Blogs from Maitland, New South Wales, Australia, Oceania

After dragging ourselves out of bed this morning, Hayley’s parents were awesome enough to drive us all the way to Sydney, kept us company and put us on the plane. A heartfelt and teary goodbye later and we parted company. Customs was a breeze, we made it to the gate with ages to spare, the plane left on time pretty much to the minute, and now I’m sitting on the plane writing, feeling quite splendid, after a couple of drinks and a halfway decent meal, in terms of airline food. The only slight downer was my video screen not working, which would have sucked for 24 hours. But the cabin staff were jazzhands fabulous /jazzhands, and fixed it quick as a flash. Only 5 ½ hours until Singapore so we can stretch our legs for an ... read more

Sydney to Wisemans Ferry Not wanting to spend more time in the traffic of Sydney than necessary I plotted a course out via Berowra Waters where the bike and I had our first nautical experience together on the ferry crossing. The road north traversed a mixture of farmland and bush, and the rain was restricted to an occasional light shower which barely dampened the road surface. Wisemans Ferry to Maitland The road out of Wisemans Ferry is quite picturesque with the wide expanse of the Hawkesbury River on the right and the sandstone valley walls on the left, with a variety of river flats, farms, fishing shacks and mansions in between. The only negative aspect is the road surface itself which, although sealed all the way, is mostly uneven and bumpy with many patched areas adding ... read more

Ok, We're back at home now. Got back on the morning of Friday 25th. From the last post, we made the train easily in the morning and got to the airport 2 1/2 hrs early. Made Vietnam by Wednesday Morning. Because the monsoonal season is basically over, Hanoi seemed really smoggy and polluted (mostly because of the amount of untuned motorbikes.) We had a coupla hours sleep in the hotel to get over the jet lag, then met up with Gary, a Hungarian guy who lives in Australia and was travelling the same route home as us, and went out to explore for the afternoon. That night we went to a club called New Century. It's apparently the No.1 dance club in Hanoi, the music was a bit hard but other than that and the amount ... read more

A mere couple of days till we fly out of Sydney for Vietnam and the start of our 3 month European adventure. With farewell parties in full swing each night, and last minute preparations, this is proving to be a very hectic few days. Not to mention the fact that plans are constantly being revised, really showing just how much of this trip we are actually going to be winging it. But, i think both myself and kane have always liked it that way, so it might not be a bad thing. In order that you all know what fantastic European city we may or may not be in, those with access to google calendars can see what we're up to over the course of our trip using the following iCal link in google calendars, or ... read more