Back to Reality

I am sitting on the plane heading towards Hong Kong on my way home. It's nearing the end of a long and life changing adventure. I am listening to Sade on my discman. We are flying over Darwin, according to the video map. I ended up being offered the job as a zookeeper at the Taronga Zoo. They were going to sponsor me and everything. It just wasn't the right time. It was time to head home, to start the next phase of my life... whatever that is...

I am reflecting on the months past, and wondering what the future holds. The last day in Sydney was sad, saying goodbye to my flatmates and all the friends I had met. I will miss Sydney, my apartment next to the sea, BBQ'ing 'shrimps on the barbie' with my flatmates at Freshwater Beach, daily snorkels with sharks and tropical fish, great restaurants, the best bar ever - The Barking Frog. I had so many great times in Australia, met heaps of people, saw and experienced such beauty. Highlights include swimming with whale sharks in Western Australia, scuba diving in the Ningaloo Reef, dancing on the tables at Cheeky Monkeys, the gorgeous lakes on Fraser Island, sailing the Whitsundays and seeing the Great Barrier Reef, spending endless days relaxing in a hammock, horseback riding on the beach, crocodile cruises, camping in the outback, seeing the outback from a helicopter, countless conversations over wine.... the list goes on...

The adventure in a Land Down Under ends... for now... and a new chapter begins....

Back to Paradise

At the present moment I am lying in a hammock between two palm trees on Magnetic Island, the very same hammock I found myself spending endless days relaxing in when I was here last with Genny. I love watching the palm leaves dance in the wind and feeling the warm tropical breeze on my skin. Ahhhh... I have found the hammock to be the most relaxing thing in the world. I must get one when I go back to Vancouver.

The Whitsunday cruise was fantastic! Out of everywhere I have gone in the world, this is most beautiful place I have ever seen. My brother and I sailed on a 62-foot boat this time. Sailing is the definitely the way to see the Great Barrier Reef. There were 12 of us on the boat, coming from England, Scotland, Ireland, Holland, and some fellow Canadians. I didn't click with this group as much as last time, but what was better this time was the scenery and the reef. The first night we cruised to Nara Inlet on Hook Island. Our cabin was so hot that we took our mattresses and slept outside on deck every night, sleeping under the stars.


Whitehaven beach was even more beautiful than last time, which I didn't think was possible. The tide was a little lower so there were white sand bars everywhere. I felt like I was in one of those tropical calendars that I used to have pinned up in my locker in high school. I have never been in such warm water. Believe me. I am a wimp when it comes to cold water. I even thought the water in Hawaii was too cold. This water was unbelievably warm and crystal clear. You could see manta rays all over the place. I was careful not to step on them. We spent hours just relaxing and frolicking in the waves.

We then sailed for hours to the outer reef, to a reef called Bait Reef. You could barely see the mainland anymore, we had been sailing out to see for hours. It seemed like we would have been in deep ocean, thousands of feet deep, but then suddenly we were only in a few meters of water and you can see the bottom. We arrived just in time to see the sun set. The next morning we woke up and could see the reef surrounding us. The exact location was called "The Stepping Stones". It was shallow enough that we decided to snorkel, scuba diving wasn't necessary. I couldn't finish my breakfast fast enough, I was so excited to jump in. As soon as I jumped in I was surrounded by Bat fish, Giant Travaleys and Hump Headed Maori Wrasses. Then I saw the coral. Honestly, it was so beautiful that tears came to my eyes. It was like I had landed in another world, on another planet! The Great Barrier Reef is Amazing!!!! The Stepping Stones were big hills, or shelves, made of massive coral formations. I have never seen such diversity of coral... such vibrant colors! We saw two White-tipped Reef Sharks, two sea turtles and so many types of coral (branching, fan, brain, shelf, lettuce...). I pointed out one of the reef sharks to my brother, who is extremely afraid of sharks, and he squeezed my arm so hard out of fear that I had a bruise for days. I was so pleasantly surprised to see how healthy the coral looked. The coral was in much better shape on the outer reef than on the fringing, inner reef. The further away it is from the coastline, the better, since the closer reefs get damaged a lot more. We snorkeled for hours. I didn't want to leave.

The last day was a sail to Nara Inlet. Barry, our Aussie skipper let my brother and I sail the boat for a while. Barry, was quite the character, filled with funny expressions for everything. My brother asked where he should be steering the boat and Barry's response was: "Just go right through the guts of 'er!". Ummmm... yeah... ok.

So, here I am back on Magnetic Island. This is the last day here until I head back to Sydney and then fly home. Yesterday, I relaxed on the hammock most of the day. Today, I jet skied and scootered around the island with my bro. Our hostel is closing for renovations so the kitchen is permanently closed. We've had to go into town every day for meals. The temperature is sooooo nice, around 30 degrees everyday... just the way I like it.

Searching for Sand, Surf and Sun

Just a quick one to let everyone know where I am at. I finished my job at the Sydney Aquarium (could only work for 3 months due to visa restrictions) and I am enjoying 3 weeks traveling with my brother. I toured him around Sydney for a few days doing the usual tourist stuff including a personal, and in-depth, tour of the Sydney Aquarium. We have headed up the coast in search of sand, sun and surf (too much rain in Sydney) and are currently in Byron Bay, a chilled out surf town I visited 6 months ago. We will hit a few beach towns along the way north, doing some sailing on the Whitsundays (I had to do the sailing trip again because it was too much fun to do once) and chilling on tropical Magnetic Island.

Not too many exciting things to report in the last couple months. For those who don't know, the Rugby World Cup was held in Australia this year. It is VERY big for Aussies and the whole country stopped whenever there was a game on. The Romanian rugby team visited the Aquarium and offered me some free tix, so my friend and I got to see a really good game between Romania and Argentina. It was pretty exciting to be at a live rugby game. Our Canucks fans are nothing compared to Aussie rugby fans.

After being invited to a job assessment at Taronga Zoo for a zookeeping job I was asked back for a personal interview. I think all went well, but the only way I will get the job is if they sponsor me, which is quite unlikely. I will find out if I got the job in a couple weeks. If I do accept the job I will most likely stay longer than anticipated.

My bro and I have to catch a bus to Surfer's Paradise now. I hope all is well and I hope to hear from you all soon.

Sydney By the Sea

I know it's been a while since I have wrote. For the last 2 months I have been working at the Sydney Aquarium as an marine interpreter and tour guide. I am learning so much about Australian marine life. I find it fascinating meeting hundreds of tourists every day and finding out where they are from. I am always surprised how little people know about marine life.

I just finished volunteering at Taronga Zoo in Sydney once a week. It was fun working with the seal trainers, although, they were all men. They quite enjoyed busting my chops and making fun of my 'accent'. I got to feed seals and penguins and helped with the seal shows. On my last day, Prince Harry decided to pay a little visit to the Zoo so I got to come within 1 meter of him!! He's really tall and cute :)

I actually applied for 10 zookeeping positions at the Zoo 2 months ago and just got a call last week for an interview for one of them. Since the position involves teaching, it's not really an interview but a 'group assessment' where they put all the job candidates in different scenarios and watch how they are in front a group. I'll let you know how it goes.

I am probably only staying for 2 more months anyway since, according to my visa restrictions, I can only work at one job for 3 months max, so I am finished the Aquarium in mid-November. After that my brother might be coming down for a visit and hopefully we will go up the coast for a few weeks before I head home for Christmas.

I am now living in an awesome flat in Manly, right on the water!! Imagine living in a house where your bedroom window is right on the Stanley Park sea wall and the waves splash up on your window every now and then. I just bought a wetsuit (not that I'll be needing a wetsuit when the water warms up in a month) so now I walk 10 steps to the ocean to snorkel and surf and walk 20 more steps to swim laps in the outdoor pool where the ocean water flows in. I am living with 3 British guys in a fully furnished 3 bedroom flat and I have my own room with an ocean view. The flat is relatively cheap considering it's location. For those wondering... NO I haven't hooked up with any of my flat mates (yet) although one of them is pretty cute. The first week we all got sick and were all couch/bed-ridden: Rob and I with a stomach virus, Mike with a cold, and Chris with a foot infection after stepping on a sea urchin.

That's pretty much the latest news with me. I am still waiting for the weather to warm up, but so far Vancouver is still warmer.....figures!!

West to East by Train

I finally made it to Sydney. My ear has still not popped so I decided the only way I was going to get out of Perth was to take the long, torturous 3-day train ride from Perth to Sydney. I made friends with the man sitting next to me. He was from Holland, and he had trouble speaking English and turning his neck from side to side (some sort of spinal/muscle problem). The first night the train stopped for 4 hours in some small town with a long name I can't pronounce. It was night and the only thing to do was find a pub. Apparently pubs without extremely drunk obnoxious rednecks don't exist in this town. We found a pub that had the least amount of drunk men and sat down with a drink only to find that it was karaoke night. So, naturally I ended up belting out a few tunes on stage until we had to get back on the train again.

The scenery was a little monotonous. Very dry and flat. No kangaroos in sight.

I met a cute guy on the train... we played cards and he gave me a rose. Well...actually he was 10yrs old, we played an intellectual game of Go Fish and the rose was a picture of a rose that he drew for me. After 3 days of attempting to sleep in a chair and seeing the southern part of Oz, I arrived in Sydney. I have been here for a week now and am still job hunting.

I have a mobile now so call me!! Remember it is 17 hours ahead here for those in Vancouver. If you know how to text message do so too because it is much cheaper.

I am so envious of your warm weather in Vancouver. It is sunny every day here but cold. You will all be envious of me in a few months when I get my tan back again in the summer.

Raining in Perth

Didn't think you'd hear from me so soon? I had to miss my flight on the 14th to Sydney. I have had a horrible cold for the last few days and my right ear has been plugged for 4 days now. On the day of my flight I went to the Doctor and he told me that unless I wanted to go deaf I shouldn't fly. Of course my ticket was non-refundable so I am out $209 and bored out of my mind. I thought about taking a train to Sydney, but the thought of sitting and sleeping in a tiny seat for 3 days just wasn't appealing to me. I tried to shop for warm clothes but the fashion here is lacking in selection. So..... what to do in a cold, rainy city.....I should be an expert at this!! Honestly, I don't know how we tolerate our cold climate at home. I did, however, go to some of the beaches in Perth during the few hours of sun that Perth has had in a while, and I must say... NOW I know why people like Perth. The beaches are absolutely gorgeous!! They have huge waves and white sand and go on for miles. They'd be great in the summer. I have already chosen the beachhouse that I will buy when I make my first million : ) My day at the beach was spent with a cute, fun and extremely sweet English bloke named Paul who I had met the night before. We spent a romantic day sipping wine at a trendy cafe, walking along the beach and then going to a place called Sunday Sessions. It's a huge club with many rooms full of trendy 20-somethings sipping on cocktails and beer. It opens on Sunday morning and people go there as early as 9am to drink and socialize all day.

Whale Sharks, Cockroaches, Bakery Truck Drivers, Oh My!

One thing people forgot to tell me was how LONG it takes to get anywhere in Western Australia. There are very few towns (unlike the East coast) and each one is about one street long. On July 3rd I took an excruciatingly long bus ride (15 hours overnight) up to Coral Bay, which is not even half way up the west coast. The weather was perfect!! Sunny and 28 degrees every day. Because it was school holidays everything was booked solid so I had no place to stay the second night. It was either sleep on the beach or pay $120 for a crappy hotel. Well... I chose option 3, which was to catch a ride at 4:30am on the bakery truck to Exmouth with a sketchy guy named Smithy. It was quite the ride. Smithy looked like he was a Hell's Angels biker, with a long beard and chains. The house music blasting the whole way as I tried to sleep was an added bonus (at least it was house!).

The morning I got into Exmouth I had booked 2 dives at the Navy Pier, one of the best pier dives in the world. It was pretty amazing: giant, colorful fish everywhere. It really was like jumping into a tropical fish tank. I swam within 2 feet of a 2m long White-tipped Reef shark!! I wasn't scared at all. We also swam next to a giant yellow sea snake and a 1.5m Wobbigong shark (they are related to Leopard sharks). I bought a $50 underwater camera that apparently could be used several times, but when I went to rewind the film after the dive it hadn't rewound and is probably ruined now.

The next day I went on another dive to the Ningaloo Reef. Awesome!! The best dive I have ever been on! I swam through caverns and caves and there was incredible surge (the waves from above tossed us back and forth). I finally saw my first clownfish in the wild. The coral wasn't as impressive as the Great Barrier but the diversity of fish was amazing. Then we got back on the boat because they had spotted our first Whale Shark!! It was quite hectic, pulling off our gear and quickly racing into our snorkel gear and then diving into the deep ocean to see the biggest fish in the world. I didn't know what to expect and how BIG this shark was going to be. I jumped into the water and looked down into the ocean, and suddenly there was this giant shark heading right in my direction with its mouth open. I remember screaming into my snorkel "holy shit!". I would like to say that I was really brave snorkeling with a 20foot long shark, but actually they are completely harmless and only eat plankton and small fish. We swam within a couple meters of the shark and because they don't swim very fast we swam along side it for a while. The first one we saw had a huge chunk taken out of its dorsal fin and its side, most likely from a Tiger Shark. Remember when swimming in the tropics: spots are good (whale shark), stripes are bad (tiger shark). We saw 3 more whale sharks and then went looking for Humpback whales, which we saw 2 of. We also saw dozens of manta rays feeding near the reef.

I took the bus back to Coral Bay (booking my hostel accommodation well in advance) and just chilled on the beach for 5 days. I suntanned, read, and snorkeled, in that order about everyday. I hung out with a really cool guy named Ian from England most of the time. The Ningaloo Reef is right off the beach so you can literally just jump in the water and swim to the reef. Coral Bay is so beautiful; I recall staring at the turquoise water for a while with my mouth hanging open because it was so beautiful. One night I was cooking a stir fry and went to go stir it and discovered a little extra protein in the pan - a cockroach!! It was crawling in with my veggies and just about freaked me out. I carefully removed it (crushing it causes all its little eggs to come out and produce more cockroaches) and decided that the food wasn't ruined because of the heat.

I am back in cold Perth now: 5 degrees this morning! The bus took 15 hours to get back from Coral Bay. Along the way I tried to ignore the occasional loud thump in the front of the bus. Apparently the bus hits about 5 kangaroos a night :( I talked to the bus driver about it and he said that 25 'roos in one night was his record. It's like they are proud of it or something.

I booked my flight back to Sydney on Monday the 14th. From there I will look for a job somewhere on the East Coast. I have met heaps of people who have given me ideas of where to look. I'll write next in Sydney. Until then... keep happy and healthy.

The Red Centre

Genny and I spent 2 more days in Darwin planning our next flight and our camping road trip down to Ayers Rock. We got an amazing deal on a 4wd camper...$1 a day plus $25 a day for insurance. We paid so little because it was a relocation, which meant they needed to relocate the camper back to Alice Springs. We set off on our road trip on June 27th. The outback is definitely as desolate as everyone said. Each night we found a dirt road off the side of the highway and camped there in the middle of nowhere. It was so much fun!! We were expecting to see kangaroos hopping around everywhere but all that we saw was about 60 dead on the side of the road.

On the way to Ayers Rock were these bizarre rock formations, called Devil's Marbles. The rocks were massive, some 20 feet high and perfectly round, balancing on only a tiny portion of the rock.



We arrived at Ayers Rock (called Uluru by the Aboriginees). It was sooooo impressive, and much bigger than I had imagined. The landscape surrounding it was so bizarre. The only way to describe the area was that it looked like we had landed on Mars. There was red dirt everywhere and really sparse, funny looking trees. It was incredibly flat and then there was this giant rock jutting up out of the red desert. The climb up the rock was closed due to wind, but after learning about how important Uluru was to the Aboriginees we weren't going to climb it. One roll of film later we drove to another landmark: the Olgas (called Kata Tjuka). They were equally as bizarre, but not as impressive in my opinion.

After 5 days in the desert our adventuresome road trip, and my time with Genny came to an end. I flew to Perth and she flew to Sydney, where her boyfriend is going to school. It was soooo sad saying goodbye after spending every minute with her for the last month. We will definitely keep in touch.

So...here I am in cold, rainy Perth all by myself. I am heading north to Exmouth where it is warmer and where I will chill out on the beach, scuba dive and perhaps swim with whale sharks. I think my travels are coming to an end. I will spend about a week and a half on the west coast and then fly back to Sydney to start looking for a job.

I hear Vancouver is having fabulous weather...figures!! I hope you are all enjoying your summer and that everyone had a happy Canada Day. I actually forgot all about Canada Day because there were no Canadians around to remind me.

Salties vs. Freshies

The next day Genny and I went on a 3-day camping trip to Kakadu National Park. What a great experience! It was exhausting but worth it. The fire alarm going off in our hostel at 2am the night before didn't help us get off to a good start. We started the tour at 6:30am!! This was definitely a sign of things to come! On the first day we saw Barramundi fish swimming in a lake, took a tour of a wetland area that apparently has the highest concentration of wildlife in the world, took a walk through a paperback tree forest, saw giant 10-foot tall termite mounds, and got a chance to eat bush tuckers (ants with green butts), which I politely declined, and then went on an amazing crocodile cruise. This cruise was even better than the first one I had taken. We got a few feet away from 4meter long crocodiles that would eat anyone in a second if they fell over board. I learned all about crocs and can now tell the difference between the man-eating saltwater crocs (called "salties") and the supposedly not man-eating freshwater crocs ("freshies"). The wildlife and the scenery in the area were breathtaking!

That night at the campsight we were invited to an Aboriginal Corroboree, which is a traditional Aboriginal ceremony. We watched the Aboriginal men, who were all painted and only wearing loin clothes, do dances around the fire and sing and play the didgeridoo. We even got to get our faces painted and join in on the dancing. What a unique experience! The next morning we got up at 5am!!!!!! I had gotten about 2 hours of sleep thanks to all the mozzies (mosquitos) and the uncomfortable bed. It was still dark out when we were forced to get up. The day ahead would prove to be worth the early start though. We went to Ubirr, the sight of ancient Aboriginal rock art dating back 20,000 years old. We were taught all about Aboriginee culture and way of life. We hiked to a gorgeous lookout, which overlooked the floodplains and escarpment country below. That lookout was also where they filmed Crocodile Dundy. Next we hiked to the top of a beautiful waterfall and swam for the rest of the day in the jacuzzi-warm pools of water above the falls.

The next morning we were allowed to 'sleep in' until 5:30am!! We went on a long hike to Jim Jim Falls. Words can't describe how beautiful this place was. We swam under the waterfall surrounded by rock faces 200 feet high. After 6 hours of driving we were back in Darwin and at the end of our tour. That night all 16 of us from our tour partied the night away in a bar in Darwin.

More Adventures in Oz

I am now on the west coast of Australia in Perth. It is WAY too cold here compared to what I have been used to up north. They weren't joking when they said it gets cooler in winter.

Just before I started writing this, I was on a pay phone and all of a sudden I hear a loud screech and a bang. I hung up the phone and discovered a woman had been hit by a car! My curiosity got the better of me and I ran down to take a closer look. An old lady's head was sliced open and blood was everywhere. It was a disgusting sight. Apparently a truck had gone through a red light and hit her. When I first saw her I thought she was dead, but by the time the ambulance came she was moving. Hopefully the lady will make it.

On a happier note, the last 3 weeks have been fabulous! I last wrote about Magnetic Island, a gorgeous island just outside of Townsville. We (my friend Genny and I) had originally planned to stay for 3 days but decided to stay for a week because we were having so much fun. We stayed in a resort that felt like Club Med (minus the outrageous price) that was apparently the only hostel in Australia that was right on the beach. We stayed in little bungalows overlooking palm trees and the ocean. Most days we suntanned by the pool, took a dip in the warm ocean, and chilled out on hammocks, sipping cocktails. On our more adventurous days we horse backed on the beach, jet skied, and rented scooters around the island. Horseback riding was so amazing because we actually swam in the ocean with the horses and I got to canter on a horse for the first time. I had ridden horses many times before so I thought I had cantered before...I was wrong! Horses essentially have 4 'gears': walking, trotting, cantering, and running. I had apparently only gone to 2nd gear before, and boy was I surprised when the horse started to go... I almost fell off. I can't imagine what running is like!! We even got to ride bare back which is a little more unstable and uncomfortable than I thought. We had a few wild nights dancing in the open air club on the sand. Oh yeah... and I met a really hot scuba diving instructor named Kevin. My ear was plugged with water so I couldn't go diving, but I may just have to go back there again now that my ear has unplugged.


After reluctantly leaving Magnetic Island we hopped on the Oz bus again to Mission Beach, the Cassowary capital of Australia. Our hostel was in the middle of nowhere so there wasn't much to do and the weather sucked. On the way back from the beach one day I had a brilliant idea to cut through someone's back yard. Suddenly we were confronted by 2 animals running towards us and growling. We thought they might be wild dingos, but we weren't sure. I remember reading that with dingos you have to keep eye contact at all times. We stood there frozen staring at them while they ran towards us, stopped and turned away... thankfully. We had a hilarious night that night, consisting of copious amounts of red wine. After nursing our hangovers the next day we headed up to Cairns, which was the last stop on our Oz Experience bus. On the way, we stopped at a crocodile farm and saw dozens of HUGE crocs. I even got to hold a baby croc. Next, the bus stopped at a bungee jumping sight. We were both tempted to take the 40meter plunge, but I decided I would sky dive later in my trip instead.

Cairns was touristy as they said it would be, but lots of fun. Our hostel room was about a foot bigger than the bunk bed that was in it...it was the size of a closet! We went to a bar one night that was mostly full of Hells Angels bikers. Very strange night to say the least! The weather wasn't great and there are no beaches there, just mudflats, so we booked a tour up to Cape Tribulation for the next day. Cape Trib. was beautiful! It's where the rain forest meets the reef...literally. There are fascinating mangrove forests everywhere. Did you know that water flows in the opposite direction in the southern hemisphere? No...I don't mean upwards, but I mean in a clockwise direction instead of a counterclockwise direction in the northern hemisphere. It's called the cordialus effect. Try looking at the toilet flushing and seeing the direction the water flows. The vines on the trees in the rain forests in Australia all wrap around the tree in a clockwise direction because of the water flow. Interesting eh!!

The next day in Cape Trib we went on a crocodile cruise in Daintree. We saw tonnes of crocs and even a Python hanging from a tree. I felt like I was on the jungle cruise at Disneyland, but this time the crocs were real.

We took a ferry ride to Green Island... a GORGEOUS tropical island, surrounded by coral and clear blue water, and packed with Japanese tourists. The day was spent suntanning and snorkeling and buying identical shirts in the gift shop. While snorkeling I saw my first wild sea turtle!! It was so awesome, I swam with it for about 5 minutes and watched it glide through the water, looking back at me from time to time.

That day we hopped on a plane and flew to Darwin, or as the Aussie's call it, the 'Top End'. It was 35 degrees all day and night, sooooooo pleasant!!...we could wear tank tops at night. Darwin is a small town filled with crazy 20-year-old backpackers and lots of drunk aborigines stumbling down the streets. We spent a day poolside baking ourselves in the sun. Every half hour we would get so hot that we would dive into the pool to cool off. What a relaxing day!! Genny and I have moved from the 15 sunscreen to the 6 baby oil now.

This Way to Paradise!

Last I wrote I was starting out on my sailing trip through the Whitsundays. After a tasty lunch we went scuba diving. It was sooo amazing to be diving in the Great Barrier Reef. The diversity of coral and fish were incredible. Sadly, the area is constantly inundated with tourists so the coral have suffered.

The next day was my birthday, and it was an adventurous one. I woke up a little hung over and sea sick and noticed that it was raining. It never rains on my birthday! Technically, it wasn't my birthday in Vancouver for another 8 hours so there was still time for sun. We jumped overboard for a dip in the warm ocean before we were served a delicious breakfast. We then went snorkeling, which instantly cured my hangover. After snorkeling we went for a sail and sailed right into a giant storm. We wore rain jackets but the rain came down so hard that they were no use. One girl had a hilarious idea to wear a snorkel mask so we could see each other under the torrential rain. It was quite a sight.

After the storm passed the sun came out and there wasn't a cloud in the sky. We snorkeled again after lunch at the most amazing snorkeling sight I have ever been to. We saw a leopard shark and 100's of different colorful fish. There were giant clams that were opening and closing and huge crevices covered in coral.

We then sailed to Whitsunday Island where Whitehaven beach is located. This beach was THE best beach I have ever been to. Picture a beach with km's of the whitest softest sand and the clearest turquoise water. I had definitely found paradise!! Best of all there was no one else on the beach. We asked the skipper of the boat if he could just leave us there forever. After playing in paradise for a while we sailed into a quiet harbour to swim with turtles and eat a delicious BBQ dinner as the sun set. Everyone knew it was my birthday, so they surprised me with a 'cake' (they improvised and used Wheatabix because they had no cake and the candle was a flashlight), a happy birthday song, and the cabin was decorated with toilet paper and written on it was 'Happy Birthday Alana'. It was so special. After dinner we lay under the stars and shared favourite birthday memories. Next to our boat was a huge racing yacht that was rumored to have lots of cute guys on board. I suggested we pay them a visit, so we ended up hanging out on their boat and partied the night away. What a great birthday!!



The next day was more snorkeling, sun bathing and swimming. Sadly, the sail came to an end all too fast. One of the best parts of the sailing trip was meeting Genny, one of the Canadians, whom has now become a great friend and will be traveling with me for the next month. After the sailing trip, Genny and I got on the Oz Experience bus and headed for Magnetic Island, a hidden treasure in my opinion. This island was just amazing. That's all for now....

Holy Sand Dunes, Batman!

Sorry it's been so long since my last post, but the fun factor of my trip has just gone up several notches, and I simply have not had time to sit down for an hour to write. Thank you for all your birthday wishes. I will tell you about my unforgettable birthday later.
On the last installment of A Land Down Under, I was in Surfer's Paradise and heading to Fraser Island. Fraser Island exceeded my expectations in terms of its natural beauty. The island is full of lush rain forests that grow right out from the sand. There is a 75 mile white sand beach that seems to go on for miles. That sandy beach serves as the 'highway' and 'runway' for the 4-wheel drive vehicles and planes that land on the island. There were 9 people on my 3-day camping trip - 4 English, 2 Germans, and 2 Scottish guys, and me the only Canadian. I got a chance to drive the 4wd van on the beach and on the extremely challenging soft sand roads throughout the island. We came across a shipwreck on the beach. The Mahemo was a ship that had washed ashore after it was declared unseaworthy and was being towed to Japan. We camped next to packs of dingos and saw huge guanas (lizards) in the trees. The freshwater lakes on the island are incredible: some had white silica sand and clear turquoise water, others were a cool clear green color with huge sand dunes flowing into the water. Lake McKenzie had the whitest sand. There was sand EVERYWHERE! Some of the dunes were so steep that there were warning signs not to run down them. Of course we ignored those signs.

My next destination was the Town of 1770. Yes, that IS the name. It was a quiet town with one bar, supermarket, and restaurant. My dad's friend has a time-share there, so I was lucky enough to stay there for 5 days for free. I shared the luxury apartment with a girl from Holland, whom I had met on the Oz Experience bus. We had a quiet and relaxing few days, suntanning when it was sunny and watching videos when it rained.

After the Town of 1770 I took the Oz bus once again up the coast to a VERY small town called Dingo, a memorable night for many Oz Experience passengers. We arrived at a cattle station much like the sheep station I stayed in Nundle a while back. Immediately when we got off the bus they asked us if we wanted to go for a helicopter ride. I just couldn't pass it up, so within 5 minutes of arriving I was 800 feet up looking down at the outback below. It was a blast! Being the adventurous type I am I was however disappointed that the pilot didn't do any sharp turns or drops. I assumed it was because it was getting dark and it may have been too dangerous. I voiced my opinion and they asked if I wanted to go again for free at sunrise the next morning. My response was a definite YES! That night we learned how to line dance and dance on the picnic tables without falling off (some had better luck than others). The next morning after my sunrise helicopter ride (even better than the night before) we went on a farm tour. We learned about the life of the Braham cattle (don't remember spelling) and how the farm manages to feed them even in the drought. We learned how to crack a whip and throw a boomerang. I also tried the didgeridoo.




Next I took the bus to Airlie Beach where the highlight of my trip starts. The following day, June 2nd, I started out on a 3 day sailing trip around the Whitsunday Islands. It was just a magical trip!! There were 10 of us and 2 crew on a 50 foot sailing yacht. We all got along so well, it was amazing!! On the boat were myself and 2 Canadians (Genny and Jerome), 2 Americans (Meagan and Mason), 2 Belgians (Les and Inga), and 3 English (Marianne and Claire and Sam). We were pampered the entire trip with all our meals made for us. We sailed out of the marina under the blue sky and through clear turquoise water. We got our bathing suits on a stretched out on the deck to soak up some rays. Within minutes of being on the boat my sunglasses fell overboard. I was hoping this wouldn't be a sign of things to come!

Unfortunately I am out of time, as the internet cafe is now closing. I will continue tomorrow and fill you in on the next day, which was my birthday, a day I will not soon forget! I hope that everyone is doing well and taking advantage of the Vancouver heat wave I keep hearing about.

Traveling up the Coast

I left Sydney on May 9th and got on the Oz Experience bus. I chose this tour bus because you can get on and off when ever you want and it is a great way to meet people. Unfortunately, I chose the night before the bus trip to consume copious amounts of alcohol. Needless to say the bus ride was a day from HELL!!

That night we arrived at a VERY RUSTIC sheep station (not to be confused with a cattle ranch). The station was called the Dag Inn, and for those who don't know, 'dag' is the crap that hangs from a sheep's butt. I saw what life was like in the outback and met some very 'interesting' residents of the station, including the largest cow in Australia who was also a hermaphrodite! We were introduced to Carl, a man who has been sheering sheep for pretty much his whole life. His dog herded the sheep in the barn while he proceed to kick the sheep and his own dog to get the sheep where he wanted them. This is the part where my blood pressure started to rise and my hatred of him and the sheering process began. He brought a 'victim' to be shorn, and sheered the poor sheep right in front of us. He was >extremely rough on the helpless animal and cut it many times with the sheers. He said sometimes they have to kill a sheep if it moves >its head and gets cut by the sheers in the neck.

The next day we drove to Bingara, another small town in the middle of nowhere. We went horseback riding in the hills. I learned to ride English style instead of Western style (slightly different) and learned to trot, cantor and gallop on the horse. The scenery was breathtaking, supposedly the best in Australia. We rode through >rivers and through Eucalyptus forests.

The next stop was Byron Bay, the best place to chill out, dance on the tables in a bar, and learn to surf. And that is exactly what I did. Surfing was even more fun than I imagined. After 3 tries I got up and caught over 20 waves. I even have the pictures to prove it. The first 4 days in Byron Bay were terrible, non-stop torrential rain. I rented a beautiful holiday apartment with 4 other people I had met. It was heaps cheaper than a hostel and we had our own kitchen, TV, VCR, free laundry, patio, etc. One day Hanna (a girl from Victoria, Canada who was sharing the apartment) and I rented a car and drove to a national park to a gorgeous beach. When we got there we realized it was a nude beach. Hanna went topless, but I was too shy.

I am now in Surfer's Paradise. Even though it is only an hour and a half north of Byron Bay it is sooo much warmer and humid. It's heaven! Surfer's Paradise is as touristy as everyone had said. It's Miami meets Las Vegas. I don't care because heck I AM a tourist! The beaches are gorgeous and the nightlife is great. I got a really bad cold the other day so I have been taking it easy.

Tomorrow I head up to Hervey Bay to go 4 wheel driving and camping on Fraser Island, the biggest sand island in the world. I have tried to organize things so I will be sailing in the Whitsundays in the Great Barrier Reef on my birthday, June 3rd. Can't wait! I'm off to the beach now for some suntanning.

Sydneysider

I've been here over a month now, but it seems like 6 months. I've spent 2 weeks in Sydney and I did everything a tourist could do in Sydney: saw a play at the Sydney Opera House, visited the Art Gallery, took countless photos of the Harbour Bridge and the Opera House, visited the impressive Sydney Aquarium (much better than Melbourne's, but I haven't decide if it's better than Vancouver), suntanned in Bondi Beach where many surfing movies are filmed, went out to a fantastic nightclub in Darling Harbour called Homebar and partied 'till 8am, and wandered through different areas of the city. It is definitely a big city: lots of parks, lots of people, lots of pubs and trendy restaurants. The people are super friendly and laid back. It really did remind me of Vancouver in that it is centered around the harbour. I walked through one of the parks at sunset and saw strange looking 'birds' flying over me, then realized they were BATS!!

One of my favorite activities is to sit at a cafe, drinking a coffee or a nice glass or wine and watch the people walk by. I love listening to the Aussie accents. I am not a big fan of the coffee here. They don't really have regular coffee like we do in North America. It's all espresso. I miss a really basic cup of Starbucks coffee. They have Starbucks here and they serve "drip coffee", but it's not the same. I have discovered several great places to hang out in different parts of the city. Darling Harbour has some really trendy restaurants and cool bars. There are some great English pubs in The Rocks, an old part of town near the Harbour Bridge. There is a fun bar on George Street in the city centre called Jackson's On George where I spent a fun night. There are 'heaps' of restaurants in Manly along the beach.

I was staying in Manly with Deidre, a family friend, but wanted to see more of the city so I stayed in a hostel in Bondi Beach. When you share a room with 6 other people, you get to know people, fast. You also learn to get your pj's out and ready in case you get back to the room late at night while everyone's asleep and can't turn on the light. I learned the hard way. While suntanning at Bondi beach I met some fellow Canadians, named Alicia and Wing Man. We ended up going out that night to King's Cross, a dodgy part of town. Wing Man and Alicia had just met two days before, but seemed like they knew each other their whole life. My favorite thing about traveling is all the interesting people you meet from all over the world. To be honest, I have met so many people every day that I won't bore you with all the details.

I spent a really fun day hiking in the Blue Mountains with a small group of 6. The oil from all the Eucalyptus trees creates a blue haze that makes the trees look blue from a far. We hiked though rain forests, saw beautiful cascading waterfalls, and rode on supposedly one of the steepest trains in the world (a 52 degree angle up the mountain). We saw the Three Sisters - one of the most impressive rock formations in the area. Legend has it that the Three Sisters were aboriginee woman who were turned into stone by their father to protect them from the Bingin(sp?). The father turned himself into a Lyrebird, but couldn't turn himself back because he didn't have any arms, thereby, leaving the sisters to remain as stone forever. On the hike I ran into Alicia and Wing Man. Funny who you run into in such a big country.

The Sydney Aquarium was impressive. I went there one day with an English bloke from the hostel I was staying at in the CBD (Central Business District). There was a lot of conservation info and interpretive displays listing 'things you can do' to help the oceans. There was a tunnel you could walk through surrounded by Nurse Sharks, Rays and White and Black-tipped Reef Sharks. There were penguins, leapard sharks (really weird looking), crocodiles, and two touchpools (one tropical and one temperate)with shark egg casings, urchins, and blue star fish (the most common starfish on the reef). The touchpool attendant told me there were some job openings coming up, which I will look into when I return back to Sydney in a few months.

Sydney at Last

I am now in Sydney! I arrived on Wednesday night, the 23rd. The 14 hour bus ride from Melbourne to Sydney was interesting, to say the least. I sat next to Adam and Adam from England, Jay from a small town in Australia, and Annik from Quebec. We had some great chats along the way. The memorable part of the bus ride would have to be when the bus broke down near a town called Yass. We were pretty much in the middle of nowhere and it was about 32 degrees! We sat, just shaking our heads, for about an hour until the bus driver fixed the belt on the engine. I had called a family friend, Deidre, to ask if I could store my huge suitcase at her house while I traveled up the coast and she insisted that I stay with her.

So... I have been in Australia for 2 1\2 weeks and still I have managed to stay out of hostels. The only good thing about hostels is that it is really easy to meet people. But never fear, every day in Sydney I have met at least two people. Last night, I even ran into Adam and Adam (the 2 English blokes from the bus) at an Irish pub. There are 'heaps' of pubs in Sydney. The nightlife in Vancouver is an embarrassment compared to Sydney. Sydney is just as great as I imagined! Melbournites warned me that Sydneysiders were a little snobby, but I have found just the opposite. In fact, the first night I arrived in Sydney I was walking down the street with my backpack and big suitcase, and I must have looked like I needed help because one man offered to help me carry my suitcase on to the local bus and another guy offered to help me with it when I got on the ferry. Then, I sat next to a 70-year-old lady on the ferry and she offered to drive me to Deidre's house. It was only a 2-minute drive, but it would have taken me forever with all my bags. The men are MUCH friendlier here too. I can't believe how easy it is to meet them. I have been in Sydney 3 days and 4 men have given me their numbers! If only Vancouver men were like that, I would be married by now! Oh, and there are plenty of buff, bronze surfers here to keep any single woman occupied!


Sydney harbour is just breathtaking! Every day I take the ferry from where I am staying in Manly to downtown, and I pass the Opera House and the Sydney Harbour Bridge each time. There is such an energy about the city! Sydney is a contradiction in many ways: people dressing in trendy suits walking next to people in 'sunnies', flipflops and boarder shorts. Since it is autumn here the stores are selling ski jackets and touques, but next to them will always be bikinis and flipflops.

I am going to get a hostel on Sunday in Coogee or Bondi Beach, the young,trendy area of town. I am hoping to meet some cool people to travel with up the coast. I have been looking into some package deals on what to do up north. My tentative plan for the next 2 months is to take a 4-day surfing trip to Byron Bay and Surfers Paradise, then a few days wandering around Brisbane. I'll stop in the town of 1770 and Coffs Harbour where I know some people and do some suntanning. Then a 3-day camping trip on Fraser Island, sleeping under the stars, avoiding the wild dingos, and then doing some 4-wheeling in the sand. Next, up to the Whitsundays for a sailing trip and scuba diving. These islands apparently have some of the best beaches in the world! Magnetic Island is next, but I can't remember why I was told to go there. Up to Cairns and Cape Tribulation for some partying and for the best scuba diving on the Great Barrier Reef. Then up to Darwin for a glimpse of amazing wildlife, including crocodiles. I will probably fly to Ayers Rock next to really experience the Australian Outback, and then back to Sydney. This schedule is subject to change, as I may have so much fun is some places that I won't want to leave, or perhaps meet the guy of my dreams. Who knows, but I will keep you posted.

Little Penguins

Kyrstie and her family took me to Phillip Island to see the smallest penguins in the world - the Little Penguin, originally called the Fairy Penguin. I never even knew there were penguins in Australia. These particular penguins have dark blue feathers, not black. They are only about a foot tall. Every night the Little Penguins come up to the shore at dusk to sleep in little burrows for the night. It was quite a sight to see these penguins slowly emerging from the water. The stars were out and the sky was clear and full of stars. I could see the Milky Way, part of Orion, and the Southern Cross (no North Star in this hemisphere).They came up out of the water very slowly,in groups. They were very timid. With good reason, since they are at their most vulnerable to predators on the beach. Their main predators are humans and introduced species such as foxes, cats and dogs. Four penguins would come out from the water and one would get spooked and then all four would waddle back into the waves again. Gradually, hundreds of Little Penguins made their way up the beach and into their burrows. We walked onto the viewing platform to see them up close in their burrows. They made the cutest little noises. What an amazing experience!

Tomorrow I say goodbye to Tessa and the rest of the gang and continue my adventure up to Sydney.