April 6, 2016
Returning to Sydney: Reuniting with Dea
My last cycling day in Australia began with me waking up in a mangrove forest and then cycling along a fantastic bicycle path around the lake next to it. Several people spoke to me along the way, asking me about my trip. It was a bright and sunny morning, and Australia seemed in good spirits.
I soon arrived at the ferry at Ettalong. I had to wait a little while for the boat to arrive and yet another man came to speak with me. To be honest I was getting a little tired of all the attention by now. The ferry arrived and we sailed south through green islands and peninsulas to Palm Beach. Here I knew was a busy narrow road that had been no joy to cycle before, yet this time I found it more pleasant, and it reminded me of the roads that wind up and around the cliff-sides of the Mediterranean, and I found solace in that.
Things soon improved as I was able to take a less busy alternative road from which a viewpoint lookout gave me a great vantage point for taking a short break. As I admired the cliffs and the sea below I spotted a small pod of dolphins leaping and I do believe frolicking amongst the waves. It was proving to be quite a good last day cycling in Australia.
I carried on, and struggled up one of the steepest streets in the world, before finding better cycling on a trail beside a lake as things flattened out further south. Before too long I reached a crowded Manly Beach, and prepared for the final ferry ride into circular quay.
The ferry lasted about twenty minutes, and after passing a great deal of sailing boat traffic it rounded a headland and once again my eyes glimpsed the magnificent view of Sydney harbour. Across it stretched the famous Harbour Bridge and stealing the show centre stage of course was the opulent Sydney Opera House, glinting in the afternoon sunshine. As we drew closer I saw also a giant cruise ship docked before downtown, right opposite the Opera House. I could see that this was not our ship – this one would depart and be replaced by ours at some point in the next two days – but nevertheless it seemed like it was waiting there for me. Australia was drawing to an end, the Pacific beckoned.
Of course there was still one important point of business to attend to before I could leave this continent behind. I had to locate my girlfriend. Dea had by now arrived into Sydney after her marathon bus journey and I knew she should be waiting for me in a park a few kilometres away. Rolling off the ferry in downtown Sydney I opted to push the bike through the unbicycle-friendly streets until I could get to a cycle path. As I did so I noted how busy everyone seemed, as they so often do in city centres. There were so many people rushing about in suits, styrofoam coffee cups in hand. The last thing I expected was for one to speak to me. But then one did. As I pushed up a steep street a well kept man in a dark suit strode alongside me. “Where are you going?” he asked. I answered, with both of us continuing to walk. He didn't seem like the kind of man who had time to waste, but as long as we were both walking and talking, I assumed everything was fine. He told me he'd done a lot of cycle touring in Asia. I asked him where exactly. He told me. He asked if I needed anywhere to stay. I said no, but thanks. Then we reached a crossroads and had to wait for the red light. He said he had to go the other way and wished me well, then strode off down the street to the right. 'What an unexpected encounter' I thought as I continued to wait for the lights to change. Then the man came back, brandishing his card. “If you need anything while you're in town, call me” he said, then he walked, almost sheepishly, back down the street we'd originally walked up.
I finally found Dea in a park in a part of the city named Camperdown. She was lying on the grass listening to a podcast, and she didn't hear my approach, so I just laid down next to her. Her eyes widened in surprise and she threw her arms around me. It was so good to be reunited.
We spent that evening and the next day in Sydney preparing for the next leg of our journey; our trans-Pacific cruise to Vancouver. We were staying with Therese, the friend of Dea's sister who had stayed with us over Christmas. As it turned out, preparing for a cruise wasn't a too heavily involved process, and so we were able to spend a good amount of our time here playing games. We also reunited with Catherine and Malcolm, the lovely couple who we had stayed with last time we were in Sydney. Our reunion took place in a sushi restaurant and, seeing as how there was only one photograph taken of the evening, I will leave you with evidence that on my last night in Australia I finally mastered a skill that had completely evaded me throughout the whole of Asia:
Today's ride: 66 km (41 miles)
Total: 48,584 km (30,171 miles)
| Rate this entry's writing | Heart | 4 |
| Comment on this entry | Comment | 0 |