My new home,

Location: Sydney, eva`s backpackers (The house in the middle, with dark blue parasols)

The last day`s i`ve been pondering to go with the bus or travel by car. Both definately have their advantages. With bus you meet lots of people, dont have to worry if you`re driving in the right direction and in the end might be a little cheaper. But the downside is you sit in a stinking bus, need to carry all your stuff around, need to plan your hostels in advance and cant go where you want to go. With a car it might take a little longer and more effort to get to your destination, but you can take all your shit with you, travel with who you want, go where and when you want and dont have to rely on hostels... I`m going for the car...

Just as in the Netherlands there are multiple ways to get one, licensed dealers, resellers, auto-barns and private adds. After looking around at different places; i saw an add for a `94 Ford Falcon station wagon for $1500 including some camping gear. I called the guy, Nils, and said i would like to make a testdrive. We would meet the next day at Kissing Poin, a ferry stop.

The next day... I needed to find out how to get to Kissing Point, so I ended up waiting an hour on a bench at wharf 5. Just when I took my lonely planet out someone sat next to me and said: "aaah, the bible for Australia, looks live you just arrived since mine is all worn out". Looking aside i see an old hag, waaaaaay over 60... why doesnt a younger version, a 40 year younger version sit next to me instead? I muffled something about just being here for 2 weeks, but she continued to herass me with here questions. OKAY... I`ll be nice and have a talk. We talked about where i was going and that she went back to England this thursday. Just when she wanted to unpack her bag to show me the presents she bought for her grand children (dear god no...) her boat arrived... SAVED!!

So i picked up my lonely planet again and not before a minute has passed i hear some shuffling besides me and a cracked voice: "I like waiting in the sun, why would i wait in the shadow when i can wait in the sun?". Looking aside but fearing the worst...

Zoh My God,

Go wait in your grave you fossile.

Thinking he would leave me alone if i stared interestingly enough into my book, but ofcourse no... old people Do know how to terrorise the young ones. Talking is like their revenge for walking past them 3 times as fast, or laughing when they fall the stairs with their rollator... I guess we call it even then. So again I play along.

So he talked about living in Perth (WA) and going to Sydney with friends on holiday. He moved to Perth 50 years ago. (50 years ago??? In which era were you born then?) I didnt ask that, but instead: "Where are you going to now"?

He: "The Netherlands". I dont think he actually heard what i asked, but the conversation just went 10 times as interesting.
"WHAT"?

"I lived in The Netherlads".\

"Ik kom ook uit Nederland, spreek je nog Nederlands"?

He: "Ja, dat vergeet je niet meer" in very correct and articulate Dutch.

So after that he told how he emigrated to Australia. He was sent away to Indonesia for 5 years, when he came back he was asked what he wanted to do. He wanted to be a photographer. But since the army didnt need any of those; he was offered an office job. After 6 months he quitted and went traveling, arriving in Perth he thought it was a nice city and got of the ship (de tegelberg)

At the australian he got asked the same questing as in the Netherlands: what do you want to do? Again he answered photographer. But since Australia didnt needed those as well he had to work 3 years in the industry before he got his Australian nationality, after that he started as photographer and did that for the next 47 years...

Moral of the story: dont laugh at old people when they fall with their rollator...

Anyway, i bought the car for $1400. That is cheap but I`ll need to have some repairs on it soon and extend the registration at the start of july.

At the moment i cant keep up with the writing...

- Nils

- Mining business.

- Traveling with.
- First Sydney drive...

Ill fill those in later