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Posts tagged Travel
Frohe Weihnachten!
Unlike previous years, we will be able to open our gifts even earlier tonight: the Gold Coast is eight hours ahead of Johannesburg 
Of course we dispense with the Christmas Day event. Early mornings are not that cool. Besides, if you can follow German tradition, then why not
May you and yours have a merry Christmas!
710 – Lazarus
3 years ago
Some gadgets seem adept at miracles. The nuvi 710 has taken a sabbatical of several hours, during which time no amount of coaxing could make it wake up. The screen remained blank, the power switch was powerless.
The sole help item the Garmin support site can dish up is to attempt a factory reset. That involves pressing a finger on the lower, right-hand corner of the display and then powering the unit on. Since my 710 had no inclination at all to power on, that was somewhat useless. Not even plugging it into the USB port of the MacBook or the car cradle helped. So I left it, assuming I’d be navigating without the aid of that annoying female voice.
This morning, I simply had to try switching the unit on again. Surprise, surprise. The battery seemed completely drained, but the welcome screen appeared. Plugging it into the USB port charged the battery. Twelve hours before, that simply did not happen. We’ve been to Yatala (don’t ask) and back, aided by the miracle of electronic navigation. From now on, the 710 will be codenamed Lazarus. I do hope it refrains from exhibiting its miraculous powers ever again…
Navigating blind
The Garmin nuvi 710 has been a faithful travel companion. Today, after navigating us quite successfully to Robina, it suddenly had one if its fits: the software hanging on this device is nothing new. The multiple firmware updates I’ve applied have done little to improve the overall seamless operation I’m used to when using other Garmin products.
A sudden freeze is often helped along by a quick reset, painful but necessary when dealing with traffic on a busy motorway. The lack of voice prompts was an initial indication that the reboot had been anything but successful: even an attempt to select a different voice from the menu showed the error no voice found.
So it goes. Another hard on-off and nothing. The unit is dead. Dead as a dodo, and we’re stuck in Robina.
Thankfully, human beings rely on memory and we found our way home. But the 710 is still showing little interest in actually waking up. In my opinion, either a dud or a badly manufactured and thought-out Garmin product. Since it’s still under warranty, I’ll be having a bit of a fight with the South African importer to get the unit replaced when I return in early January. For now, I’m really pleased I brought along the Edge 705 (sans bicycle). It has the maps for Australia loaded too, and won’t annoy with the female voice telling me where to go…
MEL to OOL
This morning, we are starting the first of our three flights back home. Between this one and the penultimate two are another two weeks of doing very little. This is a rather positive note! The Virgin Blue service will shuttle us back to the Gold Coast in roughly two and a half hours.
Watches to be set back by one hour and we are getting ready to face the sweltering climate.
The Southern Star
Observation wheels are the next big thing. I didn’t have the time in London to ride the Eye, but we took the 30 minute round-about on Singapore‘s Flyer. The Melboune Southern Star has been dogged by numerous delays and we were rather fortunate to be able to get on board on opening night.
Arriving just on time for sunset and disembarking from our flight just prior to the light fireworks spectacular, this was certainly a night to remember. One circumnavigation by pod lasts roughly 30 minutes and provides a tranquil setting for taking in the Melbourne skyline and harbour area.
We got a great glimpse of the city and its surrounds: 60000 odd coffee shops and Australia‘s busiest harbour.
I’m not normally one to pay for touristy photos taken by automatons on site. This one may have been worth the AUD 15, though:
The opening night fireworks are easily the longest and biggest I’ve ever seen.
I like my Koko Black
The Westfield in Doncaster is a rather upmarket shopping mall, hugely extended and renovated since our last visit here about three years ago. Here, we spent a bit of time browsing and shopping. An astounding array of shops and shoppers as you’d expect in any part of the world. Nice Christmas decorations and extended shopping hours right up to midnight.
Since darkness falls only once 21:00 approaches, it’s easy to get time-confused…
Borders is easily my favourite bookstore abroad. Not quite the size of the Singapore store, the Westfield store provided the latest Wired magazine and a Sandisk 4GB Micro SD card for only AUD 17.95. I’m sure that’s a bit of a pricing error on their part. That extra storage will be put to use in the Telstra HSDPA modem and later the E90.
If you’re into chocolate, a visit to Koko Black is a must. Serving the best Belgian hot chocolate
and a rather decadent selection of their chocolate creations,
you’re well advised to eat dinner before venturing out for this treat. Once it’s dark in Melbourne, a visit to certain suburbs reveals some rather interesting decorations. The owners have gone to a fair bit of trouble to provide eye-catching exhibits.
Time for bed now!
Left on Batman Avenue
Today, it was time for increased activity and a short stint into town to see a bit of Melbourne‘s CBD. The best way to do that is by bicycle, which is a really great idea. Since travelling with a bicycle is a bit of an issue, I rented a rather capable mountain bike from Rentabike close to Federation Square. The Gitane something or other was decked out in a stylish blue, replete with working everything – no issues with the functionality of my steed!
The supplied bicycle lock has the code 1956. That’s the year the Olympic Games were held in Melbourne.
Clever! That way, anyone unable to remember the combination has a second chance: at least one or two people in Melbourne should remember the date they last hosted the Olympic Games… Starting at the intersection of Russel Street and Batman Avenue we made our way on a longish loop through the city. How cool is it to be in a city with a Batman Avenue?
John Batman was an Australian farmer and businessman who was one of the first settlers of Melbourne and known for founding Victoria. And here you’re thinking Bruce Wayne…
Since this was no hectic cycling event, we had decent time for a few photographs and to look around.
A curry on the way never hurt anyone…
I can recommend TIFFINs to anyone in the inner city eager for a delivered meal. A coffee close to the location of the world’s latest tourist attraction: the observation wheel. London has one, as does Singapore. Melbourne‘s Southern Star is another in a long line of similar structures. Not yet open to the public, we’re hoping to take a round-about trip sometime during the weekend. The surrounding harbour with its views of the city is quite spectacular.
For someone who’s not at all interested in cricket, a slow cycle around the MCG was more about seeing the impressive structure and its surrounds. Once again, some great views of the cityscape from that side of town. We made our way home after a solid three hours on the road: some Beard Papa goodies for the wives and kids…
OOL
An uneventful flight from Coolangatta (OOL) on the Gold Coast to Melbourne. The only notable happening was the lack of security from a passenger identification point of view. Even South Africans are used to the fact that some form of identification has to be produced upon check-in, be it a passport, ID document or driver’s license. Here, it was a rather simple indication of surname and then lugging bags onto the conveyor to receive barcoded boarding passes. No further questions asked.
Our etickets had been purchased a few months earlier using a credit card. Certainly, the security officials took their time to check all bags making their way into the cabin. But it seems no one really cares who you are when you take a domestic flight within Australia. A slightly more serious security risk in my estimation than trying to smuggle a can of deodorant on board…
As South Africans, we shouldn’t feel too guilty if we make domestic passengers walk across the tarmac to and from an aircraft. It’s the same here.
Off to Melbourne
The Gold Coast is being left behind for a few days while we zip down to Melbourne in Victoria. A reasonably short flight aboard Virgin Blue should have us there in roughly three hours.
What would travel be without a change in the timezone? We’ll be nudged gently forward by one hour, so this is the third time watches will have to be set. Sunrise at 05:53, sunset at 20:37. How’s that for a long day?
Thankfully, Melbourne has a climate more suited to my preference. It’s generally a lot cooler, bordering on the ice cold at the right time of year.
Melbourne is a city with a lot of history, having been founded in 1835. Melbourne is dubbed the sporting and cultural capital of Australia. It’s a really nice place.
Catch of the day
We’re well rested enough after a catch-up period of 15 hours sleep on Friday. Saturday and Sunday were lazy days involving a visit to the beach at Surfer’s Paradise, inevitable shopping outings and lots of eating. Alexander is crazy about the pool and can’t wait to hop in and float around. I’m enjoying the beer on offer and organized a prepaid Telstra Next G HSDPA modem for the MacBook. Internetlessness can last only so long…
It’s marlin season on the Gold Coast, apparently. The offer to head for the high seas early this morning was grudgingly accepted – wake time was set for 04:50. The Core indicates sunrise to be at 04:46. That’s for Brisbane, approximately 100km to the north. When I managed to get my eyes open at 04:40, it was already light. A quick coffee and a short trip to the launching point by 05:30. It was hot and sunny. Could’ve been midday.
The marlin had been spotted in waters roughly 50m deep. We headed out in a rather random pattern, zig-zaging with the lines towing in the water. One possible bite was all we had. We were not the only ones, I suspect.
Very calm conditions subsided and we decided to make our way back at around 08:00. Let’s me make this statement before I continue: my aptitude for fishing ends with a frantic hunt for a tin of tuna in the kitchen and a mad dash for the tin opener. That’s about it. Big surprise then when a marlin took our hook and let himself be caught rather easily. I even got to reel the dude in: how’s that for team work?
Danny gets to clean and cut him up, though Estimated time of death: 08:30, weighing in at approximately 30kg, caught about 16km offshore in waters 54m deep.
Tonight: marlin steaks and XXXX!
Very nice!
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