Stuck in the Gums

2nd - 5th May

I'm in a tiny place called Salmon Gums and I'm sat outside this pub and my car won't start. Its ticking over but not engaging. I can't tell you how pissed off I was. After only having the car back for a few weeks and its broken down on me again already. I'm in a tiny town of only a few buildings, not to mention its quite late on Saturday now so even if there is a mechanics its probably closing for the weekend very soon. ARRGH!

I grabbed two people passing by who I think were from somewhere in Eastern Europe and they had a look but they didn't seem to know much more than me. I went back to the pub that I thought was closed but was actually open. I can't remember the name of the woman I spoke to but she grabbed her husband, Mitch, to come have a look. He couldn't figure it out either and directed me around the corner to a mechanics which I was surprised to find was open. The mechanic said he would be round in the morning to have a look (yes on a Sunday!)

I went back to the pub I bought myself a well needed beer. There was nothing to do but wait until morning. The pub seemed like a very quiet place. It can't make much money but the owners didn't seem all too bothered about that. They didn't have much in the way of overheads so it just a little pension pot for them really. Apparently every so often they would close up shop, jump in the big RV that was parked outside and go away for a month. Simple life really. I got chatting to the owners who were a very nice couple. So nice in fact that when I said I'm sleeping in my car the woman wouldn't have a bar of it and said I could have one of the three motel rooms they have. She has a daughter traveling Europe and said that she hoped that someone would help her out in a similar situation. I offered to work for it and she said if it got busy enough I could help out but I probably wouldn't be needed.

The motel room was awesome after being in my car for so long. Like a proper hotel room with an ensuite. The going rate was $100 a night so it was a real gift! I stayed in the pub for a couple of hours buying beers so I could at least pay for it in some way.

Drinking with the owners

The mechanic came over the next day to have a look and towed me to his shop. He was open on Sunday as it had a lot of work on. There was some fault with the starter motor not sending a spark to the engine or something. He said he'd be a couple of days fixing it. The owners of the pub said I was welcome to stay which was really great. I bought one of their rather expensive pizzas that night. I struggled for cheap food as the only shop was at the petrol station and that only really had snacks.

The owners went away for the night on Monday and I had very little to do. I spent most of the day watching a marathon of The Walking Dead. The owners came back on Tuesday morning and it was starting to get awkward with me staying. The mechanic said it should be fixed that day but as it got into the afternoon I was really itching to get going. They wouldn't have asked me to leave but I think I was outstaying my welcome and I didn't want to pester the mechanic because I could see he was busy. I had packed my stuff and cleaned the room for them and around 5 o'clock the mechanic gave me a ring and said it was all done. Awesome I can go!

But even paying was an effort. The money dad had sent me hadn't cleared yet so I didn't have enough money to pay the $300 repair. I had my English bankcard but he needed cash and there's no ATM in town. I tried to use his computer to do a bank transfer but because it was an international transfer it was more of a faff and I couldn't get it to work. I had to go back to the pub to ask if they could do cash out over the bar. Luckily there had been someone drinking in there all afternoon so they did have enough cash for me. I probably had to pay extra in bank charges and a rubbish exchange rate but at least I could pay and finally leave town.

I thanked the owners over and over and told them they have really helped me out of a tight spot. They are a very generous couple and the whole breakdown experience could have been so much worse. I tried to see the positives like it wasn't too expensive to repair, I got a free room for a few days and I got to meet some real aussies in the true outback. That said, I would really like not to break down again!