19. 1- 12th Nov. Getting sweaty in the suana.

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1/11/07
It was an early rise at 6.30am and Kath and Warren drove me to the airport. Considering the last flight and check in I had was a nightmare, this one was the completely opposite. There was no queue at all and the lady at the check in just asked how my morning had been and wished me a good day...thats it! Kath and Warren walked through customs with me and since we had 30mins to kill we had breakfast. It felt like we were the only ones in the airport. If you have seen them Carlsberg adverts it would have been "if Carlsberg made airports!". I said goodbye to Kath and Warren when the plane was boarding and thanked them for making me feel at home with the hope I will see them in England in the next few years. I had three seats to myself on the plane to Melbourne and my next flight to Maroochydore i was sat next next to an empty seat and the bloke two alnog from me fell asleep before take off. So there was a serious lack of conversation over the course of the journey. When we were all waiting for our bags to come we got told the biggest ones would come out first. I had to laugh as i knew that meant my bag would be last as it was smaller than some peoples carry on! Fair enough it was the last one out but i was in no rush as i had not even made up my mind where i was staying that night. I ended catching a bus to Caloundra where the time share was. I got given this time share for a week by our newly adopted family member Sarah (hardcore junior) and her family. I was the last one on the bus and got talking away to the driver. I toldhim about the time share but i was looking for cheap accommodation for the night as the time share wasnt till the next day. He kindly drove me round Caloundra, showing me where my time share was, the main part of town, the bus station for when i come to leave and dropped me off at a Guest House where they had dorms for $23. I got checked in by a lady called Beth and it was her first day working there. She was a good laugh. I had a SubWay for lunch and ended up sleeping from 5.30pm till 8pm. I woke up to find two other blokes in my dorm. One was from Korea and the other was an Italian...didnt catch theirs names because they didnt talk very much! I spent the night in the tv room talking to two German lads called Henrich and Thomas. I went back to my room to find Kassia sat on his bed reading. I thought I would try to get him talking and once i did...he wouldnt stop! It got till around 1am and i had to ask him if I could go to sleep! He was gutted i was only staying for one night as i think it was along time since he talked to someone. Itold him to leave me his contact info in the morning as he had an early rise for studies and i wouldnt be awake. A nice bloke though who needs a bit more confidence.

2/11/7
I had to check out by 10am and couldnt check in till 2pm into the time share but luckily Beth at reception let me leave my bags with her and went to the internet cafe to find out what Matt and Amy were up to and for when they would be arriving. Eating my apple and croisants i had bought from the supermarket i read the e mail i had got from Amy saying that they were not coming due to the fact that it would cost them a small fortune to get to Caloundra. I was devestated they couldnt come but understood since i have also been suprised how much the travelling costs getting aroung OZ. I also knew that i wouldnt see them again till June next year so I was a bit down about that. But on the up side i had a time share to myself for a week with an ocean view...so it wasnt all bad!ha I walked back to get my bags and was preparing for a long walk (most of it up hill) in the scorching hot sun. I bumped into Beth again and when she found out where i was going, she closed up shop and drove me to the time share. A lovely lady! The time share was great, an ocean view, huge living area and kitchen. I got a bot excited about having my own kitchen so i went out to but some food...does that sound sad?! I done some exercises, watched a bit of tv and had an early night.

3/11/07
I didnt get much of a sleep in as next door had room servive knocking on their door at 7.30am...that time doesnt even exhist for me at the moment! I stayed in bed till 9am and had banana on toast sat on the balcony with a pot of tea...i felt very English!ha I took a walk down the cliff face to the beach where i sunbathed the whole day with every now and then jumping in the sea to play in the waves. For lunch i had a very hard meal to cook...beans on toast. This wasnt because i was lazy it was due to the fact that i had been craving this for ages! I done some more exercises and then soaked away in the sauna for half an hour. I have to admit that since the sauna is covered in wood i was half expecting a big hairy spider to jump out from one of the cracks...silly i know but im in the land where someone one decided to throw all the most dangerous animals in the world into one country! So imagine my suprise to see a giant moth fly past my head!ha Being a Saturday night and me being a party animal i spent the night watching the disney film Aladin. I did follow it up by watcing Total Recal though which gave me a bit more dignity. The film Aladin is awesome though and i dont care what anyone says...Jasmine is hot!ha

4/11/07
The morning followed the same pattern as the one before and i was at the beach by 10.30am. I had run out of sun cream and the only one the shop sold was factor 30 or more. I guess its for good reason though as OZ has the highest skin cancer rate in the world. So i bought some and spent the next half hour trying to rub it in!ha The bloke in the shop has family from England and keeps me up to date with the football scores which is handy. I decided to go for a walk to the closest internet facilities which were in the library about half an hour away. I got there and it was closed. The tourist info centre was close by and i spent about half an hour there talking to the two lovely old ladies working there. They ended up directing me to another internet cafe on the beach. I spoke to my mum on Skype and its always good to hear her voice. After realising where i was on the map I opted for the beach front walk. Alot more scenic and especially because it was approaching sun set. There were some great views walking back up the cliff and everyone that you walk past seems to have their head held high and smiles as you walk past.

5/11/07
I was up at 8.30am feeling fresh and headed to the beach. Now since im by myself I have to try and put sun cream on my back, dislocating my shoulders in the process. I was about to top up on the old sun cream after a few hours on the beach when i decided to ask someone to do it for me. I had the choice of a young brunette or a old man in his speedos...difficult choice!ha I got the girl to do it for me and i dont know why, but i felt well cheesey asking her. I played around in the waves for a while and headed back for a healthy lunch consisting of tuna, veg and pasta. I enjoyed being in the kitchen but im sure thats nothing to worry about. Im sure thats only a temperary thing. I took the long walk along the beach to the library where i looked at the lonely planet books on OZ and Mexico. I must be the only backpacker who doesnt have a single guide book! When i got back i done some more exercises and layed around in the sauna relieving the stress of travelling! I watched Meet the Parents and was in bed by 10pm.

6/11/07
I woke up to find out that the sun was hiding behind the clouds so after breakfast i thought it best to use the day wisely and head for the internet cafe where i had of stuff to sort out. I bought a 2 day pass for $30 and didnt leave the internet cafe till 5.30pm...when it shut! The lady working there kept telling me off for not moving and i must have looked really sad staying there all day. I had no joy with changing my flights after a frustrating few ours on the phone. I walked back, cooked dinner, done some exercises and watched some tv. Not very exciting but was shattered after being on the internet for so long.

7/11/07
In the morning i walked to the bus depo which was about 45mins away and half way there it starting belting it down. When i finally got to the bus depo i looked like a drowned rat! I bought a ticket to Sydney for $141 and went to the internet cafe. I was there till 3pm but still had no joy with changing my flights. The ladies working there though continued enjoying giving me grief for being there so much. I had fish and chips on the sea front and walked back. There was some freaky looking cloud that looked like an evil face eating the mountains in the distance. I spent the night just chilling out in my room. Once again it doesnt sound like an exciting day but it was very productive and i got alot done.

8/11/07
The day was still cloudy but i managed to change my flights after receiving an e mail i had been waiting for. I spoke to my mum for a while then i gave my sister a ring and spoke to her as well as my nephew Lee. I said goodbye to the ladies at the internet cafe and told them they would not see me again as i was leaving the next tomorrow. They didnt believe me. I stopped off at the shop on the way back and got talking to the girl behind the counter. It turned out that she had travelled around Europe including the UK. Another customer joined the conversation when we started talking about Amsterdam and then someone else joined in when we started talking about Vietnam. Before we knew it we were having a four way conversation taking over the shop. I walked away with a pizza under my arm and enjoyind a quite night in watching So You Think You Can Dance...no, im not gay!

9/11/07
I checked out by 10pm after saying an emotional goodbye to my kitchen. For the last 3-4 days the weather has been cloudy so quess what the weather was like bearing in mind i had to walk for about 45mins with all my bags...blue skies and a scorching hot sun! I killed some time in the library and got on my mini bus at 1.30pm. I was sat next to a German bloke called Hagen and talked away with him till we reached Brisbane at 3.30pm. I was on the coach at 4.30pm and made myself at home since i would be on this coach till 10.30am the next day. I got talking to an English lad straight away called Ed who was wearing a cowboy hat and talked with a farmers accent. He had been doing fruit picking for the last few months and had lost shed loads of weight doing so. Within an hour a bloke called Chris from Ireland got on the bus and had the pleasure of having the seat next to me (it was all designated seating). He was a typical Irishman and a good laugh. He got off at Byron Bay at 8pm and i was tempted to get off as well. Bit i decided to stick to my plan and stayed on. The seat next to me didnt stay empty for long. A bloke called Mike from Scotland was my next talking buddy. Luckily for myself he was also a good laugh and easy to talk to ( i was hoping for a hot blonde girl though but it didnt happen!). One of our rest stops during the night Mike and I ended up talking to a gang of youths outside a cafe. They were fairly drunk but good value for money entertainment wise. Neither Mike or I could get to sleep and were still talking into the early hours of the morning.

10/11/07
The driver put on a film at arounf 7am and it was only them a managed to fall asleep...the film was that bad! I slept till 9am so atleast that a few hours sleep under my belt. We arrived in Sydney at 10.30am and i decided to go to the same guest house as Mike. He was meeting a load of his friends there but was only staying on night as they were geeting a car and driving to the western coast. The place was called Aussie Backpackers and the 4 person dorm i stayed in had a lovely sweaty smell to it! What made it even worse was that my dorm room was right next to the communal area outside where everyone drank at night time. There were two Irish lads and a German bloke called Oliver in my room who all seemed harmless. I went with Mike and his friends to Bonzi beach where we enjoyed the views of ladies in their bikinis. I did jump in the sea but almost jumped straight back out after being suprised to how cold it was...i think the warm seas around Asia has spoiled me! Later on in the evening, for some reason, i was feeling really homesick and missing my family and friends. I dont know what brought this on but it hit me like a tonne of bricks! I had to escape the noise from my guest house and went to an internet cafe. I spent an hour looking at photos on facebook of people i missed and luckily for myself a girl called Lucy from back home appered online on msn. She had been travelling in OZ recently and it was really good talking to her. She even said that Sydney had the same effect on her when she was there. I left the internet cafe feeling alot better so thanks Lucy! I got back to my dorm room at 9pm where Oliver was getting ready to go out. He was meeting some friends of his and asked me if i wanted to join them on a night out on the town. Feeling better and in the need of a drink i quicky accepted the invitation! His friends were a good laugh, a girl from OZ and a bloke form Germany who reminded me of Arnie due to his size and the way he talked. It was amusing since it was a constant contest of who could finish their drinks frst. The big bloke one but i gave him a run for his money. We ended up going to a night club where we all got id'd. I was the only one who didnt have it on them but after talking to the bouncer and explaining to him that im English and didnt have a clue that i would need it he let me in. Oliver (who i think is loaded and works in Singapore) paid for the majority of the drinks that night which included tea pots full of shots. Towards the end of the night Oliver and I were walking around with a jug of beer in one hand and a tea pot in the other...yes we were drunk! A good laugh though!

11/11/07
My alarm went off at 9am and i wasnt feeling good. I had to check out at 10am. I stumbled into the shopping market looking like the walking dead, bought some fruit and then checked into my new guest house called Funk House. I was in a three bed dorm sharing it with a bloke called Alex from Germany and Sylvan from France. Their first impressions could not have been good of me since i just managed to introduce myself before collapsing in bed and in bed i stayed till 5pm. I talked to Alex for a few hours and persuaded him that i am normal. He had done a great white shark cage dive and showed me his photos on his laptop. It looked awesome and im tempted to splash out the $400 to do the same. Feeling starving i walked to the shops but got hassled by some huge bloke along the way. He was trying to get to me into his strip joint but got annoyed when i refused. I thought he was going to eat me or something! Sydney as a whole is a beautiful city but where i was staying, in kings cross, is a bit sleezey but thats where most of the backpackers are. I finally got to the supermarket after escaping the grasps of the gorilla of a man i had just bumped into to find the queue a mile long. I ended up eating in a small cafe on the street corner enjoying watching all the people passing me by. Its amazing how we are all the same species but yet all completey different! There were three old men sat behind me talking about South America so i joined in in the conversation. I think they must spend all their time sat there as they seemed to know everyone walking past. I ended up back at the hostel and watched the film Knocked Up in the tv room. This was great as i missed the last 10mins of it on the plane coming over to Australia. A few of us carried on watching Schindlers List afterwards but seeing as that film never seems to end as its so long i went to bed half way through around 1am. A bit of a wasted day really i know.

12/11/07
I woke up in the morning determined to be a true tourist. So i packed my camera, took a few spare batteries, filled my water bottle up and headed out early. On the way to the Operah House i walked through the Bitanical Gardens where they have parrots everywhere walking around instead of pigeons. I would go on about the garden itself but that would be slightly gay so im just going to say it was a nice walk. The garden does leed you to the Operah house and the Harbour Bridge and just the feeling when your walking towards them is a strange but good one. I had seen them on tv so many times so just finally being there felg great. Felt like an achievment and another box ticked from all the things i want to do and see in life. I walked all around the Operah House and then walked across the Harbour Bridge. Didnt do the sky walk though due to it being so expensive and i was more than satisfied with the views from the normal walking part on the bidge. I do think i have seen more people jogging today than any other day in my life. They are crazy for it over here. I stumbled across a five a side football match so i watched that for a while until my stomach started calling out for food. I had done alot of walking. I was back at my dorm room by 3pm and just i had just laid down on my bed when Sylvan walked in. He just looked at me lying down and said "you have got to be joking!". I had to explain him that i had been up and about the hole day. We talked and had a few laughs. Later on in the evening i had a steak pie which was fantastic. I would cook but the kitchen was tiny compared to the amount of people staying there. I bought a greyhound bus ticket to take me from Sydney to Cairns costing $380 which allowed me as mant drop offs as i want in that direction. Atleast i knew from now on that i didnt have to splash out on any more transportation. I had an early night as i had to get up at 5.30am to catch my bus to Coffs Harbour. Was looking forward to leaving Sydney but i think that was partly my fault. If i had been staying in a nicer part of Sydney i would have probably have enjoyd it more and stayed for longer. I have to admit i was really looking forward to doing the eastern coast and that sport called...mmm...surfing baby!

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