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Published: April 28th 2011
Wednesday 23 March: We arrived at 2.25 am in Airlie Beach and we walked from the Greyhound bus stop to our hostel called Base and we had to call the security so they could open the door for us and they gave us the room keys. When I opened the room of the dorm I saw my Canadian friend Mike which I met in Hervey Bay before. We talked about our Fraser Island trip and went to bed.
Thursday 24 March: We had breakfast, went on the internet and picked up our tickets for Whitsundays from Oz Sail. They told us there was a probem with the engine from our original boat Freight Train, that's why they put us on Matador. We went to the Lagoon, which is a giant swimming pool close to the beach. You are not allowed to swim in the ocean, because you find the box jellyfish and Irukanji there and they are both deadly. We also did some grocery shopping, because we had to bring food for three days to the Whitsundays.
Friday 25 March: we had to check out at 11 am, put our backpacks for 3 days in a storage room and
left some food in the fridge (because breakfast, lunch and dinner were included). We left our valuables at the reception. We had to be at the harbour at 1 pm, but went to Oz first, where they told us that also Matador had problems with the eninge. They put us on Spank me and we got an upgrade (1 extra day, 1 extra night and 1 free dive). Our departure time also changed and we went with a small rugsack (otherwise there wouldn't be enough space on the boat) to the harbour and had to be there at 2.15 pm. We had to pay 20 Aud for a stinger suit (which you need if you want to swim/snorkel/dive against stingers). The boat departed at 3 pm and we came on board with 27 people and 4 crew. We sailed to the Whitsundays and got to know each other better. After dinner (spaghetti bolognaise) we went to bed. We were sleeping in bunk beds.
Saturday 26 March: we sailed to Whitsunday island, but the boat could not go al the way to the beach, because the water was to shallow. That's why we were brought to the beach with a
smaller boat. We arrived at Whitsunday island at 8 am and had to be back at 10.30 am. We went to Hill Inlet and to Whitehaven Beach and Whitehaven Beach Lookout. Unfortunately we would have rain for three days at the Whitsundays, but luckily the sun came out for a moment and we took some beautiful pictures. When we came back on board we went to the next spot where we were going to dive. It was the first dive of my life, stayed under water for 20 minutes and went to a depth of 6 meters. It was amazing to see the beautiful fish and coral of the Great Barrier Reef and our dive instrustor Dave was a really nice guy from New Zealand. When we came back we sailed to the next spot where we did some snorkelling. After having mashed potato and sausages for dinner we all sat outside and had some drinks like the night before.
Sunday 27 March: after our breakfast, which existed every day of cereals with milk or bread with ham or cheese, coffee and tea we went to two different spots that day where we could do some snorkelling again. Again
we saw the most beautiful fish and coral you can imagine. We had to sail at rough sea and some people were getting seasick and had to throw up. The waves were very high and we had to sit with the whole group on one side of the boat. Spank Me, built in 1989 and 25.06 m long had raced extensively around the world on the International Class A (ICAYA) circuit under the names Drumbeat and Congere. It is one of the biggest Maxis ever built. We wanted to go to some Aboriginal Caves, but our engine broke down. First the skipper tried to fix the problem, but he couldn't. That's why he had to call an engineer to come and look at the problem. So we were stuck at sea for the rest of that day, but luckily after the Engineer came the problem was solved and after having Roast beef for dinner we went to bed.
Monday 28 March: we sailed back to Airlie Beach and we had to help raising the sails. We came back in Airlie Beach at noon. We thanked the crew and said goodbye to everyone and Eefje and me went back to
Base to pick up our food, valuables and backpacks and checked in in another cheaper hostel called Magnums where we had to pay 19 Aud for a 10 bed dorm. Then we took a bus to a medical centre where we had to do a medical for our diving course. When we came back I booked a bus pass for the North and South Island of New Zealand (Short Max Stray) and a 10 nights accomodation pass at the Base Travel desk. I went for dinner with Nick (USA), Sam, James (UK) and Sean (Canada) (I met them on our boat Spank Me) at the Down Under Bar next to Base. You could get a pint and a meal for 10 Aud if you showed your roomkey. After that we went to a bar called Beaches where our whole group from the Whitsundays came together including the crew and had some drinks. We went to another bar called Phoenix and ended in Mama Africa.
Tuesday 29 March: Airlie Beach is really small, it's basically one main street and there you find all the hostels, bars, travel agency's and a supermarket. The harbour and the Coles supermarket are a bit
further away. Sean, Eefje and me decided to go to Coles, because the other supermarket across the street was stupidly expensive. It was about a 25 minute walk and when we came back with our groceries we did some laundry. After that I took a short nap and Sean, Nick an me went to Domino's for pizza. After that we went for happy hour in Beaches till 10 pm, then happy hour in Down Under till 11 pm and then to Mama Africa again.
Wednesday 30 March: in the outside bar at our hostel Magnums they had tv screens and they were showing the ATP Master Series 1000 tennis event in Miami. As you all now I am a big tennisfan so I watched it. Then I went on the internet and found out that I had a lot of emails, facebook messages and messages on my travelblog for my birthday. I couldn't answer them at the Whitsundays, because I couldn't go on internet there. I also worked on my travelblog and had noodles for dinner. Sean and me met two Swedish girls in the room and we decided to have a part in the bathroom as some of
our roomies where already sleeping. Sean and me went out to Mama Africa after.
Thursday 31 March: Eefje and me already wanted to leave Airlie Beach on Tuesday 29 March, but like on the boat it was raining heavily in Airlie Beach too and the roads where flooded so there were no Greyhound busses coming in or going out of Airlie Beach. That is why since Tuesday we had to reschedule or hostels and diving course at Magnetic Island every day. I watched tennis in Miami again in Magnums, went on the internet (free wifi) and worked on my travelblog. In the evening after my noodles, Sean and me drunk some goon that was left from the night before and went to Beaches, Down Under and Mama Africa.
Friday 1 April: it was the first day that the weather got better. On Thursday someone from Greyhound called me that the 9.05 am bus towards Townsville was cancelled, but at the reception they said that the roads were open and that other busses were driving so I decided to have a look. I found out that the bus was actually going, so I could have gone on that one.
Unfortunately I already rescheduled my 4 day open water diving course in Magnetic Island from Thursday to Saturday and had one last free night in Magnums (pay for 3 get night 4 for free), so I went back to Magnums. I watched tennis in Miami again, went on internet and worked on my blog. After my noodles I listened to my ipod and went to bed early, cause had to check out early next morning to take the 9.05 am bus to Townsville. Eefje decided to take the 8 pm bus to Cairns that night and skip the diving course at Magnetic Island, because she was afraid she would miss her flight home on 10 April in Cairns.
Saturday 2 April: I woke up at 7 am, packed my backpack, had noodles for breakfast, brought my pillowcase and sheets to the reception, picked up my valuables, bought some food in the supermarket and went on Skype with my friend Koen from Holland (8 hour time difference). Then I gave my key back to the reception, checked out, walked to the Greyhound bus stop and found out that the bus had a delay of 1,5 hours. I met the Irish
couple (Ronan and Annette) at the bus stop and finally we left Airlie Beach after being stuck there for 5 extra days. We arrived in Townsville at 3.30 pm and we walked to the ferry that should bring us to Magnetic Island. The ferry would leave at 3.45 pm and on my Wicked voucher it said that my return ferry transfer was included. The guy behind the desk though said I still had to pay 29 Aud for a return, because Wicked would have made a mistake and the Return Ferry transfer would not be incuded. So the guy rang Base (hostel and diving course) and Wicked (travel agency) and he said that they also said that I had to pay for my ferry. By this time I already missed my ferry and Ronan and Annette already left without me. I decided to ring Wicked myself and to take the next ferry at 4.30 pm. Like with the diving medical that cost us an extra 29,50 Aud they said they coudln't help me and that I should send an email to the headoffice to info@wickedtravel.com.au and I almost missed the 4.30 pm ferry aswell. I quickly paid the 29 Aud
and dcided to deal with it later. Because I was so upset and in a rush to get the ferry I found our that I left my trip- and hostel vouchers still at the ferry desk in Townsville. I rang the ferry in Townsville and asked if they would send them with the next ferry to Magnetic Island. When I arrived at Magnetic Island my bus was already gone and luckily some nice people offered me a ride to my hostel (Magnums in Arcadia) where I would stay for 2 nights. After checking in and leaving my backpack in the hostel I walked back (20 minutes) to the ferry to pick up my trip- and hostel vouchers at the ferrry that arrived at 6.20 pm. Luckily I got my vouchers back and after doing some grocery shopping at IGA (another supermarket I visited sometimes when there was no Woolworths or Coles around) I walked back in the dark next to the road (no foothpath). After having noodles for dinner I watched the movie Roadtrip with 2 Danish girls, worked on my travelblog and went to bed.
Sunday 3 April: I woke up around 8 pm and after breakfast I
went to the reception for a map and to ask which walking tracks I could do. I started with a walking track which started just behind the Magnums hostel in Arcadia and went to Nelly Bay.The track continued along the ridge through open eucalyptus forest. I passed a small waterfall and went to Sphinx Lookout. From Nelly Bay I walked to Base hostel which was in between Nelly Bay and Picnic Bay and close to the beach. I asked for some information about the diving course that I was going to do the next day. From there I walked to Rocky Bay where I saw wallabies and then to Picnic Bay and to Hawkings Lookout. From Base I took a bus back to Magnums in Arcadia where I met James and Sam (two English guys I met on Spank me at the Whitsundays). I had spaghetti with creamy sauce, ham and mushrooms for dinner and we watched Superbad whit a group of people from the hostel. I went to bed early, because I had to check out next day and take the 8.10 am bus to Base.
Monday 4 April: I checked out of Magnums early and took the
8.10 am bus to Base. I checked in at Base and left my bags at the luggage storage. The diving course started at 9 am and the only two people doing the course were an Israelian girl (Gal) and me. Our diving instructor was a 20-year old guy called Kane from New-Zealand. First we had to fill in some paperwork about the risks that are involved in diving and a medical checklist. Then we got a book called Open water diver which you could rent for a 20 Aud deposit or buy for 40 Aud. We watched a video and were going through chapter 1 and 2 of the book. At the end of every chapter we needed to answer questions and after filling them in we discussed them with Kane. At noon we had a 1 hour lunchbreak and we started again at 1 pm. Kane explained all the equipment we use in diving and in the pool we did some skills like: regulator clearing blast and purge, regulator recovery sweep and reach, partial mask flood, full mask flood, mask remove and replace, weight belt remove and replace, removing and replacing our BCD under water and at the surface
and alternate air sharing ascent. At 3 pm we were finished and we had to study chapters 3,4 and 5 and fill in the questions at the end for the next day. At 3.55 pm I took a bus to Horshehoe Bay and took some beautiful pictures there. Then I took the bus back and stopped at Foodworks to do grocery shopping and walked back to Base. I ate noodles, did my homework and went to bed.
Tuesday 5 April: we started our diving course again at 9 am and started with watching a video about chapter 3,4 and 5. Then we discussed the chapters with Kane and also our homework. At noon we had another lunch break of 1 hour and then we came back to practise the pool skills again from 1-3 pm. We repeated the skills from Monday and did three extra emergency skills: cramp removal and two ways to transport somebody who isn't able to swim anymore. We finished at 3 pm again and I took a bus to the Forts to do the Forts Walk (1,5 hrs return). It winds its way along the ridge with good views above Arthur and Florence Bays. On
the way up there there are two gun emplacements. Some of the rocks are actually false, being the remainings of the camouflaging over the gun barrels. At the top there are two buidlings, the Observatory tower and the Command Post, from where there is an uninterrupted view of the coast. I took the bus back to the hostel, ate beef burritos and played a card game with 3 girls from Switzerland (Gabriela, Fabienne and Salina). After that I met up with Gal and her boyfriend Ben from Israel. At the end of the evening I still had to study, because on
Wednesday we had our exam.
Wednesday 6 April: finally the weather was better again. We started our diving course at 10 am and we had our exam. Our exam consisted of 50 multiple choice questions (a,b,c,d) about chapter 1-5 from the book Open water diver. You were allowed to make a maximum of 10 mistakes. Gal had 2 mistakes and I had 3 so we both passed our exam. After that we did our first dive in the ocean. The weather had been really bad on Magnetic Island between Satuday and Tuesday and there had been a lot
of wind and because of the wind a lot of waves. The waves made the water very merky and because of that the visibility was only ½ meter. A part of the diving centre called Reef Safaris was destroyed, because of cyclone Yasi and you could see people working on it every day to reconstruct it. It is interesting to know that at Nelly Bay, where we did our diving, there are two of the top three most dangerous sharks: tiger sharks and bull sharks. There are nets which should keep the sharks out and shark feeding buoys that keep the sharks away from shore. Westpoint on the other side of the island is the largest breeding ground of tiger- and bull sharks in Australia and there are no nets and no shark feeding buoys so it is very dangerous to swim, snorkel or dive there. Anyway we went into the sea and repeated the skills we practised in the pool before. We only did one dive, because Kane said the visibility was going to be better the next days. There would be less wind and because of that less waves. We were finished at 1 pm, and after my
shower and lunch I deciced to do a 8 km (2,5 hours) walking track from Picnic Bay to Westpoint. When I arrived at Westpoint I enjoyed the beautiful view there and bumped into a couple (+/-40/50 years old) from Queensland who asked me if I needed a ride back to the hostel. I said yes, because the walking track was quite demanding and I was really tired. When I came back at the hostel I did grocery shopping, did my weekly sit-ups (300) and push-ups (30) and went to ladies night at Base with two English girls and a couple of English guys who had just moved into my dorm.
Thursday 7 April: we had to start at 10.30 am and Gal and me did 3 dives. Although the weather was good like on Wednesday the visibiliy was still ½ meter, because there was still a lot of wind and waves. We repeated all the skills from Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday again. We were finished around 3 pm again and after a shower I took the bus at 3.55 pm again in front of the hostel towards Horseshoe Bay, a bay situated on the north side of Magnetic Island.
There I did a walking track from Horsheshoe Bay to Balding Bay. This walking track climbed up through ecaluyptus forest along a ridge. Then the track lead down through shady trees and I arrived at a secluded beach. From there I started a walking track to Radical Bay and after passing Arthur Bay lookout I took a road back to the main road, because it started to get dark. I ran the last part uphill, but just missed the bus at 6.14 pm at the Forts and I had to wait till 7.24 pm. Luckily a schoolbus came by around 7 pm and the driver stopped and asked me where I needed to go. I said I had to go to Base and he had to go the same way, so he brought me al the way to the hostel. That was very kind of him! After having chicken schnitzel with potato for dinner I went to bed early, because we had our last 2 dives the next day at 9 am.
Friday 8 April: I had to check out before starting my dives at 9 am, so I brought my roomkey, my sheets and pillowcase to the reception
as usual and left all my bags in the diving office. Again the weather was good like the last two days, but the visibility was still ½ meter, because of the wind and waves. We repeated the same skills from the first 4 days again. The first dive was 20 minutes and the second one 15 minutes. Because we have been diving in these terrible conditions we will be pro's when the visibility will be good, because we will not panic. After all the dives we had to write everything (dive no, date, location, visibility, depth, bottom time and so on) in our dive log and at the end of the 6th and last dive we received our SSI Open Water Diver pass. We thanked our instructor Kane for the last 5 days, I said goodbye to Gal and her boyfriend Ben and I took the bus in front of the hostel at 1.05 pm. The bus brought me to the ferry which left at 1.35 pm and when I arrived in Townsville I took my last Greyhound Bus towards Cairns at 2.20 pm. I arrived in Cairns at 8 pm and a shuttle bus from the hostel picked me
up and brought me to a hostel called Nomads (Serpent). I checked in and after droppping my bags in the room, I changed clothes and took the shuttle at 10 pm into the city. I made some calls to friends who were also staying in Cairns with a payphone, because I had no more credit. I met up with Bas in front of a club called Giligans and we went to the hostel where he was staying (Corona) which was opposite of Giligans. I met another Dutch guy called Vincent and after we drank some goon in the hostel we went out to Giligans. We had a great night and luckily the shuttle bus from the hostel also drove at night and picked me up, because it was at least 45 minutes walking.
Saturday 9 April: I woke around 11.30 am and took the shuttle bus towards the city to do grocery shopping at Woolworths. After that I walked to a lagoon (you can't swim in the sea like in Airlie Beach, because of the stingers). I met Eefje and Vincent there, but didn't stay long, because I bought a 24 hours wirless plan (9.95 Aud/Global Gossip) at the
hostel to arrange a lot of things. I said goodbye to Eefje and Vincent and took the shuttle bus back to the hostel. I arranged an airport shuttle for the next day and went on the internet after that. I had pasta in the evening (complimentary meal from the hostel) and after dinner Gal and Ben came to see me to pick up Gal's bathing suit, which she left at Magnetic Island. Luckily I took it with me to Cairns. I went to bed early, because I had to check out next morning and take a shuttle to the airport.
Sunday 10 April: I had breakfast, checked out and took a shuttle to the airport at 9.30 am. My flight with Quantas from Cairns to Alice Springs left at 11.25 am. The flight was very comfortable and I arrived in sunny Alice Springs at 1.20 pm where I got picked up by a shuttle bus from Toddy's (the hostel I booked). After checking in, I went to my dorm and talked to some guys who just came back from a 3 day tour to the Outback. I was going to do a 3 day red centre safari with Adventure
Tours starting on Monday and put all the suff I needed in my rugsack ( max 15 kg). After having noodles for dinner I went to Toddy's bar with a guy called Claudio from Switzerland who was staying in my dorm. I went to bed early, because Adventure Tours would pick me up the next day at 5.45 am.
Monday 11 April: I woke up at 4.30 am, because I had to check out, eat breakfast and leave my luggage in the storage room. Then the bus from Adventure Tours picked us up and te guide Ray told us that we were going with a group of 22 people. We were with 21 people from the start, but another guy (Scott) from the Uk would join us later, because he would be picked up from Ayers Rock Airport. Ray asked everyone of us to introduce him-/herself and so we did. The group got along really well right from the start and there were people from South-Korea, Hong-Kong, Germany, France, Swizerland, UK, Canada and I was the only one from the Netherlands. We stopped at the Outback Camel Farm, where we had the chance to ride a camel and to
see a dingo, kangaroo's and an emu. I didn't ride a camel, because I already did it before in Dubai. We continued our way and stopped somewhere along the road to collect some firewood. We arrived around lunchtime at our campside near Kata Tjuta. Everybody helped to prepare sandwiches with ham, tomato, cucumber and salad for lunch and helped with the cleaning and the dishes after. Then we drove to Kata Tjuta where we did the Valley of the Winds Walk. Kata Tjuta means many heads (you can see a lot of stone rocks laying next to each other). After this we drove to Uluru where we were going to see the sunset. When we drove into Kata Tjuta and Uluru we had to show our National Park tickets. Before we drove to Uluru we stopped at a bottle shop and 4 of us (Jeremy (Aus), Anthony (Fra), Juhyun (S-korea) and me bought 30 cans of Tooheys new (beer). We arrived just before sunset and it was breath-taking to see Uluru and the sky changing colours. We made some amazing pictures and returned to our camp. We all helped to prepare dinner (camel sausages, kanagroo, beef and potato) and after
that we all sat around a campfire making jokes, telling useless facts about our home countries and playing games. Finally we fell a sleep underneath the stars in a swag, which looks like a matras in a sleeping bag. What a great first day to start with!
Tuesday 12 April: we woke up at 5 am, breakfast finished at 5.40 am and we left the camp at 6 am to be on time to see the sunrise at Uluru. Again the view on Uluru was fantastic and you saw Uluru and the sky changing colours again. We did the Mala Walk around Uluru where our guide Ray explained us what Uluru meant to the Aboriginal people. After that we went to the Cultural Centre where we could read more about Uluru and the Aboriginals. Then we had two choices: doing the Base Walk all around Uluru or climbing Uluru. Both activities would take us around 2,5 hours. Scott, Juhyun, Steven (Aus), Janelle (Aus) and me decided to clim Uluru, because this would be a once in a lifetime experience. It is only possible to climb Uluru 95 days a year. The climb was very steep and tiring and we
needed some stops along the way to rest and to drink water. We made some great pictures along the way and I can't describe what I felt when we reached the top. The view on the top was amazing. You could see Kata Tjuta and look for miles, because Uluru is in the middle of the red centre. We made our way down and that went muck quicker. We were bothered by flys all the time during these 3 days. They were a pain in the ass, because they kept coming back and that is why some people bought fly nets. We drove back to our camp site where we had chicken burgers for lunch. After that we drove to Kings Canyon and on the way we collected firewood again. We stopped at the bottle shop to buy some more beers. We also stopped at a place where there was a swimming pool and everybody went for a swim. Then we arrived at our campsite near Kings Canyon where we made spaghetti bolognaise for dinner. Everybody helped with the cooking and cleaning again and after dinner we gathered around the campfire. We had some drinks, made some jokes and got
to know each other better. We slept in swags again and fell a sleep while looking at the stars. A perfect second day of our tour.
Wednesday 13 April: we woke up at 5 am, breakfast (toast with jam, peanut butter or choco pasta and tea like Monday and Tuesday) finished at 5.40 am and we left camp at 6 am to be on time for sunset at Kings Canyon. We enjoyed the beautiful sunset at Kings Canyon and did a 3 hour hike through the canyon. We made plenty of pictures and saw a kangaroo passing by. We went into the Garden of Eden and after that we made our way back to Alice Springs where we arrived around 5 pm at our hostels. We all had a great time and our guide Ray reserved a table for us at a bar called Annie's Place where we went for dinner and drinks. I can definitely say that this was the best trip I did in Australia so it was great way to end. The difference that this trip made with the other great trips (Great Ocean Road, Blue Mountains, Fraser Island and Whitsundays) I have done was: the
group, the weather, the food and the guide.
Thursday 14 April: my flights from Alice Springs to Melbourne and Melbourne to Christchurch (New-Zealand) were supposed to be on this day, but because my flight from Melbourne to Christchurch suddenly changed to an earlier time I would arrive too late in Melbourne. That's why I had to change both flights to the 15th and instead of Melbourne I would have my connection in Sydney. This was actually a good thing, because I was really tired after my 3-day tour to the Outback and this would give me an extra day of rest. So I took it easy, did some laundry, went to an ATM and to Woolworths, slept and looked at my pictures. After having Noodles and bread with cheese for dinner Jeremy (Australia) and me wanted to go for a last drink to end my Australia adventure. Unfortunately Toddy's bar was closed and we were both really tired, so we went to bed.
Friday 15 April: I had to check out at 10 am, went on the internet until 10.45 am and then I got picked up by an airport shuttle which brought me to Alice Springs Airport.
My flight with Quantas towards Sydney left at 1.30 pm and I arrived in Sydney at 4.45 pm. My connection with Air New Zealand to Christchurch left at 6.25 pm and I arrived in Christchurch at 11.25 pm. When I arrived there it took ages before I got my luggage and before I finally got out of the airport, because they wanted to see all the food (olive oil, cheese, peanut butter) I brought with me from Australia. When I finally got out of the airport I took a super shuttle that brought me to my hostel called Jailhouse. I arrived there very late so I had to be very quiet and luckily they had 24 hours reception.
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Joella
non-member comment
Wow!!!Wat een uitzicht!!Echt super mooi...X