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Im back!!!
Following the exciting events of Frazer Island we returned to Harvey Bay where we indulged in a much needed hot shower!!! honestly you dont realise how lucky you are to have such facilities at your beck and call! We then went to a nice bar and grill restaurant and had one of the best dinners i have ever tasted in my life: chicken wellington with mushroom pate and creamy sauce in the centre!!!oh dear me im salivating just reminiscing about it, haha (mummy you have 6weeks to perfect it)!!! Im not sure whether its because i am away but everything does seems to be extreme in my life at the moment - best vies, best food, worst food (tinned ravioli)...its stressfull times!
Anyway, having eaten the best meal in the world, we cought the Oz Experience bus in the morning to the Kroombit Cattle Station. We were picked up at 7.45am and did not arrive until 4pm which meant that our bum bums were well and trully numb!!! i sat at the front of the bus with the driver which meant that i blagged the seat with the most leg room and airconditioning : ) as always! On arrival at the farm our horses were saddled up and we were each allocated a beast in accordance to our ability. Being an 'intermediate' rider (haha, what? i had a few lessons when i was younger!!!) i was told that i'd be riding 'Stormy'!!! so there was i with my hat in place waiting for this 17hand giant to come galloping around the corner when an anorexic 5ft dweeb appears with a tag that said stormy!!! how funny!!! I did ask how this name was given and she said he looked a little like a feisty racing horse that was around a few years ago that was called Stormy!!! haha...Well Stormy spent the whole time trying to return back to the stables and was having none of my attempts to heard in the goats while yelling 'EEEyyyyyy up up up up'!!! i was battling with this thing all afternoon and a few times he tried trotting off!!! How very exciting, well actually i was a little bit scared but pretended to everyone else that i was the one instigating the trotting! I eventually got it to do what i need (a swift kick to the ribs works a treat) and galloped happilly with the wind blowing through my hair back to base - yeah right... all these old boys knew how to do was walk behind each other and besides my hair was well and trully strapped into a very tight hat! haha. the first story however did sound much more attractive so we'll go with that!On return from riding we were thrown into a truck and taken to another part of this enormous estate where we were given five bullets each and a big gun. Some proper cowboys gave us some brief instructions on what to do and 5 clay pigeons were shot. I missed the first 4 but after having thrown a tantrum he said i'd definately get the last. Confidence restored, the last clay pigeon was demolished and all were happy!!! haha. It was so much fun although nothing can prepare you for the initial back lash of the gun when it impacts on your shoulder! Moving on from there we were given a rope and shown how to Lasoo (im guessing thats how its spelt) before being put into teams and placed in a pen with a goat. One person had to lasoo and catch the flaming thing, another was to grab it by the legs and flip it onto its back while the last person had to pretend to brand it. I went into 2 teams and on one occassion was the flipper of the goat and the other time i was lasooing (which i was rubbing at by the way!!!) After a min was up, if the lasooer had not cought the goat, we had to grab it by the horns and drag it to the corner where the rest of the procedures took place! this provided much comical value to our day! Naturally neither of my teams won haha!!
After the afternoons activities, we got changed and went to have some dinner which was a roast! yum yum. we were also served a curried goat which was yummy! After dinner we had a few beers and then began the bull riding competition! Oh this was funny! Our bus was joined by another Oz Experience which was heading South and so we were in competition to see who could stay on the bull the longest. The totally outnumbered us, since many of the girls refused to even make a fool of themselves! So many people struggled to get on the flaming thing let alone stay on for 2secs. The moment the first buck occured they flew off!!! haha. Anyway, on our team we had a french guy that happened to be phenomenal and managed to stay on for 31bucks, spins and dips!! I was last to go from our bus and obviously, with these kinda thunder thighs, i did the group proud. I didnt think i would be any good to be honest, but managed to stay on for 22bucks!!! very impressive although i seriously couldnt walk afterwards from all the cramps in my legs!!!fun times!!! We eventually won the competition and were all put to shame by our driver who grew up in the bush and rode the bull handsfree, was standing on it and doing back flips while it spun, bucked and turned! now that was impressive. we all had a few more drinks after that and headed to bed for some much needed sleep!
The following morning we were up early as we had the longest day drive on the East Coast lasting 11hrs. On the way were saw a rodeo in Rockhampton and even had a bowls lesson in Makay! That was hilarious too! There was an old Scottish mam giving all the girls tips while the oldies had a very big competion on! haha. Since this game involves patience and skill, i sucked...badly! Back on the truck for several more hours of driving! I tell i could not be a bus driver! With all that thinking time, you'd either solve the wolrds problem or drive yourself insane!!! it requires a lot of mental stability - something that i struggled with just for that one day's long drive!!!
We eventually arrive to the seaside town of Airlie Beach and were given a quick tour of the amenities. The whole town literally stretched over 1km worth of road that is filled with shops, bars, take aways and hostels. There is also the harbour since this is where people go on their sailing trips to the whitsunday islands, and a lagoon, since we are not allowed to swin in the jelly fish,shark and crockadile infested waters!
We have been here for a few days now just relaxing after the last few weeks of hectic activities. We have booked onto a sailing trip that departs on Friday from here. Our boat is called Anaconda and is an 109ft yacht with en suite bath rooms and on board diving equipment. We will be on the trip for 3days and 3 nights travelling through the islands and out to the outer barrier reef! I am very excited about it, and even more thrilled that i'll get to dive in the world's biggest reef!
I'll be back in a few days to update you on the events on board.
Hope everyone is well at home.
Loving you all x x x
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