Day 91-92 Adelaide to Nerrandera to Sydney

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Day 91 Adelaide to Narrandera (Sat 2nd Oct)

We were meant to leave at 0530 this morning but it was nearly 0600 by the time we got away. Everyone was a bit slow after a big night out. A big driving day today, through 3 states. Our first stop today was at the quarantine point around 0700 where we had to dispose of all fresh fruit and vegetables. We didn’t have too much with us but they work off the trust system here. There isn’t really any choice in that, as the roads are too open to control. The fines are pretty strict though I’m told.

We stopped at Waikerie to see the riverboats and came across a whole load of old classic cars. It’s like moving back in time with the riverboats on one side and the classic cars on the other. Bizarre.

We crossed the border into Victoria at 1000. The border marker is this huge Dunlop tyre. It’s the strangest border marking I have ever seen, and I’ve crossed a lot of borders. To drive from South Australia to Victoria, you have to drive under this huge tyre replica. I don’t know who came up with the idea, but it’s certainly memorable...

We had lunch in Mildura, where there seemed to be some sort of country music festival going on, and then we crossed the border into NSW at 1245. And that’s three states in one day - breakfast in SA, lunch in Vic, and dinner in NSW. No wonder the day felt long.

We unfortunately couldn’t watch the grand final repeat this week, so we had to make do with simply listening to it on the radio in stead. And of course this week Collingwood won by 56 points. Oh well, at least Wombat was happy!

At 1600 we stopped at a place called ‘Shear Outback’ in Hay so some of the group could see a shearing demonstration. Since I’ve seen shearers before, I decided not to pay to see another, but a few of the group were interested.

And our stop for the last night of our trip was at a little place called Narrandera. Its a little lake side town that’s pretty much made up of a whole lot of nothing. Very peaceful though - and the accommodation was lovely! We stayed in little self-catering units which had plenty of room and it was nice that we could relax and spread out and sort through all our stuff without bother. We had a BBQ there and a few drinks and had a little ‘awards night’ where we had a bit of a laugh when we were given certificates to commend what our fellow travellers thought our best traits. It was a lot of fun and I’m sure the ‘most colourful’ award given to me was entirely serious...




Day 92 Narrandera to Sydney (Sun 3rd Oct)

Last day of the trip!! Nooooooo! It’s gone too fast. Or at least it feels that way now that the end is in sight - almost literally. So we were up early and departed our motel (?) at 0600 this morning while it was still dark. I must have turned off my alarm and gone back to sleep because the first thing I remember is Helen saying ‘Hey AJ, you getting up? Its quarter past 5’. I think I may have startled her with how fast I got up though! I was still ready by 0530 though, which is the time we were meant to depart. We saw our last sunrise of the trip from the bus and our breakfast stop was at Gundagai. And yes, we saw the dog on the tucker box...

At 1000 we made it to Canberra and stopped for an hour at Parliament House. It was actually quite interesting and the building is beautiful. And I may have got a couple odd looks when I had my picture taken with the portrait of my favourite Prime Minister, but I’m glad we stopped. Not as much interest from the group, as I am the only Australian.


We stopped for lunch at Goulburn where there is a huge sheep, known as the ‘Big Merino’. Yep, real original. And then it started to drizzle a bit as we got closer to Sydney. By 1400 it was raining lightly and we were only 130km from Sydney. Everyone was chatting, feeling both relief at not having to get up early in the morning, but also sadness at parting ways. You don’t travel with people 24/7 for three months without making a few good friends.

Despite the rain, we drove straight to Mrs McQuarrie’s Seat for a view of the Bridge and Opera House. And here the luck that has been with us all along showed, as it stopped raining for long enough for us to get a few pics, and one last group photo. Hopefully we will be able to figure out how to share all our pics after we part ways.

Then Wombat dropped us at our hostel and we settled in. I went up to my dorm, an 8-bed dorm on the 3rd floor. As I walked in I was just a little horrified. I think the last few months have spoilt me a bit, as we have only had to share with each other and this was rather a shock. I could barely move through the doorway. The place was such a mess that I couldn’t even figure out which bed was mine without having to ask the girl who was there. I’ve lived with a few messy people in my time (*cough*Jess*cough*) but this was beyond any of that. There was just stuff every where. At least it wasn’t dirty though - Just messy. I decided to give Jess a call straight away to see if I could stay with her a day early. I had planned on staying at the hostel for 2 nights, but 1 would be enough. Lynn’s room wasn’t much better than mine but at least some of the other girls were all in the same room.

We met up in the bar a bit later to eat, as it was relatively cheap there. It was actually a club next door to the hostel called something like ‘Scary Canary’ or some such and that is where we started our night. We moved on after a while as everyone else form the group joined us. Even Tomas came to say goodbye. I saw one of the characters from ‘Home and Away’ there and pointed him out to Heather who is a big fan of the show (strange, I know, but hey we all have our vices...) and she spent the rest of the night keeping track of where he was standing in the club. It was really amusing actually.

At the end of the night we all went our separate ways after saying goodbye. Hoping to meet tomorrow to say another goodbye, but not really sure if we would.

And so that was it. The end. Three long months of travel through Europe, Asia and Australia. 92 days. 17 countries, 58 cities, 11 buses, 3 planes, 20 000 km. A long trip and while I’m happy to settle down for a while, there is still part of me that just wants to get out and do it all again...

Well, who knows....? I just might.

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Photos

Border Crossing
From South Australia to Victoria

Last Meal Together
Jo, Heather, Ali and Tomas at the BBQ

Gundagai
The dog on the tuckerbox

Canberra
AJ at Parliament House

Sydney
Sydney Harbour Bridge and Opera House