June 28, 2016
Good bye Tasmania. It was a beautiful, educational experience. The man I rented L’il Beast from was so very nice. He shuttled me to the airport. He was talking about trips he and the “woman” took. It so reminded me of John.
At the airport, they would not let me check my big bag in until exactly 2 hours before departure. That meant that I had to wait before I went through security for about 2 hours. I sat and had a coffee, gosh I’m drinking a lot of coffee, and read. I saw a politician come in, with his two little ”assistants” who wore jackets with his name emblazoned on the back. Along came several news crews, and they had a press conference about 6 feet away from me. I thought of photobombing, but I had already been spotted as a Yank, so I kept still.
The flight to Sydney was uneventful. I will say that Qantas has the best food. They served a pastrami pesto panini, say that three times fast, for free. It was quite good.
I took the train from the airport to Sydney Central Station. It was a lot like riding the Metrolink. When I got to Sydney, I couldn’t believe how many levels, gates, etc there were. I had a hard time finding my way out. People seemed to know where they were going. There were over 30 platforms. I don’t know how many levels, but there were a lot.
I had specifically booked a hostel across the street from the stations, as I am catching the train to Tamworth early tomorrow. The place I stayed at was called Bounce, and it was just great. I booked into my room, which was a 4-person woman’s dorm. When I got to the room, I was the last girl to the room, so of course I got the top bunk! Don’t laugh, but I’m sure the sight of me getting my fat bum of the ladder was hilarious.
My room mates were an interesting and fun lot. There was one American, from Washington, D.C. Then there was a quiet girl from South Korea, and a spirited girl from the UK. We had a lively discussion about Brexit, Scotland’s move for independence, and the silly season in the U.S. with Trump and Clinton. At 7, three of us went to the roof, where they were serving wine and pizza for $5. I met the nicest girl from Brazil who had never traveled internationally. She said that at her job, they were wanting her to improve her English skills, so she chose to go to Australia. Now my US friends who know John are laughing like crazy. Anyways, I had way too much wine, and had a great time talking with Bianca, the Brazilian girl. As a side note, I was the oldest one there, until a grandpa from France showed up. We clinked glasses!
When I went back to the room, gratefully, all four of us went straight to bed. It felt good to take a real shower and sleep in a real bed.
June 29, 2016
I got up this morning, and did my best to not wake my roommates. I wanted to be at the station 2 hours before my train, so I could make sure I found where I was supposed to go. Luckily, because I wasn’t taking a commuter train, it was much easier to find where I had to go. The train gods were not smiling on me, just like in Los Angeles. The train was delayed 2 hours because it was broken. It was so damned cold on the platform, that the train people brought out coffee and tea for the people who were waiting. How wonderfully civil!
The train ride was very nice. I was in 1st class, and the seats were very comfortable. About half way through, a young lady, about 10th grade came in and sat next to me. Up to that point, I was the youngest on the train BY FAR. I must have been in the geriatric car.
We finally pulled into Tamworth at about 5 pm. Michelle, John’s oldest daughter, and Stacey, her daughter, were waiting for me with arms wide open. We rode back to Michelle’s house, and spent the evening catching up. I handed John’s remains to Michelle, and we had a bit of a cry. But then we both heard his voice chiding us to quit slobbering. Corey, Michelle’s son, and Mark, her husband both got home, and we had a wonderful family dinner. It’s good to be home.
My Grieving Widow's Tour 