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.