9 months Sabbatical

September - October 2019 Read more

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9 months Sabbatical
Gordon river and Sarah Island boat tour.
March 10, 2020, Indian Ocean ⋅ ☀️ 17 °C
Last bit of my birthday prezzie was Hannah treating us to a boat cruise.
Got up at 7 to get to the dock. Managed to sneak some last min discounted window tickets, setting off in only 10 mins time. Whooo.
Glassy smooth fast catamaran ride up the river with a brief stop off to look round the world heritage Woodlands.
Had a tour around Sarah island, a very nasty place back in the day, where second offending convicts were sent to do hard labour, including boat building.
Back at the port we saw a saw mill in action and some lovely bits of Huon pine slabs which would make a fantastic table, only 2000 dollars a pop....
Driving East towards Lake St Clair we saw some old mining towns with some impressive coloured landscapes.

So there we were... driving along, when suddenly a huge metal plate with a number plate detached from a trailer passing in the opposite direction. Did a very quick jerk to the left but it still skimmed the side of the van. Only a 15cm scratch, but could have been way worse, as it had bounced pretty damm high.
The other car didnt stop, so I retrieved the number plate from the road and went onwards. Knowing lots of insurance based faff was to come. 😫

Stopped in a nice wood pub for the evening, where they let you stay in the car park if you have a pint. We had a curry.Read more
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9 months Sabbatical
Lake St Clair, The Wall and 3 Falls walk
March 11, 2020 in Australia ⋅ ☀️ 19 °C
Cold start to the morning outside the pub. Layered up and drove a short way to Lake St Clair. Walked along the side of the lake for an hour and a half. Lots of massive felled trees and saw one black venomous snake. It warmed up so quickly that Hannah took of 4 layers in 30 mins.
Next stop The Wall. I had been looking forward to this all holiday. A huge wall of hand carved Huon pine. Amazing detail, some awesome craftsmanship, no idea how the guy does it. It is all done by carving down and making the 3D relief shapes. Must see if you visit Tassie.
We finished the day by doing the 3 falls walk. A series of 3 waterfalls with massive eucalyptus trees all around.
Stayed right next to the walk in the National park for only 16 dollars. Bargain.Read more
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9 months Sabbatical
MONA
March 12, 2020 in Australia ⋅ ☀️ 22 °C
Drove to MONA, a massive underground cellar door, brewery and art museum.
Started with a bit of wine tasting and a pie and beer. Then started walking around the 3 levels. Some amazing pieces of art work. I obviously loved the glowing light room, a massive white room which changes colour to make the front of the room blend in with the sides. Followed by 20 seconds of strobe light. Very trippy.
Other interesting art was a man who is tattooed and just sits there for 6 months of the year! Also a pencil that is controlled by the wind outside, and continually draws patterns of the weather.
We spent about 4.5 hours there in total then left to go see Auntie Jan for dinner.
Finished the evening with some star gazing, spotting Elon Musks starlink satellites.Read more
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9 months Sabbatical
Admin rainy day. Last day in Tassie
March 13, 2020 in Australia ⋅ ⛅ 22 °C
Got up outside Auntie Jan's house. Joined for some breakfast then started on the days admin.
We needed to book an onward flight from the Philippines otherwise we would not be allowed in.
Sounds simple huh.... however we saw a news article saying that the country would be in lockdown for 30 days from the 15th of March, to limit the Coronavirus outbreak. We were landing on the evening of the 14th. But the visa only lasts 30 days.
A few hours of going round in circles of what to do and other locations brought us back round to just going anyway, as they have good healthcare, have very few cases compared to the rest of the world, and are taking good steps to stop the spread. Plus potentially being in a hot country with sailing, surfing and diving probably wont be that bad.
So booked a changeable flight to Kuala Lumpur for early April.
That faff done we set off towards Richmond. Didnt end up doing anything apart from lunch as it was raining hard and we tried calling airlines and embassies for extra advice.
I tried calling the police to get a report number from the number plate incident. Cant do it over the phone. Drove to one place... closed. Drove to another, 30 mins of statements later I had a incident number for potential insurance claims.
Then drove to the van rental to show the damage. He said it was only minor and not to worry. 😃
Cleaned out the van and went for an early night.
Faff and admin day done.Read more
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9 months Sabbatical
Bye bye Tassie. Hi Philippines. OR NOT!
March 14, 2020 in Australia ⋅ 🌙 9 °C
4.30am start to get to the airport on time. First leg to Sydney with a 2 hour stop.
Then onwards to the Philippines with Cebu Pacific Airlines.
Got to Sydney, was in the line for about 40 mins to check in, only to be told out flight was cancelled. They brought in the Coronavirus lockdown in a day early! Bugger!
Hopefully will be able to get a refund 😫.
Soooooo then we had no plan. What to do or where to go. Or even if to go at all.
Ideas of Venuatu or Samoa, or even going all the way across to south america.
Ideally wanted to get somewhere today, so flight choices were narrowing fast. Eventually settled on Bali as they had a low virus level, and with a bit of luck they wont close the boarders like the rest of the world.
Made it into the country, with no issues. After a bit of taxi faff and downloading the local Uber equivalent, we made it to our accommodation. Hot hot hot! With the advertised air con being a fan.
23 hours of travelling done! Bed time.Read more
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9 months Sabbatical
Hello Bali!
March 15, 2020 in Indonesia ⋅ 🌙 29 °C
A very hot night under no covers. But still both got off to sleep ok.
Had a nice omelette brekkie then walked down the the beach. Instantly hired some surfboards and went out for 2 hours. I helped Hannah with learning some tips, she caught a few good long waves on a foamie.
Chilled out having some lunch overlooking the surf. I then hired a small board and went back in. Had a great time and caught some good lefts. (All lefts on the beach).
Made our way back to the accommodation for a beer by the pool, whilst keeping an eye on the latest boarder closing updates.
Going to need to keep on top of the planning I think to ensure we dont end up having to go into self isolation between visiting countries.Read more
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9 months Sabbatical
Decisions decisions
March 16, 2020 in Indonesia ⋅ ⛅ 30 °C
Spent the morning sorting refunds for various flights and calling insurance.
Then went to town for a hair cut for me, got some extra strong sun cream and had some lunch. Very hot. Loads of stores along the road selling endless amounts of cheap tat. Who ever buys that stuff?
Back to the accommodation for more admin whilst dipping in and out of the pool. Finished with an amazing coconut chicken dish.Read more
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9 months Sabbatical
Seeing the sights of Bali
March 17, 2020 in Indonesia ⋅ ☀️ 30 °C
We decided to hire a driver to see some of the local temples and sights.
We aimed to keep away from other tourists by going at opposite times to when was suggested to be most popular - success, hardly another traveler in sight! We visited Tanah Lot temple, a monkey forest, Taman ayun temple and finishing up at Uluwatu temple.
All the streets are lined with shops, with everything from wood carvings to pots to tat shops. We only stopped in to a surf store to get some wetsuit booties to try and prevent reef rash.
The temples were definitely not as impressive as others we've seen in Japan or Taiwan, but great locations along the cliff edge.

We then got dropped off at our new accommodation, where we hoped to have some aircon and a room we could keep the mozzies out of!Read more
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9 months Sabbatical
Dreamlands surf spot
March 18, 2020 in Indonesia ⋅ ☀️ 30 °C
Had breakkie at our place then walked down to Dreamlands. Got the usual con price from the surf shop for 2 boards and a sun lounger for the day.
Started with Hannah on a foamie. She caught quite a few waves, good size for learning.
I had a wonder to find some lunch. Found a place just off the beach with no one else there. Cracking food.
In the afternoon we changed Hannah's board for a shot board and I taught her how to duck dive and sit on a short boat. "Not as easy as it looks".
Had one massive storm roll through. Where Hannah tried to hide under an umbrella, till I got her in the sea. Far warmer!
We watched the sunset and went back to our place for a sandwich, as they had run out of almost everything else.Read more
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9 months Sabbatical
Surfing at Bingin
March 19, 2020 in England ⋅ ☁️ 6 °C
Walked about 20 mins south to Bingin beach. Pretty small surf, but nice for long boarding.
Hannah and I both rented boards.
I stayed in for a little longer than Hannah and had empty waves to myself for about an hour. Blissful.
We sat watching the waves, having some food and researching what activities to do over the remaining 11 days including surfing, diving, free diving and maybe more tourist spots.
By late afternoon the waves had got even smaller and a few more surfers were around.Read more
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9 months Sabbatical
Going to Amed for freediving training
March 20, 2020 in Hong Kong ⋅ ⛅ 22 °C
With 10 days left of the holiday we decided to do 3 days of diving / free diving and 7 days of surfing.
Took us ages to figure out which area to go to for the best free diving, best courses, location etc.
Eventually settled on Amed. Near to (but far enough away from) an active volcano.
After much faff of finding a taxi, we selected a free dive course to do and got them to arrange a driver to pick us up.
The driver told us all about the upcoming silent festival where the whole island shuts down and no one is allowed on the streets. (Well I guess that is one day of surfing out the window already).
Arrived at our lovely hotel, got upgraded to a nice big room over looking the pool and the sea. All for only 17 quid a night. We were the only people in the restaurant with a meal costing £2.50. Bargain.Read more
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9 months Sabbatical
Freediving day 1
March 21, 2020 in Hong Kong ⋅ ⛅ 24 °C
Had a simple breakfast of toast as my stomach was feeling a bit average.
Walked 30 seconds to the Fusion freediving school.
Met our instructor for the day, an Aussie called Dave. Taught us freediving theory and some of the breathing techniques. I managed a 3min 15 hold out of the water. Hannah about 30 seconds.
Then went diving in the ocean and did some freedives both pulling down a line and swimming near the line down to about 15m. I really enjoyed it and felt very comfortable being able to have a 'float' at 15m down to look at the fishies.
The evening was at our restaurant with no one else around. Went down to the beach to show Hannah the nearby active volcano. Manage to get her 'I'm not happy with being so close to that' face.

We did much discussing about the pace of lockdown of various countries and decided to bring our flight back from the Saturday to the Tuesday.Read more
TravelerGreat piccies of you and the volcano x
3/28/20Reply
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9 months Sabbatical
Freediving day 2
March 22, 2020 in Hong Kong ⋅ ⛅ 25 °C
Started with more stomach friendly toast and met our new German instructor called Verona.
A good bit more theory before going to the pool for some more training. We did some rescue practice which was one of the key things I wanted to learn. Then a max breath hold underwater test.
Hannah got a massive improvement with a 2 min hold. I got my max ever of 4mins underwater. (The time required to become an instructor apparently).
Then out to the sea for more rescue drill practice and and some more fun dives to 15m.
One exam later we were both qualified to freedive level 1. Whoop.
With the changed flight to be much sooner, I organised a taxi back to Uluwatu surf spot for hopefully one final day of epic surf before heading home.
He managed to get lost on the way back. So the 2.5 hour ride ended up taking about 3.5 hours. Passed classic rice paddy field terraces with active volcanoes as a backdrop. Very pretty.
They drive super close to each other everywhere with continual scooters zooming past and honking. Not the most relaxing. Also made less fun again by Bali belly and excess accelerating and braking.Read more
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9 months Sabbatical
Surfing the world famous Uluwatu
March 23, 2020 in Hong Kong ⋅ ☀️ 26 °C
Got up for the start of breakfast at 8am. I was starting to feel better from stomach pains now, so felt up for a bit of a surf.
Walked down to Uluwatu beach. (World famous beach which breaks onto a shallow reef producing hollow barrels).
All places where you could rent a board were closed! Can you believe it, almost empty world class surf and I couldn't get in. Uggh.
Walked back through town to try to find somewhere. No good. All closed. A bit frustrated we went back to call up the airlines to ensure the flights were still going.
At about 3 we set out again to see if any surf rental places had opened.
Only 1 had, and was taking full advantage of it with her prices. Rented one for 2 hours and jogged down to the beach.
Within a few mins of me walking over the reef and paddling out i heard a load of whistles blowing on the shore, with people waving to come back in.
Initially no one moved. But then a few of the locals went in and the rest started following. I managed to catch one average wave before paddling back in.
Not quite the surf ending I was looking for.
Got back and the beach was closed. It sounded like this was going to be a permanent ban on beach access for the next few weeks. Definitely time to head home. Good that we changed our flight to tomorrow. The evening was spent watching films and worrying about the news that Hong Kong (our transit location) was to close 15mins after our flight was due to leave. Definitely could not have left it any later.Read more
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9 months Sabbatical
Time to go home to the UK.
March 24, 2020 in Hong Kong ⋅ 🌙 22 °C
Checked out after breakfast and heard police in the street on loud speakers saying things are locked down. Our accommodation was saying there would be no taxis to the airport.
Although our flight was not until later this afternoon we thought it would be best to just get to the airport so quickly got the lady at the counter to take us to the airport.
All looked on time... so far so good and all ok with a temperature check to enter the airport!
Waited for a few hours until check in and then successfully Checked in for the first leg to Hong Kong. Whoop!
Easy flight but full.
Hong Kong was going into lockdown at 11.59pm for all people going through transit.
Our flight was due to leave to Heathrow at 11.45pm. Cutting it pretty fine! We didn't explore the airport, just headed straight to the right gate, passing another temp check on the way.
It took off and we were away! Yes! So all should be fine as long as the UK doesnt go into lockdown on the way back.Read more
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9 months Sabbatical
Landing in the UK - Final day of travel
March 25, 2020 in England ⋅ 🌙 1 °C
Landed in the UK at 4.30am. The plane was completely rammed with people all trying to get home.
Very surprising to have NO checks upon entering and only old advice on the current guidance. Not what you want to see when coming back home. No wonder the UK is having Covid 19 troubles.
We were lucky to have an M and S open at 6am as we were walking past to get to the train. With not many people around. Stocked up for at least 5 days.
Took the train to Terminal 3 bus station. Loads of people everywhere, no one paying attention to the 2m rule. We all should carry round big sticks showing what 2m actually is for those who have forgotten.
Got on the bus which they only filled to about 1/4 to ensure people were far away. Went to Newport and on to Hannah's brothers house to collect the car.

Then off to an air bnb in Downderry to have 5 days in isolation before heading back to home (once tenant vacates).

Plans for the next 2 weeks of self isolation:
1) Yacht master theory
2) Video edit 6 month of trip
3) Do a business plan for my next big idea....😁

What a fantastic 6 months with my fantastic travel buddy Hannah. Shame we had to cut it 3 months short, but I'm sure we will be off again soon enough. Once the world has sorted itself out again.

Thanks for reading all. When normal order has resumed, make sure you all go out and have yourselves a great journey.Read more
TravelerThanks for sharing your travels! Your posts have been brilliant to read! Thank you! Xxx🍹🥂
3/26/20Reply
TravelerThanks for the entertaining commentary, welcome back
3/28/20Reply
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Trip end
March 26, 2020