CRONULLA, AUSTRALIA - Well, I guess I haven't been in touch with anyone in the last while, but our adventure has gotten a little stagnant with us not moving for a while. We've been in Australia for two months now. Christmas felt like summer vacation and the New Years Eve fireworks show over Sydney Harbour was spectacular!
We had a two week trip south of Sydney with Jill's parents in early January, where we took in the New South Wales coast line and Canberra. Lots of beaches, kangaroos, and a fabulous War Memorial museum in Canberra. Since mid-January Jill and I have been trying to get work here in Sydney's southern beach suburb of Cronulla. Basically we've got no profit to show for our time, so money or not we're heading north on Friday (25th).
Cronulla is a very nice place and we live a block from a very popular surf beach, but we're always working or trying to get work so have any time to enjoy it! I think we're also getting to know the Australian culture and are a little disappointed. Many Australians have proven to us to be very small minded and unapologetically racially intolerant. However, before forming a real opinion I guess we should get out of Sydney. I've been washing dishes in a Mexican Restaurant for a friendly Aussie family, but I haven't been able to get enough hours to make things profitable. Meanwhile Jill has been exploited, and treated like shit everywhere she's been offered a position. We realize now that we should have lived in the actual city, where there are supposedly plenty more jobs for travellers. As always, hindsight is 20/20.
On Australia day (Jan 26th I think), we had an unlikely meeting with an old friend. We were downtown in The Rocks and we ran into a guy Geoff who was in my grade 7 class at Glenview in Toronto. He and Jill knew each other as well because she went to Glenview as well. We met him and his girlfriend Renee (from St. John, NB) at Darling Harbour for another really spectacular firework show. Two nights ago on Saturday night we met up with them and had a really nice night time picnic on Sydney Harbour overlooking the Opera House, Harbour Bridge and all the other familiar sights of Sydney. It was strange to be in that setting with someone who when I saw him last was working hard in Mrs. Knott's classroom (10 Years ago!).
When we leave Sydney, Jill and I will be heading towards Cairns by bus with as many stops along the way as we like thanks to a special Greyhound bus pass. From Cairns we'll be doing a triangle which will begin with a flight from Cairns south-west to Alice Springs which is in the geographic centre of Australia (red sand, outback, Ayers Rock, etc.). On April 14 we plan on heading north towards Darwin by bus - we'll make stops along the way. On May 5 we complete the triangle by flying east from Darwin back to Cairns. From Cairns we're going to try to do a short trip to Papua New Guinea!
On May 22 we will fly from Cairns back to our "hub" Singapore. Finally, on June 15 we make the long flight from Singapore back to Vancouver. On June 16 we hop over the mountains to Calgary and Banff when we'll finally drive the distance across Canada and into Toronto. I'm tired just thinking about it! Ciao everybody, stay warm up there the Northern Hemisphere!
A.
We had a two week trip south of Sydney with Jill's parents in early January, where we took in the New South Wales coast line and Canberra. Lots of beaches, kangaroos, and a fabulous War Memorial museum in Canberra. Since mid-January Jill and I have been trying to get work here in Sydney's southern beach suburb of Cronulla. Basically we've got no profit to show for our time, so money or not we're heading north on Friday (25th).
Cronulla is a very nice place and we live a block from a very popular surf beach, but we're always working or trying to get work so have any time to enjoy it! I think we're also getting to know the Australian culture and are a little disappointed. Many Australians have proven to us to be very small minded and unapologetically racially intolerant. However, before forming a real opinion I guess we should get out of Sydney. I've been washing dishes in a Mexican Restaurant for a friendly Aussie family, but I haven't been able to get enough hours to make things profitable. Meanwhile Jill has been exploited, and treated like shit everywhere she's been offered a position. We realize now that we should have lived in the actual city, where there are supposedly plenty more jobs for travellers. As always, hindsight is 20/20.
On Australia day (Jan 26th I think), we had an unlikely meeting with an old friend. We were downtown in The Rocks and we ran into a guy Geoff who was in my grade 7 class at Glenview in Toronto. He and Jill knew each other as well because she went to Glenview as well. We met him and his girlfriend Renee (from St. John, NB) at Darling Harbour for another really spectacular firework show. Two nights ago on Saturday night we met up with them and had a really nice night time picnic on Sydney Harbour overlooking the Opera House, Harbour Bridge and all the other familiar sights of Sydney. It was strange to be in that setting with someone who when I saw him last was working hard in Mrs. Knott's classroom (10 Years ago!).
When we leave Sydney, Jill and I will be heading towards Cairns by bus with as many stops along the way as we like thanks to a special Greyhound bus pass. From Cairns we'll be doing a triangle which will begin with a flight from Cairns south-west to Alice Springs which is in the geographic centre of Australia (red sand, outback, Ayers Rock, etc.). On April 14 we plan on heading north towards Darwin by bus - we'll make stops along the way. On May 5 we complete the triangle by flying east from Darwin back to Cairns. From Cairns we're going to try to do a short trip to Papua New Guinea!
On May 22 we will fly from Cairns back to our "hub" Singapore. Finally, on June 15 we make the long flight from Singapore back to Vancouver. On June 16 we hop over the mountains to Calgary and Banff when we'll finally drive the distance across Canada and into Toronto. I'm tired just thinking about it! Ciao everybody, stay warm up there the Northern Hemisphere!
A.
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