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Hello all,
Below is the new blog entry for Magnetic Island, Australia. This is the first update of many that will be added today so we hope you look forward to reading all of the blogs:-
- Magnetic Island (below),
- Airlie Beach (including a 3 day trip to the Whitsunday Islands),
- Hervey Bay,
- Fraser Island,
- Rainbow Beach,
- Noosa Heads,
- Brisbane and
- Surfers' Paradise
Unlike the blog entry for Magnetic Island, you will not receive a separate email advising that the other blogs have been uploaded so you will need to check the blog entries under the Australian states of Queensland and New South Wales yourself (you will not get an email with a hyperlink). We have also added a new photo album for Magnetic Island so be sure to look at those piccies too :-)
Now for the Magnetic Island blog............
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Magnetic Island
We finally arrived into Townsville after a very long journey by overnight coach from Cairns. We retreived our bags and walked to the ferry terminal to store our luggage in a locker. We had no plans to stay in Townsville; our plan was to get the ferry to Magnetic Island. We had already booked our open ferry ticket to the Island so we didn't have to waste time queuing. So, with our bags squashed into lockers, we took a walk into town to find a bank to draw out some cash and to do some shopping for toiletries.
We were disappointed to find that Townsville was not up to much; a bit grubby, smelly (it seemed that most of the doorways leading to town had an aroma of alcohol or urine - not to dissimilar to some of the people we passed) and it was untidy. The high street had been torn up and it looked like it was being pedestrianised so it didn't help. We were glad we hadn't chosen to stay here. It did serve a purpose as we got to use the bank. We waited in line at the local Westpac bank watching what looked like the Rocky Horror Show cast of odd looking people in front of us. A couple of people in particular looked like they had been on the wrong end of an arguement with a knife, axe or fist (probably all three!!). We were sure we would get mugged on the way out of the bank. There were some seriously weird types hanging around (that doesn't include us).
With the cash tucked away in our pockets we headed to the ferry terminal but not after a coffee stop. A few weirdos can't stop a cheeky coffee. The 25 minutes ferry crossing to Magnetic Island was quite pleasant as we sat on the top deck soaking up the UV rays and gentle breeze. On arrival we caught the bus outside the terminal to our hostel called Magnums.
We were surprised to see our accommodation on such a rather large complex considering the size of the island. The complex had a bar with pool tables inside and out, a cafe and a shop. We were right next to Alma Bay which is a nice small beach with large rocks either side.
We spent our first afternoon sitting on the beach at Alma Bay in the hot sunshine licking ice creams and topping up our tans!
We ventured back to our hostel to sit beside the pool. As we dipped our feet into the cold pool, another couple who were on their honeymoon, started chatting to us. They weren't staying at the resort but were using the pool. We sat in the water with them drinking beer and nattering for a few hours until it was dusk. They had to leave as they were going to a French restaurant but did say that if were around in the morning they would take us to Radical Bay, another beach, in their 4wd which was a kind offer.
As the sun went down we sat in the Italian cafe on our complex sharring a large spicy beef pizza with some more beers.
The next day we awoke late and didn't see the honeymooners so we walked across to Geoffrey Bay, a long stretch of beach close to our accommodation; it was not as nice as Alma Bay so we wern't there for long. Instead, we jumped on the local bus to the end of the route where we disembarked at Horseshoe Bay. Yet another beach!!
Horseshoe Bay was very busy (well inthe context of our small island) as it is the main beach with watersports and some nice bars and restaurants. We sat outside a bar eating lunch followed by sitting on the beach for a few hours. We both had a swim there.
It was time to go for a walk so we headed off to beach number 4 - Radical Bay. We were told this is a nice beach and a very pleasant walk through the forest. It took us about 45 minutes to get there as we had to walk up steep steps and across rocks. We did hear some strange noises but just continued walking looking out for snakes and wallabies. We didn't see anything which was a little disappointing. Mark really wanted to see a snake.
Anyway, we reached Radical Bay and were a little worn out so we sat on the beach for an hour or so, took a few photos and then headed back to the bus stop. On the way back we passed a sign for yet another beach; this time a nudist beach. If it wasn't for the fact we would have to navigate more rocks I am sure Mark would have gone there to check out the sand!!! A few minutes later, a guy walked past us looking a little disappointed. It turns out that the nudist beach was full of men!!!
We jumped on the bus to the ferry terminal where we knew there was a shop selling snorkelling equipment. It turned out to be a wasted trip. We had no intention of spending £100 for two sets of flippers, masks and snorkels.
Our walk back to the bus stop was in the dark but we did see a French restaurant so we decided to make a reservation for the following night.
Before catching the bus back to our hostel we did some food shopping, which consisted of salad, rolls, ham, soft drinks and, of course, some chocolate no matter how expensive it was! We felt a bit lazy so had dinner in the room.
The next day we took a bus to the YHA Koala Bungalows where the entrance to the Koala sanctuary is. In here we held a koala, various species of lizard, a turtle, snakes, a cuckatoo and a crocodile (ok, it was a baby croc. We weren't doing it Steve Irwin stylie). It was a very enjoyable 2 hours spent and much, much better than we had anticipated. Definitely worth doing.
Upon exiting the sanctuary we took the main road to Horseshoe Bay so we could have lunch and ice creams. We sat on the beach for a couple of hours and then jumped on the bus back to our hostel.
After a quick turnaround in the room, we were back on the bus heading for dinner at the French restaurant. We dined outside with a bottle of wine. The service was good and food very delicious, which made for a nice evening (it beats filled rolls in the room).
Before going to bed, we had a few games of pool in our local bar. It was difficult concentrating as one particular girl was spannered and suddenly thought that 1) she could sing, 2) she knew the words to all the songs, and 3) she could dance. Unfortunately. she couldn't do any. It was however the first time we had seen someone try to poll dance with a pool cue!!!
We awoke at 8am the next day and decided to throw on some clothes and and wander to the old ferry port. It is now disused with the pathway broken up and large boulders everywhere. This area is now home to wild rock wallabies. The rocks were just a 5 minute walk from our hostel. We bought some special food pellets and sat quietly waiting. We saw one baby wallabie pop it's head out so we put some pellets on a rock for it. The wallabie hopped across and started to eat the pellets. We scattered more out and soon after we were sitting with 6 wallabies. It was really great fun watching them hop around and also being so close to them. They were really nervous though and jumped at any movement so we sat crouched for about 20 minutes. We could barely move as we went to get up as our knees had locked. It was worth it though. If the videos function on the blog page worked we would load some footage for you all.
After seeing the wallabies we walked back to our hostel for a cooked breakfast and coffee before packing our bags to leave Magnetic Island.
We jumped on the local bus to the ferry terminal where we caught the boat back to Townsville.
After a 25 minute journey we arrived at Townsville ferry terminal at 11:25 with enough time to spare. It got to 12:10pm and there was no sign of our coach. We sat waiting and waiting with many backpackers. Lisa decided to investigate why it hadn't arrived. Unfortunately our Greyhound coach going to Airlie Beach had broken down and wouldn't arrive until 1pm. We were a little frustrated but as soon as it did arrive the driver apologised and got us on board very quickly so he could leave and try and make up time.
So, we were off to Airlie beach, the gateway to the Whitsunday Islands!!
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