27, 28 April Leaving Sydney, getting to NZ

Quest on Dixon... the 'lobby'
Leaving our Sydney digs

Loading up to go

Sydney in the background..sigh

Kia Ora,

Our Britz camper van is a bit clunky, after the Maui model.  However, two days and we will make the best of it...or whine/wine.  Mimi drove today, power shifting the manual transmission, daring the weak off the thin, winding roads (with signs that often read’ Shoulder gone missing’, or something akin to that; or ‘Sharp turn, watch for oversized loads coming the other way.’ etc...) We eventually made our way to the upper portion of Coromandel, Coromandel Town.  So what if Mimi stalled three times - once on an uphill blind curve and twice after that? 

Having loved Top Ten Holiday Parks, we drove right to the one in Coromandel - which turns out to be 5km out of town on more winding roads and quite dismal.Once we had secured Power Site #86, we went food shopping as we pictured a nice lamb and salad dinner, cooked ourselves, overcoming the gloom of today’s clouds, spitting rain and sad Top Ten.  One food store in town, making us long for the inventories of the closest 7Eleven. Decided to go out to dinner instead and all was good in our world again. Then we returned to Less-Than-Ten Top Ten campground to get all cozied up for the night only to discover that there was no power cord to be found in our camper van. We had watched the special video and were told that the ‘camper shown is from a different company, but the same basic model that you are getting.’ (featuring a man who at one point of the video was suddenly ten pounds lighter and sporting a mustache - only to revert to his original self minutes before the end of the video. Hmmmmmmm...) At any rate, we were prepared. Searched high and low for said power cord. Denny called company while I delved into another fun if not mindless Hiassen novel. Guy from Top Ten comes out and asked if we had checked power box. Nope. Et voila! We had a different model camper than the one shown in video. Really? 

Arriving in Auckland and disposing of
nuts

How cool is that...outside while one
waits for pick-up

Oh no.. what's that stick thingy - on
the LEFT??!!

Home sweet home

Mimi excited about
left-handed shifting

A bit bigger than the last one!

From Thames to Coromandel Town,
on the Coromandel Peninsula

Can you see the long winding road?

Just beautiful

One of those 'over-sized vehicles' signs
warned drivers about...hmmmm..

Closing in on Coromandel Town after over an hour
to go 40 miles.

In Coromandel Town

Bar/Pokie (Betting)/Pool
Very classy

Mr Pale Ale Happy Guy!

But what a meal! I ate green-tipped
mussels. Local favorite. In white wine sauce.
Delish!

A bit of restaurant/hotel history

So, it is early evening and we are reading and playing gin rummy to the lights of our camper van’s interior.  Nice bed set-up though, at knee level versus the climb to a loft in previous camper.  In the morning we have two beaches in our sights for walking, and driving to the Eastern side of the Coromandel (for our final full day on this trip).  Sigh, as we will miss the Royal wedding, but I suspect post wedding coverage will run into our return.  

When (rare evenings) we have had telly, in a real room, we encounter about 10 channels.  Surfing them, we usually encounter one news channel, two footy games in progress, one animated channel or game show, and about five cooking channels.  These cooking channels often show competitive cooking.  Format?  Two or three master chefs with minions work below in kitchens, while above sits a panel of three or four cooking experts.  The chefs are on the clock, working on about 10 dishes concurrently.  It is a beehive, and a commentator circulates among the panel, asking questions like, “Kudra, what is Jean-Pierre adding to that bisque?  Might it, it couldn’t be, beetroot extract???”  Or, “Look, she is sheathing those asparagus in....in...lentil husks.  I think that will take the taste way over the top...and you?”  When they reach this stage I’m long in bed, UNLESS I can find Two and a Half men, which periodically pops up (reruns from Charlie’s better days, if there really was such a thing). 

Maybe it IS time to go home!

Tuesday 26 April Manly Beach, Greg and Karen, last walk about Sydney

Ummmmm.... cow that Mac had on the top of
his helmut the last couple of our bike trip in NZ over
 a month ago. He gave it to Greg and so here is our, 'Where's Bessie?' photo?

G'day,

Manly Beach (which Mimi kept calling Manly Island),

Greg (from our NZ bike tour on 11 March) and Karen met us at the Manly ferry as we docked, and devoted a day to showing us Manly Beach across from Sydney and North Point, East Point, lots of points.   All kinds of impressive views, a tour of the entire area.  One of the nice things of having people excited about where they live, and anxious to show it off, is that one gets a peek behind lots of gates, the pluses and minuses, and a sense of why they are enthused.  Having two bus drivers conduct the same tour in a small car added extra zest, as they had two views of best routes.

After seeing the statue of the Duke, Hanapaukua (I may be off by a few letters, like eight), the Hawaiian who introduced surfing to Australia, Greg had us lined up for a five star lunch...a nice feast that was truly appreciated as the three of us shared good vibes from the bike trip. And we know we will keep in touch.  Day ended as Mimi and I returned to Sydney Harbor, and walked back via Darling Harbor.   Then packing for Wednesday’s flight to Auckland.   

Oh look.... rain....  as we leave the city!

On the ferry to Manly Beach, a suburb
of Sydney across the harbour

Breakfast on the fly

Where the Tasman Sea meets Sydney Harbour.
Lots of swells and a bit rough for about ten minutes time

Wet, but fun!

Our bike friend extraordinaire, Greg

Manly Wharf ferry landing and the Tasman Sea beyond

Karen, Denny, Greg

The 'Duke', man who introduced surfing to
Australia at the beginning of the 1900's

Where we are...surrounded by water!

Approaching the restaurant

Karen and Denny and view

Greg and Karen

Fish and chips

Filet mignon and chips. And rare,as that!
Fabulous meal.

Leaving Manly Beach

Beautiful skies and original point of
entry (on left) to Sydney Harbour

And there's that bridge!

The Opera House and some of the city

Love that bridge!

We walked around the Sydney Wharf,
winding our way to Darling Harbour, then
to our hotel... about a 45 minute walk...
 in the rain, of course!

Walking, continued. These are all little restaurants.

Across the bridge... Nicole Kidman's penthouse, dead center...

Art work...really!

25 April Anzac Day Sydney

The 102 Coral Battery. See Denny? Geoff is in red tie.

Wow, what a day.  Up early to light rain and a walk down nearer the harbor, crossing the  ANZAC Day parade.   Early marchers were naval vets, and the slimming numbers of WWII and Korean war vets from Australia.  We found the 102 battery Coral vets, some 40 or so who lived in or had come to Sydney rather than observe this day in their own city.  Keep in mind that ANZAC Day in Australia and NZ are important, as in they take this very seriously.  These are nations very aware of their tenuous global position, and rich history of jumping in when their allies call (Gallipoli, WW I and II, Korea, Vietnam and the current conflicts).  It is a point of pride that they go shoulder to shoulder with allies...period. 

So, I had been been invited to join my compatriots of the battles in May 1968, probably the first American who had been a part of this.  Heady stuff for me, even though I’ve always felt that the Aussies and Kiwis did the real heavy lifting that month of battle in 1968, with America’s role a bit more modest, and less risky unless a stray mortar or rocket fell badly.  So, all in sport coats, Aussies with their medals, we of the 102 Battery walked through the heart of Sydney, with many other units, honor guards, bag pipers, drum corps...many added inducements to get guys in their sixties marching with some sort of common cadence.  Big crowds, Boston Marathon type crowds, and lots of smiles (note: reinforcing me in spite of the continual critique I was getting on my marching from those back in my file, ‘The bloody Yank can’t keep in step, he’s throwing us off’... etc...all in good fun). We marched/shambled for an hour  and a half or so.  Then we fell out, like horses to water for stop one on about 8 plus hours of pub crawling.  Beer and champagne flowed and rain... it poured a good part of the afternoon.  I was able to meet almost everyone in attendance, and set to rest all sort of faulty memories (humorously disparaging) about the past. One of the values to me was hearing details on a lot of anecdotal events that, over the 43 years, had always puzzled me.   Mimi was buzzing about taking lots of pictures, and meeting some of the vets and their spouses.  Back to hotel nine hours later. Wonderful conversations all around. 

Fifty year get together celebration in eight yrs. in NZ.....

Hmmmm.....

Pre-marching orders

Well-known anchorman interviewing
ugly paramedic

All served with Denny in the 102 Battery

Man with WWI light relic,
getting anchor's attention

Man on left walked off parade line-up, felt unwell...
ended up fine.

What is it about bagpipes?

There they are!

First of many rounds

Fellow vet

Some of the wives

Three more.. Mel on left whose story of being shot six times by both sides - and dropped repeatedly while on stretcher - is still a source of battle lore.

Denny had such an amazing time. He talked
non-stop all day!!!

Rick and his wife Jenny (pink scarf) wonderful fun.. Lady on right and family
finally recovered her brother's body two yrs. ago. Forty-three yrs. ago he was being picked up by helicopter in extreme combat and fell off the drop rope. It was not until three yrs. ago that the family
found out what became of him.

Walking to Cruise Bar in Sydney Harbour, going through
the QVB (Queen Victoria Building) behind statue

The rain really sets in as the pipers go home
(or more likely to the pub!)

Lonnnnnggggg line outside Apple... What
came out today?

Glad we did the bridge walk Friday!

Very historic area in Sydney Harbour
full of restaurants, shops,
theatres, beautiful little houses...

The Cruise Bar

Beautiful bar

Finally some food!

Geoff and good friend

Like Grandpa, like grandson?!!