The Last Resort

 On our last day in the ‘resort phase’ of our trip, we are discussing what we love about staying in resorts.

Life is relaxed. Everything is here, so that we can choose specific activities as the mood dictates or just slowly gravitate to them as the day unfolds.  As the Restaurant Manager at Pacific Bay advised me at breakfast, “Stay for a while and sit in the sun near the water, have another coffee and read the paper. Wait until 12 and order a bottle of wine. Why not?”

 When we go out for the day, we love coming home, not just to a lovely suite or apartment but to the whole place. It has a village atmosphere that is comforting. Yes, I know it’s an artificial village populated with temporary residents, but everyone accepts that and for the time we are here, it’s real.

 We love resorts at this time of year, when the pool or restaurant or bar has only a few other couples or families. At times, some conference delegates intrude, but usually we don’t have to queue or compete with anyone else. We sit by almost deserted pools, walk along beaches and pass perhaps four or five people.

The view before us feels as if it’s only for us and when we do pass someone else, we nod and smile, not minding sharing , instead silently congratulating each other on the wisdom of our choice.

And when we stay a long time, we notice that walking past the same scene each day often means seeing it in a different way each time, not just in a different light but noticing more details. The beauty is in the close up.

Love these friends of ours xx

 It’s a fabulous feeling to wander around Gerry and Tania’s, to sit in a sunny corner out the back in the gentle warmth of day’s end and absorb the peace of Nana Glen.  

 Later we move inside and their daily life swirls around us all, with both of them trying to orchestrate the kids plus ‘see’ to us as well as get dinner ready. Friends of theirs drop by with some freshly caught kingfish and settle in to the evening with us. They are easy and open to talk to and I feel as if I’ve made new friends.

 Gerry has always been the king of story telling and tonight I am reminded why.  Some of the time he talks so fast I can hardly keep up, but then I hear just a few words to make me remember a lifetime and I burst out laughing. Stories are recounted for the benefit of others, but mostly for ourselves I suspect, to remind us of where we’ve come from and what we share. We have to keep the memories alive and so we help each other.

And all the while, Gerry keeps downing beers as he throws magnificent pizzas together, listening to the conversation of others before stepping in with a comment - sometimes outrageous, sometimes thoughtful, always entertaining. He is a brilliant man and I love absorbing the way his mind works.  Once the kids are bathed and fed, Tania finds time to relax and enjoy the conversation too. It’s lovely to get to know her as this is only the second time we’ve met.

I enjoy that there is so much to say and hear and learn and laugh about – a perfect night!

This theme continues the next day at the Rushforths for lunch. (We certainly are being well fed!)

 Initially, it seems as if we’re all talking at once, so excited are we to see each other. But enough fragments of conversations filter through so that we understand what we’re saying. The pop of a champagne cork brings us to the reality of the day in a way that makes me smile. I love that sound.

Once we change to still wine, conversation flows at a slightly steadier pace, although Ian can’t help himself, providing an hilarious commentary that weaves and bubbles its way through the afternoon. I am reminded not so much of old times but of personalities: Ian and Deahne’s warmth as well as their intelligence and quick minds; Ian’s rapid fire wit and wicked delight in playing with language and ideas; Deahne’s cleverness and perception, her calm way of seeming to sail through apparent chaos and bring a quiet order. Such fun to experience again. And to reacquaint ourselves with Evie, almost 17, is a delight, especially to witness the way she is like her parents but also independent.

It is lovely to feel so welcomed in both homes and even lovelier to know that thanks to Jeni’s relocation to Queensland next year, we will have a fabulous excuse to visit again.

We know we’re lucky to have such friends, friends who make us feel comfortable and valued, and also rejuvenated. What a mix!

Almost Home Territory

This second half of our trip has a different flavour from the first. Once we arrived in Twin Waters we were in familiar territory and now that we’re heading south, we’re also covering more familiar ground.

The newness in this half comes from catching up with family and old friends, to see the changes in our lives since last we met. The familiarity comes from those same family and friends as well as the roads we travel and the towns where we stay. Everything is more comfortable, more relaxing, more like a ‘regular’ holiday. Heading south also makes it feel as if we’re heading home.

Something quite unfamiliar, however, was our little exploration of Griffith University and the Village residence to check out where Jeni will be spending the next three years. It felt good to walk around and get a feel for the place, with our first impressions being very positive. It is comforting to be able to picture her there.

Before leaving Queensland, we had a quick afternoon tea stop with our friend Angela and her sons Sam and Tim. Sam and Charlie are the same age, and Angela and I met in a mothers group when they were babies, back in our Wollongong days. We have seen each other since, but no-one could remember the last time with any accuracy. The years didn’t seem to matter as we all chatted non stop throughout the afternoon.

Tim may well be at ANU next year, so I can be a support person for him if there are any emergencies and Angela will do the same for Jeni in Qld. We love how our lives have brought us to this point of symmetry.

Onto Peppers Resort at Salt on the far north coast of NSW, where we stayed in order to catch up with Jon’s sister Jo and her beautiful family – husband Dave and sons Jack and Wil - who live nearby.   

We enjoyed reconnecting with them all, having a bit more time to chat and find out what’s really happening in all our lives. We also enjoyed watching the boys one night at Salt Bar and Grill, when Dan the Balloon Man fashioned incredible toys for them. Their eyes never strayed from his every move and they laughed with delight when presented with each masterpiece.

I’d forgotten what kids they age are like and it’s lovely to know that we’ll be seeing them more often over the next few years. As Jeni’s aunt and god mother, Jo is most excited about Jeni’s living closer to her and is already formulating plans for get togethers. Dave has been supportive of Jeni’s move since we told him last Christmas, immediately grasping a sense of the opportunities that this change opens up for her.

Great brother and sister photo!

 

Stopping off at Byron Bay for a few hours was also stepping into familiar territory but it felt different this time. In previous years, we haven’t felt very comfortable there, but this time we revelled in the eclectic mix of people and the relaxed atmosphere. Even in the off season, it was busy, but it felt as if people weren’t all trying to be cool.

 We ate our lunch sitting under a pandanus tree, (Hello Mark) gazing out at the gentle activity on the beach before us, feeling as if we could just quietly melt into the scene.

We had a wonderful night with old buddies from Richmond High days, Dryse and Tracey, who live in Clunes, a village north of Lismore. We were reminded of what we’ve always loved about them and why we’re thankful they’re still in our lives. We hadn’t seen them for several years, but again, it didn’t seem to matter.

It was the same feeling the next day when we had a quick lunch stop with Kerry in Lismore. Even though we had seen her reasonably recently at ‘Rockview’, it was lovely to catch up with her in her home territory and to ‘swap notes’ on the changes in our lives since then. I’ve known her since we were in Yr 6 (45 years!!!) and having such a friend is precious.  Definitely some familiar territory there, but always something new too.

 

And so, here we are at Pacific Bay Resort at Coffs Harbour. I have stayed here before (when I was in Coffs doing HSC marking) but Jon hasn’t. Today and tomorrow we are seeing two more sets of old friends, each from a different part of our lives.  

And we have warm sunshine and blue skies to watch over us – something  which we have grown more than used to. (but that's another blog entry - somewhere down the road)