Some notes on God’s Country

We’re in Sydney now, after four days visiting Natasha’s uncles, Vit and Valdy in Mollymook, a seaside resort town about three hours south of Sydney by bus, or two hours from Canberra. Natasha’ll have more to say below, and we’ll be posting a whole slew of pictures (we have yet to find a fast wireless connection in this country), but, man, what a great part of the world. It barely rates a mention in the Rough Guide, but once there, you’d never want to leave. It’s gorgeous. The ocean’s the main thing, of course, a white-sand beach that stretches for 1.5 km. There’s waves but not too many. There’s fishing, golfing, and snorkeling, if those are your things, and, we’re informed, some pretty good restaurants. The seafood isn’t bad, either. The water was unseasonably cold, about the temperature of an Eastern Ontario lake in late spring, so we didn’t swim much, but the beach was about as good as any Canadian escaping from -20 degree weather could hope for.

Part of the reason for this trip was to meet Natasha’s relatives, most of whom she’s never seen before, so it was great to spend time with Vit and Valdy, Natasha’s father’s brothers. There’s a definite family resemblance, most obviously their easygoing manner. They got to Mollymook early, 40 years ago, when it was not much more than a few houses. They’ve built several homes in the area, including their own, which is only 300 steps to their club/drinking hole (most of their travel stories employ pubs as their geographical frame of reference). If you’re interested, they are also selling another home they built, with a seriously great ocean view, just around the corner. They’ve since retired to an idyllic life of golf (three times a week), swimming, travel, hanging around with friends and enjoying the finer things in life.

Another family resemblance: they entertained us in style, including several feeds of Sydney Bay Rock Oysters ($AU5.50 a dozen), an evening with their mates at their golf club, right on the ocean, and a BBQ with their friends Ian and Sharon, and Rodney and their kids. Valdy also introduced me to Beenleigh dark rum, a sweet rum that’s not as heavy as Goslings, our usual go-to rum, and made from sugar cane around Brisbane. Apparently it’s pretty rare, so I’m going to be keeping my eye out for it over the next few weeks.