The 3 states on the East coast & New Zealand's North Island

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Yaaa -how's it?,

I be in New Zealand now and travelling around the two main islands (North and South) for another 20 days or so.....
So just finishing my second month in Australia (well just the East coast of Australia) and I have been travelling via an organised "backpacker" tour bus called the Oz Experience.
They organise little mini trips and activities between driving you from one place to another. On my first three days, there were four of us on the Oz Exp. mini bus and a surf school for this period.
Fresh from surfing in South Africa, it was interesting to see how the lessons compared in Australia.... The surf was more challenging at the beaches we learnt at here than S.Africa but I seemed to stand up just as often (not very!) hehe- our instructor disappeared at one point ,when he was in sea with us, to go surfing instead of teaching. Cheek! that was a wicked time.

After I stayed for a couple of nites in Bryon Bay and had bumped into not one but two people who like me also used to go to Bournemouth Uni and who I knew, in the same nightclub on the same night and both drinking alcohol!! What are the chances of that?!! First I spotted Dan, who was on my course at Uni and in the same year and then Gemma whom was on the same course as my old housemate Scott Bown (Town with a B, not Brown).

I went onward to Nimbin - Australia's hippy "one street" town (as there is one main street with cafes, one pub etc.) I was the only person on the bus on this occasion which was a little surreal. So I planned to stay in Nimbin for 2 nights and ended up staying 6, as their were some funny people at the hostel at the same time as me, the weather was grand and it was funny to be in such a surreal little village! Met some cool and funny people here from The Netherlands, USA, Queensland-Australia and Glasgow.

A large part of the time was spent walking, chilling, playing dominos, cards, chatting round campfire and with good company - it was seemly easy to spend 5 days in Nimbin doing that! Thom, originally from Glasgow, cracked me up with his anti-English quips whilst we played dominos. Sometimes when I laid down a good domino or won a game - he muttered "cheating saxonite" or "pommie bastard". We played a game one nite where we sat in a circle around camp fire and asked each other a question about anything! So Thom told Mo (full name Marjolein from Holland), that she had a very Rembrant face, and if she had ever been mistaken for a man (by a women??) hehe! well - let's say there were some funny questions being asked around the fire.
Another time Mo (USA), Mo, Jose (The Netherlands also), and I decided to view the sunset on top of a hill 5 minute drive away from our hostel. Having missed the sunset or not being able to see it, we decided to take a shortcut through some private farmland in the rough direction of our "hostel". I don't think we knew where we were going? Anyway Nimbin - what a funny place. One of my favourite spots spent on the east coast.

I spent a short time passing through Brisbane, seeing where they make Castlemaine XXXX Beer.... and booking trips further up the coast to Fraser Island and The Whitsunday Islands.

Fraser Island was next and the setup was hiring a 4x4 vehicle and taking turns to drive (with 8 other backpackers) around the all sand island whilst sleeping in tents, eating our own cooked food and attempting to keep Dingos (wild dogs) away from our food! This was great fun - camping, driving, swimming in lakes and discussing things with my companions on the trip.... 1 girl and 4 guys friends from France, and two girls from Germany and Switzerland. Im posting a photo of Camille as I thought he looked like an English musician! Anyone see what I mean?? post a comment on the website if you do!

With the Oz Experience, I rode a scooter through the lovely looking town of 1770 (so named after the date Captain Cook discovered Australia ??) I enjoyed the speed of those little scooters! and stayed one night at a cattle ranch in Kroombit, where I learned how to use a whip and fall of a rodeo ride in about 3 seconds!
After this I went on a sailing trip around the Islands of the Whitsundays, where our group consisted of 7 girls and one guy! So we were outnumbered but in a good way 😉 On the second day was my birthday and really cool as we lazed around on the gorgeous Whithaven beach. Everyone sang happy birthday to me on the boat and there was even some champagne as well! nice. Later the group bought me a jug of snakebites and gave me a snickers bar with candles on! while they sang a chorus of happy birthday again. That trip was great - talked to two english girls doing medicine on the boat and another guy from France and they all made me laugh and were very interesting. Like medical student Kate who told how hangovers are about 60% dehydration and 40% alcohol craving (like cold turkey), so having a few glasses of water whilst drinking alcohol helps to fend off a hangover.
So after The Whitsundays I finished off my Ox Experience coach tour, going to Mission Beach and Magnetic Island, where I met some more interesting backpackers - like Naomi from Canada, studying Sociology and Psychology (I think) whom sounded like a 'mother tongue' English speaking Canadian but later told me that French was her first language. All the Psychology students I have met have been very interesting.
Via a Crocodile farm to Cairns and this was my last place in Auz. I did some Scuba Diving here and then flew onto New Zealand.
My diving! hehe - that was eventful I last dived in 1997! and after 8 years not diving - I asked for a refresh - the pool class was fully booked so I was told I could get a "guide" on the reef to give me a recap. I thought that would be ok. But after a brief recap, I thought I was confident to dive again but problems started underwater when my mask wasn't on tight enough (I took it off underwater - not really a great idea ) , the pressure underwater was quicker than I thought and then I inflated my jacket (BCD) too much and trying to deflate, failed as I wasn't holding the deflator above my head (so the air rises straight up) (one detail I had forgot about!) Panicking as i was rising in the water too quickly and I started kicking my legs (another thing to make me ascend even quicker) and by then I had reached the surface again. The panicked state I had got in came from not being fully in control of the instruments under water and forgetting a few vital things.. I was only willing to Snorkel afterwards as I didnt want to panic again underwater/wasn't feeling fully confident on my diving. Once aboard our larger boat (where I spent one night), I had a guide dive with an dive instructor and my confidence and knowledge was restored. Saw a little reef shark and a turtle underwater.
That was a nice end to my trip in Australia and despite only seeing one side and coast of Auz, I had a great time here.

New Zealand has been my home for the last 12 or so days and I have done a little more scuba diving, some tramping (walking), kayaking, visiting some geysers where hot water sprays from the earth and generally meeting other travellers.
Rotorua was where I saw hot mud pools, learnt a bit about the Maoris, some geysers and also went into some hot water spa pools - which went up to 42 degrees C. and started to make me dizzy!
A couple of days ago, I was in Taupo - about the middle of the Northern NZ Island, and I was due to do a day tramp - The Tongario crossing, (where Mount Doom was shot in the Lord of the Rings films) (but that's not why I was there!) unfortunately after driving to the start of the tramp - the weather had changed and there was too much fog/mist. The company cancelled as it could have been dangerous and we wouldn’t have seen very much anyway. My watch somehow went forward by half an hour that morning and I was waiting outside my hostel (for this tramp company to pick me up) at 5:40 instead of 6:20!!! so that was funny. after thinking I had missed the bus, I checked with a German girl who told me the correct time!
Yea!
So
that be all
for now

Hopes ya all well and if you haven’t let me know your recent goings on - drop me a e-mail or post on here. tc

Patrick *x*

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Photos

Random bumping
Just to prove I did bump into ex. Bmouth student Gemma!

Some of our Nimbin crew
Mo (Marjolein) and Jose from Holland, and Mo(hammed) in the middle from the US of A.

Nimbin crew (lost)
On our little cheeky escapade through forest and farmland - arguing (or discussing) in which direction was our Hostel in!!

Lake Mckenzie
Amazing fresh water lake on the Island of Fraser..

Hmmm?
Who does Camille vaguely look like??

Whithaven Beach (The Whitsundays)
Gorgeous beach visiting on my birthday - the weather was superb!

Crocodile Farm
This was ok- but there was a snake on me after this - photo to follow soon...

Comments

[dannyboy]

getting jealous
getting very envious now patrick looks like you are having too much fun look after yourselF keep in touch!!!! dannyboy