Uncategorized – Over 50 Aussie female solo traveller USA road trip and beyond

Rail ticket lesson

Left London to explore another historical area, Canterbury. This post is to inform some of the down side of travelling solo with check in and carry on luggage and taking public transport. But also last night I googled the wrong Hotel and ended up on the wrong bus and at 1am there was limited services back to my hotel. I was stuck at St Pancras station, Ubers kept cancelling and so I took a London cab. I had heard they are pricey but did not expect to find out with my first mistake in London. An Uber was £5 and the cab cost me £28. That was a very expensive mistake, but, all part of travelling.

This morning was another day. Leaving the Park Plaza Hotel in West London there is a ramp up under the Western Road and up to Park Royal Station. This station is not step free access. So I had prepared myself to have to carry my luggage, luckily down a set of stairs. But Londoners are very kind and there was a lovely young man who helped me with my luggage.

The train wasn’t too difficult to manage as most of the London trains do not have a large gap between the train and platform. If there is, most platforms have accessible access where they have raised a portion of platform to meet the train entrance without a gap. I took the tube from Park Royal to Kings Cross St Pancras station, walked to nearby St Pancras international station, took a lift up to Platform 12. Signage is very clear at all stations. The trip was to take 2 hours so luckily there are toilets at St Pancras and as there are 4 steps up to those, I rolled my luggage into the accessible toilet.

I have registered my credit card to be used as an Oyster card. The London equivalent of the Sydney Opal Card. So at St Pancras International I swiped my card. Normally TfL works out your daily spend on the proxy Oyster card and there is a cap each day. However, the UK has several train lines which are not linked to the Oyster card. The fast train on the South Western Rail Line (SWR) is separate. Now this is one of the lines where if you book your ticket in advance you can save a lot of money. I did not know this and I paid £37 one way. The conductor was very kind to explain how it all works and assisted me to download two more apps – Trainline and National Rail. I paid the £37 and an additional £5 for a return ticket to London which is valid for a month. Once I leave Canterbury I will have to go back to London regardless so that I can get a train to the next major city. Their ticketing is so complex. The conductor who has been on this job for 12 months said he was still learning all there was to the UK rail system.

Kimba South Australia

Driving back to Adelaide for New Years Eve I found a night stopover in Kimba. What a cute little town. It claims to be the the town in the Middle of the Australian east and west coasts. First had a rest stop in a place called Wirulla, population 104.

They have a “secret”. A dry jetty which was erected as a joke but is the 5th tee on the Nullabor Links golf course. Said to be the longest golf course along 1365 kilometres of the Eyre Highway across Western Australia and South Australia on the Nullabor Plain.

Wudinna is the home of a granite sculpture celebrating the spirit of farming life communities ” The Australian Farmer”. 17 years in the making by a father and son team Marijan and David Bekic represents the sun, grain crops, sheep farming and commemorates the early settlers.

Kimba from the aboriginal word for “bushfire”. Population around 600. Has “The Big Galah” which marks the halfway point between East and West coasts of Australia.

The town also provides low level Radioactive Waste storage. The facility provides 25 ongoing jobs for the community.

Lovely silo art.

Local art

Edward John Eyre was an English explorer, the first to cross Australia from Sydney to Swan River in Perth Western Australia. The sculptures located at Whites Knob Lookout represent Edward Eyre and his indigenous tracker Whylie.

Mallala has a population of around 900 and is home to an impressive World War 1 Memorial in the centre of town

It also has an international Motor Sport Park.

I arrived in Adelaide on 30 December and the previous evening I was notified the Masquerade Gala to be held in Glenelg was cancelled due to COVID19. So, after another marathon drive for 6 hours, I returned my hire car, went and had a rest at a friend’s home before getting an 8pm flight back to Sydney to celebrate New Years Eve in my home town. May 2022 bring the world some normalcy and better health.

Covid19 travels

2 January 2021

My last trip was in December 2019, a 30 day cruise from Honolulu to Sydney on the fabulous Norweian Jewel . Who knew what was to hit the world. As many in my Australian state of New South Wales, we cannot leave our country and more often our state is shut off from the rest of Australia. I have been working for an essential service so had funds to renovate my home, which was a distraction until our restrictions would be lifted.

As many people I had travel plans for Great Britain – cancelled. Then we were able to travel within Australia so Christmas was booked with family in Port Lincoln – cancelled. New Years Eve in Tasmania – cancelled. So we had a Covid19 safe Christmas and New Year celebration at home. There was a very big positive to Covid19 and that was my boys and I were together for these celebrations for the first time in 7 years.

Today was the first time I have travelled from my home since December 2019 by driving 1.5 hours north of Sydney. First stop the lovely Hawkesbury River

Next stop Somesby Falls just outside Gosford.

A colourful bush turkey.

Onward to Norahead to the lighthouse built in 1903

Which overlooks a popular rock fishing spot

Budgewoi a quaint fishing spot.

Caves Beach has 2 faces. A family beach and caves which can be explore at very low tide

Covid19 has taken away a lot of our freedoms but given us the opportunity to appreciaate what we have in our backyard.

Love tree of Budgewoi.

Dion birthday

21 January 2019

My son, Dion, turned a quarter of a century. He has been so busy rehearsing a musical for which he wrote the music, will be playing piano and singing that a short celebration dinner was held at Thai Pothong in Newtown with family. Thai Pothong is an experience with great quality food, great decor and wonderful service.

With singing waiters and a birthday desert.

We finished off the night at a favourite local pub the Courthouse Hotel

And played some pool.

Dion’s Musical is “Dorian Gray Naked” and will be on at the Limelight on Oxford Theatre, Oxford Street Darlinghurst. Perhaps you will join me during 30 January 2019 to 16 February 2019.

Phil Collins “not dead yet” concert

23 January 2019

When my dear friend, Lindy, gave me a ticket to Phil Collins’ concert I did not expect him to hobble out with a walking stick. I did not expect to not see him behind the drums. I did not expect to be blown away by the sensational band and backing singers. But what I did not expect and could not stop being amazed at was Phil’s 17 year old son, Nic, on the drums. Nic also played piano for a duet.

This concert was an emotional sensory experience on a level I haven’t encountered at a concert. The whole 2 hours went so fast, too fast. Nic had some big shoes to fill and he did a brilliant job. Congratulations Phil. You have still got that unique voice. You got the Qudos Arena on its feet, dancing and many people around me yelling out “thank you” to you. I thank my friend Lindy for giving me the gift of this fabulous celebration of music.

Norwegian Jewel New Caledonia/Australia

18 January 2019

My third cruise with the Norwegian Jewel took me to a totally different clime to the previous two. From Alaska in July/August 2018.

To Sydney Harbour

With stops in Noumea. Beautiful Isle of Pines New Caledonia.

Lifou New Caledonia

Yorkeys Knob outside of Cairns Australia

Airlie Beach in the Whitsundays.

We stopped in Brisbane but I didn’t leave the ship but enjoyed basking in the sun by the pool without fighting for a deck chair while the majority of passengers were sightseeing.

The shows on the Jewel were spectacular. “Velvet” starring West End and England X Factor semi finalist Brenda Edwards.

With dancer Nicole from Sydney on “Glow” Party night.

Met Emmy Gelardi-Bunyi from Sydney who is Royal International Miss Sweetheart 2019.

Some of the lovely solo travellers

Arrived home on 18 January ready for dancing.

Murray River Wodonga

31December 2018 and 1 January 2019

Over the past 2 weeks I have pushed myself too much. In the last 4 days alone I have driven 2000 km and need a rest.

I stopped at Wodonga as it is a town on the Murray River which borders my state of New South Wales and Victoria. I watched my beautiful Sydney NYE fireworks on TV and for the first time ever spent NYE alone but not lonely.

In the morning I got these lovely photos of the Murray River.

This evening I went out to Hume Weir to capture the sunset.

Happy New Year to everyone.

Castlemaine

The inspiration for this road trip from Adelaide was that I wanted to see the town of Castlemaine. This is where the Netflix program The Glitch is filmed and it reminded me of the country towns I should explore in my own country.

The cemetery

The Empyre Hotel

The old police station

Castlemaine Station

The Midland

Just outside of Castlemaine at Moonlight Flats is the Pennyweight Cemetery, the resting place for 200 children who died during the gold rush period of 1852-1857.

The place the first gold was found in the Castlemaine area.

The town of Cressy is the location for Nicole Kidman’s movie The Others

Great Ocean Road

30 December 2018

Last night I was in Port Fairy but there was not one room available (well there was a room for $250 with parking down the road and I cannot justify paying that amount for a motel room and have to leave my car so far away). It was a pretty town but all along the coast to Warnambool,this time of year, is packed with tourists. My preference is to stay in smaller towns with locals and I found the perfect place in Mortlake 35 minutes out of Warnambool, called the Mt Shadwell The Stables Hotel.

Lovely clean accommodation with bluestone walls and dating back to the 1800s. Good pub food, friendly locals and breakfast at the town cafe was delicious. Clarke’s Pies are so delicious even cold.

Driving on the Great Ocean Road you will come across these signs. This road gets so many tourists from around the world this road becomes treacherous when drivers forget what side of the road to drive.