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Hello from the bustling city of Sydney!
Yes, I have made it. It has taken me just over 5 weeks, but I am now nearing the end of my time in Australia. I now have 3 days in Sydney before I embark upon a 3-day trip to Melbourne. Once in Melbourne, I shall spend three days there before departing the country for Christchurch, New Zealand.
It is pretty sad to leave, as Oz has been a cool place albeit very expensive. The weather has been good to me overall and I've met some really cool people and had some fantastic times that I'll never forget. At first I found myself really bored with Oz very quickly. I didn't envisage an exciting time at all, as it was dull in comparison to the hectic Asia. However, as time has passed and I've travelled around the country, I've seen a lot of the relaxed, interesting and beautiful Australia.
So, let me fill you in on what has happened between the magnificent Magnetic Island and sunny Sydney. After 3 fun-filled nights on Magnetic Island with a great group of guys and gals I met on the Oz Experience bus from Cairns to Townsville, we all went together down to Airlie Beach. I stayed there for a night and had a superb night out as we went for a few drinks before clubbing away. We got back in the early hours of the morning and later that day (afternoon) I was to go sailing around the Whitsunday Islands. Like Great Barrier Reef, the Whitsunday Islands are one of the known 'things to do down the East Coast'. So, I spent 3 days and 2 nights sailing. Although I was very sad to leave my previous group from the Oz Experience bus, it wasn't the last I was to see of them. I had a great time sailing and it was awesome waking up on a boat. A truly unique feeling. Afterwards, I stayed another night in Airlie beach and met some cool people around my hostel. The next day however I was taking the bus to Kroombit.
roombit is a cattle ranch. 'Why stay at a cattle ranch?', some may ask. Well, it was included in the Oz Experience pass. And what an adventure it was. On the way there, we stopped at Sarina Lawn Bowls. We played lawn bowls! An avid fan of Bowls on television, I jumped at the opporunity to play the game. I'm happy to say i won the most games and showed them how it's done ;) Afterwards, we were heading straighjt to Kroombit. We got there in the evening and had a delicious roast. Then, we did some whip cracking. You know - the 'wuh-tcheeeeeeee' sound thing people do with whips. Yep, we had to do that. And so we did. It was cool, though I hit myself in the back with the whip a few times! We then moved onto the MECHANICAL BULL. Having watched it on TV many-a-time, I thought it'd be a piece of cake. In reality, it proved a much more difficult task. Only once you see the video of me doing it (attempting to) can you truly appreciate how difficult it is. However, you'll only know how painful it is by doing it (applied to guys only!). We woke up the next morning and went to lasso goats. We practised swinging and throwing a lasso before we eventually got to lasso goats and tie them up. It looked rather cruel, but they weren't killed or harmed (it seemed). The farm staff were really friendly and cool. After lassoing, we went shooting pigeons....CLAY pigeons, that is. It was sooooooo cool. Having never held a gun before (bar those in arcades for Time Crisis) I felt an adrenaline rush holding a shot gun. Then we had to yell 'PULL!' to the cowgirl as she pushed a lever to release the clay pigeon. It was then up to me to track it and aim for it. It was just like using a sniper in video games, except this time I felt the gun push back into my shoulder (making it a tad sore after 5 shots!). I had a lot of fun and got 4 out of 5 shots, though I blame the missed shot on the cowgirl's effort in pulling the clay pigeon. It simply sailed low in the air, not reaching enough altitude for me to properly aim. Gutted.
After good fun at Kroombit, I was off to Hervey Bay from where I'd go spend 3 days and 2 nights on Fraser Island - the world's largest sand island. It was pretty darn cool. I was doing a self-drive thing where I get into a car with a bunch of strangers and we drive ourselves around the island setting up camp and visiting sand dunes and freshwater lakes. I couldn't drive because, well, I can't. But, even if I could, they only allowed over 21s. Two of my group of eight didn't drive (including myself). We had 4 english (3 guys including myself and a girl), 2 dutch girls and 2 french girls. We had a good time and enjoyed a unique experience on one of the world's most beautiful islands. Camping out by the beach, waking up to sunrise, swimming in clear freshwater lakes - it couldn't be better. Well, it got better. I met up with the guys of my old group of friends on my last day on Fraser Island. They'd just arrived but that didn't stop us hanging out by Lake McKenzie. After playing some footy, I ended up getting dunked in the water by the guys and we had a real good laugh. I was then going back to civilisation as we were to return to Hervey Bay (where there's absolutely nothing to do - it's simply a port to Fraser Island).
The next day, I took the bus to Rainbow Beach. However, when I was about to jump on the bus at Hervey Bay, I met the girls from my previous group on Magnetic Island! It's always great to meet up again with friends you make along the way - especially really good ones. What I found hard at the beginning of Oz was that I was saying 'hi'and 'bye' to new friends within the space of a couple days. It was taking its toll on me as I had to keep re-introducing myself and making an effort. I got used to it after a while though ;) So, I met the girls at Hervey Bay and we were taking the bus to Rainbow together. But wait - there's more. Not only did the girls get off that bus going to Rainbow. In addition to the other people, an old Wimbledonian (Wimbledon College alumni) came up to me and asked if I was Darryl! It was an old classmate from Business Studies that I hadn't seen in 3 years!! It was mental. To top it all off, he was travelling with his mate and the boy I sat next to for 2 years in GCSE Music 3 years ago! We were all shocked to our core but had a lot to catch up on. We went to Rainbow Beach together as an excited bunch and we had a good night at the bar.
The next morning, I was off to continue my journey on the bus down to Noosa. The others were staying at Rainbow as they were about to do Fraser Island, so we said our farewells the evening before. I got off the bus at Noosa and stayed in the YHA. Unsure of what I was to do in Noosa, I settled into my room to find a piano there. That was my evening sorted! It had started raining heavily and I sure wasn't going out to do the National Park browse in that rain. So, I got the chance to practise some songs I hadn't played in a while. The next day, I was off to Australia Zoo - yep, the Steve Irwin one. On the bus, I met another solo traveller by the name of Felix (a German). We spent the day browsing the zoo and saw what a legend Steve Irwin truly was. It's a shame the souvenir store is so tacky (you can get ANYTHING with Steve Irwin's face on it), but the zoo is an amazing place. Funnily enough, there aren't any Stingrays (or fish for that matter) in the zoo. He has one hell-of-a-lot of crocodiles though! We went to the ''Crocoseum'' at 1100 in the morning to watch the freakshow begin. They brought in a selection of animals and played around with them/taught us about them. It was more for the little kids than anyone else. We left in the afternoon after a stay that was probably too long, but the bus there was free and stuck to its own times.
The next day I was off to Brisbane. However, before getting on the bus, I saw a familiar face leaving the bus to stay in Noosa. It was one of my mates from Magnetic Island! We were glad to meet up again but had to cut our reunion short because I was leaving Noosa. I then hopped on and met some people on the bus before we headed together to Brisbane. We stayed in busy Brisbane for a night where I met a French guy and a couple of Americans from Massachusetts in my dorm. My dorm friends and I went out browsing the city at night before heading back. The next day, I was off Byron Bay. Byron Bay is known as hippy central purely because it is close to the inland city of Nimbin - the Weed Capital of Australia. I went to check in and pay with my card. It was declined - twice. So, I went to an ATM to take out money. Each of the SIX ATMs I tried said I was in debit by over $2,000 AUD. So, I rang my bank up all the way from Oz. I asked what was going on before they announced that my card had been cloned. I've lost around 2,000 GBP, though I've been assured that I can get it back. I am currently in the process of doing so and my card has been cancelled. I am now using some money my Dad wired to me. Hopefully all will work out well or I may have to cut my trip short! We'll see what happens...
Anyway, the guys at the hostel were really nice. The lady at reception sympathised as a similar thing had happened to her mother. So, I stayed there for the night without paying anything and got myself money from my Dad the next day. That night, I went out with a few people from my dorm (couple guys and a girl from England) and we had a great evening. Anyway, I went to Nimbin the next day and met some REAL hippies. They were totally relaxed and cool. It was a very chilled place and had a great vibe. Not sure I could stay there too long though!
The next day I was off to Surf Camp. Yep - me surfing! I totally didn't think I'd go for it but, like Kroombit, it was a free inclusion. it'd be silly not to do it! So, we got there midday-ish and were surfing that afternoon. We learnt about the techniques, the background and having fun. The crew were awesome and real surfer dudes. They couldn't have been better teachers. I mean, they got me standing up on a board in the sea!!! It was an incredible feeling and I would love to do it again. Pictures coming! Then, this morning, we left surf camp early and headed straight to Sydney. We got here in the evening (it was a long ride taken up by some movie watching on the bus) and I've since not done very much. But hey, photos coming soon as net is free here :P
Apologies if I don't update you again before NZ, but I am pretty hectic as I now sort out my financial situation. I'll keep you updated and hope to not see you soon. That's right, I obviously wanna stay out here some more!! ;P
Anyway, take care all and have fun!
Darryl
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