My friends

These are my friends, see how they glisten

These are my friends

I wasn’t sure I needed any more drinks after my day of wine tasting but it was my final night in Sydney and several friends happened to be in town. The plan was for us to meet up at the Opera Bar and sit outside as it was a warm and sunny evening. By the time I arrived, having been dropped off by the wine tour guy, Dave and Brian were already there along with Em and some of her friends. I pulled up a chair and joined them. There was a bottle of wine already opened and a spare glass for me. I poured myself some, looking at the label afterwards. It was a Semillon blend. Everyone watched as I read the label. I giggled. They had seen my numerous updates about my Semillon and were waiting to see how I would react. We were joined a little later by Will, a partner at the firm I used to work at, and his other half Brian. They were over on holiday with another friend from work, Mags, and her girlfriend but sadly Mags was not feeling well so they didn’t join us. Mags is a massive fan of Dean and I had brought him along so she could meet him. Sadly she was going to miss out. Will and Brian had their photo taken with him so that they could make Mags green with envy. We had a few more drinks and I caught up on the gossip from the office before everyone headed their separate ways. I got a cab with Dave and Brian back to theirs.

Once back at theirs Dave asked me if I would like a drink. Just as I was saying “A gin and tonic would be lovely” Brian said “Yes, I can put the kettle on”. There was a slight awkward moment but I was soon sat with a G&T while Dave and Brian enjoyed their cup of tea. I was up and out early the next morning, Dave & Brian were still in bed so I didn’t disturb them. I headed to the airport for my flight to Cairns where I would then head up to Port Douglas. My hosts in Port Douglas, Number 60 and 61, Jason and Michael had been amongst the first hosts I had lined up. Greg, Gay Number 1, had emailed some of his friends and one of them had passed my details on to Jason & Michael. They had immediately emailed me and offered to put me up should my trip take me to Port Douglas. I had emailed Greg to thank him and ask him who Lauren, the girl who had sent my details on, was. He explained he used to work with her, that she was lovely, would have only sent my details to trustworthy people and also the cousin of Kylie and Dannii Minogue.  I booked a flight from Sydney to Cairns pretty much straight away.

The highlight of the flight up to Cairns was being served a pie as the onboard snack. Once I had my case I found my driver and after a short wait for some people on another flight that landed just after mine we set off for Port Douglas. I was dropped off first at Jason and Michael’s place. I sent a message to Jason to let him know that I was there. He said he would take his lunch break and come to the house. He arrived about ten minutes later. It was nice to finally meet in person having exchanged numerous emails and messages over several months. I felt like we knew each other really well. Jason let me into the house, telling me that the dogs (Rufus, Trevor and Wilma) were out in the back yard but that he would let them in to meet me. I was shown my room and given a tour of the house. Jason is a massive Kylie fan and he showed me the room where he kept all of his Kylie stuff. It took up the entire room. I felt a little inadequate as I only own 19 Kylie albums. We headed out to the back yard and I met the dogs. They were all very boisterous but very friendly. I had seen photos of Rufus and Trevor before but Wilma was a new addition, they had got her from a rescue home a few weeks before.

Jason had to head back off to work and I headed for a nap. When Jason returned from work early evening we made our way out into the back yard and had a beer. Michael soon arrived home from work and I was introduced to him. Over our beers I was asked if I had any ideas as to what I wanted to do while I was in Port Douglas. I had done a little bit of research and said that I had to do a trip to the Great Barrier Reef and would also try and get to the Daintree Rainforest to go crocodile spotting. They gave me some suggestions on the best companies to go with and some suggestions of other things I could do. We spent the evening chatting over a few beers and some Thai food. I felt really at home with Jason and Michael, they made me feel very welcome and comfortable. It didn't feel like we had only just met in person that day. The day finally caught up with me and I headed to bed.

See how they glisten

The next morning I was up fairly early. Jason was already up and about and he made me a coffee. It was already getting warm in Port Douglas. When I had booked my flight nearly a year before they had warned me that it would be rainy season in Port Douglas during my visit. That meant that it would be hot, humid and thundery. It was definitely going to be hot, although the skies were clear blue and the humidity was not as bad as it had been in places like Nashville and New Orleans when I had passed through there last July. As we sat out on the patio we were joined by Troy, Jason’s brother. He asked if they were treating me nice and I said they were. Jason and Michael both had the day off work so they suggested going in to town for breakfast after which we could have a walk round town. Our first stop was a hill overlooking the bay, with a great view down over Four Mile Beach and the sun glistening on the sea. As we stood at the top looking out a kookabara landed on the railings nearby. I managed to get a photo of it before it flew off again. I was asked if it was the first kookabara I had seen on my trip. I said it was, before adding that on my travels I had seen a cockatoo. 

We had breakfast at a place called Lure, sitting out looking over the marina. While we were waiting for our “eggs benny” Michael spotted a friend of his who worked for one of the companies doing trips out to the Great Barrier Reef. They chatted for a while and arranged for me to go out on the boat on the Saturday. He also managed to secure me a discounted price. After breakfast we took a walk, Jason pointing out the little railway station in Port Douglas where Kylie had filmed part of the video for It’s No Secret. He really was a massive fan. The town itself was pretty small and quaint and it didn’t take us too long to walk through most of it. We headed over to Sugar Wharf and St Marys by the Sea before going for a walk along the beach. A few people were in the sea, swimming in the special area that was enclosed by nets to stop the stingers getting in. Jason pointed out that it wouldn’t stop a crocodile being in there. We didn’t go swimming.

“These are my friends, see how they glisten” 
Lyrics from My Friends from the musical Sweeney Todd