Australia

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March 1: Escape from Luanda, Volume 10
Yet another Luanda airport adventure. On our last venture on South African Air, we had actually just walked up to the counter to check in, so imagine our dismay when we arrived at the airport only to be greeted by the line from hell! Just a few minutes after settling into the end of the line, we were approached by a well dressed gentleman who we mistook for one of our company’s expeditors and who offered to take us to the front of the line. After the long walk, dragging our load of suitcases, we were requested to provide something for the “chief”. The light bulbs went on, we said we weren’t going to pay, and the fellow just directed us back to the end of the line. Shortly after settling back into our rightful spot, the same fellow was escorting a man from just behind us to the front. We caught his attention and let him know what the expectations would be once he got there. He laughed and settled right back in back of us. We really ruined that fellow’s business! The rest of our one and a half hour wait was spent working with a few other people near us in the line to “protect the flanks” against line cutters. Steve had a few entertaining moments redirecting several Chinese ladies to the rear of the line.

We thought we had it made when our flight actually left on time (!!) but we quickly had another Africa moment while waiting for our luggage in Johannesburg. After waiting the idle baggage carousel for 30 minutes, an announcement was made that our luggage had been delivered to the wrong terminal and would “shortly” be redirected to our location. 10 minutes passed and 8 pieces of luggage arrived. Another 10 minutes, another 8 pieces. You get the picture. After 90 minutes of frustration finally the luggage arrived en mass and we were out of the terminal with all bags in hand.

March 2: Johannesburg shopping
After yet another delightful morning of running, Walter took us off shopping at 2 local markets. Steve purchased 3 Zulu baskets and even I bought a cute hand painted tin! Off to the airport to check in for our Sydney flight and a long wait in the check in line from hell. We settled in for the LONG 12 hour flight in a rather cramped Qantas plane with many unhappy babies.

March 3-8 Sydney
Finally we arrived! Steve’s cousin Joe picked us up and gave us a rudimentary tour of the area on our way to our hotel in Bondi Beach. Staying on the beach was magnificent - we started every day with a run along the beach on a pathway. Most of our time in Sydney was spent visiting with friends and family but we did take a day to tour around the Rocks and do a climb to the top of the Harbor Bridge with Steve’s cousin Robert.

The bridge climb was an interesting study in an operation figured out to the minutest detail. It was like every move was choreographed and timed to the second. With a group of 12 people heading out every 5 minutes, it had to be. The entire climb, including the orientation, took over 3 hours but in reality could have taken less than half that time. We crept up the upper span of the bridge very slowly and had many breaks for pictures (taken by them, we weren’t allowed to take cameras with us) and to wait for the group ahead to move on. From the time we stepped on to the bridge to the time we stepped off, we were clipped into a cable which not only had the effect of keeping you from falling, it also prevented anyone from doing anything stupid. The one aggravating part was the constant pitch to buy their (very expensive) pictures, especially considering that the climb itself was rather pricey at A$179 a person!


March 8-12 Tasmania
We arrived in Hobart in late morning and had some time to wander around the waterfront for a few hours before our pickup for our bike ride down Mt Wellington. There was some sort of craft fair going on which gave Steve a chance to pig out at various street vendors for lunch. The bike tour guides picked us up and we drove to the top of Mt Wellington which was spectacular. The chilly overcast weather which had greeted us on our arrival in Hobart had cleared and the temperatures on top of the mountain were actually somewhat temperate which meant we wouldn’t freeze on the way down. The ride was about 20 kms long down from about 4500 feet and was on tar most of the way with a bit of off road near the bottom. As we got into town we actually had a nice little tour around some of the historical areas of Hobart. We finished on the waterfront.

The next day the bike guide picked us up at the hotel for our 3 day bike tour. There were only 2 other people on our trip - a young women from Brisbane and another from Germany. We drove about 3 hours to a town called St Mary’s and began riding. The bikes were a mountain bike with smooth tires and were a bit old and not well maintained which was in itself a disappointment. My gears were jumping constantly on the first 20 km leg, which was a slight uphill, followed by a fun descent off a pass, and then 10 km of flat riding into a town called Scamander on the eastern coast. After lunch (during which I adjusted my gears) we continued north up the coast for another 20 km to a town called St Helens. We then hopped in the van for a tour to the Bay of Fires, which was a stunning beach with incredible turquoise water. You’d almost think you were in the Caribbean, until you felt the water temperature - frigid! Afterwards we were dropped at our motel and left to our own devices for dinner. Not much was open on a Sunday evening there but we found a little Italian restaurant with acceptable food.

The next day was our mega ride - 75 kms which was not easy on these types of bikes! After about 4 hours of riding south along the coast we pulled into a game park just north of Bicheno. After lunch we toured a blowhole, a national park that had a little swimming hole to hike to, and then back to the game park to see Tasmanian Devils! They also had lots of Kangaroos and Wallabies, and a few Koalas, but the Devils were the key attraction. Feeding time was especially entertaining. They are pretty vicious little critters, a bit like mini hyenas. First you have the impression of a cute little dog, and then they open their mouths to reveal a set of chompers that really belong on a full size lion. One snapped at Steve (who was foolish enough to dangle his hand in the pen) and that was an eye opener!

Our last day was a leisurely 40 km ride south into Coles Bay where we hiked in Freychenet National Park to a gorgeous spot called Wineglass Bay where we had lunch. The rest of the afternoon was spent visiting various scenic spots in the park - it really is a gorgeous spot. On the way back to Hobart we stopped at a berry farm for homemade blackberry ice cream - yum!

All in all, Tasmania is a gorgeous unspoiled corner of the world. We didn’t nearly spend enough time there to do it justice.

March 12 Adelaide
We left Hobart well before dawn to catch the oh so early flight to Adelaide. Steve’s cousin Robert met us at the airport and we freshened up briefly at the hotel before heading out for a day of exploring the Fleurieu Peninsula just south of time. It is pretty countryside with many wineries, scenic coastlines and cute little resort towns. We basically mostly poked around and did a bit of hiking where we saw an impressive mob of kangaroos.

March 13-18 Kangaroo Island
An early morning prop plane flight took us to Kangaroo Island. Upon check-in we were surprised to learn that the total baggage allowance was 15 kilos each but luckily the airline also provided baggage storage. A little rearranging and we were good to go. Upon landing we picked up our rental car, drove to Kingscote and bought some lunch goodies, and headed out to explore the northern coast. It was quite hot that day so some quality beach time was definitely in order! We worked our way westward until we arrived at our lodge, the Kangaroo Island Wilderness Retreat in the late afternoon. A lovely place with comfortable rooms and lots of semi-wild wallabies wandering around

The next morning we headed into the Flinders Chase National Park. First we went to “Admiral’s Arch” which is an interesting rock formation on some very wild coast with many Sea Lions sunbathing. Then on to Remarkable Rocks which again are some interesting erosional rock formations. In the afternoon we headed over to the Hansons Koala retreat next to our lodge to see if we’d have any luck spotting Koalas. We were not disappointed. Almost immediately we were treated to 2 Koalas in a tree growling at each other! In the evening we returned to the reserve for a nocturnal tour, where we learned that the 2 koalas were a male/female pair, yet the female was not enthusiastic! We also saw boxing Kangaroos, more snoozy koalas and possums.

Another day of adventure took us to Seal Bay where we first spent some time on a walkway and Beverly had the distinction of dropping a lens hood into the midst of some baby seals! Luckily (after much begging) a ranger retrieved it for us! We then took a beach walk with a guide to get a closer view. We also stopped off at “Little Sahara” and had fun climbing a big dune and running down! Afterwards we checked out the beach closest to our hotel (Hanson’s Bay).

Our last full day with Robert and Dana were spent on a road trip to the Eastern side of the Island. We did some hiking en route and had a nice lunch in Penneshaw and spent the afternoon wandering around the town. Our main objective was to do the “Fairy Penguin Tour” after dark. It was quite a hoot watching the penguins literally march out of the ocean onto shore to bunk for the night! The drive back (100 km) was not fun - you could make a video game called “Kangaroo Island Driving” with all the wildlife that darts in front of your car! Although we had many near misses, both cars made it back safely. But it did not make us look forward to our early morning drive to the airport 2 days later!

On our last day the heat wave peaked which meant that a lazy day on the beach in Hanson’s Bay was in order. Steve then spent the day photographing the koalas in the reserve. The heat made the koalas head for shadier spots lower in the trees so Steve was richly rewarded for his efforts.

March 18-20 Ayers Rock
Another early morning flight which meant we got one last chance to play the “kangaroo Island” video game! About 2 miles after leaving our lodge, a huge SOMETHING ran in front of our car, Steve slammed on his brakes, and we hit that something in a cloud of dust. Just as we were wondering aloud what the hell that was (it certainly wasn’t a Kangaroo), the dust cleared and a very very large hog was rolling away from us. He righted himself, gave us a very dirty look, and sauntered off into the bush. We spent the rest of the hour plus drive wondering how badly we damaged the car, only to find in the light of day that the car had survived without a scratch!

A long journey to Ayers Rock - a Short flight to Adelaide, retrieval of our stored bags, a quick rearranging of our luggage and then on to Alice Springs. We had a leisurely lunch at the Alice Springs airport, then boarded another flight for the short hop to Ayers Rock (Uluru). We arrived at the Pioneer Hotel late in the afternoon, in time to freshen up and then head out to visit the visitors center and view the sunset.

Sunset at Uluru is like a religious revival - it’s a prime attraction. It also doesn’t hurt that by sunset the temperature has cooled down enough to be bearable. There is a designated “sunset viewing” parking lot and it’s almost like a tailgater at a football game. The sun goes down and everyone quickly disperses.

Dinner at the Pioneer was a fun affair. You buy a hunk of meat, the salad bar and sides are included via a buffet, and you grill it on giant BBQs. Live music and cheap beer round out the experience. It was a pleasant way to spend the evening.

Day 2 opened with a predawn jog on the trial that circumnavigates Ayers Rock - about 10 km. The temperature was pleasant and the flies not awake yet. We lazed around until early afternoon, then headed out to the other area attraction, the Olgas. There we found some pleasant hiking trails and A LOT of flies. The bug nets that we had splurged on the previous evening were an essential piece of equipment. We ended the day at the same Pioneer BBQ.

Beverly started our last day in Ayers Rock with a reprise of the circumnavigation of Ayers Rock. Steve had originally hoped to climb Ayers Rock, but once again, the trail was closed so he headed off to the “Sunrise” viewing spot to take pictures. When he returned to pick up Beverly, he saw 2 people returning from an Ayers Rock climb and was furious that somehow they had gotten to go where he was not allowed! The anger quickly changed to glee as the ranger appeared, citation book in hand, to great the returning climbers.

It was then time to pack up and start the long journey home. We flew to Perth that afternoon, spent a delightful 24 hours visiting with Chevron friends stationed there, and then on to Johannesburg for a night. The next morning was an uneventful flight up to Luanda.

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