With our favourite caravan park in Kiama closed down for repairs we were forced to look for alternative accommodation & found it at Shellharbour Holiday Park. We left at the crack of dawn so I could make an early podiatrist appointment in Nowra & we stopped at Berry for brekkie & to browse the main street. Arriving at the caravan park we were stoked to have an ocean view. All ocean side sites were occupied with the exception of the two adjoining sites in front of us. Talk about lucky! It was only to be a brief 3 night visit so we didn't bother to unpack much even preferring not to wind out the awning. I managed a late afternoon surf at The Farm, a popular break in the spectacular surfing reserve at Killalea. It was a playful 2-3 foot beach break with left & right peaks & only a dozen or so crew in the water. Just the right start to our stay here.
I returned to The Farm at dawn the following day to find an increase in swell & crowd numbers. The waves had jumped a couple of feet and was still trying to sort itself out. I decided to go for a paddle but only managed a few funky ones despite a lot of scratching around. I didn't see anyone get many good ones that morning. On the way back I saw some activity outside a primary school. It took only a short moment to realise what was happening and I pulled into an available space so I could vote for the NSW elections. I thought being an absentee voter may prolong the experience but after a quick search on an electoral iPad, my name was found and away I went. I tell ya...one of these days The Fishing Party are gonna get the numbers.
As luck would have it, that evening the mighty Manly Sea Eagles were due to play The Dragons at WIN Stadium, in the heart of nearby Wollongong. I drove the 30 minutes into town, spent another 15 searching for a nearby park & then the same walking to the ground. WIN Stadium is on prime real estate. A stone's throw from the beach, I reckon you could easily throw a couple of baits in the surf before donning the jersey & watching a game.
I found myself a spot on the hill & was sitting next to this guy. Apparently he is well known as a tragic Manly supporter in his home town of Ulladulla where he can be seen cruising around in his blue car, adorned with Manly stickers & flags. I actually saw the car in Milton & it's a masterpiece. I tried to get a photo of it before losing him in traffic. I enjoyed most of the U'20's match as Manly remained undefeated with the likes of 2nd rower Addison Demetriou with his bullocking hit ups & young fullback Tom 'Turbo' Trbojevic's try scoring nous providing the highlights. Manly's long term future is assured if they can hold on to the likes of these guys. The short term though doesn't look as rosy with an insipid performance from the team. We looked totally outenthused, barely touched the ball in the first 20 minutes & found ourselves behind on the scoreboard at halftime 10 - 0. I ventured to the facilities & could have been mistaken I was lining up for the new iWatch, the queue was so long. The experience took up almost the entire half time break & as one Manly fan lamented after doing the deed "& they think Brookvale's bad?". The 2nd half was a dour affair & despite at times looking like we may work our way back into the match, went down 12 - 4. I wasn't overly confident heading into the game as Manly's record is unimpressive at this ground. I wasn't too disappointed in the result but more so the effort from the boys - just so unManly like.
With the Easter holidays looming, we are preparing to journey inland again. Until then...adios amigos.