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Published: July 11th 2008
So must start with an apology for being MIA for so long - almost a week. Also we have now officially been away from you all for a month - how quick did that whizz past!?!
Where are we up to?? Right so last Saturday morning v early we got the bus from Cairns to Mission Beach which is a small cute town with a gorgeous beach just a couple of hours down the coast. We spent the day there and tried our hardest to sunbathe on the beach in spite of there being hardly any sunshine and A LOT of wind!! We gave up and went for a coffee, well tried to go for a coffee and were met with an extremely hostile woman who clearly did not want our business and wanted to go home for a kip... shame.
Got on another bus at 3pm the same day onto townsville where we arrived at 7pm. It looked like a gorgeous seaside port and it was buzzing as we passed through but we headed straight onto a ferry and over to Magnetic Island (so called because Captain Cook's compass went funny when he passed it..fact for you there, although Jonny i believe you are well aware of this fact and in spite of Em and I being told it by many different people she thought she heard it for the 1st time from you!!)
Arrived in Magnetic Island saturday soir (after much travelling!) and were shown into our accommodation at Base, the only hostel right on the beach.. similar to Cape Trib in that we were in huts and had to trek to kitchen/bathroom. We had booked this trip with a retard boy in Cairns called Rob and when we arrived we were told they were fully booked and that didn't include us so we were offered a tent. great. thankfully (well not really) someone had frauded the couple checking in at the same time as us and had booked them in as 4 people so there were 2 spare beds for us!! Our room had a few girls from Balham and 2 guys from Bromley - Bill and dan, 19 year old youths, who turned out to be comedy value. 1st night knackered after the travels we went to bed.
Next morn we awoke to gorgeous sunshine. Great we thought and headed down to the beach but of course, as is the theme in queensland, the sea was non-swimmable due to jelly fish. well after about 20mins of sunshine the sun decided to give up too so we ended up reading in hammocks in a lot of clothing with brews which to be honest was very relaxing. Late in the afternoon I started getting a bit restless and decided to ask if there was anywhere on the island that could be swam in and the guy told me there was this bay - Alma Bay which could be swam in all year round but it was about 4 miles away from where we were staying. I was clearly bored and sluggish cuz I decided to run there. It was gorgeous actually but of course as soon as I set off the sun blasted out and I boiled. I took my bikini and had a great swim when I arrived and it was packed with families - there were also a few parrots flying around and even waves in the sea, I was v happy! Dried off on the run home, showered and Em and I headed to the bar to redeem our 2 for 1 drinks vouchers and indulge in free BBQ!
Had a really good eve, had loads of free bbq and drinks! Met some RAF guys who were working on the island jets and loads of travellers - was a very sociable eve by our standards. Got back to the room however and the fun had clearly only just begun! Earlier on in the eve when i was out Emma had told me about these two girls who had arrived to stay in our room - they dressed exactly the same (in spite of looking nothing alike) - they had the same backpacks, same shoes, same bags.. anyway they started having a major debate about cheese. It was something like one had bought the cheese and the other owed her money for it and they got their receipts out and were saying, well if i bought 0.65 kilos of cheese and you ate -0.2 kilos of it, then thats 4 dollars and if we convert that back to pounds thats like 2... it went on like this for a while and Emma and the lads were finding it hilarious, so hilarious in fact that when bill came back, after having downed a box of wine, he came into the room shushing everyone (standard drunk behaviour) turned the light on and off about 12 times and then started shouting 'cheese' 'you owe me money for cheese' 'ooooh wendsleydale, oh cheddar' - it was so funny but i guess you had to be there to appreciate it fully. That night ended with bill being sick and having a nose bleed on emma's towel (which he had nicked from the balcony) and sleeping wrapped in mine... lovely, although better than listening to him wee outside the room every 5 seconds.
Next morn we checked out and decided to redeem our free 1 hours kayaking, bill and dan decided to come too, much again to our amusement when they were so scared of 'going too far out' cuz of the shark bait nets.. oh how brave we felt in comparison.
We got the ferry back over to the mainland and got the bus down to airlie beach which is where we are now!!! The journey was another 6 hours (of course nowhere is close in this place!) and we arrived mon eve.
Monday eve we checked into beaches, our favourite hostel so far, it was heaving and there were limbo comps going on all night - but again due to our early start for sailing at like 7am we happily watched tv in bed, what luxury that was - a tv!! Shared a mixed dorm with 6 others and I was kept awake most of the night by a wonderful couple 'sharing' the bunk next to me.... I was raging and was not discrete about the fact that they should not even kiss near me!!! well that was certainly an experience.
tues morn we headed out to the marina in the rain for 8am to meet the other passengers and crew of our sailing ship. we picked a ship called the 'derwent hunter' a real old school pirate style ship with wooden decks and sails and masts to go round the whitsunday islands. These islands are largely uninhabited but have amazing snorkelling for the great barrier reef. The weather was too miserable tues morn to be on the deck so Em and I caught up on some sleep (in our separate bedrooms that we had to share with strangers!!) Best part of life on the ship (well one of) was the fact we got fed amazing food, breakfast, lunch, afternoon tea and dinner... amazing. 1st afternoon on ship we stopped at Whitsunday island and walked up to the most photographed lookout in hill inlet, it was truly the most stunning sight - the whitest sands in the world (reflect UV so strongly even on cloudy days apparently) and the bluest seas with sandbanks going through them - such clear water you could sea the stingrays from that high up! Afterwards we headed down onto the beach itself - tongue bay and emma and i walked with the stingrays - all over us, emma almost stood on one, but they move so quickly out of your way its so safe. Others also saw turtles, we didn't boo. We went to a really secluded part of the beach though and had a swim, in spite of the rain and the cloud and the freezingness - the water was amazing! Back onto the ship afterwards for amazing dinner of red emperor - best fish, oh lord so good.
2nd day was slightly better weather - we headed to black island and out for a snorkel, the reef was stunning, but the coral came right up to the shore so you had to be careful and i cut my foot on it, bit sore. AFter about 20mins snorkellign in the stinger suits (to protect us for irikanji jellyfish) we were frozen/hypothermic so we came out and tried to warm up. Went to luncheon bay in the afternoon for another snorkel but we stayed ashore and marvelled at the amazing views. Had wine and disney games (oh yes we introiduced the disney game to the ship) that eve with lasagne (having already had scones for afternoon tea and quiche for lunch).
Final day on board was the hottest although the wind really gets up on the ship so you never are warm enough to be in anything less than blankets!! WE stopped at langford bay, opposite the poshest island (hayman island) and afterwards drove back to airlie but the sail then got really choppy - all sails were raised and we were tipping into the sea so much, the few 'motion sickness' people did not love it! When we got back we were positively frozen and needed to de-thaw in the sunshine, we had really windswept faces so we shone out in the eve.
Post sailing there are free jugs of wine and food which we got involved with at the hostel and that was last night.... Today we have been at the lagoon in airlie which is way more beautiful than the one in cairns. It was only about 21 degrees but really warm out of the wind. Have got scousers who have just moved into our dorm.... so all good. We are relaxing again all day tomorrow before heading to Brian and Lisa's on sunday - they are emma's family friends. V excited for the home comforts I must admit, I never realised how much i love having clean clothes.
missing you all still, lots and lots and lots of love and hugs,
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anonymous
non-member comment
hi em i am so glad you rang, bri and lisa are sound as you no doubt found out hope you enjoy the rest of your trip, i am off now so you will only be able to sms me keep well and look after each other love always