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....