WRAP UP {EDITION 34}

 

 

HELLO + WELCOME to  Wrap Up {Edition 34} as we make our way from Sydney to London, overland through Africa.

It’s Kirsty here today for a very exciting Wrap Up. Gareth sends a big hello!

 

 

 

OUR RIG IS ON IT’S WAY TO AFRICA

 

 

Last week we drove the Troopy on it’s last stretch of Australian soil and delivered it to Port Botany to be loaded into a 20-foot container.

In the days leading up to the Troopy’s departure we cleared everything out, cleaned everything up and then re-loaded what we wanted to take to Africa with us. When we say ‘cleaned everything’, we mean it. I was seen wielding a cloth over every nook and cranny of Troopy; right down to cleaning off and re-greasing the hinges that had gathered clumps of red dirt along the way through Australia.

Once everything was loaded we went on a supermarket shopping spree and hopped online to order our favourite toiletries we wanted to stock up on. Including: 1.2kg of Vegemite, 10 tins of salmon (yeah, yeah, we know South Africa will have it but we just want to be able to hit the road running with a few familiars) and a little stash of skin/hair care favourites.

The last few hours before handing the Troopy over were absolutely exhilarating and heartening. “We are ready”… “This is it”… “We are finally doing it!”, were the phrases buzzing around between us.

Pulling into the shipping company’s depot is something I will never forget. Massive trucks zoomed around. Our Troopy and Mazda 3 sat in the waiting lines wedged between huge semis. Classic fish out of water material. It was here that a *spark* off goodwill and fortune appeared and our shipping lady laid relaxing vibes on us and even gave us a wink-wink-nudge-nudge to help us escape having to buy a high-vis jacket from the opposite desk. We pulled the Troop around the side and handed over the keys. “The next time we see Troop will be in Durban” we mused, clearly we looked a bit miffed as a lady close-by on her smoke break drew a cigarette from her mouth and said ‘Don’t worry guys, we’ll look after it”.

It was quite a moment in time walking away from the depot. All our preparation, love and sweat gone into preparing our home on wheels…. and it was off to sail the seas to Africa.

See you in 5.5 weeks Troopy!

 

CARNET DE PASSAGES

 

^ Image found here (our Carnet is looking a lot more blank than this one!)

 

Receiving our Carnet was a game-changer. A Carnet is pretty much a passport for a car. It allows the temporary import of a vehicle into many countries with minimum paperwork and funds being held in bond for the safe exportation of the vehicle.

The Carnet application required our shipping date. So, as soon as we had our date we immediately lodged our application. The dates were tight, and although AAA recommended a minimum of 10 days to turn it around we luckily had it back in 4! Massive thankyous were given to the incredible chick at NRMA who pushed it through to us.

I got a call from her to say the Carnet was ready – and if I wasn’t the most excited customer they’ve spoken to all year, then I would love to know who is! Within a couple of hours Gareth was in at the NRMA head office picking up the document. And within another half hour he had whizzed that baby over to Australian Customs to have it officially endorsed and released from Australia!

Meanwhile, as Gareth dashed around town, I was down in Wollongong with Toto’s Africa blasting and pulling some pretty funky dance moves in celebration!

PS. I’m not sure what Toto’s lyrics mean to most people. But to me, they mean a lot. I feel so drawn to go back to Africa and to be amongst that beautiful light it shines. It just makes everything seem possible.

“Hurry boy, she’s waiting there for you 
It’s gonna take a lot to take me away from you 
There’s nothing that a hundred men or more could ever do 
I bless the rains down in Africa, I bless the rains down in Africa”

Click here if you have no idea what I’m yabbering on about. 

 

A LAST FEW TOUCHES BEFORE SHIPPING

 

The Troop went in for a simple mechanical touch-up to have a front axle seal replaced. I spent some time sewing blackout backing fabric to our curtains –  to ensure a little more privacy inside the rig.

 

We also had our cracked factory fitted LandCruiser snorkel replaced with a new one. Safari Snorkel came to the party and ARB Wollongong fitted us into their tight schedule. Cheers guys. We look forward to putting the Safari Snorkel to the test long term.

 

 

 

BOOKED TO FLY

 

Booked: One way flights with Emirates.

Booked: Accommodation for one week in Durban.

Booked: Shipping receiving agent in Durban.

 

 

WAITING GAME

 

While we wait for our container to reach South Africa we are doing a few things we have been hanging to do. High on the list is visiting Gareth’s family in Queensland and seeing our son (Boss, an English Staffy).

Bossy

As soon as we laid eyes on him, he catapulted out the door and threw himself at Gareth in a rage of licks and hugs. Yes, dogs can hug!

Then he moved onto me with vengeance. It was so incredible to see how well looked after he has been. He has made a complete transformation into a city dog and we were very impressed with his new found calm to sit patiently at cafe’s – just metres away from small fluffy dogs (who he use to hate!).

 

 

 

Escape Artists

It’s our 5 year anniversary this weekend and we have decided to celebrate with a stop over on the road as we drive North towards Queensland to somewhere we’ve never been before near Byron Bay. Bring on the celebrations…

 

 

 

 

 

 

That’s us all wrapped up.

Thanks as always for dropping by and sharing this journey with us. To have you along in spirit means so much to us. We can’t wait to get this show back on the road and share  the African leg of the expedition with you!

If you are in Africa, have any recommendations, or say have some friends with fancy lodges that would like to put us up (ha!) or a driveway we can camp out in please let us know. We are planning the road ahead.

 

Cheers