Religious Nature

If we were to go by the 'direct' Australian way of naming things, then we had something to worry about with Death Valley. We had arrived at our staging post for this auspicious stage in our trip by passing through a town called Cartago, population 92. Our actual staging post was Olancha, somewhat larger with a population of 192. We stayed at The Ranch Motel, chosen from a blurry photo on the internet. The photos turned out not to be blurry after all; it was the building that was blurry and had a tumbleweed For Sale sign attached to the remains of its picket fence. The whole area was very ranchy with signs for Jed's Really Good Jerky, Elk, Buffalo, Venison or Alligator. We even ate at the Ranch House Cafe and witnessed an amazing electrical storm on the way back without even getting wet. Lots of stars too at night; all getting a bit reminiscent of the Australian Outback.

                      

                      

It did rain that night which meant that the seats on the bike were nice and wet in the morning and did us proud for the 101 degrees Fahrenheit in Death Valley. Steaming! We were still not feeling as hot as we had been in lesser temperatures in Asia. We stopped at Visitor Centres hoping to get a drink but they didn't sell drinks, just maps and tourist tut - a clear business opportunity going missing. We passed the lowest point in the USA and Mr Garmin registered -82m. Death Valley is quite vast, but not on the Outback scale, and we were through it by the afternoon. It was nonetheless very impressive and far less monotonous than the Australian Northern Territories.

  

                                               

                                             

 

Our end destination that day was Las Vegas and it being a Sunday meant that all the hotels were vying for trade. We managed a heavily reduced Junior Suite at the Venetian, St Marks, bridges, canals, painted domes, gondolas and all. Vegas is obviously fake and you know it. It's not hidden and in some strange way we feel OK with that. The real Venice, where every other shop seems to sell tourist tut, has become slightly fake too, though would never admit it. It was an interesting comparison.

                        

                        

                        

We cruised the strip a couple of times but we were heavily under vehicled. It was also very hot which added to our lack of cool. The hotels weren't the only ones plying their wares with cards being offered to us every fifty yards offering, 'Girls Direct - we can get them to you in minutes', or ' Hot Ass-scorts'. The Chippendales, Hot from Down Under, were also in town for the girls. All this is out there on the sidewalk as you walk by, with the girls in thongs (not the flip-flop variety) and nipple tassels selling we were not quite sure what, but it certainly wasn't Cornflakes. No tan lines on them either. This seedy side was ever present. Not sure how we felt about the slot-machine addicts still going strong in the morning when we left at 08.00 either...

                                     

                        

We avoided turning into pillars of salt on exiting and our next stop was Zion National Park. We just happened to stumble on a little town at the entrance called Springdale and it was absolutely knock-out. We made it our base for a few days and used up one of our days off to go canyoneering. This is Mormon heartland, but there are no silly musicals here just some absolutely incredible scenery and really friendly people. The tourist set-up is also both very professional and just at the right level. It is one of those places that you honestly ask yourself... what could possibly be better?  With our Annual Pass to America's National Parks we also visited Bryce which was also incredible, but very different. Bryce Canyon National Park, or at least the road through it is actually a ridge, not a canyon. Although not getting up to the @3,000m of Tioga Pass in Yosemite, it didn't fall far short at 2,750m.

                        

                        

The thing about these places is the hugeness; it's not about being able to see for miles, it's for tens and tens of miles without any sign of human endeavour. It will be a nice lead-in to the Grand Canyon.

No wonder the Americans say there is no need to leave their own country, as they can see anything they want and better back in the US of A.

                       

                       

And despite being diagnosed with terminal gearbox cancer the bike is still going strong, 'O Death Valley, where is thy sting?'

Paul & Francoise

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 



Return to sender

Leaving Sydney was our Sunday morning task, but we were not allowed to check in for our flight to Los Angeles. Good start to the day! We needed airline tickets showing our departure date from the USA before they would let us in, or so said Mr & Mrs Qantas at the check-in desk. So we hastily bought some cheap, open tickets that we could change or jettison. It felt very hard to start putting some fixed points in our life and especially ones that signify the end of our voyage.

A lot needed to be done before hitting the road again. Like getting the bike, having it serviced and repairing the top-box. It all went like clockwork except there was an 'issue' with the bike's transmission which could not be fixed in time. We haven't been counting our lives, so we don't know whether this is the ninth or not.

We have now been joined by our neighbours from Blackheath who have rented a very similar, but newer and without transmission 'issues', bike to ride across America with us. So then there were two...

So our big American bike is back where it was made having been ridden in Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Syria, Turkey, Greece, Italy, San Marino, Switzerland, France, Luxembourg, Belgium, England, Spain, Morocco, Holland, Germany, Austria, Slovenia, Monaco, Scotland, Kazakhstan, China, Laos, Cambodia, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore and Australia. Or at least that's what the replacement stickers on the replacement top-box say.

Our plans for America were the least fixed of anywhere we have been. It is the last leg of our trip and it has always been so far ahead of us, but now we are here.

The plan never really evolved beyond going from the West Coast to the East and to get there before it got too cold. Jim, an American biker chum we rode through part of China with very kindly guided us in joining up the dots to make a plan.
              
So we started off in Los Angeles, well Venice Beach to be specific. Venice Beach, freak shows, Great Big Waves and really wide beach, swimming in the sea with pelicans, Sunday night communal beach drum-ins, beachside cafes with flies and the homeless sleeping on the beach. It's one of the craziest places in the world. Not everybody's cup of tea, but you need to experience it for a couple of days at least because it is just fascinating. It's also home to the sister motorbike cafe 'Deus' where we had lunch in Sydney. The food was nowhere near as good though.

Everyone knows Los Angeles sprawls and we were transportless till we had the bike.  Public transport is hard to understand and almost inexistent.. Taxis are expensive. However Uber is rapidly creeping in town and it works incredibly well. It's the future.

 

                     

One is obliged to do some tourists things in LA.  We had time on our hands whilst waiting for the bike to be serviced and have a new front tyre - and be diagnosed with a suspected fatal disease -  so we saw the Chinese Theatre with its foot and hand prints and decided that female film stars had to have tiny feet. We spotted the Hollywood sign but only from a distance as it was 95 degrees Fahrenheit. We walked some of the Hollywood Walk of Fame, only some because of the same temperature issue. The human washing machine that is the waves on Venice Beach became very attractive, even for those that can't swim. No crocodiles, sharks or box jellyfish here.

We visited the adjacent Santa Monica and dined on the Pier which claimed itself to be the end of Route 66. Doubtless there are many such claims.

At last en-route. We headed North on Route 1, the Pacific Highway past Malibu watching the surfers and then on to Cambria which was a jolly, quaint little seaside town with chipmunks and a very nice restaurant. This wasn't really Beach Boy territory, let alone California Girls. But there were a lot of strange tree trunks left on the beach.

                                                      

Next day, big expectations! Hearst Castle was ridiculously over priced so we just used their facilities and free observation deck. Annoyingly the mist rolled in; we could only stare in the general direction of where we believed the castle to be. Onwards to an Elephant seal creche where they didn't seem to bother about the sea mist. And then one of the world's big motorcycle routes, the coast road North towards San Francisco through Big Sur. The combination of sea-mist and low cloud meant we didn't see much.

                         

                         

Never mind, by the time we closed in on San Francisco the sun came out and we decided that a Golden Gate Bridge photo opportunity beckoned. By the time we got there through rush hour and road works, the clouds had rolled in again. We did manage to see the Trolley buses though and dined in one of those less expensive American restaurants that serves all walks of life slices of roasted beef.

 

                   

                   

America is huge just like Australia. Australia we had little time and just had to reach our destination. So our American route can deviate  a bit; for the moment you could call it, 'Not Route 66'. So the dot after Big Sur and San Francisco was Yosemite and after ridingbthrough Napa Valleystaying at one of those cute recreated Western towns, Mariposa, we rode on in and saw El Capitan. We spend the day travelling there via Napa Valley. Yosemite itself was magnificent and of a scale that was truly impressive.

                  

                              

Things are gigantic here. It's not just the helpings of food, so much waste too, but also the SUV's and pick-ups, though cheap petrol does help explain the latter two. Australia wins on truck size though.

The next dot is Death Valley. Let's hope that it is not an omen for the bike.

Paul & Francoise

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

What to do...

...with your ageing, travelling parents when they invite themselves for a week.

When they arrive they will be pretty emotional and tired, so try not to put too much pressure on them. Their time-keeping might not be what it was, so it is best to probably take them out for a meal rather than plan some extravagant feast at home. As they will be overjoyed just at having arrived, it can be any old cheap foreign muck. Just try and get a corner table as they are likely to smell a bit and some of your friends might be in the restaurant at the same time.

                       

The next day break it to them. They will have slept and should be able to take the comments about personal hygiene. Just make sure that the washing line or airing cupboard is clear as there might be a lot of washing to do. Taking them out for a coffee is a good place to break the news. Don't ask too much of them the first day, perhaps a trip round the local hobby shops. Show a bit of interest in their hobbies, hinting that if you had the money you might want to partake too. Try and choose a hobby shop with a fab cafe as that way they will also buy you lunch. As you went out the evening they arrived it's OK to eat in the following day and let them go to bed early, but let them buy the wine.

                      

                      

Really need to start working on them now and a photo trip round the City is a must. Give them a good breakfast and they can last the day until they take you out to a decent restaurant at night. You can start introducing some of your friends at this stage, but keep the body pierced and all over tattoo-ed at bay for the time being. It's also a good idea to start introducing them to your local area. That way they can do the shopping, but also realise what an absolutely wonderful place it is that you live in.

 

 

Don't let them settle too much; getting up early to see the sunrise over the beach is a good plan. They can then marvel at all the fitness clubs etc and the people surfing at sunrise and be really glad that you live in such an environment. They will like walks in Royal National Parks and things like that and they can comment at it only being 25km from the City. A picnic lunch will be very much appreciated. On the night out, night in rota a simple meal at home will be all that is necessary.

                       

                       

Living by the sea you have to take them on the sublime coastal walk from where you live to the next set of beaches. Make sure there are coffee and cake stops along the way and start making a routine out of this. They really enjoy the picnic lunches, especially looking over the surf from the cliffs so you can do that again. They might need to do some personal shopping, as they will be underprepared for all the different types of weather they are likely to encounter when they continue their travels. Having gone for sunrise the day before, go for sunset over the City now before introducing them to a wonderful fish restaurant. Don't argue too much if they want to pay.

                        

They will still be up for the outdoors, so you can take them a bit further and test their health with some steep ascents. It's important you find out how close any inheritance might be and remember that the longer they keep traveling around, the more of it they are spending. As they are getting used to the place now, let them start picking up on some of the domestic chores and cooking.

                      

                      

                                    

They will be getting a bit tired now, so you are going to have to slow down a bit. A few sights in the City is a good counterpoint to the previous days walks. Make sure that there are appropriate coffee, cake and lunch spots, preferably with good views. An evening drink is appropriate after having had an easy day, but let them take you out at night as long as they can get to bed relatively early.

                   

Give them a lie in the following morning and take them out to a good breakfast cafe. Prepare them for your blockbuster event and get them preparing some food for it. Also get them to tidy up on their personal grooming, as they can look a bit bedraggled occasionally. It always helps to have friends who know how to skipper large motor yachts that can get their hands on one and take them on an evening tour of the harbour, where you can also eat the food they have prepared. A good opportunity to introduce other friends. Dropping them off the boat in front of lots of opera-goers leaving the Opera will also gain lots of brownie points.

                 

They are almost gone, so a wind down on the last day with some more local sightseeing. If you can line it up right, tie the visit in with one of their birthdays or anniversaries. That way they can celebrate it in an expensive restaurant and invite you a long too.                

Sydney has been brilliant. We stayed with Xavier in Bondi Beach and we were incredibly lucky to be able to do so. We are not sure why Bondi is so famous, but it really is a fabulous place and not at all as we thought it would be. It's not the big commercial resort we had imagined, but a wonderfully eclectic little village. We are very chuffed indeed that Xavier has decided to live here; so many cool places to discover that the tourists like us would not have otherwise found.

We would have liked to stay longer but that would have been imposing too much on Xavier. Anyway the trip is calling. The bike is also waiting in Los Angeles, albeit without its top box, which developed some structural cracks whilst we were posing in Sydney. It was bobbing around like a demented kangaroo at the back of the bike whilst we were trying to be cool. It's something that we will have to try and put right in America, otherwise we will have to jettison half our luggage. Whose half?

                

Paul & Francoise

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Down down, deeper and down

If anybody out there is still reading this, apologies. We will still keep writing for our own benefit anyway.

Apologies? The lady at the Route 66 Motel suggested we stop at 1770. We thought we had misheard. This is the Australians being subtle for once. One would have expected it to be called Cooklandedhere or something like that. Just like CheapestSpares Auto as the name of a shop, or Shipmybike the guys that are helping get the bike to LA on the next leg. Everything is just as it says it is. It would not shock us to find a website called Wewaterdownyourboozeandripyouoff.com.

                              

               

Anyway we arrived at Seventeenseventy late lunchtime and Paul pulled up in front of the first cafe he saw. In fact it was the only cafe. It had a stupendous view over the bay and lunch was excellent. So good that after we had found some accommodation for the evening we returned for a sunset drink at the bar, and then dinner. We even returned for breakfast in the morning. It was a pretty fabulous place. So apologies to all those not watching pelicans, looking over sandbanks in a turquoise blue sea with a warm sun and cloudless sky. Sorry.

                           

We then went to see one of the chums we had ridden with through China, in Rainbow Beach. 1770 was brilliant; Rainbow Beach was even better. Such beaches, perfectly clean and hardly anybody in sight. And although one felt the chill from the wind when the sun went down, it was otherwise super.

             

In the morning we were treated to a ride through the  Cooloola National Park, on an off-road track. It led to the beach that we sped up and down on. Over the legal speed limit too. And in a 1970's blingy gold beach buggy which had had the benefit of modern technology engine wise. Thank you Ron. Fabulous.

            

Brisbane next stop; it was also great fun. If only Bangkok could sort its waterfront out like they have here. After drinking looking over the river, we ate looking out over the river.

                           

 

In the morning Mr Harley managed to fit a new horn on the bike which no longer sounds like a bumble bee in a jam jar - the result of the pressure wash in Singapore. The day before the body had fallen off the horn too. We needed to keep heading down South and the biker guys suggested we head for Byron Bay the most Easterly point of Australia. So we did and watched whales out at sea, whilst eating a light lunch at the Lighthouse Cafe. There they suggested we spent the evening in Nambucca Heads.

                                              

So we did; who were we to argue? The weather was still super and we found a brilliant bed and breakfast type motel with views over the coast where the river met the sea. For the first time in Australia, breakfast was also included in the room price.
             

                               

And now the last leg to Sydney. We will be shortly be changing one Pacific Highway for another. On this one we have been heading South and on the next one we will be heading North. It has become very chilly now. We were wearing layers on the bike. It then started raining. The lady in our lunchtime cafe offered us some rubber gloves to put under our rather wet leather ones. The triumphal entry into Sydney wasn't what we planned. We were very cold with the last 300km ridden in the rain, which not only slows us down but makes us colder. So just like British summer-time really. The left lens also fell out of Paul's Aviators. His goggles had already fallen apart further up Australia, down to two pairs of eyewear now.

It's18.38 when we pull up outside Xavier's in Bondi Beach. It's nighttime and we are cold and wet. He doesn't recognise us on the street at first with us dressed in our bright yellow waterproof jackets, thinking us to be either road workers or dustbin men.

And according to Xavier we were also very smelly...

                           

Paul & Francoise

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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