Just like “Where were you when man landed on the moon?”, “where were you when you heard that JFK had been shot?” or “where were you when you heard Princess Diana had died?”, “Where did you spend Covid19?” will be asked for generations to come.
When campgrounds began closing at an alarming rate and as lockdown loomed on our horizon I was very fortunate to be offered a sanctuary in the backyard of Lyall and Jackie’s place near Bundaberg. I first met them last year at a Campground in Daly River NT and stayed with them a few days in early December last year on my way south. They are warm generous people, right into their camping and fishing and I cannot thank them enough for accommodating me and Rhonda for so long. When I arrived on 27th March I honestly thought it may be for 4 weeks maximum. 10 weeks later…..
Although I pretty much keep to myself most of the time anyway, when I first arrived I made sure I kept my distance “just in case”. My days were pretty much on my own, sitting under the awning of the shed, reading, on the ipad, talking or texting on the phone or going for walks, mostly around the block. Late afternoon we would normally meet under the open patio for a few drinks and a game or two of darts. As the days shortened and an afternoon chill in the air descended, the fire pit was sometimes lit.
Friends would ask if I was getting bored but I was never once bored. In fact I have never been bored once on this whole around Oz adventure. You learn to accept what is and go with the flow. I would go into Bundaberg once a fortnight to shop and give Rhonda a run. I did a few things with the bus and got rid of a bit of stuff that I had carried since leaving Collie but never used. I had bought new house batteries so put those in as well. Towards the end of the time I went out in the boat with Lyall a couple of times and caught up with a friend from Perth that moved over to Bundaberg a few years ago.
With Covid19 plans have changed somewhat. Not going to Northern Territory again this year as I had originally planned, instead I will head north west and explore a bit more of Queensland. I am sort of starting to feel a bit like a Queenslander as I have spent far more time in this state than any others.
The following photos are from some of my walks around the area.
rayaroundoz 