Karma is a b****

Melbourne, Australia

It cannot always go wrong. I mean that the unexpected events, at some point, must stop.

Still, the next unexpected thing cost me two deposits for a room in a hostel. I took the time to plan everything. I chose a tour that would bring me from Mebourne to Sydney in three days, instead of taking a boring bus or a train that would link the two during the night. With that tour, I'll stop in some other cities on the way, one of them being the capital Canberra.

The problem is, that tour goes three times a week. And the day I wanted to leave is already fully booked. Thanks Grand Prix!

After choosing to leave Melbourne earlier to book that tour (that's why I lost my deposits on the rooms), I stopped to eat. I bought a dessert in a small shop where you pay your frozen yogurt  based on it's weight... unless you guess exactly the weight of your own little cup. And guess who got it totally right, right on the dot? ME!

Ok, karma is like income taxes. You give, you give, and when it's time to get something back, you always get less than you gave. A free frozen yogurt in the Grand Prix frenzy? Makes my week. Karma! (I hear Marie-Eve say : he won something again... damn!)

Karma in action, the travelers stuck to leave Melbourne because of the Grand Prix are now all searching for solutions and plenty of them are offering to share the rent of my (small) australian car. I thought it would cost me so much... I might be able to get away with it for less than 20 $ a day for the car. Not too bad!

I'm leaving tomorrow for the Great Ocean Road, driving on the left side of the road as much as possible. And I'll be back in Melbourne on Monday. Departure is on Tuesday towards Sydney. One week later, I take off to Hong Kong for the beggining of my asian adventure. The ticket is freshly booked.

And I didn't say anything about the kangaroos I fed. And the penguins I saw. I will do next time.

Meanwhile, it has been a month since I'm gone. Five to go. Time goes by very fast and I still have so much to see. Looking forward to explore Asia and to get good exchange rates...

Race... to leave Melbourne

Melbourne, Australia

Country number 3 : Australia. Here I am in Melbourne, where the adventures are... interesting. Let's say it that way.

Lessons are coming in at a fast pace.

Lesson "number" Z (!) : When you say to the border patrol that you don't have a return ticket, try to refrain from looking nervous. That one was nice and saying "no worries". But the fact that I couldn't tell where I would be three days from now bothered him. I will make sure I have an answer to that in the more sensitive countries. Consolation prize : the border patrol in Christchurch wouldn't stop calling me "My Love". 

Lesson number 12345.1.2.3 : when you buy a flight ticket, make sure you get in a city you don't know while the sun is still shining. Or let's say not after 8 P.M. Looks like having to walk all Prague around midnight, without any money, last year, wasn't enough to convince me. Here, the shuttle I was told to take to get to my hostel is not running after midnight. And since I spent a lot of time trying to cross the border... Plan B : another shuttle and a tram. BUT... no more tram. Plan C : share a taxi with another stuck traveler and have the hostel worker welcome me with « I was wondering where you were... »

Lesson that goes with the pink TZ form you can find on the 12th floor : when you choose a destination, make sure there is not a very big event in that city. Just in case you would have missed out on booking a hostel or a hotel two years ahead.

It's just that the Melbourne Formula 1 Grand Prix will take place this week-end. It's just that the track is... right across the street, in front of my hostel. It's just that there are no rooms available anywhere starting Wednesday. But my hostel got a cancellation for Wednesday and Thursday. I will be able to stay at least until the action begins.

So, in the list of things that make me say "I don't like Melbourne, but only for the wrong reasons", we can add : 1. Having a dog smell my luggage in the airport, while I was standing on a painted line on the floor. 2. Having another dog peeing on me while I was sitting on the ground, in a park, trying to eat my lunch. 3. The owner of the dog whispering "I'm sorry"... Well, you better be "sorry", because there is nothing more you can do but control your freaking dog. 4. Being in a hostel where decibels are at all time above the legal limit, where people knock very hard on the door in the middle of the night to greet their one-night partner. Youngsters... 5. A wi-fi with which you need to fight for ten minutes before being able to use it.

So, nothing too important. Nothing I can't forget in a few minutes. Nothing to make me forget the beautiful 23 degrees of this end of summer. And the anticipation of seeing penguins and koalas tomorrow.

Before Wednesday, I'll try to see if I can rent a car for the week-end to run from the frenzy of the Grand Prix. Kaching! You have to do what you have to do. Trying to get over stuff by thinking I'll be able to find a room for 5 $ in South-East Asia.