I got into Rainbow Beach late at night. It’s a tiny little town with 3 hostels on one street and shops on another, one servo (gas station) and the rest are just some residential houses. The location of the hostel was great because it was only walks away from the main strip and the beach. I didn’t get a chance to have dinner because I’ve been on the road, so after I checked into my 8 dorm at Pippies Beachouse I went to the servo hoping to get some snacks but being the small town it was already closed and I had finished all my food at Noosa. Disappointed and starving, I came back to the hostel and after finding out that I didn’t have food one of my roommies offered me a banana and a granola bar which was super nice of him considering we’ve only met for 10min. I knew that Kathi from Germany and her travelmate whom I met back at Mooloolaba were travelling north. They left Mooloolaba a couple nights before me, but I never would’ve thought we’d be bunking together at Rainbow Beach!
Next day the weather was perfect, Kathi and her mates invited me to go check out the beach with them. The beach is just absolutely amazing. The cliffs were actually sandstones just like the ones on Fraser Island where they’re soft enough to be scratched with fingernails. There were lots of sand hills and the boys were enjoying themselves running and rolling down the hills. On our way back the boys tried wakeboarding while the rest of us sunbathed on the beach. The hostel hosted activities throughout the day, so later that night we went for the sandblow tour where we could watch the sunset. It was a bit of a walk uphill to the forest, then another 15-20min walk through the winding through the forest before we reach the sandblow. It was so beautiful and bizarre!! It’d seem like we were in the desert, but we were actually on top of a mountain, with oceanview on one side and mountainview on the other. We sat and waited for the sunset and it was the perfect weather for it with clear skies. Unfortunately my phone died, and my camera died just before the sun went down! If you wake up early enough the next day you’d be able to catch sunrise on the other side! The boys brought their wakeboards and we tried sand boarding down a hill. It was scary for me even sitting down, plus with the sand blowing in your face. One of the boys tried doing it standing up and he ended wiping out.
I haven’t had a chance to check out the town so I decided to take a personal day and explore the area by myself. As usual I went to the main strip and looked for postcards to send home. On the way I ran into one of the Canadian boys from Noosa. They were staying at the hostel 2 doors from us. I decided to go to the sandblow again as I didn’t have time to take a good look at it the last time
. While walking through the forest I kept noticing these trees having what looks like squiggly veins. Once I got to the sandblow I went straight to the oceanview. There were hardly anyone which was calming. I noticed there were a couple guys perched on top of the hill and they were playing some planes. So I sat there, watching the planes circle above me like birds, enjoying the view.
The sandblow was probably the only highlight in Rainbow Beach. It’s such a small town that there really isn’t much to see on foot. It was a nice and relaxing couple days though! I really didn’t know much about each of these stops on the east coast that I’m making. I just picked randomly trying to make as much use as I can with my Premier bus pass before I go broke getting to Cairns, but I’m glad I picked Rainbow Beach, because where else would you find a desert on top of a mountain?? Next stop, Hervey Bay.
Wednesday, 12 March 2014
Monday, 10 March 2014
Noosa II
I checked into my room and this time they put me in one of the rooms on the side of the kitchen and the laundry room. It’s much better because the veranda where we eat connects right to the kitchen. I met a French guy Freddie who also checked in the same time I did and was in the next room and we talked for a bit. He asked if I wanted to go to the beach together but I still gotta unpack so we exchanged numbers and I’ll let him know once I’m ready. I got a German girl and a couple English blokes James and I forgot his friend’s name as roommies. James’ friend had a cast on his arm and they told me how they got into a car accident on a rainy night and there was grease or something on the road so they skidded and crashed. It sounded pretty bad and they were all surprised that they survived, but James’ friend would now have to put a hold on his trip and get to Sydney.
By the time I went down to the beach it started to drizzle
. There was some kinda surf competition going on where people paddle board back and forth to the shore in laps, it was pretty cool to watch. I messaged Freddie but he said he already got back to the hostel because of the rain. I remembered Lewis said he was gonna be in Noosa so I messaged him and we met up. We walked around the beach and checked out some vendors. We looked up the events schedule and there was a dog surf competition coming up later on and we decided to wait on that. The “competitors” were all very popular, and each has got a uniform on, one even got zinc on its nose! I’m not sure what the rules were for the dog surf but basically the owners paddle the boards out with the dogs on them and try to keep them on. They do several laps and try to catch a wave and surf with the dogs on board. In the end I think it was a golden retriever that won. It was fun and exciting to watch. Later that day I was talking to Paul from Ireland and I told him about the dog surf and he said he would’ve liked to check it out since his farm work has been slow. So we ended up making plans for him to come up for a day trip the next day.
At 6PM I went for the Meet & Greet again simply for the free glass of wine. After dinner my roommies and I went down to the pub for a drink where the waitress gave us vouchers to Café le Monde, a club on the esplanade, then we went for a night stroll along the beach and the esplanade where we also saw an owl pearched on a branch by the path
. I asked Freddie to join us but he was still eating, saying he might join us later if we’re still out, but we didn’t stay out long as all the shops were closed. By the time Freddie got back to me again the others had gone to Café le Monde and I had decided to just go back to the hostel because I was getting tired and I didn’t wanna spend any more money. I told him I was just gonna go to bed, but I ended up bumping into him when I went to the toilet and we had a chat. He was actually leaving early next morning heading south. Too bad I didn’t get to know him better, he seemed like a nice bloke. One thing I found funny is that whenever I threw out the little French I know Freddie just gets excited and thinks that I can speak French.
Paul took the bus up next morning after he finished farm early. I told him to meet me at the stop after Noosa Junction, which’s just across the street from YHA, but he got off at Noosa Junction instead. He was gona walk up but I told him to stay put before I lose him and I took the bus down to meet him. We had lunch at a Thai restaurant, then we took the bus to Tewantin about 20min out which I thought would have a nice harbour or something but turned out to be nothing more than a small town and it was also drizzling so we decided to catch the next available bus back. While we waited for the bus at the park several wild parakeets and other birds gathered around us looking for food. After we got back to Noosa we went for a walk on the esplanade to check out the shops, but they all seemed really pricy like boutiques and stuff. We got back to the hostel and had beers with the 2 Canadian brothers that I met at the Meet & Greet earlier
. They were heading up to Rainbow Beach the next day so I might see them again. Afterwards Paul and I went to explore this trail next to the hostel supposedly a shortcut to somewhere but we just ended up at the back alley of some fancy apartments. On our way back we saw the biggest snail I’ve ever seen the size of my hand!
Paul was only planning to be up here for a day but it was getting late and it’d take him about an hr to get back, so my roommies were nice enough to let him stay the night. I felt bad for James who was sleeping in the bunk underneath us because apparently Paul was a really loud snorer. James’ friend had earplugs on and the German girl didn’t seem to be fazed by it. I didn’t sleep too well either because I kept waking up trying to shift Paul around, and I bet James was probably up the whole night too. Next morning we finished the last bit of toasts and cereal I had and after I checked out we went for a walk along the coast towards the national park as it was super sunny weather. We didn’t walk too far because it’d take too long. We watched the surfers catch the waves for a while, then we got off the path and got onto this rock bed where the ocean water washes into the rock holes. It’s almost like we could have foot baths in the rock holes, and we also saw some soft shell crabs. Just before he goes back to Mooloolaba, Paul bought me lunch at Laguna Jacks where I had the most delicious fish burger with aioli and Asahi for beer and I got us gelato for dessert. We still got a bit of time to kill before I had to catch my shuttle bus to Noosa Junction, so we just went to chill at the lake across from YHA. I was really glad that Paul took the time to come up to visit me, but it was finally time to say goodbye to him till next time and Noosa is now one of my favourite places in Australia and I’m definitely gona miss it.
By the time I went down to the beach it started to drizzle
. There was some kinda surf competition going on where people paddle board back and forth to the shore in laps, it was pretty cool to watch. I messaged Freddie but he said he already got back to the hostel because of the rain. I remembered Lewis said he was gonna be in Noosa so I messaged him and we met up. We walked around the beach and checked out some vendors. We looked up the events schedule and there was a dog surf competition coming up later on and we decided to wait on that. The “competitors” were all very popular, and each has got a uniform on, one even got zinc on its nose! I’m not sure what the rules were for the dog surf but basically the owners paddle the boards out with the dogs on them and try to keep them on. They do several laps and try to catch a wave and surf with the dogs on board. In the end I think it was a golden retriever that won. It was fun and exciting to watch. Later that day I was talking to Paul from Ireland and I told him about the dog surf and he said he would’ve liked to check it out since his farm work has been slow. So we ended up making plans for him to come up for a day trip the next day.
At 6PM I went for the Meet & Greet again simply for the free glass of wine. After dinner my roommies and I went down to the pub for a drink where the waitress gave us vouchers to Café le Monde, a club on the esplanade, then we went for a night stroll along the beach and the esplanade where we also saw an owl pearched on a branch by the path
. I asked Freddie to join us but he was still eating, saying he might join us later if we’re still out, but we didn’t stay out long as all the shops were closed. By the time Freddie got back to me again the others had gone to Café le Monde and I had decided to just go back to the hostel because I was getting tired and I didn’t wanna spend any more money. I told him I was just gonna go to bed, but I ended up bumping into him when I went to the toilet and we had a chat. He was actually leaving early next morning heading south. Too bad I didn’t get to know him better, he seemed like a nice bloke. One thing I found funny is that whenever I threw out the little French I know Freddie just gets excited and thinks that I can speak French.
Paul took the bus up next morning after he finished farm early. I told him to meet me at the stop after Noosa Junction, which’s just across the street from YHA, but he got off at Noosa Junction instead. He was gona walk up but I told him to stay put before I lose him and I took the bus down to meet him. We had lunch at a Thai restaurant, then we took the bus to Tewantin about 20min out which I thought would have a nice harbour or something but turned out to be nothing more than a small town and it was also drizzling so we decided to catch the next available bus back. While we waited for the bus at the park several wild parakeets and other birds gathered around us looking for food. After we got back to Noosa we went for a walk on the esplanade to check out the shops, but they all seemed really pricy like boutiques and stuff. We got back to the hostel and had beers with the 2 Canadian brothers that I met at the Meet & Greet earlier
. They were heading up to Rainbow Beach the next day so I might see them again. Afterwards Paul and I went to explore this trail next to the hostel supposedly a shortcut to somewhere but we just ended up at the back alley of some fancy apartments. On our way back we saw the biggest snail I’ve ever seen the size of my hand!
Paul was only planning to be up here for a day but it was getting late and it’d take him about an hr to get back, so my roommies were nice enough to let him stay the night. I felt bad for James who was sleeping in the bunk underneath us because apparently Paul was a really loud snorer. James’ friend had earplugs on and the German girl didn’t seem to be fazed by it. I didn’t sleep too well either because I kept waking up trying to shift Paul around, and I bet James was probably up the whole night too. Next morning we finished the last bit of toasts and cereal I had and after I checked out we went for a walk along the coast towards the national park as it was super sunny weather. We didn’t walk too far because it’d take too long. We watched the surfers catch the waves for a while, then we got off the path and got onto this rock bed where the ocean water washes into the rock holes. It’s almost like we could have foot baths in the rock holes, and we also saw some soft shell crabs. Just before he goes back to Mooloolaba, Paul bought me lunch at Laguna Jacks where I had the most delicious fish burger with aioli and Asahi for beer and I got us gelato for dessert. We still got a bit of time to kill before I had to catch my shuttle bus to Noosa Junction, so we just went to chill at the lake across from YHA. I was really glad that Paul took the time to come up to visit me, but it was finally time to say goodbye to him till next time and Noosa is now one of my favourite places in Australia and I’m definitely gona miss it.
Sunday, 9 March 2014
Fraser Island
In the morning I took the YHA shuttle bus to Noosa Junction to catch Nomad’s shuttle bus. I’ve stayed at Nomads Byron Bay before, so I kinda suspected this one to be a bit of a party hostel as well. The set up of the hostel was kinda all over the place. I got placed in an 18 dorm with only 2 stand-alone fans in the room with our own toilets and showers. They do have a pool and a beach volleyball court as well. I’ve settled in and kinda started chatting with this group of German guys who were travelling together. They said they were friends back home but ran into each other out here by accident, not knowing that the other was travelling abroad as well. They were really nice guys. They wanted to play volleyball and was one person short so I said I wanna play, even though I haven’t played it since elelmentary school. Like I said the set up was bad where they had it that the ball was easy to jump outta court down to the rooms. I had to go pick up the ball several times that one of the guys told his friend to switch sides with me so I wouldn’t have to keep fetching the ball
.
Later on a Canadian couple Corey and Breanne joined our room. Finally!! First Canadians I’ve met since Sydney!!! Apparently they were going on the same Fraser Island tour as I am. Everyone going to the tour had to go to a safety briefing. Basically it was getting a stack of safety forms and watching a 20min video about driving in sand. Attached to the hostel was a bar and apparently it was “the” bar in town? We were allowed to bring alcohol onto the island and I wanted to get a box of goon before I go check out the bar but the bottle shop closed at 8PM!! The Canadians said they got a big bottle of gin and that I could have some if I want. We decided to go check out the bar, it was alright, not nearly as good as people say, but at least there was no cover. I got to sit with this table of Germans I think? They were all a bit tipsy and the music was so loud that the whole conversation was just a bunch of mumbles to me, I basically just smiled and nodded. Then at one point this local just came and sat down and started talking and you could tell that he was smashed. Later on when I went out to get a breather he came out as well and was just trying to hit on every girl who happened to be sitting out there and he ended on me asking if I want a massage blahblahblah. I quickly made my escape. Don’t need no more creeps on this trip!
The shuttle bus came to pick us up early in the morning as we still got a long way to go to get to Rainbow Beach where we launch off to go to Fraser. It also happened to be my stop after Noosa. Our tour guide gave us a briefing, checked our licenses making sure who were able to drive, and separated us into 3 cars. In my car we got an American and a German couple and a friend of theirs, Lewis from England, Viktoria from Sweden, and Bjork and Lisbeth from Norway. You gotta be 21 and know how to drive manual to be able to drive the 4x4 on Fraser Island. So basically there was only me, the American, and the 2 Norwegian girls that can drive. Lewis could’ve drove except his driver’s license expired. American took first dib. He was a bit of a show off since he’s done it before. He was driving quite fast at times when he should’ve slowed down and our tour guide had to radio our car telling us to slow down or else we’d get in shit!
We had a pit stop at a roadhouse half way between Noosa and Rainbow Beach to get some drinks or snacks, I got some hot chips. Then we drove to take the ferry across to Fraser Island. You could see immediately how nice the sand is on the island. Once we landed it was a bit further drive to where we’ll be staying for the next 2 nights. Me and Viktoria hit it off really well, although she’s only 18 she definitely was more mature for her age
. So us and the Canadians decided to share a room together. We were supposed to camp out but for some reason they put us into dorms next to the pub and to be honest I was kinda glad because I’m not too fond of camping. It’s funny how me and Viktoria were both secretly wondering whether Corey and Breanne were actually couples or just really good friends. Later on we found out that they were strangers who met each other at a hockey game with their own group of friends, and they’ve been together for 7 years so they were well passed the honeymoon stage. They seemed like the perfect couple. Both super nice, Corey gets a little goofy sometimes, whereas Breanne is always the calm motherly one.
Our tour guide was keen on showing us as much as he can so he kept us moving quickily. We were supposed to cook for ourselves but he just did the cooking himself and we’ll just do the dishes. We had a quick lunch then off we go to our first stop at Lake Wabby, a small lake surrounded by sand. To get to the lake you gotta trek down a sandy hill. Some of the guys just ran down and dove into the water. Me, Viktoria and the Canadian couple went for a swim and there were fishes in the water that nibbled at your legs. I also saw a couple full grown fishes swam pass me. Me and Viktoria went off to the side and were just fooling around where we tried taking pictures of her doing the Herbal Essence hair flipping thing
. I also took a video of Viktoria running down hill into the water where she kinda did a face plant. All around there were these huge insects, I forget what they’re called, but you should always avoid them because they bite!!
Second day we went to Eli Creek where you could float down the creek. There I ran into Emma from Noosa. I knew she was doing a Fraser Island tour as well. She left a day before me. She told me how they did the campgrounds and the set up was really shit and everyone just got smashed drunk. Then we went to the Maheno Shipwreck, went to look at some rocks that I forgot the name of, had picnic lunch, then on the way to Indian Heads we saw a Dingo on the beach, it looked really sad and scrawny. The American’s girlfriend and her friend were both underage, but the American just let the friend drove without asking/telling the rest of us. I actually didn’t realize till afterwards, but the Norwegian girls were quite upset. I was more worried about our safety because she didn’t seem to know how to drive standard and she was driving bit fast as well. To get to Indian Heads we had to climb up some rocks to the top and it was quite windy. Then I got to drive to our next stop, Champagne Pool, where a few of us went for a swim while some others just sat by the rocks looking all bored. I was super excited to be driving manual 4x4 on the wrong side of the street in sand!
! I haven’t driven stick in about 4 months so it took me a moment to familiarize myself, but once I got the hang of it people said it was smooth riding as everyone was starting to doze off. I also happened to have to drive through some tough spots where the sand was quite deep and there were other cars driving around us. On our way back we got some extra time so we stopped by Eli Creek again and people just sunbathed. It was our last night on Fraser Island so our guide wanted to get everybody down to the pub and just have some fun but we had a pretty boring group. The Germans just kinda stayed in their own room doing whatever. Our room was kinda the only group that may be up for something. Corey really wanted to go see the dingos, though there were only 4 of us and that’s against the rule because we need at least 5 people to go together. Our guide kept coming in and outta our room to coax us to go drink at the pub with him. We were just sipping on Corey and Breanne’s gin. Our guide showed us his “pet frog” Bruce, who’s actually just a green wild tree frog but comes to him when he calls it. Later on we also found a baby gecko in our room. Corey tried to catch it and it lost its tail, but I got it on my arm. Corey felt so bad for the guide that he offered to play a game of pool against him for a pitcher of beer. Apparently the guide was good at pool and he won, but he still bought us a pitcher of beer.
I didn’t wanna leech any more gin off Corey and Breanne, so I went down to the pub and grabbed a drink for myself and started chatting with the bar manager. He ended up giving me the happy hour price the whole night, though I’m only able to have a couple beers because I was getting really bloated. I sat outside and chatted with this group of asians, a Korean and a couple from China. The pub was pretty dead but the manager and our guide was having hell of a time dancing to Gunnam Style
. I was ready to leave but the manager just handed me another beer for free, so I accepted and just sat outside. There’s an outdoor pool and a group of drunken young people came running in and started jumping into the pool and making a rukus. Though technically it would’ve been prohibited, but I think the manager wouldn’t mind a little liveliness around the pub. It was getting late and I really just wanted to go to bed but the manager came out with another beer for me before running off to work. I said I really can’t have anymore and offered it to the guide when he came by but he didn’t want any. I just left because I also had to pee really bad. When I got back to our room some of the other guys had came in and we were all just chatting. Lewis apparently had been playing King’s Cup in their room and he came in quite tipsy, sipping his jug of goon because he lost. We were gonna start playing another game but ended up not because ome of the girls just started asking Corey and Breanne questions about their New Zealand trip.
Next morning I woke up with what seemed to be bed bug bites because I had a line of rashes from my neck all the way down one side of my arm and they itch like hell!! We packed up and headed for our last couple stops, first to Lake Mackenzie where the white sand was supposed to be so fine that you could brush your teeth or shine your jewelries. The water was so clear and I wish I had a waterproof camera because the Norwegian girls had one and we took some underwater photos. Then we stopped at the Central Station Rainforest for lunch before we made our way back to Nomads in Noosa. Me, Viktoria and the Canadian couple got to stay together in a 12dorm together. That night the hostel held an “after party” at the pub attached to Nomads for those who went on the Fraser Island tours.
They put out some bite size sausage rolls and meat pies and pitchers of sangria. The pub was packed that night. I went out for some air and met this group of Japanese students in town for a visit. I’ve had a few drinks so I was in a good mood. I found out that it was one of the girl’s birthday and that she’s never had alcohol before because in Japan their legal drinking age is 21 and I said in Australia it’s 18 and I insisted on buying her a birthday drink. She was hesitant to try but her friends rooted her on trying. So I just dragged her to the bar and had a shot of jager bomb with her. Jager bombs always tasted like nothing to me, but that might have been a bad idea for a virgin drinker because she thought it was too strong for her. It was a fun night though!
Next morning I went to have cereal for breaky and found out that couple fridges had went off overnight so my milk wasn’t cold at all! Thank goodness I’m leaving this hostel because I’m going back to YHA for couple more nights. The Canadian couple left early in the morning, me and Viktoria were both catching a bus at Noosa Junction. I could basically leave anytime, so I decided to walk around town with her because she was looking to buy a hat. Her greyhound came first so I bid her farewell, then I caught my shuttle bus back to YHA.
.
Later on a Canadian couple Corey and Breanne joined our room. Finally!! First Canadians I’ve met since Sydney!!! Apparently they were going on the same Fraser Island tour as I am. Everyone going to the tour had to go to a safety briefing. Basically it was getting a stack of safety forms and watching a 20min video about driving in sand. Attached to the hostel was a bar and apparently it was “the” bar in town? We were allowed to bring alcohol onto the island and I wanted to get a box of goon before I go check out the bar but the bottle shop closed at 8PM!! The Canadians said they got a big bottle of gin and that I could have some if I want. We decided to go check out the bar, it was alright, not nearly as good as people say, but at least there was no cover. I got to sit with this table of Germans I think? They were all a bit tipsy and the music was so loud that the whole conversation was just a bunch of mumbles to me, I basically just smiled and nodded. Then at one point this local just came and sat down and started talking and you could tell that he was smashed. Later on when I went out to get a breather he came out as well and was just trying to hit on every girl who happened to be sitting out there and he ended on me asking if I want a massage blahblahblah. I quickly made my escape. Don’t need no more creeps on this trip!
The shuttle bus came to pick us up early in the morning as we still got a long way to go to get to Rainbow Beach where we launch off to go to Fraser. It also happened to be my stop after Noosa. Our tour guide gave us a briefing, checked our licenses making sure who were able to drive, and separated us into 3 cars. In my car we got an American and a German couple and a friend of theirs, Lewis from England, Viktoria from Sweden, and Bjork and Lisbeth from Norway. You gotta be 21 and know how to drive manual to be able to drive the 4x4 on Fraser Island. So basically there was only me, the American, and the 2 Norwegian girls that can drive. Lewis could’ve drove except his driver’s license expired. American took first dib. He was a bit of a show off since he’s done it before. He was driving quite fast at times when he should’ve slowed down and our tour guide had to radio our car telling us to slow down or else we’d get in shit!
We had a pit stop at a roadhouse half way between Noosa and Rainbow Beach to get some drinks or snacks, I got some hot chips. Then we drove to take the ferry across to Fraser Island. You could see immediately how nice the sand is on the island. Once we landed it was a bit further drive to where we’ll be staying for the next 2 nights. Me and Viktoria hit it off really well, although she’s only 18 she definitely was more mature for her age
. So us and the Canadians decided to share a room together. We were supposed to camp out but for some reason they put us into dorms next to the pub and to be honest I was kinda glad because I’m not too fond of camping. It’s funny how me and Viktoria were both secretly wondering whether Corey and Breanne were actually couples or just really good friends. Later on we found out that they were strangers who met each other at a hockey game with their own group of friends, and they’ve been together for 7 years so they were well passed the honeymoon stage. They seemed like the perfect couple. Both super nice, Corey gets a little goofy sometimes, whereas Breanne is always the calm motherly one.
Our tour guide was keen on showing us as much as he can so he kept us moving quickily. We were supposed to cook for ourselves but he just did the cooking himself and we’ll just do the dishes. We had a quick lunch then off we go to our first stop at Lake Wabby, a small lake surrounded by sand. To get to the lake you gotta trek down a sandy hill. Some of the guys just ran down and dove into the water. Me, Viktoria and the Canadian couple went for a swim and there were fishes in the water that nibbled at your legs. I also saw a couple full grown fishes swam pass me. Me and Viktoria went off to the side and were just fooling around where we tried taking pictures of her doing the Herbal Essence hair flipping thing
. I also took a video of Viktoria running down hill into the water where she kinda did a face plant. All around there were these huge insects, I forget what they’re called, but you should always avoid them because they bite!!
Second day we went to Eli Creek where you could float down the creek. There I ran into Emma from Noosa. I knew she was doing a Fraser Island tour as well. She left a day before me. She told me how they did the campgrounds and the set up was really shit and everyone just got smashed drunk. Then we went to the Maheno Shipwreck, went to look at some rocks that I forgot the name of, had picnic lunch, then on the way to Indian Heads we saw a Dingo on the beach, it looked really sad and scrawny. The American’s girlfriend and her friend were both underage, but the American just let the friend drove without asking/telling the rest of us. I actually didn’t realize till afterwards, but the Norwegian girls were quite upset. I was more worried about our safety because she didn’t seem to know how to drive standard and she was driving bit fast as well. To get to Indian Heads we had to climb up some rocks to the top and it was quite windy. Then I got to drive to our next stop, Champagne Pool, where a few of us went for a swim while some others just sat by the rocks looking all bored. I was super excited to be driving manual 4x4 on the wrong side of the street in sand!
! I haven’t driven stick in about 4 months so it took me a moment to familiarize myself, but once I got the hang of it people said it was smooth riding as everyone was starting to doze off. I also happened to have to drive through some tough spots where the sand was quite deep and there were other cars driving around us. On our way back we got some extra time so we stopped by Eli Creek again and people just sunbathed. It was our last night on Fraser Island so our guide wanted to get everybody down to the pub and just have some fun but we had a pretty boring group. The Germans just kinda stayed in their own room doing whatever. Our room was kinda the only group that may be up for something. Corey really wanted to go see the dingos, though there were only 4 of us and that’s against the rule because we need at least 5 people to go together. Our guide kept coming in and outta our room to coax us to go drink at the pub with him. We were just sipping on Corey and Breanne’s gin. Our guide showed us his “pet frog” Bruce, who’s actually just a green wild tree frog but comes to him when he calls it. Later on we also found a baby gecko in our room. Corey tried to catch it and it lost its tail, but I got it on my arm. Corey felt so bad for the guide that he offered to play a game of pool against him for a pitcher of beer. Apparently the guide was good at pool and he won, but he still bought us a pitcher of beer.
I didn’t wanna leech any more gin off Corey and Breanne, so I went down to the pub and grabbed a drink for myself and started chatting with the bar manager. He ended up giving me the happy hour price the whole night, though I’m only able to have a couple beers because I was getting really bloated. I sat outside and chatted with this group of asians, a Korean and a couple from China. The pub was pretty dead but the manager and our guide was having hell of a time dancing to Gunnam Style
. I was ready to leave but the manager just handed me another beer for free, so I accepted and just sat outside. There’s an outdoor pool and a group of drunken young people came running in and started jumping into the pool and making a rukus. Though technically it would’ve been prohibited, but I think the manager wouldn’t mind a little liveliness around the pub. It was getting late and I really just wanted to go to bed but the manager came out with another beer for me before running off to work. I said I really can’t have anymore and offered it to the guide when he came by but he didn’t want any. I just left because I also had to pee really bad. When I got back to our room some of the other guys had came in and we were all just chatting. Lewis apparently had been playing King’s Cup in their room and he came in quite tipsy, sipping his jug of goon because he lost. We were gonna start playing another game but ended up not because ome of the girls just started asking Corey and Breanne questions about their New Zealand trip.
Next morning I woke up with what seemed to be bed bug bites because I had a line of rashes from my neck all the way down one side of my arm and they itch like hell!! We packed up and headed for our last couple stops, first to Lake Mackenzie where the white sand was supposed to be so fine that you could brush your teeth or shine your jewelries. The water was so clear and I wish I had a waterproof camera because the Norwegian girls had one and we took some underwater photos. Then we stopped at the Central Station Rainforest for lunch before we made our way back to Nomads in Noosa. Me, Viktoria and the Canadian couple got to stay together in a 12dorm together. That night the hostel held an “after party” at the pub attached to Nomads for those who went on the Fraser Island tours.
They put out some bite size sausage rolls and meat pies and pitchers of sangria. The pub was packed that night. I went out for some air and met this group of Japanese students in town for a visit. I’ve had a few drinks so I was in a good mood. I found out that it was one of the girl’s birthday and that she’s never had alcohol before because in Japan their legal drinking age is 21 and I said in Australia it’s 18 and I insisted on buying her a birthday drink. She was hesitant to try but her friends rooted her on trying. So I just dragged her to the bar and had a shot of jager bomb with her. Jager bombs always tasted like nothing to me, but that might have been a bad idea for a virgin drinker because she thought it was too strong for her. It was a fun night though!
Next morning I went to have cereal for breaky and found out that couple fridges had went off overnight so my milk wasn’t cold at all! Thank goodness I’m leaving this hostel because I’m going back to YHA for couple more nights. The Canadian couple left early in the morning, me and Viktoria were both catching a bus at Noosa Junction. I could basically leave anytime, so I decided to walk around town with her because she was looking to buy a hat. Her greyhound came first so I bid her farewell, then I caught my shuttle bus back to YHA.
Tuesday, 4 March 2014
Noosa
The tour I’ve booked for Fraser Island includes 2 nights stay at Nomads, one before and one after because they got the bus to pick us up from the hostel. But I decided to go there couple nights earlier to check out the town and stayed at YHA. They got shuttle buses to pick us up from the Noosa Junction. YHA is a bit away from town centre, so if you really want to it’s a 15~20min walk for groceries. Thank goodness I still got some leftover food. The upside though it’s right by the beach. There’s a pub attached to the hostel with a large outdoor patio. I’ve booked a mixed dorm because by now I’d rather save on the money than worry about girl/boy privacy. My room was upstairs, so I had to make 2 trips to bring up my sheets then my luggage. I quite like the hostel, it’s all wood, bit rustic. Each room is pretty small, but we each got our own seating area on the veranda. I shared room with 2 older German guys, I think they were a couple, really athletic looking they told me they go for runs every morning, and really friendly
. Another guy came in late at night, I only saw him briefly.
After settling in I went down to the reception and asked for a map of town and checked on the board for things to do and get familiar with the hostel. There were a lot of tours, including a voucher I had for Gagaju bush camp canoeing thing, but I’d have to pay extra fees and I wasn’t planning to spend any more money on tours. The kitchen and the laundry room was actually in another building. I went for a walk to the beach and saw bush turkeys on the way, and although it was warm but it was drizzling a bit so I didn’t stay long. Also the shops on the esplanade closed early so I just went back to the hostel. At around 6PM they had a welcoming for all the new arrivals and they offered wine. I got talking with Emma, an English girl. We did a short intro around the group. Some of the guys had already bought pitchers of beer to start off. After dinner I went to drop off my laundry then I went back to the diningroom and just chilled out doing some sudoku. A British guy came over and started talking to me, asking me about how to do sudoku and blahblahblah, very talkative, and he seemed nice enough…
When I went back to check on my laundry I found out that only 1 out of 4 dryers was working. As I was waiting for the singular dryer a dude came in and was waiting for the dryer as well and he offered for us to share. Another girl wanted to share as well. I went to wait for the dryer to finish and the guy came in too and we chatted and I found out that he was Irish. Since I’ve met Paul I started asking every Irish I’ve met whether they’re from north or south. It seems that northern Irish are a rarity. In the end I suppose there were too many clothes in the machine so my stuff wasn’t fully dried so I had to hang some of them in my room
. I asked the boys not to mind my “personal items” hanging out… and they were okay with it. Later that night I got myself a beer and was just drinking out in the yard when the Brit came with a pitcher of beer and started talking non-stop to me. Then his Aussie mates came with a pitcher, then more people came and we were all just drinking and they kept offering me beer so by the end of the night I was bit tipsy. But I wouldn’t think the Brit would be such a weak drinker that I had to walk him back to his room because he was fumbling. He showed me his private room with a double bed and he kept telling me I could stay if I want. I’ve thought he was gay, but he was beginning to make me feel really uncomfortable so I tried my best to leave as soon as I can.
Next day the weather was superb, and as I was contemplating whether I really wanna walk the national park all by myself or not a young English bloke joined me. We talked for a very long time as he was waiting to do his laundry with the broken machines. I quite enjoy our conversation. Although he looked really young he seemed quite intellectual, and most of all he’s got the Matthew Grey Gubler look!! He said that he was thinking of taking a walk in the national park and I said I wanted to go too so we decided to meet up after early dinner.
It was absolutely stunning walking along the coast. There were several trails you could take and they could take up to 5hrs to do the whole walk. We decided to take a bit of short cut just in case it gets dark. On the other side of the park is a secluded beach, me and English made our way down there but there were no one around. I later found out that it was actually a nude beach! We made our way through the forest and I thought we were getting lost, but English seemed to know his way. I was wearing my thongs and for some reason I kept tripping myself over. We got back to the coast line just in time to catch the sunset, it was just so beautiful.
They had an Irish night at the pub so we made plans to meet up after washing up for some drinks. Brit was there too so we shared a pitcher to start off. I saw Emma sitting at a table and I asked her to join us, so it was 3 English vs 1 Canadian. It was a nice night and Brit and English kept getting pitcher after pitcher. I think we might have ended up with 1 pitcher each. Emma went to bed early and English went off to get ready for his nightly routine of going drinking at the beach. I got on my laptop and was trying to book my next stops and hostels while I get free wifi at the hostel. It was really getting late and I really just wanted to get things done because I like to double check everything
. Then Brit kept coming up to me and looking over my laptop while I was entering my credit card info, asking me if I’ve done my bookings yet, and where I’m going blahblahblah. I was getting really annoyed of him. English came to say bye. He’ll be heading off to Thailand afterwards. I wish I had gotten to know him better.
I decided to book 2 more nights at YHA after Fraser Island because I really enjoyed my time here, except for Brit bugging the hell outta me now thank goodness I’m leaving, and I feel that I haven’t really seen all of Noosa yet, so I can’t wait to come back here. By the time I finally done my bookings it was well after midnight and I was super tired and Brit was still hovering and he’s been drinking too. I told him I gotta get up early tomorrow and he asked me to walk him to his room again and I quickily brushed it off and kinda just ran off, though I still gave him a goodbye hug. Tomorrow I’ll move to Nomads for one night then Fraser Island!!
. Another guy came in late at night, I only saw him briefly.
After settling in I went down to the reception and asked for a map of town and checked on the board for things to do and get familiar with the hostel. There were a lot of tours, including a voucher I had for Gagaju bush camp canoeing thing, but I’d have to pay extra fees and I wasn’t planning to spend any more money on tours. The kitchen and the laundry room was actually in another building. I went for a walk to the beach and saw bush turkeys on the way, and although it was warm but it was drizzling a bit so I didn’t stay long. Also the shops on the esplanade closed early so I just went back to the hostel. At around 6PM they had a welcoming for all the new arrivals and they offered wine. I got talking with Emma, an English girl. We did a short intro around the group. Some of the guys had already bought pitchers of beer to start off. After dinner I went to drop off my laundry then I went back to the diningroom and just chilled out doing some sudoku. A British guy came over and started talking to me, asking me about how to do sudoku and blahblahblah, very talkative, and he seemed nice enough…
When I went back to check on my laundry I found out that only 1 out of 4 dryers was working. As I was waiting for the singular dryer a dude came in and was waiting for the dryer as well and he offered for us to share. Another girl wanted to share as well. I went to wait for the dryer to finish and the guy came in too and we chatted and I found out that he was Irish. Since I’ve met Paul I started asking every Irish I’ve met whether they’re from north or south. It seems that northern Irish are a rarity. In the end I suppose there were too many clothes in the machine so my stuff wasn’t fully dried so I had to hang some of them in my room
. I asked the boys not to mind my “personal items” hanging out… and they were okay with it. Later that night I got myself a beer and was just drinking out in the yard when the Brit came with a pitcher of beer and started talking non-stop to me. Then his Aussie mates came with a pitcher, then more people came and we were all just drinking and they kept offering me beer so by the end of the night I was bit tipsy. But I wouldn’t think the Brit would be such a weak drinker that I had to walk him back to his room because he was fumbling. He showed me his private room with a double bed and he kept telling me I could stay if I want. I’ve thought he was gay, but he was beginning to make me feel really uncomfortable so I tried my best to leave as soon as I can.
Next day the weather was superb, and as I was contemplating whether I really wanna walk the national park all by myself or not a young English bloke joined me. We talked for a very long time as he was waiting to do his laundry with the broken machines. I quite enjoy our conversation. Although he looked really young he seemed quite intellectual, and most of all he’s got the Matthew Grey Gubler look!! He said that he was thinking of taking a walk in the national park and I said I wanted to go too so we decided to meet up after early dinner.
It was absolutely stunning walking along the coast. There were several trails you could take and they could take up to 5hrs to do the whole walk. We decided to take a bit of short cut just in case it gets dark. On the other side of the park is a secluded beach, me and English made our way down there but there were no one around. I later found out that it was actually a nude beach! We made our way through the forest and I thought we were getting lost, but English seemed to know his way. I was wearing my thongs and for some reason I kept tripping myself over. We got back to the coast line just in time to catch the sunset, it was just so beautiful.
They had an Irish night at the pub so we made plans to meet up after washing up for some drinks. Brit was there too so we shared a pitcher to start off. I saw Emma sitting at a table and I asked her to join us, so it was 3 English vs 1 Canadian. It was a nice night and Brit and English kept getting pitcher after pitcher. I think we might have ended up with 1 pitcher each. Emma went to bed early and English went off to get ready for his nightly routine of going drinking at the beach. I got on my laptop and was trying to book my next stops and hostels while I get free wifi at the hostel. It was really getting late and I really just wanted to get things done because I like to double check everything
. Then Brit kept coming up to me and looking over my laptop while I was entering my credit card info, asking me if I’ve done my bookings yet, and where I’m going blahblahblah. I was getting really annoyed of him. English came to say bye. He’ll be heading off to Thailand afterwards. I wish I had gotten to know him better.
I decided to book 2 more nights at YHA after Fraser Island because I really enjoyed my time here, except for Brit bugging the hell outta me now thank goodness I’m leaving, and I feel that I haven’t really seen all of Noosa yet, so I can’t wait to come back here. By the time I finally done my bookings it was well after midnight and I was super tired and Brit was still hovering and he’s been drinking too. I told him I gotta get up early tomorrow and he asked me to walk him to his room again and I quickily brushed it off and kinda just ran off, though I still gave him a goodbye hug. Tomorrow I’ll move to Nomads for one night then Fraser Island!!
Monday, 3 March 2014
Mooloolaba
Apparently there was only one backpacker hostel in Mooloolaba. It was conveniently located though with the bus stop right in front and just steps away from the beach. It’s got 2 buildings and 6 floors each, and I was placed on the top floor…. So when a guy saw me struggling to get my luggage up the stairs he offered to help. I shared room with 3 other Swedish girls and our room was a mess… Girls are clean, but we are messy. All the Swedes were really nice, and one of them has been here for some time and is working at an Italian restaurant on the esplanade. We had to pay a deposit for our own kitchenware, cup, bowl, plate, etc. Each floor has its own kitchen and 2 fridges. It’s quite small and unfortunately only one fridge really works on our floor. Once I’ve settled in I went downstairs to check the board of pamphlets for things to do around the area and I saw an Underwater World and Australia Zoo aka the Steve Irwin Zoo which we could take a greyhound bus to. Since I haven’t done much sightseeing I thought I might as well go check them out
. The Underwater World was really close and Australia Zoo was one the places I really wanted to go.
I first went for a walk around town but because I got in town quite late all the shops were closed. That’s one thing that bugs me about Australia, I don’t know if it’s only in small towns but shops close around dinner time so by nighttime I really don’t know what to do. I always look for a post office so I can send postcards from each place that I’ve been to. Unfortunately shops on the esplanade were pretty much closed as well so I’m gonna have to go back again to check them out. When I walked further down the beach I did find some restaurants still open, but a few were closing up soon. I decided to get some fish and chips and had it right by the beach.
Next day as I was booking tickets to the Underwater World and the Australia Zoo out at the front patio these 2 guys called me over and one of them said to me: “Can. I. Ask. You. A. Question? Where. Are. You. From?” I said Canada, and he instantly felt embarrassed because he thought I couldn’t speak English. They were both Irish, Dave from the south, and Paul from the north. I thought they were good friends but they actually just met at the hostel. They’ve both been staying here for a couple weeks waiting for work because the hostel was supposed to have some contacts but they haven’t heard anything yet
. They both want to get the 2nd year as Dave’s visa is expiring soon (he’s a hairdresser btw), and Paul has travelled in NZ for a bit already.
So off I went to the Underwater World. It was right by the harbour, the entrance was bit hidden though, or maybe I was coming from the wrong side of the building. They had a room full of jellyfishes, a shark room of course, and an underwater tunnel where you see sharks and huge stingrays swimming around and top of you. I also got to see watch the seal show and gosh can they jump and do hand stands!! The Underwater World was actually quite small so I probably finished in about an hr.. cost me $30 I wouldn’t say it was worth it. Outside the Underwater World were some shops right by the harbour, and unfortunately closed early again!!! I kept walking along the boardwalk just to see what’s there and I saw a bunch of people out on the patio of a pub, looking over the water. Later I found out they were watching a small sailing race. That night everyone just drank out front of the hostel where I met a Emily, a Korean girl adopted by Swedish family so her mother tongue was Swedish which was interesting to see, 2 crazy American girls Melanie (Melon and Rebecca) and a group of crazy Belgium/Netherland. The American girls actually found work doing fundraising around town but they said the work actually sucked so they quit after working one day
. The Netherlander was the youngest in the Belgium group so everyone called him Baby, and I realized he was actually the dude that helped me carry my luggage on the first day. The guys had actually bought a tattoo gun together and they tattooed each other. I also met Taka, a Japanese guy working at the fish market by the harbour. He didn’t speak much English but he tries. All night I was just talking to Dave, about how he actually got offered job in Tasmania as a hairdresser, but he really needed farmwork to get his 2nd year so he’s been waiting at the hostel instead. I didn’t wanna stay up too late as I needed to wake up early next morning for the Australia Zoo, but when I was just chilling by myself on the staircase before bed I ran into Paul and we ended up chatting late into the night, having Taka’s beers which Paul said was okay because he does that all the time but he’d always replace them the next day.
The greyhound bus came to pick us up at 9AM. It had a big tiger on the side as decor. I think the greyhound was actually going along the hop-on-hop-off route so there were heaps of backpackers onboard. I was super excited when I got to the zoo. Immediately I saw pictures of Steve Irwin and his family. I saw huge lizards and obviously lots of crocks that were just laying there. I also got to hold a baby crock. I saw turtle feeding and they were actually fighting a little bit over food, in turtle speed. There were camels and a petting farm where a goat almost ate my map! Best of all were the tiger show and the crock show. There was a tiger cub playing and they showed us tiger feeding, they love milk! The crock show was quite amazing. They showed feeding and you could hear the jaw clamp really loud!! Can’t imagine getting crushed by one of them…. There was also a reptile room showcasing all the snakes of Australia and I really wish I could tell them apart so I know which ones are venomous but they all look the same to me
. At the end of the zoo was the African safari and they were feeding giraffes. In the end I had to catch the zoo trolley back to the entrance in case I’d miss my bus back.
It was just around 4PM when I got back and I really wanted to check out town so I kinda dragged Paul to take a walk with me. We chilled out for a bit by the beach before heading back for dinner. There was hell of a party going on later that night I reckon more people showed up that day and basically everyone was drinking. I had bought a bottle of wine for SIX DOLLARS from the BWS (Beer Wine Spirits) across the street and everyone else pretty much got a box of beer to themselves. Paul and I had a great chat that night and he had finished his beers and when he found out how cheap my wine was he went and bought a bottle for himself as well. There were a lot of people and we were getting quite rowdy so the manager finally came out and tried to kick some of us out. I decided to take a breather and go take a walk to the beach and Paul decided to go with me. We walked up north along the coast and we were about to pass through this path of bushes when we heard rustling in the bushes and both of us freaked. I was worried about spiders and Paul was afraid of snakes, plus he didn’t have his shoes on so we turned around and walked down the other way and came up to a platform by the beach and just sat for a while and listened to the waves.
It had quieted down by the time we got back and some people decided to go drink by the canal. So it was me, Paul, Emily, Baby, the American girls and Belgium/Netherland. We all brought a bit of booze with us althought I’m pretty sure drinking in public was illegal but we were all pretty drunk by then and Paul kept pouring more red wine into my cup
. The American girls said there was supposed to be a good place to chill but they kept taking us around in circles, probably forgotten where it is. Some people ended up just going back to the hostel, so it was just me, Paul, Emily, Baby, Kristof and Melon left chilling by the beach. Baby and Emily were just browsing through my music on my phone, Kristof and Melon were smoking up, and Paul and I were just drinking. Emily decided to go to back to the hostel and Baby kinda just trailed behind her like a little drunk stalker. The rest of us stayed behind for a little longer then Kristof and Melon wanted to get some maccas so me and Paul went back to the hostel and we thought we’d go to bed but we ended up sitting by the staircase again and talked pretty much all night long while we finished Taka’s beers again.
My bus next day doesn’t leave till around 3PM, so I woke up proper early and got the free breaky at the hostel. The Americans said they wanted to go to the beach and Paul asked if I wanted to go too. We ran into Emily at the beach. Paul and I decided to take a walk on the beach all the way down to the end where it seemed like there could be a lighthouse. We took our time and just chatted casually along the way. At the end was like a pier out to a white structure where some people were fishing. We could see that across the water was like a park or some sort because we saw a lotta people with bikes on the other side but it’s a long way around to get to the other side. We walked back and decided to go through that path that we couldn’t do the other night. Turned out the bush wasn’t as thick as we thought but it was dark. We walked all the way up to Alexandra Headland where we sat and watched some surfers. Saw a lotta bearded dragons along the way.
Finally it was time for me to leave and Paul went to the bus stop with me. We exchanged numbers and made sure to keep in touch. It was a super nice day and I’m excited to go to my next destination: Noosa!!
. The Underwater World was really close and Australia Zoo was one the places I really wanted to go.
I first went for a walk around town but because I got in town quite late all the shops were closed. That’s one thing that bugs me about Australia, I don’t know if it’s only in small towns but shops close around dinner time so by nighttime I really don’t know what to do. I always look for a post office so I can send postcards from each place that I’ve been to. Unfortunately shops on the esplanade were pretty much closed as well so I’m gonna have to go back again to check them out. When I walked further down the beach I did find some restaurants still open, but a few were closing up soon. I decided to get some fish and chips and had it right by the beach.
Next day as I was booking tickets to the Underwater World and the Australia Zoo out at the front patio these 2 guys called me over and one of them said to me: “Can. I. Ask. You. A. Question? Where. Are. You. From?” I said Canada, and he instantly felt embarrassed because he thought I couldn’t speak English. They were both Irish, Dave from the south, and Paul from the north. I thought they were good friends but they actually just met at the hostel. They’ve both been staying here for a couple weeks waiting for work because the hostel was supposed to have some contacts but they haven’t heard anything yet
. They both want to get the 2nd year as Dave’s visa is expiring soon (he’s a hairdresser btw), and Paul has travelled in NZ for a bit already.
So off I went to the Underwater World. It was right by the harbour, the entrance was bit hidden though, or maybe I was coming from the wrong side of the building. They had a room full of jellyfishes, a shark room of course, and an underwater tunnel where you see sharks and huge stingrays swimming around and top of you. I also got to see watch the seal show and gosh can they jump and do hand stands!! The Underwater World was actually quite small so I probably finished in about an hr.. cost me $30 I wouldn’t say it was worth it. Outside the Underwater World were some shops right by the harbour, and unfortunately closed early again!!! I kept walking along the boardwalk just to see what’s there and I saw a bunch of people out on the patio of a pub, looking over the water. Later I found out they were watching a small sailing race. That night everyone just drank out front of the hostel where I met a Emily, a Korean girl adopted by Swedish family so her mother tongue was Swedish which was interesting to see, 2 crazy American girls Melanie (Melon and Rebecca) and a group of crazy Belgium/Netherland. The American girls actually found work doing fundraising around town but they said the work actually sucked so they quit after working one day
. The Netherlander was the youngest in the Belgium group so everyone called him Baby, and I realized he was actually the dude that helped me carry my luggage on the first day. The guys had actually bought a tattoo gun together and they tattooed each other. I also met Taka, a Japanese guy working at the fish market by the harbour. He didn’t speak much English but he tries. All night I was just talking to Dave, about how he actually got offered job in Tasmania as a hairdresser, but he really needed farmwork to get his 2nd year so he’s been waiting at the hostel instead. I didn’t wanna stay up too late as I needed to wake up early next morning for the Australia Zoo, but when I was just chilling by myself on the staircase before bed I ran into Paul and we ended up chatting late into the night, having Taka’s beers which Paul said was okay because he does that all the time but he’d always replace them the next day.
The greyhound bus came to pick us up at 9AM. It had a big tiger on the side as decor. I think the greyhound was actually going along the hop-on-hop-off route so there were heaps of backpackers onboard. I was super excited when I got to the zoo. Immediately I saw pictures of Steve Irwin and his family. I saw huge lizards and obviously lots of crocks that were just laying there. I also got to hold a baby crock. I saw turtle feeding and they were actually fighting a little bit over food, in turtle speed. There were camels and a petting farm where a goat almost ate my map! Best of all were the tiger show and the crock show. There was a tiger cub playing and they showed us tiger feeding, they love milk! The crock show was quite amazing. They showed feeding and you could hear the jaw clamp really loud!! Can’t imagine getting crushed by one of them…. There was also a reptile room showcasing all the snakes of Australia and I really wish I could tell them apart so I know which ones are venomous but they all look the same to me
. At the end of the zoo was the African safari and they were feeding giraffes. In the end I had to catch the zoo trolley back to the entrance in case I’d miss my bus back.
It was just around 4PM when I got back and I really wanted to check out town so I kinda dragged Paul to take a walk with me. We chilled out for a bit by the beach before heading back for dinner. There was hell of a party going on later that night I reckon more people showed up that day and basically everyone was drinking. I had bought a bottle of wine for SIX DOLLARS from the BWS (Beer Wine Spirits) across the street and everyone else pretty much got a box of beer to themselves. Paul and I had a great chat that night and he had finished his beers and when he found out how cheap my wine was he went and bought a bottle for himself as well. There were a lot of people and we were getting quite rowdy so the manager finally came out and tried to kick some of us out. I decided to take a breather and go take a walk to the beach and Paul decided to go with me. We walked up north along the coast and we were about to pass through this path of bushes when we heard rustling in the bushes and both of us freaked. I was worried about spiders and Paul was afraid of snakes, plus he didn’t have his shoes on so we turned around and walked down the other way and came up to a platform by the beach and just sat for a while and listened to the waves.
It had quieted down by the time we got back and some people decided to go drink by the canal. So it was me, Paul, Emily, Baby, the American girls and Belgium/Netherland. We all brought a bit of booze with us althought I’m pretty sure drinking in public was illegal but we were all pretty drunk by then and Paul kept pouring more red wine into my cup
. The American girls said there was supposed to be a good place to chill but they kept taking us around in circles, probably forgotten where it is. Some people ended up just going back to the hostel, so it was just me, Paul, Emily, Baby, Kristof and Melon left chilling by the beach. Baby and Emily were just browsing through my music on my phone, Kristof and Melon were smoking up, and Paul and I were just drinking. Emily decided to go to back to the hostel and Baby kinda just trailed behind her like a little drunk stalker. The rest of us stayed behind for a little longer then Kristof and Melon wanted to get some maccas so me and Paul went back to the hostel and we thought we’d go to bed but we ended up sitting by the staircase again and talked pretty much all night long while we finished Taka’s beers again.
My bus next day doesn’t leave till around 3PM, so I woke up proper early and got the free breaky at the hostel. The Americans said they wanted to go to the beach and Paul asked if I wanted to go too. We ran into Emily at the beach. Paul and I decided to take a walk on the beach all the way down to the end where it seemed like there could be a lighthouse. We took our time and just chatted casually along the way. At the end was like a pier out to a white structure where some people were fishing. We could see that across the water was like a park or some sort because we saw a lotta people with bikes on the other side but it’s a long way around to get to the other side. We walked back and decided to go through that path that we couldn’t do the other night. Turned out the bush wasn’t as thick as we thought but it was dark. We walked all the way up to Alexandra Headland where we sat and watched some surfers. Saw a lotta bearded dragons along the way.
Finally it was time for me to leave and Paul went to the bus stop with me. We exchanged numbers and made sure to keep in touch. It was a super nice day and I’m excited to go to my next destination: Noosa!!
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