Watson Bay

Sydney, NSW, 37 degrees -

This morning I got to meet a hostel pet - yippee!... While preparing my breakfast, something darted across the floor. Imagination? Am I not fully awake yet? Hm... I turned back to my breakfast and when I turned around to go to the table, it was sitting there on the floor. A cockroach. Great, you can't get rid of these pests. I watched the other residents, but they were not bothered by the guy at all. Somewhat disgusted, I had breakfast and shortly afterwards I prepared for my trip. Nazli and I wanted to go to Watson Bay.

Together we took the train to Circular Quay, from where we took the ferry to Watson Bay. The ride was pleasant and interesting at the same time, as you could see Sydney from the other side. About 15 minutes later we were already there. We went to the other side of the coast and had a breathtaking view of the sea. Nothing but sea. On our right and left were a few rocks where the waves broke. We walked along the fenced paths and enjoyed the view. Between the individual viewpoints, we were surrounded by some trees and bushes. Crickets could be heard and here and there a bird chirped. If you looked closely, you could also see little geckos darting across the floor.

After visiting the nearby viewpoints, we wanted to make our way to the Hornby Lighthouse. Unfortunately, we unintentionally went in the wrong direction and ended up in a small park. We saw signs everywhere with encouraging sentences like 'There is always HOPE'. Shortly afterwards we came to the origin of these signs. In the middle of the park, a monument is erected in honor of Don Ritchie (06/09/1926 - 05/13/2012). In 2011, he was awarded the Australia's Local Hero Award. Don Ritchie spent his life helping people with depression and giving them hope again. I was very moved by the monument. In addition to a quote from Ritchie, 'Always remember the power of the simple smile, a helping hand, a listening ear and a kind word', a sign was attached explaining the story briefly. In addition, a telephone number is given where anyone in need of someone to talk to can call. I am very impressed by this commitment.

Shortly afterwards, we discovered a small lighthouse. It wasn't particularly big, so we wondered if we were in the right place. Of course, we weren't. So we set off back on the way, but this time we wanted to take the bus. After waiting for 20 minutes, there was still no bus, so we had no choice but to walk. We walked through a residential area with many different, yet beautiful houses. After a short break in the shade, we continued walking towards the north. We made a brief stop at a beach and enjoyed the cool water on our skin. The path to the correct lighthouse led through a small national park. There were chirping and chirping everywhere. It was beautiful. Despite everything, the sun was intense and due to the trees and bushes, it was very calm, so you literally melted away. We passed another beach, The Lady Beach, but a quick glance was enough for us to decide to keep going. There were too many naked people there ;)

So we continued. The path went uphill, downhill, and there were steps in between. It was quite exhausting in the heat, so we took frequent breaks and enjoyed the view. The combination of the skyline and the green countryside is truly fascinating. Slowly we approached the viewpoint at Hornby Lighthouse. The trees disappeared and we found ourselves on a small meadow at the tip of the coast. It was pleasantly windy here, which was quite pleasant after the scorching heat. It remained windy as we made our way further towards the lighthouse, which soon revealed itself to us. We stayed at the lighthouse for a while and watched the waves.

After a while, we started making our way back. We had to wait for three-quarters of an hour for the ferry, which we spent in the shade, and then we went from Circular Quay to Central. Nearby, we found a great burger restaurant where we treated ourselves to a delicious lamb burger with tomatoes and crispy onion rings.

Not long after, I returned to my room at the hostel and chatted a little with my roommates. And as I told the story of the cockroach this morning, a little relative of them also came to visit...Good night!

PS: Pictures will follow (also in the older posts) as soon as I have better WiFi reception.