I don’t want to leave you waiting much longer.
Christmas felt more like an extended birthday brunch. There were salads and shrimps instead of a warm roasted dinner. Christmas carols played in twenty-five-degree heat. And then there was the usual Christmas stress — the kind you have in any family, anywhere in the world.
Still, it was very wholesome spending the holidays with the Rumbels and having a bit of a VIP seat for a classic Australian Christmas.
A couple of days later, we celebrated Friendsmas in Sydney with Jollie, Willow, Matteo, and Megan. It felt a lot like being back in Squamish — and even though it wasn’t, it was really nice to spend some quality time together. Playing games, exchanging gifts, catching up, and laughing a lot.
New Year’s Eve, for anyone who knows me, isn’t a big deal. So I was positively surprised to learn that the fireworks at The Entrance would go off at nine o’clock at night — meaning I was in bed by 10:30 pm. Just the way I like it.
This is my third year now of not caring about staying up until midnight to scream “Happy New Year!” — and honestly, I’m loving it. But that’s just me.
The new year, though, started with a good old road trip.
Matteo and I made plans to head south to the Great Ocean Road for a week. In just seven days, we drove close to three thousand kilometres of incredibly scenic highways.
The first days were mostly spent driving. Straight after work on Saturday, I packed the car, hit the road, picked up Matteo along the way — and we were off.
Our first stop was just a rest area beside the highway, which turned out to be decent enough for a night’s sleep. We were up early again and kept going — somehow much easier and faster than people had warned us. Everyone was worried we were underestimating the distances, but honestly, it was exactly how I imagined it. With both of us able to drive, covering those kilometres felt surprisingly manageable.
Side note: I’m very happy to report that Betty made it all the way without any issues — even though she was slightly tortured by Matteo and his enthusiastic manual-driving abilities.
By Sunday late afternoon, we made it to the Bay of Islands, which is basically the last attraction on the Great Ocean Road. We cooked dinner on the gas cooker on the tray of my truck and enjoyed the sunset while wild camping close to the coast.
The tray of my ute quickly became our camping table, storage room, chill area — basically everything we needed for the rest of the week.
Even at the peak of summer, Victoria surprised us. At night, temperatures dropped to around ten degrees Celsius, leaving us shivering a bit during the first few nights. We definitely hadn’t expected that.
We stopped at the Twelve Apostles, explored Otways National Park, and visited countless small and big beaches — each somehow more beautiful than the last. We even saw koalas in the wild.
That moment was surreal. Easily one of my favourite memories Down Under so far. The koala wasn’t just sleeping like they usually do during the day — it was eating and moving around. Utterly fascinating.
We also snorkelled in Jervis Bay, where we spotted a small wobbegong, a stingray, and a bunch of colourful fish.
Last weekend, we met up with friends at Cattai Campground for Willow’s birthday — and our last get-together as the original Canada group before Matteo took off. It was a very fun (and very hot) weekend. We spent our days swimming in the river, playing games, and hiding under the gazebo while a forty-degree sun was blasting down on us. Even the river wasn’t much of a refreshment. Thankfully, the cold showers were working and park rangers checked in on everyone regularly.
But man — after ten days on the road, I was more than ready to sleep in a proper bed again. I also realised how much I need a bit of time and space to myself every now and then. Travelling has a funny way of teaching you things about yourself.
By Sunday afternoon, I was ready to drive home — especially since I had packed the car on my own andcleaned it up again on my own, while Matteo spent his last days at Jollie’s place in Sydney. It made sense, being closer to the airport — but he definitely got himself a pretty luxurious travel package along the way.
Work is consistent, but was definitely hard to get back into – even after one week on the road. At the moment I get to train new stuff, who will be replacing Jacob (he‘s leaving to start uni), and at some point me.
Crazy to believe, in three months time my work permit will run out and I‘ll only be able to travel the country. What will happen after Australia? I‘m not sure yet. I definitely got some ideas – we‘ll see what works out in the end. You better get some popcorn ready!
Anyway, now it feels like I’m really making the most of it. The only thing missing from my camping setup is a proper cooling or fridge system — something I’m currently looking into. I can’t wait to take Betty on our next adventure.
On another side note: The Great Ocean Road in just the last ten days got hit by wildfires and now flooding, which destroyed quite a bit of its beauty. The moral of the story? Don‘t delay your travel plans – it can all change rather quickly. Maybe I‘m not just speaking of travel plans…
Stay tuned for more! So long, fellow travellers.
marie louise travels 