Not quite as planned. That’s how it all came together. In fact everything took longer than expected. Everything we owned had to go through packing triage: do we sell it, ship it, donate it or try to fit in our already bulging duffel bags? And so the 11h hour panic which at first seemed a distant possibility soon became inevitable. Our emotions swung between the excitement of imminent travel and the hectic reality of two people hastily packing up their well established life together. But eventually we had packed up all our bags and boxes and lives and we were on our way to LA. Must every journey of a thousand miles begin with too much luggage? Apparently it’s liberating to scale back one's possessions to the essentials but at the time it's just not that obvious. Must those old roof racks and collapsible chairs really go to landfill? In the end we shipped two dozen boxes and had an expedition worthy pile of excess luggage.
Vancouver is officially the world's most liveable city, as long as the question is asked in July. And so it was in 2015, but the clouds rolled in and finally wept as we taxied to YVR. We felt numb with relief as the wheels lifted off and weight of to-do lists lifted off our shoulders. In our tired hungover state we even saw meaning and symbolism where it didn't really exist. Finally nothing more to do than sit back and fasten our seatbelts. What a relief to have found a real buyer for our SUV, only the day before take-off. But take-off we did, taking a break from employment, local friends and always knowing where to find a good coffee. But all well worth it in exchange for a long roam around the planet. First stop West Hollywood.
Our stress levels needed a couple of days of doing nothing much but that wasn’t going to happen at the Mondrian. What started out as a poolside cocktail soon escalated into a boozy pool party. OK maybe not a surprise, but appropriately superficial and very LA. Five mojitos deep and soon we're best friends with some well tanned local wannabe's and getting travel tips for Ibiza. Yes that guy on the sun bed really is espousing the Learnings of Scientology. That night it's an underemployed actor trying loudly to impress with stories of time on set in Toronto. All good fun but merely a quick stopover on our way 'home' to Sydney.
Something we need to do on this adventure is work out where we are going to live next. And as if on cue, Sydney delivers near-perfect weather for us, even in mid-winter. We could almost hear the Qantas choir singing "I still call Australia home" on the white sandy beaches out our window. Sydney really is a premium city. Premium quality all at premium prices and that fact isn't lost on anyone. It is particularly good for coffee, brunch, beaches, thai food and expensive property. We were lucky enough to be staying with friends in Coogee Beach where it was warm enough for ocean swims and all the fun stuff we missed most about Sydney. Life is great. And then you get stuck in the traffic with plenty of time to mull over how it's all much less affordable than when we left five years ago. In Melbourne we hung out in the grungy but trendy cafes of East Brunswick and drank enough coffee to last us maybe 6 months on the road. Then to Perth as the final stop in the "Aunty Charlie tour of Australia" and also a place we might end up one day. To me it's the quintessential city in Oz: relaxed, not too big, nice weather, beachy, and a bloody long way from anywhere. Yeah we could live here but first we need to roam...