The absolute best part of life on the road has to be the huge volume and variety of people we have met. This aspect even tops the wonderous sights and sounds of Australia that we have discovered.

There is nothing like striking up a conversation with someone new, finding out where they come from, how long they have been travelling and invariably who they know that you know. Australia is such a big place but it is unbelievable who we have met that knows someone that we do. 

As our time on the road set in, we realised we were meeting more and more Victorians on the road who had left soggy Victoria for the warmth of Queensland. So, we kept meeting people who knew of someone we did, or who knew about the places we talked about. 

Since arriving back in Cairns, we have had a lovely couple of neighbours pull in and out. Most recently Annie and Peter. We got talking to them as we all examined a growing green ant problem on our grey water hoses. (This hose gets rid of the sink water). We were all gathered around with our various sprays when we got talking. 

As it turned out, they live a street from Boronia Heights PS. Not only that but their hairdresser is one of the parents at school, and I taught her daughter in 2011. 

As they have lived a long time in Boronia, they knew a lot of people that Ray also knew so we spent a while playing, “Do You Know”. It was so unlikely that our paths would cross and yet they did. Uncanny. 

We have developed a habit of forgetting what day of the week it is. This can be infuriating when we momentarily look at each other and have absolutely no idea if it is Tuesday or Thursday. Thank goodness for the iPhones which have the day of the week on the front screen. 

Today was one of these days. As we scrambled for a phone to find out, I realised just how fortunate we are to be living an experience not dominated by the clock. For the majority of the time we wake when we want to, eat when we feel like it and do what we want, when we want. Yes, we are lucky, very lucky and we appreciate and are grateful for each and every day.