The Magical Mystery train…..

Up early enough to get a shower before the rush – bag sorted, last minute shopping done in a local shop (apples, tissues, water) followed by last trip on the coach to the station here in Moscow to get the Trans-Siberian train to Irkutsk. We dumped our bags close together and stood watch in shifts as people went off to buy snacks etc. Very interesting, as the pickpockets had already identified us and were moving in (L held on to one last night when he took her purse out of a secured bag – and finally got it back). I saw some of the bags were a little unprotected so wandered over to them, and nearly bumped into a man who veered away quickly! Another two men sat nearby and one whispered to the other while watching us closely. Not that we were paranoid or anything…..

Finally our train showed up on the timetable board – platform 1 and off we went. But what a struggle getting on – just try manoeuvring through a narrow corridor with a bag on wheels which is wider than it, at the same time as negotiating the full-to-bursting backpack with a sleeping bag dangling, and a bag of supermarket goodies for the trip. Made it finally and stowed as much as I could in the box under the bottom bunk. And then we were off.

I read a lot of very negative stuff about the toilets on the train, but have to say they weren’t at all bad – and were kept clean throughout the day. So does that dispel another myth? They do, of course, empty out onto the rails when you depress a pedal, but as long as you can cope with the sight of rails rushing by below your feet then you’re OK. I suppose the highlight of this first day on the train has to be the episode in the dining room (which was so pretty!) when I not only had the wrong salad served to me (one with bloated sausage…?) but at the end when Ann and I had already paid for our meal, the rest of the party got into complicated negotiations with the Russian staff about their bill. Others joined in, including 3 young men, one of whom spoke a little English which just complicated matters. They were army cadets,very friendly, and one told us his father had been an officer in the Soviet army that invaded Afghanistan in 1977. Although the bill was finally settled, the jollity increased to a point where the staff chucked us all out and closed the dining car.

Moscow – what a fantastic place!

This is just a short post as it’s quite late.

Tomorrow we’re off to the railway station to catch the Trans-Siberian train to Irkutsk. We get off there for about 3-4 days, either walk across the frozen Lake Baikal to an island where we have a homestay with local families in a sort of community hut, or if the ice is thawing (as we’ve been told) we go on a hovercraft.

We got into Moscow late afternoon and after checking into our hostel a few of us went out to find the Kremlin. And we did – what a fantastic place! The buildings are amazing, pretty, beautiful, stately, grotesque and downright scary. I took lots of photos – in the gently falling snow – it’s difficult to not take photos in a city like this. We walked miles down a pedestrianised shopping street full of McDonalds, Starbucks, quaint Russian doll shops etc and finally reached Red Square (a bit of a building site at the moment) and St Basil’s – just lovely. The Kremlin walls are so imposing and decorative – we asked some mounted police if we could take their photos, and were told ‘Nyet!’. Then later we were aware that we were bumping into riot police all over the place – no idea why, but they were expecting something…

So, now I’m going to unpack and pack my case and make sure all the stuff I need for Siberia is near the top. All the warm stuff, as we’ve been warned to expect pretty low temperatures. Time for thermals, I think. I don’t know when I’ll be able to put up another post as we are going to be off the radar for a bit. But apparently Ulaan Baator is a possibility. If not, it’ll be Beijing on about the 25th April.

Bye bye!

The road to Novgorod Land

After a very lazy morning, we set off to Novgorod, breaking there for one night as the journey to Moscow is long. So about 3-4 hours on the road today and about 8 tomorrow. The roadside wooden houses are in a much worse state here in Russia than in Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia. The reason being that after the fall of communism, people were hit with such poverty that these wooden houses fell into disrepair – strangely enough they seem to cave in in the middle, or tilt dangerously. Most of these tilted houses are inhabited, judging from the curtains and cars outside, although there are as many abandoned as there are houses being lived in. But it’s obvious that some are being repaired, rebuilt and generally being made habitable.

The forests here are different too: not many firs but lots of birch. And so dense and thick. You really wouldn’t want to get lost in one. Or meet a bear. And the roads…. judging from the blue signs, we were on a motorway, with everyone changing lanes madly – not to overtake, but just to avoid potholes and broken verges.

And then we arrived in Novgorod! Such a beautiful place, a little jewel! We drove to the hostel which was once an Intourist hotel. A beautiful foyer, dining hall etc, and clean pressed linen in our three-bed room. But the bathroom! I can barely describe it… sink hanging off the wall at an angle, toilet cistern had no lid, shower head was indescribable, floor tiles were broken and dirty and the drain for this ‘wet room’ was on the upper part of the sloping floor. So we changed rooms.

Then we set off for a walk to the Kremlin across the river, passing a beautiful church complex before walking across a footbridge and through an arch into the Kremlin. The wind on the bridge was raging and icy – but a wonderful spot to take photos. A tall masted ship was moored just beneath the bridge, surrounded by ice floes. Walking through the grounds of the Kremlin we were surrounded by beautiful buildings – churches, concert hall, belltower – all in beautiful condition, pristine and in the most beautiful pastel colours. Out the other side and we were in the town, with a beautiful shop selling artists’ handicrafts and a small market in a row of cabins. We stopped off at a restaurant just for a coffee (great latte!) and ended up staying for a meal with wine and champagne. Very enjoyable, made even more quaint by the English translations of the Russian dishes!

Lovely place – could easily spend more time here!

Russia – St Petersburg

April 8th – we left Tallinn behind in icy rain. On the left hand side of the road, the ice on the Baltic Sea was right up to the shore, like frozen froth. The bay at Tallinn is iced over, with ice-breakers working to ensure that the ferry to Helsinki, and other ships, can keep going every day of the year. The sky was an intense mid-blue at the horizon, back in the direction we’d come from, but lightening a little ahead. We drove past what seemed miles of dirty industry, railway sidings and decrepit buildings on one side of the road, forests on the other. For a while there was a strong smell of oil in the air…and curiously, most newish buildings seemed to be painted blue and yellow – I kept expecting to see IKEA!

The traffic was pretty slow for a while as we were following a high sided vehicle with equal length trailer, both piled precariously with logs and swaying dangerously. A sign stated: Peterburi 323 km. In amongst the trees you can see patches of dry scrub – dead ferns, moss, pine needles – where there is some shelter from the snow. The ditches on either side of the road were frozen solid.

Eventually we came to the border post at Narva, which becomes something like Ivanograd when you cross the no-man’s land of the bridge between Estonia and Russia. On either side of the river which forms the border are huge fortifications, built up to overlook and control river traffic.We had to unload our baggage and pass through a building, showing our passports, visas and arrival and departure forms. After about 2 hours, we were all through and back in the bus. I suppose the most difficult thing now is the Cyrillic alphabet – and no English anywhere to help. The roads after the border were pitted and reminiscent of disused airfields from WW2. On this main road to Petersburg, we were thrown around, books raining down on us from the parcel shelf above.

Just about 80km before St Petersburg we stopped for a late lunch of hot borsch soup with bread and thick coffee with cream – delicious. And it only cost 130 Rubles, less than 3 Euros.

The road into the centre of St Petersburg was chock full of traffic but we finally got quite near the hostel and walked the last bit with our luggage. The driver was not in the best of moods as he’d overtaken a bus and in doing so had gone over the central white line. A policeman had waved him to a stop with a truncheon and fined him 20 Euros on the spot. We settled in an 8-bed dorm and then went across the road to the Macaroni restaurant (Italian, wouldn’t you guess!) and had some great food. The Hostel Pilao is good value – lovely clean rooms, toilets, showers and even a washing machine. It’s situated quite centrally, just off Nevsky Prospekt which leads up to the Hermitage.


Up at dawn, or thereabouts, and off with Olga our guide to do a 3-hour walking tour of the city. I was a bit the worse for wear…sore throat, cough and a bit weak. It was a hard slog, but so worth it. She took us along Nevsky Prospekt, then in an underpass to the other side and up a side road to the Arts square, with concert hall, theatre etc. Beautiful imposing buildings, mostly with European architects, and similar to those found in Vienna and Budapest etc.

We did a meandering tour around the churches, including one, the Church of the Resurrection, with amazing domes, minarets and huge quantities of gold leaf. It is now a museum but was used during the communist regime as a store house for vegetables like cabbage etc. In this roundabout way we finally reached the Hermitage, so named because it was a bolt-hole, a sort of retreat, for Catherine the Great. She stocked it with her treasures, European paintings and suchlike. We had a brief stop at a tourist shop/centre at this point – mainly to use the ATM. All in Russian of course, so we needed to be guided through it.

Some people had their cards refused – I was one of the lucky ones and managed to get a wad of rubles. Pete and Doug bought Russian fur hats with insignia – very dashing! They looked really good, actually!

After looking across the river at the fortified island and the many beautiful palaces, we walked to St Isaac’s church before returning to the Admiralty buildings and the end of the tour. The Admiralty buildings are the centre of the city, and the original planners designed three main arterial roads to fan out from this point, crossing canals as they come to them; Nevsky Prospekt is one of them. There’s also a beautiful statue of Peter the Great rearing up on his horse, erected in his memory by Catherine, also the Great. She made sure her name is on the plaque as well! I think she invented PR.

Tour over, we went back to the Hermitage in the vain hope of getting lunch there, to the sight of long queues waiting to enter the building. Then we were told that the restaurant was inside and we’d have to join the queue. No chance! We walked through the arch of the huge fronted office buildings on the other side of the square, found a nice little restaurant and had a lovely meal (baked salmon, covered in veg: carrots, courgettes, turnip batons and with cheese baked over the top). Then a longish trek home to the hostel. aching and weary! I’d planned a quiet night in while others went out again, but P and A stayed behind too and we went across the road to Macaroni – aubergines baked in tomato sauce with parmesan. Mmmm. And chocolate cake for afters.

Tomorrow we can have a lie in, then at midday we’re off to Novgorod for one night’s stop to break the long journey to Moscow. I’ll be studying my Russian alphabet and phrases on the coach!

Tallinn in Estonia

…… last stop before Russia

The journey from Riga to Tallinn: A fairly dismal day for travelling, as the whole region seems to be covered in cloud. The sepia effect is even stronger now, as the land emerging from the snow is varying shades of brown, grey and ochre. Everything seems murky and soggy, but strangely beautiful…. The road surface is variable, and the road, as straight as a die, is a raised causeway between fields or thick pine and birch forests with deep water-filled ditches either side. Every so often there’s a village with some sort of imposing statue of a mother and child, or something similar.

Finally we reached Tallinn (Wednesday, 6th April), a city that seems more westernised than other Baltic states judging from the out-of-town stores we passed; there seems to be a considerable Scandinavian influence. We later found out that Tallinn is internet heaven! Not surprising when you realise the connections to Finland and its part in the techie history of Skype and Linux. So I’ve been told. The main thing is I could get back online again here – first time since KFC in Warsaw. The excitement was too much for most of the Ozbus group who settled down to a few hours of online activity before even going out to explore the old town!

We met up at 7pm to have a meal in the medieval-themed Olde Hansa restaurant. Everything, except toilets, authentically medieval so we were told! A meal by candlelight, ancient menus we could barely read by said candlelight…. and interesting beers and other drinks. Our hostel is probably the best so far; it’s very central, we’re on the ground floor and have beds, not bunks. We also have lots of sockets and I’m online just sitting on my bed – how good is that! It’s a small old town centre, so easy to get around. I’ve been trying to remember to take photos of my Oyster card from places all around the world in the hope that Boris will give me freedom of London city, or at least free London travel for my lifetime. So I’ve included a photo to prove the card has been to Tallinn!

Talking of freedom, today, Thursday 7th April, I trotted along to the pharmacy in Freedom Square to get more painkiller and throat stuff (my knee pains in the night and there’s a throat bug going around the Ozbus lot – stocked up on sage tea!). Later we did a walking tour of the old town and were told that as people could not be killed inside the old walled city, they then met their death outside in an area which would be set up with a guillotine, scaffold and other unspeakable things etc. after the fall of communism and Estonia’s independence, this area was renamed freedom Square.

Our guide for this tour was a student called Dennis, who gave us an interesting, if unconventional glimpse of his city! We learned a lot about the corruption of officials and the infrastructure of the town in medieval times – and currently! The rich tended to live at the top of the town and the cobbled road for their vehicles leading from the top to the town hall square below was known as ‘The Long Leg’ – see photo! The steps which got you to the same destination were known as ‘The Short Leg’.

From the viewing platform at the highest point of the city wall, you can see the port and the ships bound for Finland and elsewhere on the Baltic. If you look closely, you can see the frozen sea with only a narrow channel for passage of ships. It’s pretty cold up here. Which gave me a good excuse to buy a good woolly hat, with pom-poms of course. At the end of the tour, which included the Russian Orthodox church – beautiful! – our guide made us dance in the square (yes, really) and then told us the best places to get good cheap food. So we dined out on filled pancakes before making our way back in the pouring rain (did I mention the rain before? It hasn’t stopped, and it’s icy) to the hostel to dry off. And get back online!

After today we’re off to St Petersburg, and who knows if we’ll get good internet connections. and speaking of internet etc, I’ve been told we can’t use Facebook in China, as it is not permitted. So if you don’t hear from me in a while, you’ll know why!

I am enjoying every minute of this trip – even the fairly cold showers (Riga) and the strange hostel breakfasts along the way (bread and jam in Warsaw). I am with a great bunch of people – all ages and all differing degrees of alcohol tolerance. Having a wonderful time!!

Riga – Paris of the North

Monday 4th April

On the road to Riga… well, I slept very little as we had a raucous crowd in the hostel in Vilnius who partied until 03:45 in the kitchen, right next door to our room. Seven of us were in 2 rooms with an interconnecting door and paper thin walls adjoining the kitchen. Had a great breakfast though and then we set off on the 5 hour journey to Riga.

I suppose one of the most interesting aspects of the very flat landscape of Lithuania and Latvia is the endless forests. At this time of year they are very bare and the entire landscape has a sepia feel about it. It’s been a hard winter and the rivers, lakes, ponds of water we pass still have ice in large patches. There’s snow piled up at the side of the road in some places and if you peer into the forests there’s banked up snow amongst the trees.

We stopped for lunch in a very rustic, almost bavarian-type restaurant. Obviously a stop for lorry drivers and others in transit: a self service cafeteria type place where I had a small salad and a (cold) potato pancake shaped like a large cashew nut and filled with mushrooms. Outside were a collection of smaller huts, surrounded by woodcarvings including a bear, and a sled.

Mid afternoon we reached Riga, driving across the bridge into the old town which is dominated by the St Peter’s Cathedral spire – as we later explored the city, it proved to be useful in orientating us as the Riga Backpacker Hostel was just a street away. The driver set us down near the Occupation Museum and then led us the long way round to the hostel. Naturally we were up on the top floor, and after struggling with my baggage to reception on the first floor, I was lucky enough to have my large bag taken up by J, a strong Australian fellow Ozbus traveller. A small group of us set off to explore for a couple of hours, taking photos and drinking in coffee houses as we went, before returning to the hostel, meeting up with most of the others from Ozbus and setting off again in the rain to find the Lido restaurant which was recommended by the hostel. We must have walked most of the old city streets before finding it – quite close to the hostel! – and having a good meal there. Then home, tired out, to a cold room, and sleep. Did I mention this hostel was really cold? Well, it was!

Today, 5th April, Marion’s birthday – Happy Birthday!

Our first breakfast in this hostel. A good one, except the coffee machine didn’t work, and something, maybe the toaster, fused the lights in the hostel several times. Bad luck for those who were using the hostel’s PCs at the time….

Three of us booked on a private city tour – 17 Lats – that took about 3 hours. Our guide, Zane, was so knowledgeable about all the history of the old city and of the region in general. She also had countless anecdotes and filled us in about the peaceable manner in which the Latvians live side-by-side with the Russians who form the other 50% of the population. It seems to be a pretty cosmopolitan city – due to its history as one of the Hansa cities trading on the Baltic. The current Mayor of the city is Russian and there was even one about 100 years ago who was British!


Zane took us to the Amber Museum where we stood in a room made entirely of amber – floor, walls, ceiling – and filled with hundreds of objects made from amber. We watched a short film too – very informative. I remember years ago on holiday in East Germany with Ben and Victoria, walking along the beach at Stralsund (I think) looking for amber. We didn’t find any, partly because it doesn’t look like amber in its raw state, as it’s covered in any sort of gunge which adheres when it’s still in a soft resin state. Over the years, and with the action of the sea, this gunge hardens until the amber is hidden inside what looks like any other pebble on the beach.

As well as the many churches – Riga is mainly Lutheran, unlike Vilnius which is Catholic – we visited a shop called Black Magic – all about chocolate, and the local Balzam, a herbal alcoholic drink which is very good for the health! We had some in our coffee later – quite a kick! Although the people of Riga subscribe to Lutheranism, they also follow pagan festivals and ways. A nice healthy balance, I reckon – and it maybe accounts for the very relaxed feel about Riga! After our walking tour, Zane introduced us to the driver who would take us around the city outside the ‘old town’ area. Riga is called the Paris of the north on account of the Art Nouveau influence in its architecture – evident in the beautiful buildings which are now in the Embassy quarter of the city. Lovely decorative wrought iron gates leading into courtyards, and fantastic decorative features on the facades. Just lovely.

We then went from the sublime to the ridiculous and visited the huge market, situated in 5 Zeppelin hangars on the other side of the railway tracks. Walking through the hangars, we were told they accounted only for about a quarter of the market, with hundreds of stallholders outside selling their produce and goods. Apparently people come from neighbouring region to set up stalls at this market, and it’s very popular with locals who can get better bargains than shops elsewhere. We tasted some cottage cheese, honey and black bread – very treacly!

At the end of all this, we had lunch and then Ann and I went to a shopping centre and bought provisions (and toilet roll!) for the train trip ahead. I now have a bag full of cuppa soups (don’t know what they are, just went by the pictures) tea, coffee, nut bars, crispbread and a plastic mug. As long as I can eat fairly regularly, and take my tablets with a bit of food, I’ll be fine. I’ll pick up fruit on the way, and maybe a bag of carrots. In the evening, we tried the hotel/restaurant about 5 metres from the hostel – a really nice meal, more fish for me and some apple pie. Then back to bed, up early and off on the road to Tallinn.

The coach driver – who lives here – took us around the city a bit so we could see the buildings and churches again. It’s a lovely place and I’d love to come back and spend a bit more time here.

Vilnius in Lithuania

After a good night’s sleep we are now on the road north to Vilnius. The bus has gone quiet… reading? sleeping? or doing what I’m doing? I’ve had a good chat with several of my companions and look forward to getting to know all of them. The road is good in parts and diabolical in others! The countryside is peppered with farms and small settlements, some of them very colourful and picturesque. At Augustow, in north-east Poland, we saw ice on the water where there were no boats to break it up. And at the side of thee road, traces of the heavy snowfall they had a week ago. We made a couple of stops to eat and, at the border with Lithuania, to change Zloty into Lit.

Arriving in Vilnius late afternoon, we did a round of the old city in the coach before finally finding the hostel. Good accommodation: a short walk under a railway line and we entered the old city via one of the city gates. A beautiful gem of a place, the buildings are quite Italianate, beautifully restored and quite pristine. We found a beautiful restaurant with vaulted rooms and distressed cream furniture and fittings. The waitress was wonderful – told us which dishes weren’t really Lithuanian, and as a result we ordered a huge starter for five of us, of local spicy cheese and long sourdough croutons and cheese sauce. Rather like cheese fondu in texture. After that, I couldn’t manage a main meal, so had another starter – mushroom soup. Then the five of us shared a piece of apple crumble before paying and exploring the other rooms of the hotel. A gorgeous place. Vilnius is the sort of city you’d like an extra day in – I didn’t dare go in any of the shops selling amber, just wouldn’t know where to start. Or stop….Unlike Warsaw, the hostel is really only minutes away from the old city, albeit downhill, so there’s a climb on the way back.

We have a late start tomorrow, don’t have to leave until 10am as there’s a relatively short run to Riga. Then we’re there for 2 nights. But early though it is (it’s 10pm but we changed a time zone today so it’s really only 9 pm) I’m really tired, the room is moving so I need to get to bed. Night night!

Warsaw

Here at last, with 24 hours to go before I meet my fellow Ozbus travellers.

The flight took just 2 hours and we got to Warsaw in sunshine. Then a taxi ride into the city – it cost 35 Zloty (about £8) and was well worth it. My first impression was that the outskirts of are just like those of any German city. The state of the buildings, flats mainly, reminds me strongly of East Germany just after the Wall came down. Unmistakably a German or central Europe type of design, but very run down and in need of a paint job. A bit like some areas of inner and outer cities in Britain actually – just a different design.

Anyway I’m here now, have sorted out case and rucksack and although I planned to go out and find somewhere to eat or just have coffee, I’m actually too tired. So I’m about to have a shower and get into bed and read. The hostel is in a lovely spot. I’m in a 5-bed dorm (on my own) across a quiet courtyard from the reception and main building. There’s a kitchen at the top of the main building with free tea and coffee and free toast and jam for breakfast. So I’ll saunter over tomorrow before I set off to explore the city.

Saturday 2nd April – had a good night’s sleep and this morning had coffee and breakfast with my two room mates: Honorata who is a dance therapist and in Warsaw attending a course, and Agneska who is a doctor from Krakow, in Warsaw for a conference. Honorata and I spoke in German, Agneska and I spoke in English and they spoke to each other in Polish. So we did fine! I wasn’t sure where to go today – they recommended the Lazienkowski Palace and Park as it’s such a nice day, and there are galleries nearby on Marszalkowska. I decided not to go to the Chopin Museum as planned as I didn’t book online and didn’t want to walk for miles and not get in. So I decided to head for the park while it’s still nice! I felt I actually could do with a day in the fresh air after all the airports etc. Haven’t seen greenery since Tuesday when I left Melbourne!

The park and palace were beautiful – like being in the middle of a wood, with interesting little buildings appearing every so often. I had lunch at a quaint little Hansel and Gretel house in the woods, called Cafe Flora. Two wonderful lattes, a plate of salad nicoise and a cherry tart. Some fascinating people sitting at neighbouring table: a very smart woman in a red coat and jaunty red hat, flowing silk scarf and (fake?) pearls. She sipped at her coffee and talked to an equally elegant lady, but when she got up to leave I saw she had stripey plimsolls on…. The cafe owner was a woman dressed in flowing black, with a lacy skirt which wafted around. She treated her customers as if they were there on sufferance, but must have taken a liking to me because she slapped a menu down and pointed to the salad she would make me (having previously said there was no other food than cakes.) Wandering further around the park, I came to a concert hall where they were performing Chopin and Dvorak, with loudspeakers to the outside, so I sat on a bench amongst the trees, with picnicking locals around me, listening to the music and joining in the clapping.

By mid afternoon, I’d seen a few streets of imposing embassies and a lot of decrepit courtyards inside beautiful wrought iron gates, but my legs were giving out so I decided to return to the hostel for a rest before going exploring again. But when I arrived, there was the Ozbus group, just checking in! So I joined 4 of the others in a 5-bed dorm and started to get to know my fellow travelers. After getting on the internet at the nearby KFC and finding a local shop to buy essentials for the journey – bread, cheese, water, nut bars etc – we went out in the evening to a typical Polish restaurant (with rustic features and a bed in the corner). The dumplings were massive and many – I didn’t have those – but my trout, fried potatoes and salad was delicious. A lovely experience, and good company. The trip has been accompanied for the last few days by a journalist from ‘Der Spiegel’ and a freelance photo-journalist called Witold Krassowski has been following us and snapping us (and one member of the party in particular!) crossing roads, eating dinner and hanging about generally.


Leaving Warsaw we got a good look at the beautiful architecture in the centre of the city. I didn’t make it into this part of Warsaw and it really does look beautiful. The old city, too, was completely destroyed in the Second World War and has been faithfully restored. One day I’d like to come back again and explore it more. Anyone fancy a long weekend?

Travelling by air

….. as opposed to travelling overland as I will be soon.

It’s Wednesday morning (30th March), not yet 7 am and I’m in Singapore airport waiting for the plane to London. The flight here from Melbourne went quickly – one film, a snack, breakfast and a little snooze. Actually, I was violently woken when the plane fell into one of these pockets of turbulence. Just north of the Australian coast and before the Indonesian mainland. A dodgy area if I remember – planes always seem to stagger around the sky at that point. So I buckled up and tried to sleep and keep my snack down. The airport at Singapore is a vision of loveliness, especially at this time of the morning before it fills up too much. There are at most about 30 people sitting scattered around in an area the size of 4 football pitches. And the cleanliness and sparkle! Pristine, beautifully designed toilets, lots of glass, lime green and yellow signs lit up and comfy orange and brown seats. And the plants! Little rainforest oases at intervals. But best of all are the free foot and calf massage chairs dotted around. I’m still waiting my turn. If I were here for 5 hours between planes I could book on a 2-hour tour of the city, leaving from right outside. Or go and have a swim in the pool… but time won’t stretch and my cozzie is in the hold baggage. The sky is lightening outside and I’m going for another walk before boarding in an hour. Maybe grab a coffee with the few Singapore dollars I have left.

I’m sitting waiting in yet another airport – this time Heathrow Terminal 5. It’s now Friday the 1st of April, and I kid you not, I left my rucksack on the Hoppa bus this morning. By the time I realised I didn’t have it, I was up on the 5th level at departures. So I raced back, found the Hoppa had gone, but another driver radioed through and they found my rucksack before they arrived at Terminal 4, put it on a H51 as it came through in the direction of Terminal 5 and half an hour later I had it. Such a relief. Once on the road with Ozbus I intended to distribute documents, laptop, USB sticks with copies of docs etc in different luggage for safety. But assuming my rucksack would be glued to me as hand baggage, I’d left everything of importance in it for today’s journey to Warsaw. So, a valuable wake-up call. I am now really vigilant. My USB stick has been transferred to my neck pouch (where my passport lives, and some bank cards). Will I ever get on top of this? It would help if I wasn’t so tired! I was fine yesterday, but jet lag has now kicked in….

It was lovely seeing both Victoria and Marilyn at the hotel at Heathrow. Now I’m saying goodbye to them and the UK for another 3 months. I’m feeling the excitement now that I detected a few days ago from my fellow Ozbus travellers as they counted down the hours to departure from London. In about 30 hours I will make contact with them in Warsaw, and be on my way with them to New York! Keep reading this blog – I’ll post my news whenever I can get a wifi connection.

Leaving Australia

I can’t believe the time has passed so quickly and that in 36 hours I’ll be somewhere in the sky over the red centre of Australia, on my way back to London. (As I write, it’s nearly 5pm on Monday 28th March).

I’ve just been looking again at the photos I took at the McClelland sculpture park the other day and have to include these two. A solid circle of stones – small boulders really – suspended on strong cables about a foot above the ground. It’s only when you position the camera under the stones that you get a shot showing that they are suspended, and if you look closely, or enlarge the photo, you will see Ben at the other side, also taking a photo!

I spent part of yesterday beachcombing down at the sea again, one last time. Not much glass to be found, but that’s probably because my assistant Lucy was there before me, and as she’s nearer the ground than me, and has better eyesight, she got the pick of it all. Lots of interesting stones though… they might just be hardened mud, time will tell. If they’re reduced to powder by the time they get to Barry then they won’t be next season’s new jewellery line! There were only a handful of people on the beach – mainly walking dogs or jogging along the water’s edge. And no sounds apart from the bizarre cries of birds in the trees and a couple of guys racing each other on their jet skis.

On the way back, I stopped on the bridge over Kananook Creek to take photos of ducks swimming in geese formation, when all of a sudden, this boat appeared from the cover of overhanging trees. With a huge megaphone/speaker type thing at the prow I thought…. (it turned out to be a tuba)…. and 5 or 6 men on board. As I took their picture, the music started up – big band jazz stuff! By this time a few people had appeared in their gardens at the water’s edge and a group of walkers had joined me on the bridge, snapping away just like me! I was told they were on their way to the Kananook Day celebrations and invited to walk along with them. But I hadn’t had breakfast, or my tablets, so had to get home.

Later that day we went to an afternoon party hosted by friends who wanted to celebrate the fact that Ben and Jo are not leaving the area to live near Castlemaine. Lots of food, lots of kids (and their parents) in a meadow of a garden, with a hammock and a little bouncy castle. I found it hard not to do my child observation stuff – years of earning a living scrutinising kids is hard to shake off! Even at a young age you can almost tell which are going to be surfers in 15 years’ time, and which are going backpacking as soon as they can. Should I share this with the parents? Maybe not.

Today I did a lot of sorting out, last lot of washing in the machine, then off to the beach cafe with Jo for lunch. It really is the most gorgeous spot, with a small pier, pale aqua sea merging into darker blues once the sand falls away underwater. Little sandbanks with seagulls parading and pecking at snacks in the sand. Magic.

So tomorrow I’m off. I fly out of Melbourne at 5 past 1 in the morning of the 30th, and after a 3-hour stop at Singapore and about 22 hours in the air I get to London at 3.30 in the afternoon of the same day. There’s more magic! I’ve booked two nights at Heathrow (in a hotel, that is) where I’ll meet up for chats etc. with Victoria and Marilyn before flying off to Warsaw on April 1st. No jokes please. (Although I don’t trust Victoria to let an April Fools’ Day go by without attempting some sort of hoax. Maybe I should publish a list of her tricks over the years…)

I’ll drive with Jo into Melbourne tomorrow afternoon, meet Ben from work and spend the evening with them before they deposit me at the airport. Next blog post will be from somewhere in Europe…!