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Arrival and costs for Day One in Sydney

Arrival and costs for Day One in Sydney

I am going to try to keep track of our arrival and costs for day one in Sydney and the three days we are here.

Australia bound

After saying goodbye to Debbie’s parents at LA airport we checked in and managed to get into the Qantas business lounge. My Emirates gold card allowed us access to the lounge. Debbie enjoyed a glass of champagne. We also hit the economy jackpot on the plane. I had pre booked aisle seats across from each other and although told the flight was full, two people did not make it. Amazingly, it was the two seats beside us that were empty. We were able to enjoy no elbow shoving and stretch out a little for our 14 hour flight to Sydney. The flight went quickly and we caught up on some now not so new movies. I watched Fury, St Vincent with Bill Murray by far the best movie, The Equalizer, what was Denzel Washington thinking and an Adam Sandler movie called Blended which I regret selecting. The meals also on the plane were for a change tasty.

On arrival in Sydney we collected our luggage and breezed through customs. A $25 taxi ride and we were at our Airbnb accommodation for the next three days at Bardwell Park. It is a lovely house and we are a five-minute walk to the metro and a short 20 minute ride to central Sydney which is 12 kilometres away.  We went for a short walk to the town and had coffee. Bardwell Park has a few cafes and a Chinese restaurant as well as a few other shops. We  had a meal at the local Returned and Services League of Australia (RSL) for the grand total of $35 which included a roast and an 11 inch pizza, plus a very drinkable bottle of red wine.

The rest of the day we spent relaxing and organising our trip into Sydney tomorrow.

Useful tips of the day

Our host explained that if we had taken the train to the Bardwell Park train station a few minutes walk away we would have paid $14 each in tax on top of the train fare. If you ever come to Sydney check out the taxi cost to Sydney before going on the train, the taxi could be cheaper than the train depending on where you are staying. A taxi from the airport to central Sydney should cost $A 50. Another useful tip is eating at RSL clubs. An RSL club is normally for returned or veteran soldiers. However, guests and visitors can use them and have inexpensive meals. You need to register at the reception of each club and wear tidy clothes. There are RSL clubs all over Sydney and Australia.

Daily travel costs

Airbnb $75
Taxi from airport $25
Coffee and tea at cafe $8
Lunch at RSL $35
Chinese dinner $26.30
Total: $A 169.30 =US$ 132.00

Another lovely view

Another lovely view

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Debbie Bridge Australasia, Australia, Travel 1 Comment

Kelowna to Ontario road trip and the cost

Kelowna to Ontario road trip and the cost

This is a recap of the first part of our road trip around Canada and the USA. We covered a lot of ground, approximately 10,161 miles or 16,354 kilometres. The first part was from Kelowna in British Columbia, Alberta and then down into the USA through Montana, Wyoming and up to Michigan before crossing back into Canada and into Ontario. This post recaps the Kelowna to Ontario road trip and the cost of 171 days travelling.

What did 171 days cost?

One of our biggest savings is we did not have to pay for RV hire only fuel costs. My wifes parents have their own RV which they have been driving back and forth for 20 odd years between Canada and the USA. Accommodation costs were also low as we only stayed at hotels for two weeks of the 171 days. We also were able to stay with friends and relatives at no cost. The other major advantage was we travelled with Debbie’s parents for the five months in their 38 foot Dutch Flyer RV. Yes, I spent five months travelling with my in-laws in a small enclosed space sleeping on an air mattress. Happily, we all got along most of the time and occasionally Debbie and I took the car and spent a few days exploring specific areas, such as Nova Scotia.

The current running total of our trip is US$17,000 (excluding airfares and insurance) which works out at $99.40 cents per day. I budgeted for US$150 per day so it was nice to have a bit more in the kitty for our next few countries. We did a lot of our own cooking in the RV which kept costs down. Although we did eat out at restaurants. Usually for breakfast. Denny’s was a regular as they seem to have the best free wi-fi out of all the chains.

Canada

It is hard for us to believe that our North America leg of the trip is finished. The next part is Australasia. Not really looking forward to the 14 hours and 20 minutes wedged into an economy seat from LA to Sydney. Looking back on our journey through North America there have been numerous highlights.

There have been a lot of new memories with some great sights, adventures, restaurants and 10000 miles travelled. We started slowly in Vancouver catching up with old friends and meeting some new ones. We did the obligatory cycle ride around Stanley Park and then we headed up to Cultus Lake before spending a few weeks in the Okanagan catching up with family, doing the Penticton tube ride, wineries and a lovely boat ride on the Lake.

The first stop we had on the road was at a campground with hot springs near Revelstoke, which was a lovely way to start the road trip. Then on to Golden for a few days seeing wolves and bears as well as some nice scenery. Then to Banff fast becoming familiar to me after other visits. We also visited the Columbian Icefield and Jasper. This was early September and we were hit by a snowfall which slowed us down a bit. After Jasper it was back to Banff and on to Calgary where I got my correct six month visa to the USA. We then got stuck in Leithbridge a few days while the RV was repaired. Not a bad place to be stuck with lots to do and then on to Montana.

USA

Montana’s scenery was spectacular and I wish we could have spent a week here. We also found more hot springs at White Sulphur Springs and enjoyed a soak before heading to Yellowstone. Yellowstone was truly wonderful we saw grizzly, buffalo, Old Faithful and some amazing scenery. I particularly liked the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone. We continued on into Wyoming to Cody where we visited Buffalo Bill’s museum and did a side trip to Custer’s Last Stand.

We then went to my favourite state South Dakota. We spent a few weeks here and there was lots to do. We visited Mount Rushmore, Needle highway, saw a buffalo round-up and did a walk up to the Crazy Horse monument.

There were some more RV repairs in South Dakota and we then headed across Minnesota, Wisconsin and Michigan before returning to Canada to visit Debbie’s relatives in Ontario. I also visited an Ian an old friend in Niagara Falls and rewarded with some lovely weather.

The next part of our journey was in Quebec and the Maritime before heading down to Virginia.

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Debbie Bridge North America, Travel, USA No Comments

USA page updated

We have finished our USA and Canada leg of the trip. I also found out that I had not linked correctly USA adventures to our USA page which has now been updated and the USA adventures added as a sub heading. We have enjoyed sharing our adventures with our friends, family and people who are just interested in the USA and Canada. All I can say is both are big countries and I feel like we have only scratched the surface after five months. Next stop is Australia for a few days and then on to New Zealand for a month.

The end of the trip

The end of the trip

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Winding Down – Arizona and California

‘Where there is no struggle, there is no strength.’

Mom on Phone

Mom doing what she does best – sorting things out on the few phones that are still available

Our time in the US is winding down quickly. This is my last letter before we leave for Sydney, so, my next letter will be from ‘Down Under’.

We are back in warm weather – Arizona and California. Our first stop was at the Besh-Ba-Gowah

Besh-Ba-Gowah

Besh-Ba-Gowah

ancient Indian town.  An old town which they are still trying to understand their civilization, as they left like the Aztec and Mayans further south – during a period of drought. They believe they moved further north and turned into the Indians known as Hopi.

That same day, in the afternoon, we headed further down the Apache Trail in the Tonto National Park

Tonto National Monument Park

Tonto National Monument Park

where there are Cliff Dwellings.

Cliff Dwellings

Cliff Dwellings

These were a real treat, as most tourists don’t know these ancient ruins, plus you can walk through them after a hike up a hill. Here I learned more about the ‘jumping cacti or ‘teddy bear’ cactus. These cacti will literally jump out at you and attach themselves to you. Apparently, tourists, test this knowledge often, as recent as a week before we were there.

Teddy Bear Cactus

Giving the Teddy Bear Cactus or Jumping Cactus a hug!

Our final, main stop on this route was, the Roosevelt Dam – glad I, finally, got to see this dam.

Roosevelt Dam

Roosevelt Dam

Then, we were off for a few days of boon-docking (overnight in the Motor-home with no hook ups) in the desert with epic sunsets and fun friends.

Arizona Desert Sunset

Arizona Desert Sunset

We are, now, at our final destination before we leave the US – Palm Springs, California. Here we’ve been to the night market and C.O.D. market. Great places to find original stuff at reasonable prices.

Village Fest

Village Fest Market, Palm Springs

Yesterday, we made it to some more Hot Springs and an oasis – Coachella Valley Preserve. Where there are lots of trails to hike and look below at the valley – gorgeous!

Oasis

Thousand Palms Oasis Preserve

See ya soon!  I love to hike, do you have any favourite walks/hikes you have been on?  What are they?

Debx

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Debbie Bridge North America, Travel, USA No Comments

Last day in the USA before flying to Sydney Australia

Today we head to LA for our flight to Sydney. The last week we have been in and around Palm Springs. A lovely spot to relax before our next adventure down under.

Our last campground in the USA

We did a few things in and around Palm Springs including visit College of the Desert a weekend market, the night market held on a Thursday night in Palm Springs, Coachella Valley Preserve and we did a walk at a place called Ladder Canyon.

I am going to write a three-part overview of our trip through North America in the next week looking at the highlights of our North America trip.

College of the Desert

The COD market as it is known is open on weekends. It is on a college campus car park. We got there early and paid nothing for parking but when we left they had a sign out for $4 parking. There is also a shuttle that takes you to the market.

Lots of different stalls ranging from food, clothes to arts and crafts. There is also a food court where we had some delicious tamales. My wife knew what she wanted so we were there only a couple of hours. When we left at 11am the empty car park was full. My advice is go early. Prices were good and better than the night market we visited in Palm Springs on Thursday night.

Coachella Valley Preserve

We stopped off here on the way back from Desert Hot Springs. There are some lovely hikes and we did one out to the oasis. The visitor centre was closed so had to rely on some well signed trails. There are some huge palm trees with the desert backdrop and mountains in the background. There also are signs along the trail explaining what different plants were which I found useful.

Ladder Canyon

We did a hike at Ladder Canyon near Mecca. To access it you have to drive down an unpaved road for five miles. From the carpark you enter the canyon and around half a mile you see an arrow which you follow into a side canyon. From there you climb a few ladders, one is missing but it is not to difficult to scramble up the rocks. It is great walking through the narrow gorge and then up on to the rim of the canyon. After a mile or so you return to the canyon floor and walk back. It takes between 2-3 hours. It is free and not that many people go there.

I hope people are enjoying our blog and feel free to send any feedback.

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Debbie Bridge North America, Travel, USA 1 Comment

Driving the Apache Trail

Driving the Apache Trail

Apache Junction was our next stop for driving the Apache Trail.The Apache Trail is Arizona’s oldest highway built in 1905 and a renown scenic drive. We left Apache Junction early and went via Globe and then drove to the Tonto National Monument and Roosevelt Dam. From the dam you hit a dirt road for around 22 miles. We stopped a lot to just enjoy the views. Wonderful mountains and only wish I had a better camera to do justice to the scenery.

Besh-Ba-Gowah

Globe is the site of an old Salado Indian village site. It is also near a large copper mine which is still operating. Besh-Ba-Gowah is an ancient Salado Indian ruin. Besh-Ba–Gowah means place of metal and the name was given to it by the Apache. The village was established around A.D 900 and abandoned in 1400. The departure of the Salado was probably due to lack of water. It cost $5 entry which includes a short film, museum, the site and an ethnobotanical garden with native Arizona desert plants. It takes a few hours to wander around everything.

The Tonto National Monument

The Tonto National Monument cliff dwellings are in shallow caves overlooking Roosevelt Lake. The dwellings are around 700 years old. Access is only to the lower dwellings and you need to organise prior to your visit permission to get access to the upper dwellings.

The caves are around a leisurely 20 minute walk up a paved path. There are plenty of spots to stop and enjoy the view. In rattlesnake season do look before you sit down! At the dwellings are a couple of rangers who are able to give you lots of information about the history of the site. The rooms are quite small and there are great views down to the lake.

Tortilla Flats

We stopped at Tortilla Flats Superstition Saloon for a bite to eat. The town is literally around six stores. The saloon was a funky place with saddles for bar stools which was quirky. The walls are also plastered with dollar bills signed by previous patrons. Food was good. I had the super hot chilli. It was! My wife ordered the Grand nachos which were enough for four people. If you visit then check out the bathrooms and their artwork.

We then drove back to our campsite at Apache Junction after a full day of visiting sites and enjoying some great scenery.

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Debbie Bridge North America, Travel, USA 2 Comments