February 1, 2007 Sydney Australia – Eugene, USA

February 1, 2007
Sydney Australia – Eugene, USA

For those that do not already know, I have been forced to go home early (Spizz is coming with me and B is going to try to continue on). The appendicitis combined with the entire van situation drained me physically and financially. The Doctors recommended that I not surf, scuba dive, or physically exert myself for more than a month (all the things I want to do in Australia). Similarly, the van represented both an investment in accommodations and transportation (almost all my money for Australia). As such, I decided to go home and recuperate before ending my trip in Fiji with Jackie…I will have to come back to Australia in the near future and experience it the way I want to.

This morning we woke up to a light knocking on the door (7:45). Kristina entered, said her goodbyes and wished us well. Once again I must explain how grateful we all were/are to have a friend in Sydney and a place to stay…

I then jumped in the shower and prepared for, quite literally, the longest day of my life (we will be crossing the international dateline and living Thursday February 1, 2007 twice!). After ensuring that all our belongings were packed away we chilled out and waited for Millie to stop by and say goodbye. Unfortunately, she never showed up and we were forced to head to the train station without saying goodbye to our dear friend (I later learned we missed her by five minutes…)

The three of us road the train to the airport (B carrying my large bag for me) and began to really feel the trip coming to an end. We made our way to the international terminal and arrived at the Air Pacific desk before they were even open.

At 10:30 (3 hours before the flight) they finally allowed passengers to begin checking in, we were the second people in line. After settling some flight change debt Spizz and I got seats next to one another and even talked the guy into giving us a row of our own for the flights.

When we were done we cruised around some of the airport shops and looked at all of the overpriced tourist products. Eventually we decided to grab some food (Subway and Krispy Kreme) while we reminisced about our good times and tried to forget the recent bad times…

At about 13:00 Spizz and I said our goodbyes to B and went through airport security. The entire experience seemed surreal. The trip was quickly coming to an unplanned close…

We arrived at our gate and had to wait almost half an hour before being let on the plane. I used the time to start my newest book, Next. At 13:55 we left Sydney and started our journey home. I continued reading for most of the three-hour flight to Nadi, Fiji.

Once in Fiji (which from the air resembled Hawaii) we got off the plane and made our way to the gate for our connecting flight to Los Angeles. We had a 4-hour layover and had no idea how to spend the time. After wandering around the airport shops (where some of the sales people tried to haggle with us!) we settled into some seats and watched some Deadwood. At some point we also made a quick trip to a café for a snack.

At around 22:00 we boarded an enormous plane headed for LA. For the first time in my life I sat on the second floor! Once again Spizz and I had an entire row. I spent the first part of the flight watching movies (The Illusionist and Invincible) and the second portion of the flight trying to get some sleep.

During the flight we crossed the international dateline and started Thursday over. We arrived in Los Angeles at 13:00, passed through immigration, and collected our baggage. We then made a long trek across the large airport to the United Airlines domestic flights check-in counter (about a 30 minute walk…). Then it hit us, we were back in the USA!

After finding our gate we made a quick trip to Starbucks and then chilled out and waited for our flight to Portland. At 16:20 we began the final leg of our journey. The time passed quickly as I finished my book.

We arrived in Portland at around 18:40 (several hours before we left Fiji…). As we made our way through the airport the first day of the trip came rushing into my thoughts. It was strange to be back!

As we made our way toward the baggage claim I caught sight of Jackie with a large welcome home sign. I was so excited to see her again. Though my appendix kept me from running, I hurried to her and we had a special moment at the airport.

From there the three of us headed for the baggage claim and got our luggage. As usual, I was not able to carry my big bag and relied on the kindness of Spizz and Jackie to get my things to Jackie’s car. Though I knew that it would not be warm, I was surprised how incredibly cold it was in the Pacific Northwest. Spizz and I were freezing!

Throughout the drive back we discussed the trip and how everything fell apart in the span of just a few days. Once in Albany we dropped Spizz off at his parents house and continued on to Corvallis.

Everyone at home was super excited to see me. We ate cookies, talked about the trip, and jumped in the Jacuzzi. I was amazed at how much taller my brothers were. They had each grow several inches in the last few months.

Exhausted from such a long journey, Jackie and I climbed into bed a little after midnight. The trip was over and I was home!

January 31, 2007 Sydney, Australia

January 31, 2007
Sydney, Australia

This morning at 7:00 B’s alarm went off. The only person it woke up was Spizz, who then woke us up. We quickly prepared for the day and packed up our things. B and I headed to the train station and jumped on a train headed for the legendary Blue Mountains (Spizz stayed behind to take care of some travel arrangements).

The train to the Blue Mountains (about $16) took about 2 hours (110 km). Besides a few other backpackers we were the only people on the locomotive. Not getting much sleep the night before, we both slept for a large portion of the journey.

We arrived in the mountain town of Katoomba at about 10:30. The town was small enough that we were able to walk from the train station to Echo Point (the renowned lookout point). Though it was only 2 km, it was hilly and made the walk feel a little longer in my current physical state (no appendix…).

Once we got to Echo Point it made the whole journey worth it. We stood on a platform looking out over a massive canyon. It was sort of like a squashed version of the Grand Canyon but with a forest eucalyptus within the canyon. It is from these trees that the “mountains” gain their name. Apparently, the oils of the eucalyptus cause a blue haze when viewed from a distance. Still, I have no idea why they call them mountains…


The most spectacular part of the view was a geological formation known as the Three Sisters. Three peaks extended from the sides of the canyon and stood majestically over everything else. They were awesome! After taking a million photos from Echo Point we walked along the edge of the canyon to a platform connected to the first of the sisters.


From there we took a few more photos and then began our journey back. As we walked through the eucalyptus forest and reminisced about our trip, we heard a loud crashing sound in the woods. Startled, we looked to see what had caused the disturbance. I was absolutely thrilled to see that it was a wallaby! We watched the unique creature until it bound out of sight…(The woods kept me from getting a good photo)

A few minutes past noon we made it back to the tourist area and decided to grab some lunch and wander the shops. Though we didn’t purchase anything we did treat ourselves to some free wine tasting before making the trek back to the train station.

Luckily we arrived at the station just before a train was headed back to Sydney. It was a slow, relaxing ride back to the big city. At 15:30 we arrived at Central station and then made the quick journey over to Kings Cross.

When we got back at Mates Place we reconvened with Spizz, chilled out for a few minutes and then headed over to Kirstina’s house. As usual these days, Spizz was my hero and carried my big bag for me. On the way one of the most random things in recent memory occurred. As the train made one of its usual stops and the doors swung open, there stood Tessa (one of Millie and Kristina’s friends). In a city of more than 4 million we randomly bumped into one of the 4 people we knew…

When we arrived at Kristina’s no one was home. We sat on the porch and watched some Deadwood until her sister showed up and let us in the house. As it turns out, we sat watching the computer screen for about 2-hours before anyone came home (19:30).

Once inside we finished our episode and then headed out to get some dinner. We rode the train a few stops to meet up with Tessa and then she directed us to a local pub for a late dinner (20:45 or so).

Having not yet had an Aussie meal, I decided to try the steak. I was a little disappointed with the meal but I suppose a pub is not the best place to sample the renowned outback beef. In the middle of our dinner Kristina showed up (just off work, and Millie couldn’t come because she was too busy with a boyfriend or something) and joined our little group.

When we were done eating the five of us wandered to 7-Eleven to grab a Golden Gaytime. As always, it was delicious. From there we made our way to the train station and headed back to Kristina’s (on the way saying our goodbyes to Tessa).

By the time we got back to the house we were all quite exhausted. Even so, I managed to gather up my things and pack my bag whilst talking with my companions. We finally got to sleep just before midnight…