The Beach

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"Make sure you lock the toilet door, its at the back next to the pool and the cocktail bar. If you don't and I break hard, you dont want to go flying down the isle with your pants down". Great. A bus driver witha sense of humour. At least the air conditioned Greyhound down to mission beack was comfortable and fast, and the in journey video kept me amused.

I arrived at mission beach, and realised it was infact nothing more than a beack. Half a dozen shops, cafes and restaurants are scattered on the one road that runs behind this beack, but thats about it. The beach is fringed by a thick band of mangrove which means that even the minimum impact made by the one street has no effect on the beach - it feels like it is in the middle of nowhere. Hardly any people walk along it - and for good reason. Hardly anyone comes to Mission. Despite its beauty stingers make the sea unswimmable. The few hiking trails seem very unpopular, perhaps due to the demographics of the traveller population that frequents the east coast. The ever enlarging specks in the sky over the beach remind me that there are only two reasons why people come to Mission. And one of them is Skydiving. The other is my particular pick of the town - White Water Rafting.

In the evening I checked out a couple of bars, firstly on my own and then again with some people from the hostel. To be honest the bars were good - far more character than Cairns, and a far more diverse mix of people. And the restaurant was absolutely fantastic. The freshest seafood with some great asian influences - the perfect grub for the environment.

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