Friday – 17 December 2010
Twelve months ago we decided we would have the weekend prior to Christmas away and were fortunate at that time to secure a site at the Easts Beach Caravan Park near Kiama. Almost twelve months to the day later we were presented with an identical set of circumstances and once again, telephoned the same caravan park and secured a booking for a two night stay (the minimum stay a week before Christmas). As was the situation last year, Christmas, the New Year and other family related reasons, would stop us from planning any further trips until at least the end of January 2011.
On Friday, he had to go to work for the morning but was able to leave the city at midday. By 1:30pm we had left home and were plotting to determine the best way out of Sydney to avoid the traffic. Last year we travelled in the motor home, this year we decided to take our car with us. Communication between the vehicles was via CB radio.
Following numerous trips south, we believe that the best way from our home (which is in Sydney’s inner west) is to head to the M4 at Strathfield, then headed west turning off at Silverwater Road and then headed towards Bankstown, Lucas Heights and finally the F6 heading south from Heathcote. As was the case 12 months ago and again, much to our surprise, the traffic was very light and a relatively quick trip south was enjoyed. Unlike last year when we experienced fog short of Wollongong, the weather for the trip was perfect. “He” spent the entire trip listening to the radio and the events that were taking place in the third Ashes Test match with Australia starting to remove the English batsmen.
We had considered stopping at the Crooked River Winey at Gerringong or possibly the Kiama shop before our arrival at the caravan park but decided to head directly there and get setup.
As was the case 12 months ago, we were provided with a large grassy spot in an area that had 8 camp sites. Again we were on the only occupied sites and it remained this way until we departed on Sunday. If you want a quiet weekend away, it definitely looks like the weekend before Christmas is the way to go.
After establishing our camp and firing up the air conditioner (it was warm with very little wind), we headed back into Kiama with the intention of purchasing Christmas cards and a fish meal for tea. We had no trouble finding suitable cards and were soon purchasing fish (and a feed of prawns – medium size fresh farm prawns for $12 per kilo.) from a local fish shop. We did strike a problem with our car during the trip back to Kiama with the right hand turn indicator failing. This looks like an intermittent issue with the vehicle computer and will be resolved once we return home via a computer reprogram.
Back at the caravan park, we enjoyed our fish meal and washed it down with an excellent bottle of sparkling wine (we order wine from Crooked River) we had brought from Sydney.
We spent the evening watching the most recent version of “Miracle on 34th Street”.
Saturday – 18th December 2010
We had not set the alarm and were able to sleep through until just after 7:30am. The day was overcast and after breakfast, we extended our awning and then proceeded to wash it. We had brought with us the relevant material required to perform the task including a soft brush on an extension pole. We spent a significant time working on the awning with excellent results being achieved.
After completing the task, we returned inside the motor home where “She” spent time in writing our Christmas Cards which he watched the second part of the Bourne trilogy. “She” also spent time with the computer preparing a generic letter that would be included in some of our Christmas Cards.
After lunch we decided to drive to Berry and spend some of the afternoon browsing the local shops. The drive south was very enjoyable and for once “He” enjoyed driving our PT Cruiser. After checking out the local showground (there was no one there that we knew), we had no trouble in finding a parking space before embarking on our browsing adventure. We did buy a small car for our Grandson and some essentials from the local IGA store.
After returning to the caravan park, “He” cooked chicken schnitzel for our evening meal while “She” finished off the Christmas letters. Our evening meal was enjoyed with another bottle of wine from the Crooked River Winery and we watched the final part of the Bourne trilogy before heading to bed late in the evening.
Sunday – 19th December 2010
We had intended to have bacon and eggs for breakfast however, we decided there would be more benefit in a quick breakfast and then to commence our trip home for a lunchtime arrival. This would give us the afternoon to prepare for Christmas.
We didn’t actually hurry but managed to leave the caravan park just after 8:30am. Due to the problem with the car, the plan was for the motor home to closely follow the car and cover and right hand turns when the indicator was not visible. For the record, we did this and returned home without any problems.
“She” did notice that one of the fog lights on the motor home was not working and an inspection during a stop on the way home confirmed a blown globe. Changing of the globe appears to be a major challenge due to a difficult access path to the area where the globe is installed.
We returned home via Campbelltown and the M5 and will consider that route in the future. On this occasion, there was road work near Bankstown that would have required us to divert via Sutherland. The Campbelltown option got us home relatively quickly.
We arrived home just before lunch.