We knew it was time to head north when the seasons really began to change in Taggerty. The days grew shorter, the morning fog stayed longer and the trees changed hue. Despite all this, it was still quite pretty in Taggerty, but we knew our time there was limited for this year. After a hectic six months, it was time to go north again.

So the week before the Australian Federal Election, Rita headed off to Switzerland to see her friends and relatives, and I followed the week after the election, to meet up with her. Luckily, the Australian people woke up to themselves and the country was put into good hands until we return later in the year. So I went to my last steelband practice for a while on Monday night, and my last French class at CH@T (Community Hub at Taggerty) on Tuesday morning, before driving with Vicki to Melbourne Airport, after which she drove our Toyota HiLux home and will take care of it till we return.

The scene at the airport was very different from last year, with long queues and waiting times everywhere. This was reinforced once I boarded the plane to Singapore, with every seat filled, compared to the 10% occupancy last year. I guess I won't be lying horizontal for a good sleep this year! As one of the women in our row of seats said, "the Australians are back travelling again". Once again, I selected a window seat on the left well behind the wing, so that I had good visibility if a photographic opportunity arrived. Once again, as in 2019, we flew over Uluru and the Olgas, but visibility was not as good this year, so I didn't get any good sunset shots.

But as we cruised on above the clouds, I did capture the serenity of the view as we headed north-west.

We chased the sunset for a good hour until we reached the north-west coast between Broome and Darby.

Then it was time to close the eyes and get some sleep before we arrived in Singapore around 9pm.