Road Trip

It's fairly obvious that I got way behind on blogging and am having to delve into memory for the details. Normally I try to post something more introspective than just trip reports, but I'm trying to catch up.

Part of the problem was exams. Everything was on hold until exams were over. As soon as that moment came though, it was on. I finished my last exam as my partner picked up our campervan. Yes, campervan. If you're going to see australia (and you are not a millionaire), then campervan is the way to go. So an hour or two after my exam, we were loading up 5 months worth of stuff and heading to Brisbane. I deposited my excess 'stuff' and was left with a 25L backpack to carry my 'stuff' for the next 5 months.

I admit, I have a problem with 'stuff' and that's why I keep bringing it up. I delight in having appropriate clothes and shoes. Variety is also a big deal. But, being able to carry all of your 'stuff' on your back comfortably is also rather appealing.

The drive up to Cairns was one of my favorite things I've done in Australia. Aside from getting to practice my manual transmission and driving on the left skills, it was great to take in all of the beautiful scenery and diversity along the way.

In 6 days, we squeezed in quite a bit: markets, trails, beaches, tourist traps, fruit wine tastings, bundaberg rum tasting, cooking on the free barbies at the 'rest stops,' viewing a koala from the highway, etc. I was super relieved that school had ended, but starting to feel sad about leaving australia.

The other day, an italian woman asked me if I liked Australia. My immediate reply was 'it's different.' Australia definitely wormed its way in and secured a spot in the list of places I like. During the drive up the coast, I realized that I had become somewhat defensive of the Gold Coast. As if living there for 5 months had authorized that. But the roadtrip helped me to realize that judging australia based on the gold coast would belike judging the US based on miami. All I know is that I like australia enough to make my way back.