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Canada, Cuba and Covid 19

maart - december 2020
In March 2020 a group of 16 riders from the Australian Ghostriders cycling group travelled to Cuba to complete an extended cycling adventure around the island. This journal documents Cuba and the COVID aftermath that cut our trip short. Meer informatie

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  • The World on Two WheelsCanada, Cuba and Covid 19

    A Real Miracle

    17 april 2020, Australië ⋅ ⛅ 13 °C

    A couple of days ago Maggie noticed that we seem to have developed a leak in our hot water service. I don't know how she notices such things, but I guess there is not much else to do nowadays, other than to go looking for things that are broken or leaking.

    When I examined the leak I came to the conclusion that it was a "dodgy connection". Since I am a complete moron I also decided that I could have a go at fixing it myself. Of course I immediately struck a problem - just about all of my tools are back home in Pakenham. Of course that didn't stop me.

    I went at the offending junction with the only tool at my disposal - a cheap pair of vice grips. Pretty soon the obvious happened. I made the leak worse. Much worse. It was time to the smart thing and call in a professional. While I was searching for a local plumber, my mind was busily calculating how much the exercise was probably going to cost. Your know the routine - $50 to answer the phone, $150 to turn up (even more if you want them to turn up on time) and then about $50 for every 2 minutes on site. If our finances were not already decimated enough, it was probably nothing compared to what one greedy plumber could do.

    I found a likely plumber on yellowpages.com.au and made the call. A cheerful voice answered and told me that he could be here within the hour. To my surprise he turned up on time with his apprentice in tow. I showed him what some idiot had done to our hot water service. He rolled his eyes and then set about fixing the damage.

    A short time later he knocked on the door to announce that it was all finished. I steeled myself for the awful invoice. "Will you send me the invoice ?", I asked. "No need to, it was only a small job, let's forget about it", was his unexpected reply. It was almost enough to stop my heart.

    Thinking that my failing hearing may have misheard the reply, I asked again "Are you sure ?" He reiterated that it was too small a job to charge for. If it hadn't been for the social distancing protocols, I might have hugged the guy. All I could do was thank him profusely, probably sounding like a senile fool in the process.

    It certainly was a surprise, and it was evidence that maybe times like this can also bring out the humanity in many people. I must admit that it was the highlight of our day. That plumber did not realise it at the time, but I know who I will be calling next time I need any work down.

    Later in the day we had a "virtual dinner" with our children and grandchildren. Although we had a few technical issues, we did finally manage to have our entire family (3 sons, 2 daughters in law, 4 grandchildren, 3 dogs and 4 goldfish) all on the screen at the same time. That was the second miracle of the day.    Meer informatie

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  • The World on Two WheelsCanada, Cuba and Covid 19

    The Brady Bunch

    18 april 2020, Australië ⋅ ☁️ 14 °C

    It seemed like a good idea at the time. I am not sure who suggested it first. The discussion had been floating around for some time - long before the coronavirus scare that has now enveloped us all.

    "Let's have a reunion of our French riders", somebody said.

    "Yes let's", someone else added.

    And so it started.

    Of course it's all very well to have an idea. It's another thing entirely to make it work, especially when all our participants are now confined to their homes in the pandemic lockdown.

    Well we do all have some sort of Internet access, even if not all Internet access is created equal. We shouldn't have too much trouble setting up a multi-way video chat. Or should we ?

    The process would have been simple if I had been setting up a chat room between 5 year kindergarten students, but I quickly discovered that it is much. much ,more difficult when the participants are all in their 60s and 70s.

    To make sure that everything would go well I even tried contacting each person on the previous night to have a practise and to go through the procedures. That was a mistake. A big mistake, After over an hour spent with just one person, trying unsuccesfully to help her turn her webcam on, I probably should have just given up. Against my better judgement the torment went on for another hour. I finally managed to get her to turn her camera on, but somehow in the process she managed to turn her microphone off. It did not bode well for the upcoming reunion. I gave up and went to bed instead.

    Much of this afternoon was spent continuing the self flagellation. I can tell you it was a (very) laborious process, but finally I thought we had reached the point where everyone knew what to do.

    "Just wait for me to call you at 6.30 pm", I instructed them, thinking that the hardest part was over.

    At the appointed hour I started sending out the digital invitations to the other 4 couples. Things appeared to be going smoothly when the first two couples joined without a problem. After a bit more fiddling we got the third couple on, but the fourth couple would not respond to my calls.

    We eventually called them on the phone and discovered that they somehow they had forgotten the start time. "Do we have to turn our computer on ?", they asked. "Well it would help a lot if you did", I replied.

    After a bit more fiddling we finally got everybody on line at the same time. Then everyone tried to talk at the same time. It sounded like the Tower of Babel. If that wasn't bad enough, people started randomly piushing buttons on their screens. "Would you all just leave the &&^%$# buttons alone", I yelled.

    People's faces randomly appeared and disappeared for the next 30 minutes, while elderly people in various locations around Melbourne played with their controls. Just when we had it right, someone (ie David Yates) would decide to leave the chat and reenter again. If I had any hair, I would have pulled it out in frustration. It was going to be a very long night.

    Somehow the dinner progressed and we started to make progress. People learned to take turns talking and to stop fiddling with every button on their screens. The final result was a screen with five windows, each one containing the faces of our dinner guests. I have to admit that the screen reminded me of the famous opening sequence to The Brady Bunch TV show.

    After the teething problems were ironed out, we were able to share a lovely chat and a whole lot of laughs. It was not the same as being together in person, but overall it probably went a lot better than I had feared. We may even do it again sometime.    Meer informatie

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  • The World on Two WheelsCanada, Cuba and Covid 19

    It Could be Sunday

    19 april 2020, Australië ⋅ ☁️ 13 °C

    Today might have been Sunday. Or it could have equally been Wednesday or Monday. The days of the week have lost their significance to us. Without the normal routine, punctuated by bike rides, table tennis matches, visits to the kids and the like, every day is just about the same as every other day. This seems especially true when the weather is grey. Even the sky seems to lose its clarity.

    So how did we spend the last 24 hours ? It's already becoming a little foggy in my memory, but I think we started with breakfast. Maggie then set off with her sister for an early morning walk with their two dogs. I read a couple of gripping short stories and then went back to fiddling with my locks. It was at that point when a type of disaster took place.

    One of my locks is called a "cruciform lock" because its key way actually consists of 4 separate channels, each alligned at 90 degrees to each other. Although this type of lock is common in Europe, they are relatively rare here. The main advantage of such a lock is that they are quite difficult to pick. The challenge lies in picking all four channels at the same time.

    A few days ago I achieved a personal milestone when I managed to pick the cruciform lock, not once, but twice. I was quite chuffed. Unfortunately when I returned to have another go at the lock today, I discovered that one of the pins was stuck. It resisted everything I could to do get it freed up. I decided to disassemble the lock. Stupid move.

    As soon as I removed the retaining circlip from the rear of the barrel, the barrel slid out of the body and miniature pins, springs and ball bearings went flying to the four corners of the earth. I spent the next 30 minutes on my knees, trying to collect as many bits as I could. Of course it was a waste of time. That lock is now definitely an "ex lock". The sad collection of remnants now resides in a small pill jar. Maybe I learnt something from the exercise.

    The day was too drizzly for an enjoyable ride, but we did pack our thermos and drive to the ocean for a nice picnic overlooking Bass Straight. It might have been Sunday, but it certainly wasn't a sunny day.    Meer informatie

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  • The World on Two WheelsCanada, Cuba and Covid 19

    The Sucker Comes to a Fiery End

    20 april 2020, Australië ⋅ ⛅ 16 °C

    Back in the "pre Covid" days we used to take the dog to the groomers for her regular haircut and beauty treatment. Those days are now long past. A few weeks ago Maggie ordered a set of dog clippers on line and set about learning how to cut hair (both hers and the dogs).

    This afternoon she decided that the dog really needed a trim. She propped the unwilling little beat atop the washing machine and set about attacking her tight black curls with the clippers. After about an hour of furious clipping the laundry floor was covered with black hair and the poor dog was modelling her new "Madam Pompadour" haircut.

    Maggie announced that the dog was finished and then set about vacuuming up all the hair clippings. For a little while the house resounded with the normal sounds of vacuuming, and then all hell broke loose. The air was rent with ear splitting cries, just like a demented banshee. At the same time Maggie started yelling for help.

    At first I thought she must have sucked the little dog right up the hose and into the vacuum cleaner.

    "It's on fire", she yelled. No, not the dog, the vacuum cleaner. By the time I ran to the laundry the room was full of acrid black smoke, billowing from the cleaner. It was quickly switched off and cast into the yard. All the windows were opened to clear the smoke. Once out into the open the cleaner continued to billow out smoke for some time. Now that was quite an unexpected turn of events, although in a strange way it did give colour and excitement to an otherwise drab day.

    The vacuum is still sitting outside, but we both know that it has sucked its last gasp. Its next resting place will be the garbage bin. I suppose we can't complain since we only paid about $70 for it around 10 years ago. That works out to about $7 a year. Not too bad.

    Later in the day we had another picnic by the inlet and then drove to investigate a future bike ride to Venus Bay. It was a nice ending to an exciting day.    Meer informatie

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  • The World on Two WheelsCanada, Cuba and Covid 19

    Cycling by the Seaside

    21 april 2020, Australië ⋅ ⛅ 16 °C

    I know how important it can be to take advantage of opportunities when they arise. That is why you should never pass a toilet without making use of it, especially when you are of more mature years.

    When we awoke to a perfectly blue sky, I knew that it was going to one of those glorious autumn days. It is this sort of day that makes this one of my favourite times of the year. It was just too good an opportunity not to take full advantage of.

    We packed the bikes onto the car and drove to the outskirts of Wonthaggi. It is still very ambiguous whether such activity is allowed under our current restrictions, and Maggie spent the whole time looking behind us expecting a police car in hot pursuit. Fortunately we made the short drive without being thrown into the back of the paddy wagon and were soon enjoying the Bass Coast Rail Trail.

    The trail itself extends from the Mitre 10 store in Wonthaggi to the Anderson roundabout, about 3 km past Kilcunda. More recently it has been extended from Anderson to Woolamai. There is also another bike path that joins at Anderson and runs to San Remo and finally all the way to Cowes.

    We were not the only ones making use of the lovely weather. Quite a few other walkers and riders were enjoying the conditions. Each time we rode past any of these, we tried to leave as wide a gap as possible. This virus scare has made us see every other human being as a potential source of travelling contagion.

    The most spectacular part of the Bass Coast Trail is the section near Kilcunda. Here the path follows the oceanfront clifftops and the views are amazing. We discovered that recent storms had severely eroded the cliffs, in some places causing part of the path to collapse down onto the beach. These damaged areas had been fenced off by new security fencing.

    We kept on riding up the hill to Anderson and then decided to explore some of the new trail towards Woolamai. Since the weather was starting to show signs of deteriorating, we did not have time to ride the full distance and stopped to have our picnic lunch at a high point, with a panoramic view down over Westernport and Philip Island.

    The return ride was a little easier as we had a brisk tail wind for most of the way. By the time we had arrived back at the car we had ridden around 43km. It was not a long ride, but it did a lot to improve our morale. The forecast for the next few days is not as promising, so it might be our last ride for a little while.    Meer informatie

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  • The World on Two WheelsCanada, Cuba and Covid 19

    Oh No, Not 2020

    22 april 2020, Australië ⋅ ⛅ 12 °C

    January 2020 seems a lifetime ago. At that time the share market was setting new records almost every day, our retirement savings seemed safe, we were able to see our families any time we wanted, we could dine out and share bike rides with our friends.

    We also had the Olympic Games to look forward, along with the AFL premiership season, the Tour de France and lots of rides with the Ghostriders. What could possibly go wrong ?

    Meanwhile, somewhere in China, a tiny organism made the leap from animal to human and a dreadful chain of events was set in motion. Over the space of just a few weeks, this evil little bugger had spread all over the planet and affected billions of lives.

    In the course of our lives there are certain days that become etched in our memories. All of those that are old enough can remember what we were doing when Neil Armstrong walked on the moon. We can remember what we did on Ash Wednesday or Black Saturday. Such events burn themselves into our memories. I think that 2020 will be similarly remembered as the year that wasn't.

    At least the news isn't all bad. Australia is faring better than most other countries, with the infection rate steadily dropping over the past couple of weeks. We are all hoping that this may mean that we can start to conservatively wind back some of the harshest restrictions in the not too distant future. For Maggie and me, we are most hoping that we will be able to see our latest grandson on his first birthday in 6 weeks time. It is such a significant milestone in his life that we would hate to not be able to share it with him.

    The highlight of our day was the weekly delivery of groceries from the Woolworths on line service. We even got a new pack of toilet paper, so things are really looking up.

    Unfortunately, the day ended with an almost indescribable tragedy when four police officers were killed on the Eastern Freeway. They had stopped a speeding Porsche driver and were killed by a huge truck driving up the emergency lane. When faced with such events, our hardships seem pretty minor by comparison.    Meer informatie

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  • The World on Two WheelsCanada, Cuba and Covid 19

    Cake and Coffee by the Ocean

    23 april 2020, Australië ⋅ ☁️ 18 °C

    One of life's little pleasures used to be to go to the local bakery to enjoy a coffee and cake. That now seems to be an eternity ago. The coffee shops are now mostly empty and locked - a sad reminder of what life used to be like. One of the hardest parts is not knowing how long the shutdown will continue.

    When we awoke to a fine and sunny day we made the decision to make use of the favourable conditions to go for a long walk. While the walk was hugely enjoyable, we did find ourselves giving every other walker, jogger and bike rider a wide berth. It is sad that we see every other human being as a potential source of deadly contagion. I really hope that this fear will abate in time and we will be able to enjoy the close proximity of others.

    Somehow we found ourselves standing outside the biggest bakery in Inverloch (actually it was because I had planned it that way). I suggested that we could buy a couple of take away coffees and enjoy them by the oceanside. Maggie was not convinced. She peered inside and saw that it had several other customers inside.

    "They all look infected", she said.

    I reminded her that we cannot live the rest of our lives in fear. We still have to live. She did not seem convinced of my logic, but reluctantly allowed me to enter the shop. A short time later I emerged with two steaming coffees and a couple of lovely apple and blueberry crumbles. Maggie proceeded to smother my hands and the credit card with sanitizer (such is our new life).

    We carried the coffees and cakes to the waterfront and sat down to enjoy them in the sunshine. It wasn't the same as sitting at a table with our friends, but it was still quite good fun. While we ate the crumbling cakes, we were joined by a couple of curious and very hungry magpies. I guess we weren't alone after all.

    We then slowly made our way back to the house, still savouring the lingering sensations on our tongues. It was a great way to improve our morale.    Meer informatie

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  • The World on Two WheelsCanada, Cuba and Covid 19

    Painting Day

    24 april 2020, Australië ⋅ ⛅ 17 °C

    It was becoming a common theme. Every other person in isolation seemed to be egaged in some heroic feat of home improvement. Some had repainted their entire houses (and the houses of everyone else in the street as well), others had replaced the roofs on their barns, some had hand dug huge swimming pools. The rest had done even more ambitious projects.

    And what about us ? Although we had managed to walk the dog most days, put out the garbage each week and even complete a few bike rides, home improvement had been almost entirely off the agenda. But now we had no excuse to procrastinate any longer. On went the old clothes, our came the paint brushes and old tins of decking timber. We had a lot of exterior timberwork which was in need of some tender loving care.

    We spent all the morning slapping paint on the timber (and copious amounts on the concrete as well). The level of paint steadily diminished. We kept painting, hoping that we would have just enough to complete the first part of the job. As it turned out, we didn't. The last droplet of decking oil was consumed with about 1 square foot of timber still to be painted. No matter how hard we tried, there was just no more. It was a cruel finish to the painting job. We could not admire the vast amount of completed wood. We could only see the small bit that was unfinished.

    In the afternoon we grabbed the dog and headed off to walk to the Mitre 10 hardware store for another (much large) tin of decking oil. It seemed like a good idea until I started to carry the heavy tin back to our house. Due to some strange perturbation in the strength of gravity, the tin got progressively heavier with each metre. The wire handle almost severed most of my fingers on both hands. I was sorely tempted to toss the tin into the bushes, but somehow managed to carry it all the way home. And Maggie ? Well she happily walked the dog.

    Tomorrow morning, weather permitting, we will finish the job.    Meer informatie

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  • The World on Two WheelsCanada, Cuba and Covid 19

    Anzac Day in Isolation

    25 april 2020, Australië ⋅ ⛅ 20 °C

    With the normal Anzac Day services not possible because of the restrictions currently in place banning gatherings of people, everyone had been encouraged to conduct their own service before sunrise outside their own house. Maggie and I decided to set the alarm for 5.45 am and conduct our own small service.

    It certainly was cold outside and there was still no sign of the sunrise when we donned some warm clothes and walked to the end of the drive. Although the street was still deserted, I could hear someone playing the "Last Post", somewhere in the distance. We appeared to be the only ones in our street who had risen early, but it seemed to be the right thing to do. It brought back memories of my grandfather, so I thought I would take some time to include some of his story here.

    My grandfather, Horace Dawson, embarked for Gallipoli on July 16th 1915 on the HMAT Demosthenes. He was a 2nd Lt with the 23rd Infantry Battalion reinforcements. He had recently been married and left for Turkey only a few days after the wedding. My father was born nine months later. My grandfather did not get to meet his first son until he returned from the war in 1919.

    After the debacle at Gallipoli, Horace went to Egypt to play an important role as adjutant and second in charge of the Bicycle Battalion which saw extensive action in France and Belgium. This is something I only found out in 2012, as my grandfather would never talk about his war experiences. I do remember his eyes being permanently bloodshot, apparently as a result of being badly affected by mustard gas.

     In July 1919 he was Mentioned in Despatches for his exemplary work in the formation of the Bicycle Battalion and his commendation bears the famous signature of Winston Churchill, who at that time was the Secretary of State for War.

    My grandfather never got to see his son until he returned to Australia in 1919. After his return he had another 5 children and lived a long and productive life, living to over 100. His later years were mostly spent in Sorrento, close to where his grandparents had first landed in Australia on the famous plague ship The Ticonderoga in 1852. He passed away in 1989.

    I just wished I had the privilege to know him better. RIP Horace Dawson.

    The main picture shows my grandfather on the left. The other images show some of the other members of the Bicycle Battalion.    Meer informatie

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  • The World on Two WheelsCanada, Cuba and Covid 19

    Not so Sunny Sunday

    26 april 2020, Australië ⋅ 🌙 12 °C

    Today could have been Sunday. Or maybe it was Saturday or Tuesday. It's getting harder to tell the difference. The only constants in our lives now seem to be the Wednesday delivery from Woolworths on line and putting the rubbish bins out each Tuesday night. The rest of the wekdays seem to have blurred together. Maybe we should give them new more appropriate names ? Wednesday could become "Whensday", Thursday could be "Blurday" and so on.

    If it was Sunday today, it certainly wasn't a sunny day. To the contrary. The rain started sometime after sunset and then continued for most of the night. It was still raining when we woke up (actually the dog woke us up) at 6.30 am this morning. It was apparent that it would NOT be a painting day.

    But of course there were plenty of other things to do. While Maggie went off to Wonthaggi to look after her sister, I settled down to some reading, writing and, of course, some lock picking. I have to admit that I am starting to get a little bored with my current inventory of three padlocks. I have opened them so many times that I can now do them with my eyes closed. I have even tried opening them with the picks deliberately held upside down, just to see it was possible. It was.

    I am now in search of other padlocks to practise on. I don't care if they have keys or not, just as long as they are not rusted solid. I have searched on gumtree and ebay, but I had no idea that people would expect so much for old locks. I suspect that lock picking has become a popular passtime for bored people in isolation.

    The forecast for the next couple of days is looking more promising so maybe we will be able to get the rest of the outside painting finished early this week.

    After dinner we watched Leggomasters on TV. It is a refreshing change to see prime time TV devoted to ordinary lovable geeks and nerds, rather than to phony MAFS constestants who are only interested in building their Instagram following.

    Perhaps tomorrow will be Monday.....    Meer informatie

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