“Somewhere Along The Way”

Haven’t written a travel blog for a while and felt I just had to share this one. It was a lovey trip to Sydney to support my friend Dan Mullins at the screening of his movie/documentary…..what could possibly go wrong? I started with an early flight. Getting up at 4am.

Question 1 : Why do the wallabies start feeding before dawn? I had to dodge several of them, all standing upright and staring blindly into my headlights as I wound my way through the streets. You never know if they are going to dart across in in front of you. Things were going smoothly and I silently congratulated myself on how well I was doing. Left my car at Andrews Parking , the bus to the airport arrived at the right time and I glided through security to the cafe in plenty of time to get the flight. I was chuffed.

Question 2 : why don’t they load the plane with window seat people first? Too practical?
Of course, that was me. I manoeuvred my way in and noticed immediately that the beautifully groomed woman beside me had obviously devoured a meal of garlic the night before. She insisted on making small talk so I pulled out my book. Better than sitting next to the guy on my last flight who choked me with his bottom burps.

No luggage meant I could exit the airport and get the train into the city. I booked a hotel not far from the theatre, but What was I thinking?!

This is where things started to go pear shaped. The walk from the station was longer than anticipated and my “carry on” was starting to weigh me down. On reaching the hotel, I took in the smell of beer in the street, the sex shop next door and the dodgy feel of the area. The website said “open at 10.00am” but the sign on the door said “open at 12”. I had two hours to fill. This was not in the plan! I was going to drop off my bag and spend the day exploring. I filled in a boring 2 hours by having a drink (non alcoholic for those of you who just raised an eyebrow) at a bar down the road and then finally checked in.
I did not know that I would be on the TOP floor. I did not know there was no air conditioning in the room. I did not know there was no lift! Gasping for air after the climb to the summit, i opened the door to inspect the matchbox of a room. It was easy to take it all in
… a chair, a bed and primitive hanging stand. The hand basin in the corner screamed of yesteryear and the modern touch of a tiny fridge stood out like dogs balls. I might add here that it was freshly painted in green and white and the matching bedding was quite beautiful. Bathroom was down the hall, but im ok with that. I comforted myself with the idea that it felt Camino-esque, like an alburgue.

My knee twinged as I descended the mountain of a staircase , so I opted for an Uber to take me to Haigs for a celebratory and medicinal rose flavoured chocolate. It was delicious! .

The next few hours were uneventful except for yet again, another smelly man (uber driver) poisoning the atmosphere that hit me like a sledge hammer. I climbed into his farty capsule, choking on the stench and opened the window very subtly. Or so I thought. He asked me to close it as he had the aircon going. I held my breath, marvelling at his arrogance and care-less attitude. I looked out the dirty window at the scenery wizzing by, trying not to breathe. I will not be giving him a tip!

Question 3: what is it about me that attracts these people into my realm? Or is this normal and no one talks about it?!

All gussied up, i called another Uber to get to the hotel where Bill and Jennifer were staying and met them in the foyer. Surely I deserved an uneventful trip but once again, it was an experience!

Ayrton Senna channeled the driver as we sped through laneways honking the horn incessantly and swinging me from side to side. The seatbelt barely had me anchored. All the while, he was yelling into his phone arguing in Arabic with the person on the other end. I got there safely….and in record time!

Anyway, I met Bill and Jennifer in the foyer and we went in to watch the movie. As I walked to my seat I heard someone yelling my name…what a treat to find it was lovely Amanda, a FB friend that I’d never met but we have often communicated- particularly before and during her first camino. So of course, after watching Dan’s fabulous movie, we all went downstairs to the bar. So many familiar faces there and so much love in the room. It’s absolutely heartwarming to have such a community in my life. Bill, Jennifer and I slipped out for a quick meal down the road and then the evening ended.

Surprise! I had an uneventful trip back to the hotel! I have no idea what I was thinking when I booked that room. I am now lying on my bed watching mosquitos come and go through the non Fly wired window that doesn’t shut, listening to grunge music from downstairs, and some very loud, weird drone/ buzzing sound coming from…I don’t know where but it sounds like it is in my wall! It actually sounds like a dentist drill !!
I shoved a stopper under my door and I’m hoping I’ll get some sleep.

Up early again for my departure and managed to get to the airport safely on the train rather than taking an Uber . There was only one incident. It left me feeling quite uneasy and I’m still thinking about it. I was forced into a judgemental state, something I try very hard not to do these days, but it was quite a dilema. A nicely dressed man came into the train carriage, politely asked if anyone had some spare change because he was homeless and was hungry. I studied people’s reactions. Some obviously didn’t believe him. Some huffed and puffed and some genuinely looked concerned. Was he really homeless or not? I will never know. However I found myself judging him too, but I had no cash on me, I was still in a fog from no sleep and I just watched him thank everyone, apologise for the interruption and then he moved into the next carriage. I’m not sure what to make of that.

Despite all the hiccups, I had a fantastic time. It’s just a quick 24 hour visit. The sort of thing you do for a good friend. So proud of you Dan! And you too Jen ( the strength and organizer behind it all)😘

Here’s a few photos of random things

THE staircase

Sigh….im so lucky to be above ground still and to have such wonderful friends who continue to inspire me to have adventures . To Dan and Jen, and Bill and Jennifer, your friendship is so treasured 💜