A weekend of pouring rain in Brisbane

I got to the Roma Street Transit Centre at lunchtime the next day in a foul mood. Unusual for me, I'd barely slept a wink in the past 18 hours, because I was coughing and spluttering the whole night.

Most people travelling up or down the east coast wouldn't sit on a bus for so long, but as I had been to, or was planning to go soon, to all stops inbetween, I had to endure this terrible journey feeling really rough.

Once in Brisbane I got a taxi straight to my hostel; I was staying at a Base hostel again. I checked in, showered, got in bed and didn't move for the rest of the day. By this point I was feeling so crap that I couldn't, (nor did I want to) get out of bed, which was really frustrating as I only had three days here and I didn't want to waste time doing nothing. When I looked outside it was pouring with rain, so that made me feel a bit better about it.

That evening, Clarisse checked into the same hostel, so the two of us went for a wander and grab a coffee. Clarisse was feelnig under the weather as well, so we decided to stop trying to fight it, and instead sent ourselves to bed for an early night.

Clarisse left for Sydney early the next morning. Feeling slightly better, I decided to get up and go out, and stop wasting time. I walked round the city for a while. It's big compared to Cairns, much bigger, but small in comparison to Melbourne, which bear in mind isn't very big either. I walked for a bit along the river, through the Botanic Gardens and then over to Southbank. It's a pretty easy city to get around in; like Melbourne the streets all run parallel with eachother in blocks, so it's nearly impossible to get lost. Once I got over the river to Southbank the heavens opened. There was a torrential downpour and I got stuck right in the middle of i. I ran for cover in the nearest restaurant, where I made a tall skinny latte last about an hour. When I realised it wasn't going to ease up I made a run for a taxi. I was annoyed for 2 reasons; First, I had no where to go in this weather except back to the hostel, so it felt like another wasted day. Second, I'd straightened my hair that morning for the first time in weeks, and now it'd gotten wetit was gonig frizzy. At least it gave me something to do for the rest of the afternoon.

Later on, as it started to ease off, and with my hair freshly straightened, I asked the receptionist where the other Base hostel in the city was. Staying at Base, you get discounted drinks, but only one of the 2 in Brisbane had a bar, so I had to go there if I wanted a cheap beer. Once I'd found it, ordered, and sat down to have a refreshing drink, I scanned the bar. Not for faces I knew, just to look occupied whilst sitting at the bar on my own. Within seconds I'd spotted the 5 Cumbrian guys I'd shared a room with in Cairns. Small world indeed, considering the amount of bars in the city, plus I didn't even know they were in Brisbane. I ended up drinking with them in the bar until the early hours of the morning, and again, like in Cairns, I didn't spend a penny.

I strolled home at 6 in the morning, and got in bed, knowing that I had to check out at 10am. I figured I could get a couple of hours sleep in, get up, get ready and pack, and be out by 10 so I wouldn't lose my $20 key deposit. I think I set my alarm for 9. Next thing I know, it's 10.30 and I've just woken up. I rushed to get showered and changed, then ran down the stairs to ask the Receptionist nicely to let me have 20 minutes more to pack, and to keep my deposit. Thankfully, being the nice lady she was, and having seen me stagger in 4 and a half hours earlier, she let me off!

I was feeling rough, but not prepared waste my last day in this lovely city, especially as I hadn't really done anything so far. My bus to Sydney wasn't until 7pm, so I still had the whole day.

I decided to go to the Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary, the oldest and biggest koala sanctuary in the country. It's a 30minute bus ride out of the city, but straightforward enough to get to. As soon as I got there, there was a sheepdog show, which was recommended to me by the Cumbrian lads. I made my way there just before it started, and again, the same as the last few days, it started to tip it down. So badly, that the guy talking on the microphone couldn't be heard over the rain falling on the tarpauline above our heads. Before long, in a matter of minutes, the area was starting to flood. The show was stopped, and about 40 people who, like me, were standing there watching, could do nothing but wait for it to stop. And so we waited. And waited. I watched the off person make a run for it and decided I would too! It was ridiculous! I ran through muddy puddles and over bridge to the next bit of shelter. By now it was coming down so heavy, but I was close to the entrance where there was a shop. I dashed inside and bought myself a very cool, and fashionable, Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary poncho. So I casually walked around the park, in the pouring rain, but remained relatively dry.

As I've mentioned before, I love Koalas. Although they're not soft and cuddly, as people would like to think, they are so funny to watch. This was the first time I'd seen them up and about. There were areas for all kinds, old, young, males, females, females with babies etc. I stood, watching and laughing, wearing my poncho, on my own. I'm sure I looked like a crazy person, but I had so much fun. There are other animals there, but nothing that I hadn't seen before, and the main attraction was obviously the hundreds of koalas that were kept there.

I stayed a couple of hours, but after you've seen 20 or so koalas they all start to look the same. And I was aware of the place beginning to flood, and that I had a bus to catch. So I went back to the hostel and sat in the TV room for the last couple of hours, where I of course fell asleep, until I had to be back where I started, at the Roma St Transit Centre, to get my 18hour overnight bus to Sydney. But I'll be back in Brisbane at some stage...

Airlie Beach and the Whitsunday Islands

I had another early start and another long bus journey to my next destination. This bus was only for 6 hours, and as usual I was asleep straight away.

I arrived in Airlie Beach around 6pm, and walked the short distance to the Waterfront Hostel where I was staying.

Airlie beach is the gateway to the Whitsundays, and also a backpackers heaven. The streets are lined with bar after bar selling cheap cocktails and discount dinners. There's a real party atmosphere, meaning a lot of travellers come here with the intention of seeing the islands and moving on, and then never leave!

I think in total there are 74 Whitsunday islands. They are known to be pure paradise, and so you get all sorts of tourists visiting. There are the backpackers who, like me, book onto 2 day/2 night party boats with 32 other likeminded people. Then there are the middle-aged tourists with money to burn, who do the same trip but slightly differently. There will only be 10 on their boat, or even better, they'll hire their own, and they'll do the trip exactly how they want to, a nice relaxing, peaceful sail between the islands. And then there are the people who have multi-million dollar yachts sitting in the marina. Regardless, everyone is here for the same reason, to enjoy these magnificent islands.

Back in my hostel, I met one of my roommates straight away, Clarisse from France. Clarisse and I click instantly, and so she invites me out that evening with 4 girls she'd met previously from Denmark. The 6 of us all ended up sitting on the hostel balcony for so long, chatting, listening to music, playing drinking games and so on, that by the time we went to go out there was only one club open, Mama Africas. We had a great time; 6 girls dancing the night away.... It felt like ages since I'd done that!

The following day I had what I'd call a 'koala day'. I literally did nothing but eat and sleep the whole day. In fact I don't think I was awake for more than about 3 hours at a time. Shame on me, yes.... but I never do it, so I let myself off this one time.

The next day I packed a small bag and headed to the marina to get on my boat, the New Horizon. While I was waiting I met the other people I'd be spending the next 2 days and 2 nights with. There were only 2 other English people, which is OK. I didn't come all this way to be with English people. Everyone else was German, French, Swiss, Spanish and Swedish, with 32 of us altogether. I have nothing against other nationalities, in fact I have a lot of European friends, however, when there's a group of them they tend to stick together. If you don't speak the language you're not often included, and so you become an outsider; not great for me travelling on my own. But there are 2 things with organised tours and trips that you can't control; the people and the weather. You just have to make the most of it.

So I made small talk etc, but mainly just sit there, happily watching the surroundings as the boat sails through the islands.

We stopped for the night and are warned, again, not to go into the sea. Despite the usual jellyfish warnings in Queensland, this time we're told that we've stopped in a channel that tiger sharks use as a breeding ground. So basically, if you go in the water, you're shark bait!

When I went to bed that night in the cabin I shared with 7 other people, the rocking motion of the boat sent me to sleep.

We were woken up for breakfast at about 6.30am, which was no problem for me as I'd slept like a baby. Up at the table though, some people weren't feeling so fresh!
Our first and main stop was Whitehaven beach. We were dropped there and told we had 3 hours. First, you walk through woodlands to the viewpoint. From there you're looking out to sea at other islands, and the ever changing sand formations down below. One of the boat crew told me you'll never see the sand dunes look the same. The sand is supposedly the finest in the world; so fine that if it was struck by lightening it would melt and turn to glass instantly. Nasa used the sand from this beach to create the lens in the Hubble telescope. The Olympic games wanted to hold the volleyball competition there but as it's a national park they were told they couldn't. Apparently the beach is second only to one other in the world, somewhere in the Caribbean. You can imagine what your expectations would be like if you heard all this!

Walking down through the woods from the viewpoint there's an opening in the trees, and there it is. Crystal clear sea, and the whitest sand. It was everything that I expected. I stood waist deep in the sea and could still see the white sand between my toes.

Like with everywhere else in Queensland, we still had to wear stinger suits in the water, which is a pain when you're trying to work on your tan! I stayed in the sea most of the time, and could see stingrays swimming around my ankles which was a bit scary!

In the time we were there, the tide was coming in and changing the shape of the beach. So much so that I sacrificed beach time and trekked all the way back up to the viewpoint to take more photos of the beach looking different this time.

Back on the boat after lunch we were taken to a spot that's good for snorkelling, and it's safe - well away from the tiger sharks! The coral here was so much nicer than at Green Island. The fish however were pretty much exactly the same. There wasn't anything I saw this time that I hadn't seen before. But still, I love the water and snorkelling fascinates me everytime, so I was still in it for hours.

That evening we sailed a bit further. Tonight I'd decided to have a few drinks, considering I was on a party boat afterall. And it was about time I actually got to know the people I was on a boat/ sharing a cabin with, even though maybe it was a little late.

We were taken to a secluded beach, where they dropped us off for an hour or so to watch the sunset, have some drinks and just relax.

When the boat stopped for the night I noticed just how many stars there are in the sky. Out in the middle of the ocean where there are no aritificial lights, the stars just brighten up the sky. It's amazing, and a shame that it doesn't come out in photos.

The next day, after another stint of snorkelling (which by the way is a great hangover cure) in a different spot this time, it was time to head back to the mainland. On the way, we had dolphins swimming alongside the boat, and I saw my first ever sea turtle, poking it's head above water.

The trip itself was great. Had I gone with a group of friends, or met more people on the boat, it would've been even better. But this is what travelling is all about! At the end of it, I've seen the 2nd most beautiful beach in the world, and it really was amazing.

The only real downside towards the end was that I could feel myself coming down with something, and I was about to go on a 19 hour overnight bus journey!

I got back to Airlie at lunchtime and met up with Clarisse. She'd checked back into the same hostel, so I used her shower, went on the net for a bit and generally pottered about until 6pm when it was time for me to catch a bus, with a cold, all the way to Brisbane.

Magnetic Island

In the morning, in the 35 degree heat and with almost 30kg of bags on my back and front, I walked what felt like million miles to catch my Greyhound bus. By the time I got there I could've done with another shower. As always with me and any form of transport, I was asleep as soon as I got on, and slept for most of the 7 or 8 hours to Townsville. Once there, I got straight onto the boat for the 20 minute journey to Magnetic Island. Magnetic Island is a beautiful place, but not really a backpacker 'must-do'. I heard of it randomly 9 months previously. Back when I was fruitpicking in hillbilly Gin Gin, I was waiting in the library for my turn on the internet, and the librarian gave me a book on Australia to read. After seeing pictures of the island I promised myself I would go, despite not hearing much about it in the whole time since then.

My hostel was already booked and paid for. I was staying at Base, which is a chain of hostels around Australia and New Zealand. I was booked in for 2 nights, which is apparently enough time to see everything on this little island.

I arrived about 25 minutes before happy hour ended; enough time to chuck my bags in my dorm and grab a cheap beer. This hostel is completely open-air, except for the rooms which are divided into male and female, in porta-style cabins. The kitchen's in a giant teepee, and there's a nice pool and a dive shop. All of this is set right on the sea front, not that we could go in the sea here either, but it was nice to sit outside with a beer and watch the palm trees swaying infront of the ocean.

Sitting there, I got talking to an Irish and a German girl who were travelling together. I told them about mokes, tiny jeeps I'd heard that you could hire for the day to explore the island. They were as keen as me to hire one, which was great as it meant that I wasn't doing it on my own, nor did I have to pay for it all myself! We spoke to the receptionist and she told us about a special offer on a topless car for 24 hours. It was amazing; it was pink, looked like a barbie car, and only $80 from the time we picked it up in the morning until the following day.

That afternoon, we cooled off in the pool for a while, where we met an Irish guy, also travelling alone. We persuaded him to join us for the day in our girly car! For the rest of the evening we just did the usual...got to know eachother and exchanged travelling stories over a few beers.

When we woke up, bright and early and excited, we went to pick up our car. It was the coolest vehicle i've ever seen, and it was a manual which is always a bonus as most cars in Australia are autos. My only problem was that it was the first time I'd driven a manual in the 14 months since I'd left home, so I felt a bit rusty! We took it in turns driving round the island for the day. We were really lucky with the weather, the sun was shining and there wasn't a cloud in the sky, perfect for tanning whilst cruising around.

There's only one main road on Magnetic Island, so all you can really do is drive from one end, Horseshoe Bay, to the other, Picnic Bay. Still, we entertained ourselves enough. Also, in certain parts of the beaches, they've netted off sections of the sea, so you can go in without a stinger suit or without worrying about the jellyfish.

Later in the day, after going up and down and round the island about 15 times, we stopped at a supermarket, bought some meat and drinks, and drove to Picnic Bay to use the free BBQ on the beach until sunset.

There isn't really a great deal to do here. A lot of the residents live here because I suppose they like it this way... quiet and peaceful with just enough shops and restaurants to get by and keep themselves entertained. And they're only a 20 minute boat ride from the mainland. The scenery on the island is amazing, beaches are great, and there's loads of Ozzie wildlife like koalas and kookaburras, but I think 1 day and 2 nights was definitely enough. I had a really good time, met new people, and kept my promise to myself that I'd see Magnetic Island.