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| Early girls get the worm, or rather, the nice views |
Day 6: Monday, October 19
One fond farewell ride. Then off to Auckland to visit my cousins.
Activities:
Activities:
- Maddie, being a cylcist herself, understands how powerful it is to get to explore everything you can in a new place from the saddle. To that end, we had made plans the previous days spend my final morning in Adelaide cycling up the Windy Point Climb outside Belair National Park Monday morning (also, there are supposedly koalas that hang from the trees there, so maybe I'd finally get to spy one!). Despite the fact it was a Monday morning (read: peak traffic), and she had to go to Uni later, she kept her promise, and with a smile and we prepped to do one last ride together.
- The morning was cool but calm. I was in more pain post-race than I have honestly ever felt before, both upper body and lower, but Maddie was calm and patient with me as I crawled my way up the grade (about 3 miles at 6%, check out my Strava file if you're curious). The view was stunning, and totally worth the pain. In fact, this is one of my favorite memories of the whole trip! About halfway up we paused to take a photo, and then we continued on till we reached the peak in a small, but busy neighborhood. We rolled on through, enjoying the flat as we rolled along the crest of the mountains (hills?). The descent down the back end was fast and furious. We paused again, this time to pick up my Garmin whose backside had broken off, which sent it flying (rather miraculously, it was not run over by traffic and still worked!)
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| Are we there, yet? |
- At the base, we worked our way back over to the beach roads for a spin along the sand and to watch the sun finish rising atop the blue ocean. We paused at a coffee shop where Maddie bought me a cappucino. Guys... I had no idea. Cappucinos in Oz are so different than cappucinos here! Do yourself a favor and order one when you're in town. Creamy, luscious, and full of chocolate. Make sure you don't skip the chocolate. What a treat.
- Before we finished, Maddie insisted we detour back to the outdoor velodrome, since I had missed my opportunity to ride it previously. I was glad we did - it was fun! Smooth and fast. I could see why she frequently used it for efforts. Maddie explained the importance of the sprinter's lane and staying in certain spaces at certain speeds, and then demonstrated how to do a flying start. Damn, girl's got power :)
- After that we roll home to shower, clean up, and finish the pack. Adelaide airport is small and a flight to NZ is considered basically domestic, so I don't have to be there till an hour before.
- I say goodbye to the family, saddened to leave so soon. Maddie helps me load my things and then helps me check it in at the Qantas desk. I hug her goodbye, thank her for all the great memories, and prepare to board my flight.
Flights:
- Adelaide to Sydney: ~ 2.5 hours
- Sydney to Auckland: ~ 3.5 hours
Arrival:
- Arrive Auckland at 11:50 PM and, luckily, so does all my luggage
- Go through hellish lines at security and customs. Have to guide a security officer through checking every nook and cranny of my bike. It is a PITA and he has no respect for the beauty that is Furiosa.
- Waltz out to find my cousins. I am hoping they recognize me from my photo. I am regretting not asking them to send one back.
- Vivek immediately spies me and calls out. Sujata gives me a giant hug and a kiss. They have a surprising amount of energy for so late in the evening, and I am thankful.
- They help me carry my belongings to the vehicle, where their oldest son is ensconced inside taking a much-needed snooze (he's a Uni kid working on a project in engineering design - I totally relate to how he feels).
- Once at their home, which is on the outskirts of Auckland, Sujata makes me a pot of tea and we stay up till 2 chatting before wishing each other goodnight. I am loving my cousins already :)
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