Sunliner Northshore Fifth Wheel Caravan.........

That is the name of our new baby and eventually, when we are free to travel, our home on wheels.

We finally received the nod from Queensland Health to travel to Bennets Green in Newcastle to pick up our long awaited caravan.  We ordered this baby way back in October and it was completed early March, just as the Covid lock down commenced.  **sigh**.  The company that we bought it from was very obliging and didn't push us to get down there to take delivery but we really wanted to!
So after numerous emails back and forth we finally received the nod from Queensland Health to make our journey into NSW.  As we were not going near any Covid "hotspots" we did not have to isolate when we returned to Queensland so that was a relief.

We love our new van so much and can't wait to start travelling in it.  It has everything we need and more.  The only extras we included were a washing machine and an outlet in the bedroom for the TV!
Our stops on the way home at various caravan parks were just overnighters and we never even got to put up the annex.  We travelled 5000kms in 10 days, something we would never normally do.  You don't get to see too much travelling that distance in such a short time.

 It was very cold in NSW on this trip and silly me found out (too late) that I had not packed the doona!  So we slept the first night rugged up in as many clothes as we could find with just a light travel blanket over us.  The next night I realised that the air-conditioner was reverse-cycle!

Our first planned trip when Queensland opens, is Toowoomba and Gympie to see the family.  It will be the middle of winter unfortunately so I will have to pack lots of warm clothes.  Our next trip (if the  State borders are open) is to cross the Nullarbor. We will meet up with friends in Adelaide sometime in October and then we will possibly stay away until Christmas.  I'm excited already.

Here are some pics of the van.  I chose the colour scheme and was then a little worried about the blue but turns out that I adore it!  It is such a bright splash of colour.

New Digs.....

What an incredible journey it's been but we have now said goodbye to "Kuramar" and hello to retirement and the next exciting stage of our life.

I can say to you that it was a huge job to pack up our belongings and put them into storage but anyone who has been down that path knows that already. But, it has been more than 14 years since our last move and we have accumulated a lot of "stuff".  Everything non essential is now stored securely and the irony is that I don't think a lot of it will ever come out of storage.  I think a garage (shed) sale will most certainly be on the agenda down the track.

Our life now in Storage!

So where are we and what are we doing.
Our plan was to become grey nomads once we took delivery of our fifth wheel caravan that is waiting for us in Port Macquarie but obviously that ain't gonna happen!  I have written to Queensland Health for an exemption to drive to NSW to take delivery but after a week I still have not had a reply.  I will give it another week and then try again.....
So, at the moment we are staying at Coconut Grove Resort in Port Douglas.  It is lovely here and the unit we are staying in is for sale. I love it here and can honestly see myself living right here.  It is light and airy and the beach and shops are all within easy walking distance.  We have taken to going for a leisurely walk along the beach each evening and have now also incorporated a swim in the stinger net.  It is such a lovely way to end the day.  Philip has been getting up early most mornings and finding lots of different roads to cycle.  He likes to get his 40km in if he can.  I have also been finding different paths to walk.  I am constantly checking out what apartments are for sale!

The Marina - dead.....

Our new view

On that note we have a couple of apartment inspections lined up but are not hopeful of finding exactly what we want any time soon.  It seems all the good ones rarely come on the market and if they do they are snapped up very quickly.

So how are we filling our days.  Well so far it is all a novelty for us.  Philip tends to go to the shed most mornings to potter around.  This morning he has taken the Senator to the car wash for a good clean and vacuum. We really need to purchase some shelving for the shed but we need to go to Cairns to have a look for that but as Cairns is more than 50km away we will have to wait until restrictions are lifted.

I am still doing exactly the same things that I have always done.  Do women ever really retire?  Cooking, Cleaning, Washing & Folding are always on repeat. I am still trying to limit the amount of food I have in the pantry so I am thinking up lots of interesting recipes.  I walk to Coles nearly every day for the staples and a bit of a sticky beak.  It will be wonderful to see some of the shops opening today.

Well that's a wrap for me.  Has everybody downloaded the CovidSafe App?  Please do folks.  Do not be taken in by scaremongering about the app.  If you use Facebook, Instagram or Google and you have a tax file number, believe me there ain't nothing anybody doesn't know about you already!  So be selfless and smart and just download it.