Friday was a big day for us, given that Elaine had her first consultation with the specialist and, under the circumstances, we had the most positive outcome we could have had, albeit a mixed bag. The good news is that Elaine is comfortable with the doctor, his thinking is in line with hers and we can continue with our cruising plans for the foreseeable future. He did say, though, that Elaine was the most unusual patient that he's had, given that our "home" is on a yacht, but, most importantly, he is willing to work with the logistics involved for her follow-up care. Life goes on!
Saturday morning began with a bus ride into Chatswood to get some printing done at the library, following which we met Terence for a coffee and some baked delights at Pattinsons Patisserie. That evening we had a lovely surprise visit when our "ex-floating" neighbours on the large wooden boat popped over to Bantry Bay to see us. A fun night ensued which went on far longer than everyone had planned, but it was, nonetheless, very thoughtful of them to make the effort to come over and say goodbye before we leave Sydney. On Sunday morning we were up early to move Paw Paw while we still had the high tide to access the anchorage in Roseville Chase. The strong southerly winds arrived soon thereafter, so we were pleased to be tucked away nicely. It also allowed Elaine to head ashore, leaving Roy on anchor watch, while she enjoyed a ladies luncheon at the Polish Club with Angie, her mom and a friend of Angie's. The journey to the southwestern side of Sydney was definitely worth the effort as we all shared a number of unusual, but very tasty traditional Polish dishes. Today, after Roy took an early morning exercise walk to get one of our propane tanks filled, Elaine enjoyed a sleep in, following which we decided to take a bus ride in a direction we had not gone before. This time through Forestville and Allambie Heights to the Westfield Warringah Mall. It was a fun day out as well as a rather productive one in that we, not only enjoyed a delicious lobster lunch, but Roy found a suitable collection of new shoes / sandals and we were able to replace all our "glassware" and "crockery" on Paw Paw. In between all of this gallivanting we also found the time to catch up with family and friends around the world, which is always a little challenging, given all the timezones we have to consider. We're now into the final countdown to our departure northward along the New South Wales coast, a tad delayed by a follow-up specialist appointment later this week and tropical cyclone, Gita.
