As the greyhound bus came into Byron bay we immediately knew we were going to like it. It was made up of a series of quirky shops and a variety of good food places. The hostel minibus picked us up from the bus station and the guys working there were so welcoming and chatty. They took us round town showing us the beach and the Main Street. They told us about the main nights out and where people were going that night. You could tell they loved living here and it ma...

Our hostel was right by the beach. In both directions the white sand stretched out in front of you and surfers could be seen up and down the beach. Behind the beach were high rise hotels and cafes nearer to the beachfront. It was quite a contrast but at sunset the sun fell behind the buildings creating quite an atmosphere. There was a path running alongside the beach where further a small market was set up. Also, every 100 yards there was an outdoor BBQ available...

It was quite exciting arriving in Singapore not knowing what to expect or what the next few days would involve. My first experience travelling alone was liberating. I arrived in the hostel room late that evening to find a couple of girls in the room getting ready for bed. They too had just arrived and were tired from travelling all day. I was relieved that they were also thinking of having an early night but part of me was desperate to go out and explore the city...

My friend Jayne and her aunty picked me up from the airport. We headed straight for Bondi beach. The beach had character with a series of small cafes along the coast. There were a few surfers waiting for waves out at sea. But generally the beach was quite empty. It seemed strange as the sun was out and the beach looked beautiful. Apparently the beach got rammed in summer. We tested the waters and it was freezing so we understood why all the surfers were wearing w...

The first class train was a definite step up from the second class one we had tried from the southern islands to Bangkok earlier in our trip. At the time we had been impressed by the bunk beds which lined the train carriage but in comparison these bunkbeds were much wider and the mattresses were a lot comfier. I would even go far as to say that these beds were better than some of the ones in hostels we had stayed at. The main benefit of first class was having you...