I have been checking the Canadian Embassy's website in like a crazy person - double checking how many work and travel visas they have left to issue for 2012. The count stands at 144. 144 from 5, 530. That's a really small chance that I'm going to be issued one. Still, I am keeping my fingers crossed and continuing to work, save and plan for my trip. I also received an email from the Emabassy last week, informing me that a decision will be made in the next two weeks. I have another ten days to wait. I really hate waiting for things!... read more

After leaving Australia and arriving back in the Uk, I quickly realised that the UK was not where I wanted to be. To cut a long story short, I worked in the Uk for 4 months and saved my cash before moving to the south of Germany - where I have continued to live for the last 19 months. See! That story got cut so short, it fitted into two sentences! Life in Germany has been pretty decent at times and pretty awful at others. Nonetheless, I wish I had blogged more about my time spent here as it is (hopefully) coming to an end in the next few months. I have decided to apply for a work and travel permit for Canada and I will know in the next 8-10 weeks if I am able ... read more

I arrived in Sydney on the evening of the 25th - Anzac Day in Australia. I'd seen some of the memorial procession in Adelaide before I flew over to Sydney. I managed to catch an aiprot shuttle to the hostel - the journey to the city was fairly quick. We got stuck in traffic as we hit the main CBD as there were just so many people making their way down to Darling Harbour for the Anzac Day celebrations. I checked in to my hostel and was put into a 10 bed dorm. There were only 4 other people in there already so I was able to get the last bottom bunk bed. Two of the girls in the dorm were from a small town on the Swiss-German border and we immediately introduced ourselves and got ... read more

We could barely sleep the night of the 14th April. Philipp was due to leave for the airport and catch his plane at 5:00. We spent most of the night chatting about the things we'd seen, people we'd met and the experiences we'd had, both together and seperately, whilst being in Australia. When the alarm finally went off at 4:30am, I got up and had a shower. There were still other travellers up, sitting watching TV and having a drink. We had a final check of the dorm room and made our way to reception to check out for the final time. The hostel was an important part of my trip to Australia. The dining room is where I met some of my best friends whilst travelling, and the bar was where it all began for ... read more

Monday: We arrived in Tasmania after a fairly uneventful flight! I fell asleep soon after taking off as we’d woken up pretty early to get to the airport on time. I woke up as we flew over the mainland coast and was able to get some pretty good views of Kings Island and then the north coast of Tasmania. I was struck by how different the landscape was compared to anywhere else I’d been in Australia. It was green and flat, with the Cradle Mountain range visible in the distance. We flew over Launceston and then banked back round to come to a smooth landing on the airstrip. We climbed down the stairs and made our way across the tarmac. The local time had changed (again) from that in Queensland (QLD don’t have daylights saving) and ... read more

We arrived at Proserpine airport with plenty of time to check our luggage in and get through the security checks. Even though it was my second visit to the airport, I still couldn’t quite believe that the handful of staff in a building the size of a barn did the same job as those working in the massive, high tech, modern airport buildings in the bigger cities. There was a whole range of different people travelling to Brisbane - other backpackers, locals, families with small children etc. A mixture of visitors who had been hoping to see a little bit of paradise, mixed with laid back locals who were taking a trip down the coast. The security staff barely batted an eyelid when I declared all my prescription paraphernalia - I even managed to time the ... read more

The news that there was a cyclone just up the coast really put a spanner in the works. The plan was that I’d meet Philipp in Airlie Beach and we’d go on a three day & two night sailing trip around a collection of Islands that make up the Whitsundays. The Whitsunday Islands are renowned for their pristine beaches of pure silica sand and azure oceans. It’s meant to be heaven. White haven beach is listed as the second best beach in the entire world. The fact that there was a cyclone on the way wasn’t exactly promising - none of the boats would be able to leave the harbour as there are limited facilities on the islands and you really wouldn’t want to be stuck there when a cyclone hits. I wondered down to the ... read more