“Remember that not getting what you want is sometimes a wonderful stroke of luck” – Dalai Lama

Last night we talked with a family from Queensland, bartering local fish and shell-shaped chocolate with children. The father tells us that on the other side of the river we can find made. After a cold shower and breakfast in the center of attention to the lost ducklings crumbs so let us walk in front, crossing a pademelon or Thylogale – nothing to do with the fruit, but with paddymilla, meaning “small kangaroo forest” in Aboriginal – before settling near barbecues and sockets.

We quickly surrounded by members of the Rotary Club of Scottsdale - they are at the origin of the creation of the camping area and the preservation of wildlife and the surrounding flora - that make their monthly picnic. While we reload the computer and I post an article - not, not one, je suis toujours légèrement en retard sur les publications 🙂 – they offer us candy and cake, we begin conservation with one of the couples who invites us to go home to retrieve the log with vacancy announcements. We go there after some shopping at Woolworth's for a full bags of apples, pears, carrots and potatoes dubbed "The Odd Bunch", We are still looking for what they have weird, too small caliber may, then a transition to Vinnie's shop where we buy second hand clothes sold off a few dollars.

The bizarre band !

At Val and Don

Val and Don live in their home for thirty-three years, surrounded by a few pastures with grazing cows four. They offer us a cup of tea while Val seems to call his whole directory to find us jobs. If phone calls give nothing, we thank her for her efforts and are preparing to take leave politely. " Where’s the rush? » – if we are in a hurry ? Do not, not really, we just want to return to settle in Northeast Park before the area is filled. What they tell us that we can sit outside in the garden, they have plenty of picnic leftovers that we can share for dinner ! We spend a great evening and can even enjoy a hot shower.

Thursday 29 January, we share breakfast with our hosts asking them if we can do something to thank the. Val thought for a moment, they have a blind friend, former surgeon specializing in heart, whose garden has great needs weeding. Neither one nor two here we drive, gloves and tools in the trunk and we spend the morning at Kevin, removing invasive weeds and roots. After a deserved lunch we embark on a new mission : sorting and storage of the large garden shed for our guests. It does not take us less than one and a half but everyone seems to angels, fed and bleached in exchange for a few hours of our workforce, here we are doing what the site HelpX offers - twenty euros to access the list of hosts in Australia for two years.

Bonza, the gardener dog

Val and Ronald in the shelter

If we do not pretend to work - Household, cooking, Gardening - Val simmers us very good meal with vegetables and fruit garden. Kevin joined us one evening, time seems suspended in this haven of Scottsdale. After four excellent days we leave for Ronald visit Launceston in employment agency, Val and Don made us promise that if this meeting does not work, we did not hesitate to return.

Around the falls Lilydale

Curious pademelon

The first day of February, we're back on the Lilydale area for the night – we recroisons a pademelon, and, and, cherchez bien 🙂 , the next day after we will contact appointment differences temp agencies, ineffective. We decide to drive to Longford south of Launceston to visit and call a few potatoes and potato plantations which it will soon be the season. Another day with negative answers the evening found us on the area of ​​Bishopbourne. On Tuesday 3 February we drive back to Scottsdale - I do my first kilometers TS wheel. 😎

We stay until Monday 9 at Val and Don for our pleasure and theirs as we think. Our English is improving every day and we stay in shape ! Cleaning paddocks : invasive weeds, scrap forgotten, gathering wood lying around, gardening : gathering in the garden, installing nets on fruit trees, Thinning other trees, a little computer with Don, great kitchen with Val ... Sunday guests take us for a walk in the cities of Ringarooma - known for its carved tree in honor of some of its young inhabitants died in the First World War - and Derby.

As research work still does not - yet Val of rioting at least half of the territory ! – we decide to go on tourists around Tasmania…