We did find a bit of paradise though. We live a hugely fulfilling life here on Lake Oconee. Post covid, this area has become a thriving relocation and second-home destination. It really is the perfect place to live. Still country enough to know everyone. But developed enough to give us ample activities to keep the family busy. We bought a house on the lake, a wake boat, and our kids have grown up in and around the water while attending Lake Oconee Academy, one of the best schools in the state. I transitioned into my full time career in Lake Oconee Real Estate and have helped hundreds of families from all over the US find their dream homes here in neighborhoods like Reynolds Lake Oconee, Cuscowilla, and Harbor Club.

So there is happiness on land albeit in a different way than happiness on a boat. We are so happy we were able to get out and really live life to its fullest before committing to a more traditional life. And we will encourage our children to do the same. There is a short window of time in everyone’s life where health is high and obligations are low. Take advantage of that time. And never regret it.

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Love,

Drew and Margie

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Coming at you three at a time over the next few weeks/months!

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Seriously.  Who came up with this “real life” crap?  I went from sitting on a sandbar drinking Hinanos to sitting in the drive-thru at Wendy’s waiting on my Bacon-ator.  The transition has been hard.  We’ve moved onto much larger, much more stressful projects.  Within the next couple of weeks, Marge and I will have ownership in three separate businesses between the two of us.  One of those businesses I’m starting with my entire life savings and therefore committing myself for quite some time to this very small town.  We could take that same money and settle on a beach in the islands somewhere; open up a dive shop, sell rum drinks to tourists.  It’d be interesting to reach the point where “going to bed” means the limbo pole gets so low you fall over backwards and pass out.  Why, you ask, are we not doing that?  Simple.  We want to go back out there again. And to do it the way we want to do it takes a lot of hard work here in the real world.  No, it won’t be any time soon but we’re already talking about it.  We talk about where we want to go (Marge-Caribbean, Drew-Med), how big a boat we’d like (Marge-big catamaran, Drew– huge catamaran), and how we’ll achieve that goal (Marge-win the lottery, Drew-build the exit strategy before you build the business).  We’ll make it out there again.  I’m sure of it.

Until then we have our memories and our photos, our travel buddies, and blog to keep us in the spirit.  Currently I’m unable to read any travel/sailing blogs due to an unresolved anger-jealously issue but whenever I reach that point we’ll have all the experiences of others to live through as well.  If you’re traveling through Georgia between Augusta and Atlanta anytime soon, stop in and see us.  Maybe by then I’ll have the billboard up.  She doesn’t believe me, but keep an eye out for a twelve foot tall Marge on the side of I-20 advertising one of our businesses.  It’s coming.  It really is.

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Looking back on it I enjoyed Australia for many reasons other than those most people normally peg it for. The coastal drive was fun and offered us a great view of some of Australia’s beaches but I most enjoyed the shopping, the casino in Sydney which was good to us so that probably put it on my list, and the larger city feel of Sydney & Melbourne was a warm welcome for Drew and myself as well. I know he mentioned in a previous post that we like big cities…the noise, the people watching, the shopping, the FOOD!!! Melbourne probably is at the top of my list as one of my all time favorite cities ever as it was a perfect melting pot!

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We arrived at the end of almost 4 days of rain, somehow navigating our way to our rented apartment downtown. Princes Highway, the coastal tourist route from Sydney to Melbourne, was officially shut down on many of the sections we were driving through. Mudslides washed away parts of the road and bridges were washed over. The radio announcements were continuous that any unnecessary travel should be avoided and as Marge and I continued on through police barricades, past fallen trees, and over swollen rivers we discussed our options. We had shopping and eating to do and we weren’t interested in wasting any money in some podunk town in the rain so our travel was necessary, at least in our eyes. Weary from the road we arrived in Melbourne and quickly found that any flooding we navigated through to get here was child’s play compared to the hell that is driving in Melbourne. There’s tiny streets, trams, trains, buses, cars, motocycles, walkers, bikers, bridges, one-ways, no-right-turns, and strictly-enforced, expensive parking. I never want to drive in this city again. But what I do want to do in this city again is eat, walk, shop, and maybe one day live! I say shop, but honestly I haven’t purchased one thing for myself. Someone else, however, is having the time of her life.

Our apartment, in the CBD (Central Business District), allows us to walk to anywhere in the area. Where we can’t walk, public transport is easy to catch. Stepping out for our first night in the city, I looked up a couple of Melbourne food blogs for hints on where to eat. Melbourne is a foodie city. Within a six block radius of our hotel we can get Thai, Chinese, Vietnamese, Greek, Turkish, Halal, Lebanese, and a plethora of other types of cuisine. And these are your typically American version of “foreign food” where you go to a famous French restaurant in New York only to have the majority of the kitchen staffed with Mexicans. This is the real deal. Melbourne is filled with first, second, third, and fourth generation immigrants from all over the world. As a matter of fact, on our first night we ended up in a gourmet Mexican restaurant hidden up a skinny staircase on a quiet block of Collins Ave. Mamacita’s had been open only four days and had received great reviews on a local foodie blog. Had we not found the blog, we certainly wouldn’t have found the restaurant. It was the best Ceviche I’d had since leaving Ecuador almost two years ago and if it weren’t for the high prices we might still be sitting there eating it. From the bartender at Mamacita’s we were schooled on a few cool bars in the area and ended up at Cookies, whose fifty-page cocktail menu had us in stitches. The next night we ended up there again, this time for dinner, enjoying their huge Tapas menu after finally finding a seat. This place is apparently packed EVERY night of the week and the two we’ve visited so far were no different. Our third night in Melbourne we found Sichuan and to me, Chinese food will never be the same. Those little Sichuan peppers are the stuff of heaven and I can’t wait to get to Hong Kong to eat it again. After dinner we visited a bar next door called Fad and through the bartender, found our way to a Melbourne secret called “Siglo.” It’s a high class, cigar bar on a rooftop of the Melbourne Supper Club overlooking the parliament building in the theater district. This is the “it” place in Melbourne. By the end of the night we were sharing a table with a Russian fashion mogul from NYC, a retired-at-forty investment banker and his wife, and two well-known Australian financial writers. Life is good here in Melbourne.

Our days were spent wondering the streets. We did none of the usual tourist stuff short of visiting the central market for a brat.  We lived by the motto “be a traveler, not a tourist.” Doing so certainly influenced our opinion. The city felt more like a home than a destination and one day, I wouldn’t mind making it a home…at least for a couple of years. Tonight we visited Chapel Rd. It’s a pricey area outside of downtown centered around the South Yarra and Toorak neighborhoods. We chose a boutique hotel and even though our room is the size of walnut and there is an odd window looking from the main part of the room directly onto the toilet, there is a great rooftop pool overlooking the city.

Tomorrow we head back to New Zealand for a visit to the South Island. Although I’m sad to leave Melbourne knowing we’ve barely scratched the surface of this great city, I can leave knowing for a fact we will visit again one day. As far as cities go, this has been one of my favorite all time, ranking right up there with NYC…if not higher. People can tell you all day long to concentrate your travels on a particular place but until you’ve gone there and seen it for yourself, their opinions mean nothing (sorry Dad!). Melbourne was a highlight in four years of travel. Take note and give it a visit. You’ll be glad you did.

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