After working for two days on Thursday and Friday, it’s finally time for the weekend. Earlier that week, Izzy asked me if I wanted to go for a hike, and that sounds like a perfect way to spend a Saturday. She suggests the Royal National Park, where she also trained for Nepal. Earlier that week I had a quick look on Maps and spotted a little place called Stanwell, that seems like a cool destination to hike to, not biased at all because of the name… From Garie Point it looks like an 18–20KM return. There’s always a way back, and shorter is always an option.
I head out well prepared: some fruit, cookies, and I baked a banana bread. Everything packed in my bag. More than enough for a few hours of hiking.
We drive to the Royal National Park and in the car on the way I ask Izzy whether we’re going for “Advanced” or “Beginner.” Izzy chooses Advanced. “Sure?” I ask. “Yeah sure…” Bold choice but okay.
We start walking and after barely half an hour our first mini challenge appears: a small stretch of water blocking the trail. I carefully analyze the best crossing route. Even though I’m wearing crocs, dry feet are still the goal here. I take a step and make it across dry. Then it’s Izzy’s turn. Her legs are a bit shorter than mine and without thinking too much she completely missteps straight into the water, clumsy. Boom, one fully soaked foot. While I’m standing there with dry feet, I burst out laughing, mixed with a little guilt. But she’s not fragile, and since we met in Nepal I know she’s overcome worse things than a pair of wet socks. Anyway, a funny start and luckily she can’t be bothered too much.
We keep hiking and our planned 18KM means 9KM there and 9KM back. I can fully be myself around her, and we casually talk about all kinds of things while enjoying the beautiful views and beaches along the way.
Still, after a few hours it gets a bit quieter behind me. I know exactly what food is in my backpack, while Izzy asks for a short break for a first snack and tells me she can get hangry if she continues too long against her will.
Haha, I recognize that better than anyone, getting grumpy from too little food and too much effort, I’ve been there a lot of times. Although I experience it much less these days. Ever since I tried fasting once, I seem to handle it better. We continue and the route remains insanely beautiful.
After walking a bit further, Izzy gets quieter again and asks for her phone so she can start checking the route. Internally I laugh because I know these are the cryptic signals that she’s reached her limit. After nearly 7KM, it’s time to stop and turn around. We sit down for a while and the food I pull out of my bag arrives at the perfect moment and is more than enough to bring back her smile from being hangry. I laugh, we laugh, together.
It’s beautiful to recognize these moments: just beyond your limit, and then the appreciation for something tasty and comforting. A solid 7KM done, and another 7KM back. No need to force anything on the way back!
On the way back I suddenly smell a BBQ, and soon enough we discover that the local beach hut association is having an open day. Being my cheeky self, I ask what’s going on.
I get handed a delicious sausage and donate five dollars. Then the oldest owner, 93 years old and still walking around just fine, gives us a little tour and tells us about the ongoing lawsuit and the non-transferable ownership of the beach huts. Funny what you discover when you stay curious.
We didn’t manage to reach Stanwell by foot, so we decide to go there by car instead. Beautiful lookout. Our lunch tastes unbelievably good and very well deserved after the hike. A deeply satisfying day, followed by a great night of sleep on my air mattress.
The next day I meet up with Charlie in Coogee and we walk along the coast toward Maroubra. He has a van and we chill for a while in the parking lot. In the afternoon Erwin, Joram’s cousin, picks me up and we head to Robin’s place for a BBQ.
Robin is Joram’s best childhood friend and has been living here for almost 10 years now. I met Robin a few years ago when he was visiting Amsterdam with his girlfriend, and now he has built a beautiful family with two boys.
A perfect Sunday, and kind Robin drives me home afterward. Great guy. Good father. Someone who found peace in a suburb away from Sydney’s chaos together with his Brazilian girlfriend. A beautiful love story and a cozy Sunday roast for me .
Then it’s Monday and I’ve got another small job. This one is less exciting: pumping away rainwater and digging something out. My task is finished pretty quickly, and my client, a Chinese man, disappears for the entire day. Fine by me. Relaxed. I clean up a bit and when I call him he says he’ll be back in half an hour. Strange workday, very different from Robert Plumb Fix. I get to go back there the next day. A good working day, and the people there genuinely give me energy. In the evening I meet up with Daniel, a German guy I met in Koh Phangan. Back then I found it special how calm he was and how openly he expressed his admiration for me. After Thailand he returned to Germany, but not long after getting home he decided to leave again. He has just come back from Fiji and traveling around Australia. And now here we are, four months after last seeing each other in Thailand, sitting together in Sydney. Funny how people cross your path. Just a beer and some travel stories before he flies back to Germany. The following day I’m back with Simmo and Robert Plumb Fix, and the day after that I think I’ve got nothing lined up. I notice a little stress creeping in about needing to make money. Now that I’m paying rent and making expenses here, I recognize an old pattern returning. I need to learn to let that go.
I have more than enough not to worry, and I should focus more on doing things I enjoy. The moment I tell myself that and let it go, I immediately get a message asking if I can work at another house in Mosman. Mosman is an extremely wealthy neighborhood filled with huge expensive homes kind of like the Aerdenhout/Amsterdam Zuid of Sydney. Plenty of money and plenty of work.
This time I work together with Anthony laying a protection floor, learning something new while walking around in my socks. Anthony is a kind guy who wants to get his builder’s license. Raised here in Sydney by Cambodian/Chinese parents. He’s 32, brews his own beer, and wants to earn his building license while working for this company. Leon, the owner of the construction company, is also a good guy who isn’t afraid to get his hands dirty himself, so together we have a productive day.
And just like that, I’ve completed a full workweek. A satisfying and productive feeling. Lovely.
The weekend after is a special one: it’s ANZAC Day. A holiday somewhat similar to King’s Day, centered around war veterans and freedom. It’s also the one day where you can legally play 2-UP a heads-or-tails gambling game in pubs. It’s incredible scenes: everyone throwing dollars into the air while challenging each other one-on-one on a coin toss. An amazing day that I spend with Izzy and her friends. Drinking plenty to get pissed and fully immersing myself in an Australian ANZAC-Day. Was there some flirting involved? Yeah, of course. Why not…’
Even though my gambling skills aren’t exactly impressive, I still feel like I won that day and especially the memory of ANZAC Day itself.
Sunday comes with a small hangover, so it’s off to the beach to relax. Monday is also a public holiday, and I spend that day at the beach too, this time with Charlie. Relaxing, a refreshing swim, and a good pie. An amazing week.
Despite working life, I still have plenty to write about, which honestly surprises me. At first I thought life would become much more boring once I started working, and I even considered pausing my blog for a while now that I’m working.
But I keep writing, and it’s genuinely good therapy for me to keep putting my thoughts on paper. I feel happy here and I’m entertaining myself well enough. I stay flexible, I have a direction for myself, and I know every plan you make can always change.
For now, I’m in Sydney. And that’s enough for me right now. I try to live as much as possible in the present while staying open to whatever comes my way.
I live,
I live in the present,
I live in the present now in Sydney.
Enjoy, wherever you are!
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