Sydney, Newcastle - friends and reminiscences

yndey was beginning to feel like any other big city, not like I expected it to be at all which I put down to us so often seen aerial shot, when on the ground it looks like any other Western port city, was I becoming jaded?

I was looking forward to catching up with Nicola and Craig, friends from the UK I had not seen in almost three years. It would be lovely to see them both – Nicola and I had taught together on some really memorable bushcraft adventures. Craig had been through the same vipassa course I had followed in India. Though I knew him less well – we had a lot in common through our experience, even though one is very much alone with ones thoughts.

This mood was soon lifted by a message Janelle, a travel companion from Cambodia, and program exec for MTV. I'm not sure what she does really, but it includes deciding when programs go on air and seeing lots of gigs. We caught over a duck and hoisin pizza, a new one to me, aove the harbour bridge. She had another gig that night, and after the guy fitting in the room, I needed to catch up on sleep.

We later spent a lovely day seeing the sights of Bondi and North Sydney. Not like I imagined either, Bondi reminded me a little of Langland. At her flat I had used google earth to find Nicolas house, and walked there from the Train Station at Newcastle. She was away, but had left a key on a seat occupied my Maude the tortoiseshell cat who shared her house with two other girls.

Nicola, had invited me to stay at her flat in Newcastle a few hours outside Sydney, I was excited to see a familiar face and also to catch up with Aimelee a fellow South Walian I had met on a rainforest adventure in Borneo. Aimeelee had recently moved to town from up north, where she had been working as a psychiatric nurse with the aboriginal community, having felt stifled at home!

The key would not open the door, I had not found the other entrance to the flat on the other side of the house. Carefully moving the mirror, bottles of perfume and tooth glasses from the shelf, I was able to climb in through the window without spilling anything. The cat was upset at my presence, but sluttishly rubbed around my legs when I filled her bowls and stopped mewling, though she did not like to be stoked much.

Nicola had left instructions to help myself from her cupboard and to sleep in her room while she was away hangliding, and I took great pleasure relaxing, stretching and reading the great collection of books in the living room – so many familiar from my own shelves. Some expected counter culutre heroes: - Chomsky, Nietzche, Lao Tzu and some self help books, one on tarot another on neo-tantra.

Dawson Street is full of pretentious cafes with names like zinc and three monkeys, though at least here the yuppies had not totally taken over, and there was still an edge to the city. The industry was giving way to tourism in the same way as Swansea, and like my home town was struggling with its identity.

Craig took me out for several days whitewater canoing at the centre where he has been instructing. Through 11ks I was blown away by the scenery, drank lots of river water and learned not to grap at branches! By the second day on the river I had got better control. A sit on top this time – very similar to the one I used at home. Even so I got wet, the only one to stay dry was a child, on their first time – so much for experience.

Craig and I We camped out that night, I cooked potatoes in the fire had an interesting chat with other campers, teachers ans students of a Christian resilance course. On the third day we were sat on a hill after meditation, enjoying a meal of pasta and putanesca sauce, overlooking a beautiful area, soon to become an opencast mine if plans go ahead.

I returned to Nicola's, glad to rest my muscles and met her housemates. We got really well, sharing stories, explored the coast, and had some memorable free meals. Its amazing what supermarkets through away, when a new delivery arrives it seems the existing stock is thrown, no matter what its condition. We scored a mountain of lemons, eggs, melons, potatoes – several weeks worth from the bins. We dined well, drank gin and saw an inspirational but disturbing gothic puppet show.

Craig invited to call around before I left, we went out for lunch, and were walking back, when I saw a sign for the Austrailian Institute of Celtic studies. The institute was closed, but over the course of my telephone enquiry the directors, a husband and wife invited me out to dinner at their club. Real Bob Hope Country, and an interesting conversation that touched on many aspects of Celtic identity and the experiences of the early settlers.

Though I had planned to leave for Sydney that morning, I made a lovely new friend who convinced me to stay a while longer....