June 27,1992--The Adventure Begins

In 1992, our son Rob became an exchange student at James Cook University in Townsville, Australia. It was not easy for his father and me to let him travel halfway around the world (and to a different hemisphere) but we tried not to let it show too much. It was however the perfect excuse for our first trip to Australia. After all, we had to check up on him and besides, he needed to take advantage of being there to see a little more of the country.

We mapped out a tour with a company in California that specialized in Australian tours and they did most of the booking and scheduling for us. We were not yet seasoned travelers but you could say this was a first step to becoming so.

Now 28 years ago, I was a lot better at journaling than I am today--except for keeping my blog now. As I was doing some COVID cleaning (another name for spring cleaning) I came across my handwritten journal. It was a pleasant surprise and since there is no travel in the near future, I thought I would share that memorable trip here and reminisce. I do apologize for the pictures. We weren't digital yet.

June 27, 1992

              We arrive in Honolulu late, 11 PM. It is raining but not really rain. More a misty wetness. It is very warm and humid. We drive to our hotel, the Hyatt on Waikiki Beach. Bob has earned a free night for us with his travel points. We walk up a few steps and into a mall area and suddenly realize we are in an open air lobby. Immediately I notice beautiful large floral arrangements of ginger, anthurium, orchids and tropical foliage. Gratefully we accept our key and find our room. It has been a long day of travel.