December 1

Lindsay and I are chillin here in Airlie Beach with Matt, waiting for our Whitsundays sailing trip on Tuesday. We've been making SO many plans for the next month. I talked to Monique today and we're going to be spending Christmas with her and Mark in New Castle, so we've booked a flight from Cairns to Sydney in a couple of weeks. Once the holidays are over we're going to have to work asap.. we might travel to Perth or anywhere in the southern part of Australia because the north is going to get SO hot. Actually, it already is HOT HOT HOT!!! We're excited to be spending Christmas with people we know and care about rather than in a hostel by ourselves. It was incredible for them to be so welcoming to us!! We're going to be in Sydney on new years, Apparently the best place in the world at midnight.
The hostel that we're staying in here is pretty nice. We have a 10 share room, but the strangest part is that there are no pillows or sheets. Everyone just falls asleep on their cots. I used my towel as a blanket last night, but it just doesn't do the trick. It's weird seeing everyone just sleeping with no sheets. There's going to be a foam party in the bar here tonight. THAT should be interesting!

November 26

We're in Rockhampton and it's pure heaven! We arrived Saturday night at 3:00am and trudged through the bar downstairs with our luggage. Kinda funny with drunk people trying to hit on us while we're sweating our butts off carrying our baggage upstairs, hahaha. Our room has its own personal TV for watching the Australian Idol Final and we have our own kettle! We're in a four person room, but it's just the 2 of us and best of all the bunk-beds are spectacular!! We woke up in the morning feeling like we were living in pure luxury. I felt SO much better!! After walking for a while around Rockhampton, it's obvious that this is a very small and older town, but it's so pretty. It feels like we're in a 1950's southern town with huge old buildings with beautiful balconies. It's the perfect place to relax and take a quick breath before traveling again on Thursday morning.

November 24

DAY FROM HELL...
Our original plan was to come to Bundaberg to work. There's a rule in our working VISA that states if we ever want to come back to work in Australia for any amount of time we have to work at least 3 months in a rural area. We were going to do some fruit picking here. Our guide book actually says "People normally come to Bundaberg to stretch their legs off the bus and then get right back on". We didn't realize it at the time, but there's a reason it says that. When I called to make the reservation at the hostel, the guy on the phone said that the reception area would be closed (because our bus arrived at 11:30pm), but we could walk to the hostel, knock on the door and someone would let us in so that we could stay on some couches in the main area for just $10. Sounds a little sketchy, but we figured it would only be one night and we could work things out after that. Our bus broke down and we got to the hostel at midnight. There was no one anywhere who could let us in. We stayed by the door waiting for about an hour and I got sick of waiting so I went to the side door and noticed the shuttle vans. After trying the doors, I found the back door on one of them open!! so, in we climbed for a 5 star accommodation in the back of a random van. At about 5am, the driver came out and woke us up (he didn't mind at all, haha) and we could get inside to lay on the couches until about 7. We started trying to figure out this whole fruit picking business and soon learned that neither of us could possibly do it. It's very hard & hot labour and about 10 hours for about $100 a day. Plus, the hostel we would have had to stay in was infested with bed bugs!! Ya right, I was making $100 at Lalo Treasures for 7 hours of reading a book. We're just not cut out for this business!!! SO, we decided to move on to Rockhampton on the late night bus tonight. Since it was still early and we had no place to go, Lindsay went to their computer room to use the internet and I stayed in the TV room with our bags. Not too long later the manager came over to tell me to leave because we had not made a booking for that night. "OK" I said and started packing my things away. Once I was packed, I went over to find Lindsay and he followed me yelling at me to get out. I tried to explain that I had to get my friend, but he couldn't get that through his mind and started yelling and yelling. Lindsay came out and he was yelling at her too. crazy guy, following us to our bags and out the door yelling "You're a mooch... no, you're a sponge" It was TOO much! We finally got out of there and got to the bus station to lock our bags in a locker. For the afternoon, we walked around this terrible little town and at about 6 we took an hour walk to a movie theatre. When the movie was over, we started walking home, & just like during the camping trip, out of nowhere it started POURING!! I'm sitting in the bus station right now, after the walk, and everything we own is soaking wet & we've got nowhere to put it to dry. I'm just hoping tonight is a little better than last night & we actually have a bed to stay in. We're so tired!!

November 23

**This picture is of the whole group on Fraser. That's me up top beside Matt.**
FRASER ISLAND!!!
Huge Adventure! Noosa was a pretty town. Lots of hills and Lindsay, Matt & I went on a long nature hike by the water. We spent most of our time in Noosa booking our three day Fraser Island Adventure. We left Noosa Monday night to arrive in Hervey Bay, where we would stay in the hostel until early Wednesday morning,
Wednesday..
Up early for an orientation on how to drive the 4x4 through deep sand. There were two groups of eleven, so the 4x4's were HUGE to fit eleven people in each. Somehow Lindsay, Matt and I got into the group of all girls except for Matt, so he became the 'main' driver. (mostly because he's the only one who knew how to drive manual). We loaded into the 4x4 and got onto the barge that would take us out to the Island. Fraser Island is a huge island made entirely of sand (I almost never want to see another grain of sand in my life!) Once we got to the island, we had a long drive through the rain forest and got stuck in the sand so many times I've stopped counting. we had to get out and push EVERY time! It was still fun. Matt drove most of the time, so by association Lindsay and I got to sit in the front almost the whole time. It worked out so well for us because in for the 20 minutes we did sit in the back,, it was back breaking & bumpy. I hit my head on the roof so many times! We drove out to an area where we could take an hour walk out to a magnificent & perfectly still lake. The water was SO clear, fresh and clean. The sand was SO white. We took a swim and a while later we walked back to the 4x4 to see some more sights. We didn't get too far. Something happened to our tire and we couldn't drive it through the sand anymore, so we had to call a mechanic and he towed us to the beach while he took the truck to fix it. We were still with the other group, so their driver drove us all to the camp site where we could set up camp. I've been camping a few times in my life, but NEVER like this! We were literally out in the wilderness, right beside the ocean. Lindsay, Matt and I quickly found out that our group-mates were the most lazy and self centered people we had ever met. The three of us did absolutely everything for them while they sat on their towels and complained about being hot. The one good thing about this is that Lindsay & I both chose the vegetarian option (I refuse to eat spam) so we did all of our own cooking and left the others to fend for themselves. After dinner we made sure to put all of our food, garbage and dishes into the 4x4 so that we didn't attract any wild animals. The other group was really fun to hang out with and even though we couldn't have a campfire, we sat under the full moon and talked all night, seeing dingo's every once in a while. At about midnight, a few of us were returning from a walk on the beach when we noticed that a Dingo had found an open window in the truck and was inside eating through our garbage. Hahahaha, I laughed so hard, but actually dingo's are apparently really dangerous and they warn everyone before they get to the island to keep their children safe from Dingo attacks. So, we eventually got it out, but not before it pooped inside.. not impressed. Slept in the two-man tent with three people.. without a pillow.. waking up in the morning was HOT!
Thursday..
We were all up by 6am to get our selves packed up and ready to go by 8. We can't swim in the ocean here because it's shark infested water, so everyone was desperately in need of a swim. After Matt, Lindsay and I cleaned up the campsite, we drove to a fresh water stream where we walked all the way up into the rain forest, so that we could float on the current all the way back down. It was SO refreshing and gorgeous! After the stream, we drove along the beach to an old rusted out shipwreck. Apparently in the 1940's a huge oil tanker washed up onto the shore and they tried for 3 years to get it back out into the water, but they couldn't so they just left it. The salt water has destroyed it and now it's just a huge pile of rust in the shape of a boat. Pretty interesting to see. After the shipwreck we drove further down the beach to 'Champagne Pools'. It's called this because there is an area of the ocean where people can swim because it's encased in rocks (sharks can't get in), but it's really cool because the waves splash up against the sides and fall into the pools (looks like fizzy champagne). After, we headed to a new campsite for the night. Everyone was starting to get jealous of our vegetarian meals and actually eating some of the stuff that is set aside for us because their meals are so gross. That night, we didn't see as many dingo's but still stayed up and had a great time with everyone on the beach.
Friday..
I am now made of sand. I don't even mind eating sand anymore. There are SO many flies here, & I don't mean regular nice little flies, but massive, 6 times too big, horse flies that bite every time they land and the bites sting like crazy!! We woke up at 6 again and after packing and cleaning dishes, we headed to another remote location to see another beautiful lake. It was STUNNING! Crystal clear water, beautiful scenery. The nicest lake I've ever seen. We stayed and swam for a few hours before lunch time and headed to a picnic area to eat whatever was left of our food. On the way to the picnic area, a huge rain cloud came out of nowhere and the downpour began. Without cover, we all stood in the rain and ate our lunches. Lindsay & I had sopping wet tuna sandwiches, yuk. We headed straight back to the barge with the 4x4. When we arrived back at the hostel, we gathered our things, took a shower and hopped on the bus to head to Bundaberg. It was sad to say goodbye to Matt.. he's heading farther north, but we may see him again.

November 17

On Thursday, Lindsay and I tried surfing. We trudged the surfboard down to the beach.. took some great pictures with it and then brought it into the water. We can't surf. At this point, I don't think it's physically possible. HAHA It was fun trying! It kept getting taken away by the waves & at one point, I was holding it in front of me and a huge wave came and smashed it straight into me. I now have MASSIVE bruises across both of my legs & it hurts a bit to walk. It was all worth it just to try it. Thursday night there was a game of 'goon pong' going on in the hostel. 'Goon' is a big box of cheap wine that tastes horrible and gives you a massive headache in the morning.. but the key word is CHEAP. It was fun & we met a lot of other people from our hostel. After, Linds, Matt & I went to a club to dance.
Yesterday a big group of us went to the beach all day. It was a FANTASTIC day. nice sun & it's starting to get pretty hot here. We went out again last night & met lots of great people from New Zealand.
We got on a bus today and headed for Noosa. We've just arrived & this hostel is SO nice. Very cruisey. I'm loving backpacking, but my back isn't. I wish I didn't have so much stuff. (even though everyone I meet says 'that's all you have?')

November 14

**My new friend the Kangaroo**
We arrived in Mooloolaba yesterday afternoon and spent the day at the beach and checking out the town. It's really nice here, not too big, but bigger than Byron Bay. Today we went to the Steve Irwin Australia Zoo. It was fantastic! They say that this zoo is the best in the world and I can definitely see why. It was like walking through a conservation area with trees and wildlife covering the whole place. We saw all kinds of alligators, crocs, snakes, kangaroos & tigers, etc. The Kangaroo's were amazing because we could go up to them and pet them & take our pictures with them. They were all pretty friendly. The Tiger cage was amazing too because it was just a piece of glass between us and the tigers and they put their faces up to the glass.. we were face to face! gorgeous! We are going to stay in Mooloolaba for another couple of nights to surf & tan!

November 13

We've been doing LOTS of travelling the past few days! I left Byron Bay on Sunday morning (miss it already) and headed to Surfers Paradise to meet with Lindsay. Her friend Steph was there with her on a holiday so we all spent the day together and went out that night. The weather here has been SO rainy the past week, so I didn't get the chance to see much of Surfers Paradise. It seems to basically be just a big city with a cool night life and nice beaches. We left Surfers on Monday morning to head to Brisbane. Brisbane is a really nice city! We met a guy in Byron Bay about a month ago who's from Ottawa. We met him again here & Matt is going to travel up the coast with us a bit. We all went out last night & had a BLAST! We were SO tired this morning that after we checked out of the hostel, we went and had a long nap on the grass in the park. Oh, what a day. We are waiting for our bus to leave Brisbane and head north to Mooloolaba. How exciting, we're probably going to stay there for 2-3 days.

November 7

We've been living this whole time with a couple of great people. Kylie and Aaron are clean, quiet and considerate.. and so are we but we haven't had much of a chance to Really get to know them. We went out last night (Tuesday) at 6:30 for 'a quiet drink'. That quiet drink turned into a full night of partying. We had SO much fun!! It's just too bad we finally did this now instead of when we first arrived in Byron Bay. After a few drinks we got to know all kinds of things they think are funny about us. Haha, Aaron let it slip that he wondered if we were 'together' when we first moved in because we shared a room. Honestly! Men & their imaginations.. Kylie told me that they always know if we've had a good night out by the placement of our bikes on the lawn the next morning. "They used to be so carefully put away". They're both convinced that after we see a little more of Australia we're going to end up coming back to Byron Bay & if we do we've got a place to stay! Who knows, we might even take them up on the offer.
We went to three different bars.. Beachy, Balcony and Cheekies. Both Aaron and I had to work this morning, rough.
Lindsay left for Surfers Paradise. What a strange goodbye. "see you in a couple of days!!"

November 2

**Our friends Matt & Bryce with me on a typical night out in Byron Bay**
I LOVE swiming in the ocean. Its fantastic!! The waves are so high they knock me over every time.. I laugh SO hard!!! :)
I can't believe it's November!! It's such a weird feeling, the weather getting warmer rather than colder.
Lindsay and I have come to the conclusion that we must leave Byron Bay and head up the coast. It's sad to leave such a posh lifestyle, but we're getting almost too comfortable here and want to push ourselves to see more. I've been working almost every day these days and Lindsay's getting pretty bored hanging around by herself or with our annoying German friend Mo. I promissed my boss at 'Lalo' that I would work the next 2 weeks, so I was set to leave on the 14th of November. Lindsay is SO bored that she's going to leave next Wednesday... without me. We came to this decision oddly realizing that we don't actually have to be attached at the hip. It's going to be strange spending a few days without her. I moved my departure date up to November 10, so I can meet her in a place called Surfers Paradise that Saturday night, after I finish work. Back to backpacking! I don't want to pack my things and carry them with me!!! I suppose that's the only downside to the whole situation. We'll be back in hostels again. With strangers, ahhhh.