a cliff. There is a large campsite around this building with freely hopping kangaroos, very large Grey Eastern Kangaroos in particular. We then continued to Smokey Cape Lighthouse, which provided a wonderful view.
Beautiful beach
Beautiful beach
We then drove to a cheap campsite near Timbertown and took a walk, about 6km in the forest. I made my first phone call home after Christmas and it was really nice.
In the evening, a man approached us and invited us to celebrate with them by the campfire. Peter & Ashley with their 5 children and their friend Luke with 3 children. We had a great conversation and celebrated until 3 a.m. with beer and 3 bottles of rum.


Friday 28.12.

After breakfast, we said goodbye to everyone and drove to Port Macquarie. The beach promenade is really beautiful, as almost all stones there are painted with quotes, stories, and souvenirs.

Port Macquarie
Port Macquarie

In the afternoon, we jumped into the water, which was ice-cold. With the additional wind, it was not particularly pleasant. Therefore, we decided to continue driving and stopped at a parking lot next to a golf course, which was advertised as a free camping area.

Relaxing in the hammock
Relaxing in the hammock


Saturday 29.12.

I woke up before Carina and saw over 100 kangaroos on the golf course. Apparently, they like the grass. Most of them were chased away by the sprinklers.

Many kangaroos in the morning
Many kangaroos in the morning

We continued our journey to Nelson Bay. On the way there, Carina was driving and I received a call from Amanda. She informed us that she won't be in Sydney over New Year's, so her apartment is available for us to stay for several days. I was amazed! Wow, such luck for us, a luxury apartment in Sydney, over New Year's, for free!! Can it get any better? Her text messages afterwards blew both of us away, and we screamed in the car. Quote: 'Key at the concierge. Beer in the fridge. Don't forget the pool on the 21st floor. Have fun my sweetheart!' What openness from such a lovely woman, whom I only met once 1.5 years ago in the stadium of FC Liverpool in England. Unbelievable!

So, back to the story. In Nelson Bay, we inquired about a dolphin tour but decided against it. We hiked up Tomaree Mountain and enjoyed a breathtaking view of the landscape below. Naturally, we took some photos.

Port Stephens Head
Port Stephens Head
Beautiful view
Beautiful view
Enjoying the view
Enjoying the view

I bought myself a Christmas present at a 4WD Superstore, a small foldable solar panel. Afterwards, we continued to Avoca Beach because Carina had been messaging with Daniel, the Brazilian guy, and we could stay with them. However, they were still on their way, and there was no campsite there, so we slept in the car on some residential street. I video called my sister, brother-in-law, nephews, and nieces and then went to bed.

Sunday 30.12.

Breakfast in Avoca
Breakfast in Avoca

In the morning, we drove to Daniel's house and were warmly welcomed. Daniel is married and has a little daughter, Luna. Matt, a Frenchman, also lives in the house with his two sons part of the time, as he is divorced. So, English, Portuguese, and French are spoken in the house, what a multicultural house in the middle of Umina, a town on the Central Coast. We went swimming at the beach, drank beer, and had a lot of fun.

We agreed with Daniel that María could park in front of their house over New Year's, which was very convenient for us to avoid the expensive parking lots in Sydney. In the afternoon, we packed our backpacks and took the train for about 1.5 hours to North Sydney, and from there it was only a 15-minute walk to Amanda's apartment.
211 Skye Apartments
211 Skye Apartments
When we received the key from the concierge, we were amazed when we entered the apartment. JACKPOT, I would say. We also visited the rooftop infinity pool and enjoyed the view.

In the evening, we took the ferry to the city, had a cozy dinner, and accidentally ordered 2 burgers, which easily disappeared in my stomach.
Harbour Bridge and Opera House
Harbour Bridge and Opera House

Delicious burger
Delicious burger

We met up with two Brazilians whom Carina knew from Melbourne and went out partying. On the way to the bar, we coincidentally ran into Irina, a friend of Carina's from Wörth near Landshut, whom we wanted to meet on New Year's Day anyway. So, the five of us went to the bar, had a few beers, and had a great evening. On the way back home, we took a taxi because neither of us wanted to walk too far, and we were looking forward to our cozy bed.





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