Scott McDermid is a Legend!

---

I had been in touch with a friend of mine from Pitcher&Piano bar in Manchester, whom, when not in England, lives in Sawtell a small beach town 10 minutes south of Coff's Harbour. His name, Scott McDermid, a fresh faced Aussie who arrived in the bar and asked me for a job as a bartender about 2 months prior to my departure to Australia. With plans to go to oz in the back of my mind I got chatting to Scott and found he was a good fella so did everything in my power to help him get the job at P&P. After 2 months of working with Scott he had emailed me a 2 page A4 list of places to go out in Sydney and then at the bottom a paragraph telling me to go see his parents in Sawtell. After a few long distance text messages to form him to me and vice versa it had been arranged that we were due to stay in a Caravan park in Sawtell all arranged and payed for by Des and Janelle McDermid, Scott's Mum and Dad.
After a long and sleep stuttered 8 hour journey over night from Sydney to Coff's Harbour we arrived at Coff's bus-stop at 6.20am, an un-sociable hour. We waited for a couple of hours before contacting Des and Janelle, each falling asleep on our backpacks at the bus-stop. At about 8.30am I gave them a ring and with no problems Janelle came to pick us up. She didn't just take us straight to the cabin, but gave us a full tour of the area so we could get our where-abouts and also see some lovely views of the local beaches pointing out along the coast line where we were to be staying. the area and scenery around Coff's is really nice, and slighlty reminicent of a large hot sunny Abersoch (back home in Wales). After a little drive around town in their 7 seater Toyota Tarago she took us back to their rented accomodation(they're bulding a house at the moment so are in temporary residence) to cook us much needed and much appreciated bacon and egg butties, the best breakfast we've had for about 3 months!
Janelle dropped us at the Cabin in Sawtell caravan park just around the corner from they're house. Cris and I fell instantl asleep, whilst Matt and Colin went to the beach, with bodyboards supplied by the McDemrid's. We woke up and as suggested by Janelle I gave her a ring as she had a few things planned that we could do to keep enterntained. For today she took us to play tennis and go for a swim at Boambee bay resort where they own a time-share property (thanks to Scott, apparently). All at no cost we played a good game of doubles, Matt and I verus Col and Chris. Matt and myself winning 6-1, 6-3. Janelle had then organised for us to have a BBQ down by the creek (stream/river usually with sandy banks). A fully prepared meal was being coooked and served as we arrived to a picnic table with an array of salad, sausages, chicken, beetroot, pineapple etc etc. fantastic!! even had plastic knives and forks, table cloth... everything!! Brilliant. After stuffing our faces with great food we were dropped off at the cabin for more much needed catch-up sleep.

---