Mission Beach

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Hey

Sorry again for the lack of updates but i had a lot of problems getting online since i got here and there hasn't really been that much to tell, i'm at mission beach and I’m staying at a hostel called Absolute Backpackers and its fantastic, i think its probably the nicest and most friendly hostel i've stayed at. Within minutes all the staff knew mine and everyone else's name and the whole atmosphere is brilliant.

When i arrived at the hostel i asked if they'd keep an ear open for any work and on Thursday a real estate agent asked me if i wanted to lay some turf on a bit of land he was going to sell, it was really hard work and the sun was scorching which made it even harder but it was actually kind of fun and by the end me and 3 other people had layed over 600m2 in just over 3 hours!! And the guy brought over a cool box full of ice cold beer which went down a treat and i got $60 for it which is pretty good.

Yesterday i went with some Dutch and German guys and played football on the beach with a tennis ball and flip flops stuck in the ground as goals and then to cool down afterwards we went for a swim in the sea, the water was so clear and warm it was lovely.
Just over the road from the hostel they have a drive-through off license!!!!! Which is apparently pretty common but took me aback a little and round the corner they have a Woolworths-but not the kind we have back in the UK over here Woolworths is a supermarket which confused me at first when people were saying they 'were going to Woolworths to get some fruit and veg'. The Hostel is very close to the Beach and to the coach station which is handy.

After coming back from the beach yesterday i got told by one of the hostel staff that someone had asked around if there was anyone wanting a job at the Elandra, which is a 5 star resort near by, i got straight on the phone and i got the job! :-) Its working in the kitchens as a kitchen hand which basically means i'll be preparing veg and washing plates but it pays quite well, they give you a free meal in the evening, and they offered me 40 Hours a week!!! Which is unheard of as far as backpacker jobs go, also if i work at night in the hostel i get free accommodation and free internet which means i'll have nearly no outgoings at all but it also means i'll be doing nearly 70 hour weeks and there wont be much to write about so there probably won't be any blog entry’s for a while.

Today I was meant to be helping the real estate guy lay some more turf but because of the lack of rain recently he couldn’t lay any more until it got a wetter, so instead I decided to go for a hike through the local rainforest, the trail started about 4km from the hostel so one of the guys that works here dropped me off, as you know I’d done this before in Cape Trib but not on my own and it was very different, I saw my first wild Cassowary and a few minutes later I saw a second one with 4 chicks, I also saw a huge monitor lizard and some wallabies but they were too quick for me to get a photo of, all in all the whole trail from El Arish to Licuala was around 4.7km and it took me just over 4 hours.

Anywho I’ll give you an update on the job when I know some more.

Take care everyone

Alex

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Photos

Turf Laying
Me and the three other backpackers that layed the turf

Celebratory Beer
Having a well deserved beer after a hard days work

Ant
This isn't zoomed in the ant really is that big!!!!!

Note
This note was on the path

Comments

[Simon Abel]

Looking good!
Hey Alex Looks like you've really settled down there and fallen on your feet in terms of the great hostel and work, it's good to know that. Your trip to Mission Beach looked great, I'm not at all envious! You've also turned into something of a great white explorer, ok I know it's supposed to be 'hunter' but allow me some artistic license please. The rain forest 'ramble' looked interesting, you should have looked for some Cassowary eggs, they'd have made a great omelette! Don't work too hard, you'll end up burning out and not enjoying yourself. Keep blogging Alex, they're really good reading and lets us know just how well you're doing and enjoying the whole experience. Take care and have fun. Love, Simon.