Friday 14 March we packed up and drove towards Narabeen – four and a half hours drive away. Left our waterfront apartment feeling quite sad – it was a smashing place which we had really enjoyed – and the next place had been difficult to find because Narabeen (a Sydney suburb called Northern Beaches) did not have a lot of accommodation available in the price range we were willing to pay. Anyway….we finally arrived…to find no parking anywhere! The block itself had parking but not the apartment we were booked into (via Air BnB). We drove around and around the one way system and all the side roads were rammed….guess that was our own fault for arriving on a Friday afternoon by which time everyone was home from work LOL. We spotted that the bus lane (on the main road outside the apartment) had a time zone on it and would be not operational from 6pm. So, to get us up and running, I went on foot and found the apartment and a place where Richard could pull in so we could at least unpack before we schlepped the bags up the stairs.
We let ourselves in and the place was not very nice at all. The joining instructions were pitiful…..telling us how expensive it was to clean the rugs so please take off your shoes. Oh yes and please don’t tell my neighbours you are Air BnB guests – just say we are friends if they ask. Hmmm…didn’t augur too well for a particularly relaxing stay….. I did my usual check of the cooking facilities to find no toaster (had been stolen allegedly) and the fridge and freezer were full of out of date milk (by one month – yuck!), chicken nuggets, frozen chips and sweets…. The owner had charged us $60 for cleaning and this was terrible….the cooker itself was filthy and so was the grill tray with burnt on bits of food…. That was just the start – there were loads more things we were unhappy about – so I complained to the owner who said that he didn’t make a profit on the cleaning but would refund us the princely sum of $20 as a gesture of goodwill. Very disappointing response.
By now the bus lane was no longer operating so we moved the car into the main road under our balcony so we could keep an eye on it. We then headed across the road to the South Narrabeen Surf Life Saving Club which hosts the Cabana Beach Kiosk. We were lucky that they actually open for dinner on a Friday night (only) so we were able to get a table and enjoyed a nice dinner and then sat on the beach for a little while checking out the lunar eclipse.




Afterwards we crossed the road back to our apartment and realised that the sofa was missing cushions and was damn uncomfortable. We went through the wardrobes and found them and had a glass of wine in front of the TV before retiring to bed. We were so unhappy we searched the internet for alternative accommodation nearby but couldn’t find anything. Well we could find some very expensive upmarket stuff but way beyond our price point. So we had to reconcile the fact that we were staying put despite our misgivings…. At this point the owner stopped answering my emails LOL. He was funny when he said that nobody had ever complained about the cleanliness….he was confident that his cleaners did a thorough job. Well maybe they did previously but we personally don’t think anyone had been into the apartment after the departure of the last guest – we even got fresh bedding / towels out of the wardrobe and remade the bed just in case….
Saturday morning Richard’s friend Kieron rang to cancel our arrangements as he had returned from the UK (having been home due to a family bereavement) and had gone down with the flu. Oh dear what to do?!? Was very disappointed but you can’t schedule illness… We decided to head down to Manly wharf on the bus and ended up on a bit of a pub crawl. The weather was nice and warm and we enjoyed being out and about without having to drive….






Returning to Narabeen (on the bus) we stopped off at the Beach Club (Collaroy) which was very nice and we could sit on the balcony overlooking the ocean.






By now we were getting the munchies so we asked for a recommendation for the best restaurant nearby – the answer was the Sunshine Eatery – an Italian restaurant. So we hopped back on the bus for a couple of stops and found it on the main road…. We were lucky and managed to get a table without a reservation and had the most fabulous artisan pizza. It was a shame about the Greek and Spanish music being played in the background though making it not quite so authentic LOL. Afterwards we walked back down the main road, checked on the car, and so to bed.

Sunday morning and sadly Kieron was still ill. So arrangements cancelled again. What a shame! The bus lane was re-opening on our side of the road but the other side was becoming inoperable so we moved the car across the road. Once we were happy we decided to get an Uber to the North Narabeen Life Saving and Surf Club and enjoyed sitting on the balcony overlooking the beaches. Lovely place and so friendly!

Leaving the LSSC behind we ended up in a pub on the corner and had a drink but it was way too hot inside and the air conditioning was not up to the job. So we didn’t linger and decided to walk back to our apartment – this was a fair distance and we just walked and walked. On the way we came across the Zest Thai Cuisine restaurant and decided to take a much needed comfort break. Having used their facilities we decided to get some takeout chicken and continued back on our trek. Eventually we reached our apartment and spent the night in front of the TV eating our surprisingly good chicken with a glass in hand.

Monday morning we checked out in relief – hurrah!!! We met Kieron and his wife Jackie at the North Narabeen Life Saving and Surf Club and were then joined by some other ex-pat friends of theirs. We were socially distanced on the balcony and it was pretty chilly with a strong wind blowing the germs away from us LOL. Had a really good breakfast roll and a cup of tea and enjoyed catching up. Was really lovely to see them – just sad that I failed miserably to take any photos of us together. Doh!!


Sadly, all too soon, it was time for us to be on our way to our next accommodation in Avoca one and a half hours away. We decided to pop into Erina Fair (a large shopping mall) en route and picked up some provisions as we wanted a night in…. We found the cottage although struggled to find the key box to get inside – but once we had overcome that small issue – we unpacked and checked the place out. Two bedrooms this time so plenty of room for our cases on the spare bed so we could leave them open.




We settled in and first job was to catch up with the laundry – everything hanging up outside in our small private courtyard – and we enjoyed sitting on the patio for a little while before heading inside for a basic steak and salad dinner. Absolutely lovely – spotlessly clean, very very comfortable and homely. And even better a proper dining table so we could sit up and eat….
Tuesday morning we headed to the beach – along the way we stopped at the bakery for some lunch and drinks to take with us. We set up our shade tent on the beach and enjoyed about four hours there….the surf was up and it was pretty busy…so we then headed back to our apartment for a quiet night in.

Wednesday morning I made a packed lunch and then we headed to the other end of the beach – the quiet end – and enjoyed the peace and solitude. We then returned to the cottage to get ready and met my nephew Jamie in Terrigal for a curry. Was lovely to spend time with him again.





Thursday we had another beach day – had lunch out at one of the cafes on the waterfront – and then returned to our cottage for a simple jacket potato dinner. We also did some more laundry….
Friday morning we were packing up and moving on to stay with Hayley and the boys in Green Point – so again we did some shopping on the way (having coordinated with Hayley what she would like for dinner)…. We let ourselves in and made ourselves comfortable – and then Budd came bounding through the door followed by Jamie, Jack and Adam. Budd was very keen to greet us both (and to play with his best friend Richard) – he clearly remembered us – but he was absolutely filthy having been playing in the mud at doggy day care all day LOL. So Jamie took him off for a good shower off and we got on with doing dinner – Hayley came home with pizzas for the boys and we had chicken kebabs and salad.
Saturday everyone was busy – and it was raining! Boo…. So I blogged while Richard relaxed…and we all came together for dinner in the evening when I introduced the family to homemade Japanese chicken katsu curry – which was a hit! Hurrah! Again on Sunday everyone was busy so I did a full roast lamb dinner and we enjoyed having lots of cuddles with Budd on the sofa. Velvet the cat even let me stroke her (which is pretty unusual) but it might have been the fact that I did actually feed her LOL. Those animals are definitely driven by cupboard love.


Monday morning we took the boys to school and dropped them off and enjoyed a quiet day alone with the animals….and sat by the pool which we enjoyed. But there was little shade and the sun was very fierce so we took ourselves under the shade on the patio and read books….at one point our solitude was interrupted by a guy who had come to clean the pool and change out all the filters etc. He worked hard and did a good job! Later on we picked up Adam from school and Jack found his own way home via the gym. They are definitely growing up – this is a critical time for Jack as he heads into his last 18 months or so of school before university. He wants to be a palaeontologist which is an interesting choice for sure! Adam is not focussed on anything in particular at the moment but he is a couple of years behind so guess this will develop…I can guarantee though it will not include maths LOL!
Tuesday was a strange one…the boys had decided they were not going to school. Apparently it was cross country day and the whole school just goes to the area to watch and, those who are not competing, are given a pass not to attend…. As it is a critical time in terms of exams for both of them Hayley and Jamie were happy for them to stay home…. We sat by the pool again – dodging the rain showers – and the boys were studying pretty much all day upstairs in their rooms.
Wednesday the sun came out again intermittently but we kept ourselves busy doing laundry and just sitting around the pool. After such a busy schedule this was our time for some R&R. Richard was determined to top up his tan but I found it too hot without the shade so stayed on the patio reading my kindle…. And, of course, the rain came and went throughout the day. Later on we picked Adam up from school and Jack made his own way via the gym again…. We had a lovely family dinner (lasagne this time) when Hayley returned from work and then Richard and I sat in the front room and caught up on some programmes we wanted to watch. This was our last night all together and we had a good one.
Thursday morning we were up at the crack of dawn to say goodbye to the boys before we dropped them off at school – there was no chance we were getting hugs in front of the High School gates LOL. Having dropped them off we headed over to Terrigal with Jamie for breakfast which was lovely – despite the usual problem of finding somewhere to park…
After breakfast we headed back to the house and packed up all our gear…having to squash everything into two suitcases with a maximum allowance of 23kgs per person. This meant that, yet again, we had to leave our beach shade tent at the house in the garage…. After we had packed Richard kept himself busy hoovering out the car! At around 2pm we headed off towards Sydney. I was driving this time and as there was no integral satnav in the car found it somewhat annoying when the google maps signal was lost in the underground toll tunnels to bypass the city traffic…but as we were heading towards the airport at least the signposts were pretty obvious LOL. We were going pretty early as the last shuttle from the off-airport site car rental company left at 4.30 pm. And you just never know what the traffic is going to be like…. Anyway we made it in good time, filled up with petrol, and dropped the car off and waited for the shuttle to take us to the airport. We arrived and had to wait for the check in kiosks to open so headed to the Vietnamese for a bite to eat. As we’d already checked in online our queue was significantly smaller than those who hadn’t done the online thing. Qatar Airways are very organised and they opened on time…. So finally made it to the front of the queue, dropped the bags, picked up our boarding passes (x2 each) and headed through security. This was pretty quiet considering it was a Thursday evening and we cleared quickly…. So we headed towards our allocated gate and settled down to read books until the plane arrived and we were called. As we were sitting upstairs again we were boarded in the first tranche so walked through the lower level of the plane, up the stairs, and then settled down into our economy seats. Love sitting upstairs on the A380 plane…so much more spacious and, because only about 20 rows of economy seating, you get a choice of food without them running out.
So settled in and we waited to push off and take off. This all happened on time and we landed in Doha, Qatar on time and then walked through the large terminal to our next gate to board the next plane. We only had a two and a half hour gap this time so plenty of time not to get stressed and enough time for the bags to follow us. But I tracked them with our Apple tags anyway LOL….
And just like that the fantastic three month Australian adventure was over!

So what next? Well, we are off to Malaysia in August for just over a month – with some city time in Kuala Lumpur, some rainforest and animal encounters (hopefully) in Borneo, some relaxation and beach time in Kota Kinabalu followed by a couple of weeks exploring Penang (which is known as The Pearl of the Orient). So very exciting and we are counting down the days already. I will blog the next trip on our return…

So thanks for travelling along with us. Would just like to take the opportunity to remember my mum who sadly left us seven years ago tomorrow. The time has gone so fast but the pain doesn’t diminish. Love you Mum and miss you so much.

Bye for now, Jan