Deal Done

As much as I approve of the visa deal I am glad that I have done my time. Whilst I have kept to myself a lot I have still managed to make some good friends in Manji which I will be sad to leave behind. However as always I am looking forward and am happy about my current plan for my last six weeks in Australia.

My last three weeks in Manji have been very similar. I’ve kept up the swimming thought the circuit training and classes fell away very quickly. I had forgotten how much I enjoy being in the water and am determined to keep up with the swimming as much as possible as I travel. I may try and take up running as well as I now have the exercise bug in addition to my travel bug but in the heat of a WA summer I’m not sure how that will turn out. Work was a bit different as the orchard work quietened down and mostly I was in the packing shed. I’d like to say if never see another avocado then it will be too soon but I know on my return to Perth I will be lucky to avoid them as they are a favourite of one of Josh’s cousins. I’m not complaining. I had a decent boss and worked with lovely people for an hourly wage so I was happy enough but I don’t think a career in packing is for me. At the weekends I never did get round to joining in the drinking games but I did make my way through a few books and managed to see a few films on my must see list. All in all the visa deal worked out well for me and now I have my 88 day regional work completed I am free to enjoy the rest of my stay in Australia.

The plan (such as it is) for my last six weeks in the country is to spend the rest of the month in Perth before flying over to Adelaide and working my way to Sydney via Melbourne and possibly Jindabyne. Ideally I would like to drive the whole way but I will need to wait and see how much it will cost and look into getting my Australian drivers licence. I’ve only managed to see the southern half of Australia and even then I’ve not even seen half of it. I am sad to have missed out on seeing Tasmania this time round but now I have my 88 days I can come back and see hopefully Tasmania at its best in the middle of the Aussie summer. As I am heading back the way I came, all be it by a different means of transport, I hope to see some of the great ocean road. If I cannot drive it myself or tag along with a fellow backpacker then I am determined to do one of the tours, especially as they have worked out so well for me in the past and come highly recommended! Mainly though I want to catch up with some of the friends I have made during my travels. I am excited but a little sad to be seeing them as I am unsure when I will next be back their way.

Once I get to Sydney I will have just under two weeks before I am due to fly out. I will spend the first few days of that week with one of my closest Aussie friends before saying goodbye and heading in to the city centre where I hope to catch up with some more friends and see any tourist sites I missed on my previous stays. This time I plan to stay in the infamous Kings Cross district and definitely head out a few nights so I can say goodbye to my friends Australia in style:; only of course it won’t be goodbye, merely see ya later. I think that is why contrary to my expectations I am not sad to be leaving. I am excited about seeing everyone back home and only hope I can see everyone before I return to the southern hemisphere in July.  Roll on the next six weeks, it’s gonna be grand!