A Bit of Glenelg, the Grampians, and the Great Ocean Road

I got back to Adelaide after 4 hours on the bus. I headed straight for Glenelg again on the tram. This time, my friend James was away surfing for the weekend, so instead of staying with him again I checked in to the Glenelg Beach Hostel, just down the road from him and closer to the beach. Already I felt better about being out of Renmark. I went back into the city for a wander, as I'd neglected it the last time i was here.
That evening, after watching the sunset from the pier yet again, I just stayed in the hostel bar and met some other backpackers before having an early night.
The following morning, waking up fresh as a daisy, the sun was shining and the beach was calling! This would be the first beach I'd been to (in decent weather) in months. After a relaxing day, and another few drinks at the hostel bar with the people i'd met the previous night, James called. The sea was too rough to surf, and so they'd headed back from their trip a day early, and wanted to know if I was keen to go out. I was straight out the door the moment I put the phone down.
I met him at the Highway Inn (it's nicer than it sounds), where he and his mates were watching their team, the Adelaide Crows, play in the AFL finals. Afther the Crows lost, and the boys had had a few drinks to come to terms with it. we headed into the city.
Last time in Adelaide I'd b een particularly unimpressed. But this was by day. By night was a different story. James and his mates showed me a good night out at 2 brilliant clubs in the city.
At 5am, I put myself in a taxi and sent myself home. I only remembered where i'd been when I woke up, by the club's stamps still on my arm, and the awful, drunken photos on my camera.
Today, the weather was crap, raining and cloudy, a big difference from the day before. But this was fine by me; a perfect excuse to not get out of bed, and instead, recover from the night before, which was the best night i'd had in ages after spending so long in the riverland.
I popped round to see James later in the day (he was feeling just as rough as I was) to say my goodbyes to him and his family. Assuming I come back to Australia for another year and decide to visit Glenelg again, James and his girlfriend will be away travelling. Although this didn't stop his mum from offering me a place to stay - bless her!
The next day, I booked my trip to Melbourne. I was doing a 3 day/ 2 night tour to the Grampians and the Great Ocean Road, ending up in the city centre.
So, on my last day in Glenelg, I just chilled on the beach, and of course, watched one last sunset from the pier.
Packing that night, I was like an excited kid on Christmas Eve. I was alone in my dorm, so I had my music blaring while I packed and got myself organised.

I had to be at the Hilton in the city at 7am, which meant lugging my bags and catching the tram at 6.30am. Waiting outside the Hilton with my backpack, looking tired and scruffy, I felt considerably out of place.
My bus came to get me, late of course, and I met 2 of the other people on the trip, a German girl and a French guy. Considering the company I went with is a well known one, and popular amongst backpackers, I was looking forward to meeting the 12 or so other people I expected to be on the trip. We went to a hostel and picked up Sarah from Manchester, and then we were on our way. That was it.... a grand total of 4 people! Not quite the lively trip I had been hoping for! The German girl and French guy spoke next to know English - poor sods must have been bored out of their minds with no one to talk to, and barely understanding our guide. Thankfully, Sarah was just as chatty as me, so we barely stopped talking while we were on the road. As always with meeting other backpackers whilst travelling, it's great to hear other people's opinions about places to go/ avoid and tell stories about where you've been.
Sarah and I both said, had it not been for eachother, we don't know how we'd have survived the trip with no one else to talk to!
So the first stop was the Grampians, one of Victoria's (we'd crossed the border by now) most outstanding natural beauties. The first place we went to here was the McKenzie Waterfall a fair trek from where we got off the bus. Luckily I was all prepared with my walking shoes and 2 litres of water - it was a long time since I'd done any excercise!
We had to walk down about 400 stops in a valley (walking down was fine, I just dreaded making our way back up)! When we got there I wasn't overly impressed to be honest. It was nice, I suppose, but after the absolutely stunning waterfalls I'd been too, and swam in, in Laos and Malaysia, nothing really compares. The only surprising part was that there was any water at all, considering the drought South Australia and Victoria have been having the last few years.
After the compulsory 'pose of front of the waterfall' photos, we headed back up the steps, collapsing by the time we reached the bus. And this was only the start of it over the next few days!
Back on the bus, having all the space we needed with only 4 of us, I resisted the urge for a little nap. We drove on to what's called the Balconies, and the Reed Lookout. The tour guide waited while we trekked through the mass of burnt forest - this area was badly affected by forest fires in 2006. We came to an opening and were completely taken aback by what we saw. We stood on a railed ledge that overlooked some of the most breathtaking views i've ever seen.

Under the clear blue sky was 90 km of forest, set deep into a valley almost as far as the eye could see, framed with mountains. I took so many photos yet I don't think a single one did it justice. So instead, I just stopped for a minute and took it all in. When you think of Australia you picture beaches or desert; I was never expecting anything like this, and it was just beautiful. And... there was more of this to come over the next couple of days.
After such an exhausting day it was time to head to the small town of Halls Gap, where we were staying for the night.
We pulled up at a hostel called Brambuk backpackers, set right in the heart of the forest. The town of Halls Gap is nothing but holiday homes for people to rent, and spend their time exploring the Grampians. The views from every window would be amazing, and there's no noise apart from the wildlife, such as kangaroos, going about their business oustide. The place was just so calm and tranquil. The hostel was really quiet, with only a few other people staying there and it had a big log fire and leather sofas. It was the perfect place for relaxing after a long day, and preparing for the next one. That night we were all asleep by about 9 at the very latest.
We were up at 6 for breakfast (a decent sized breakfast considering there were only 4 of us - another bonus from having a small group).
Next was a drive to the nearby Wonderland range, for a 2 hour trek to the Pinnacle. This was tough, especially with Sarah and I being smokers; We had to stop the group for a rest about 5 times! We were walking up the side of mountains, through forests, on rocky ground, it was so hard. Although we new it'd be worth it every time we looked back and saw Halls Gap looking more and more like a toy town the further up we got.
Eventually, after a gruelling 2 hours, we made it to the Pinnacle, a lookout point over yet more valleys. This time, aside from just forest, there were huge lakes dotted amongst the trees. Yes, I realise this doesn't sound particularly exciting, nor have I described it well, but words really don't do this scenery any justice. Nor do the photos (not that it stopped me from taking about 50 of the same thing)! I was so impressed, much moreso that I thought I'd be when I booked this trip. I think it'd be impossible not to be mesmorised by the views.
After we trekked back down, climbing over rocks and crossing bridges over water running through the mountains, we went to the Brambuk Aboriginal Culture & Info Centre, run by the the same people who run the hostel, to learn about, well, Aborigial Culture. Which although interesting, is the only history Australia has so so it's not like we hadn't read about it all before. Although I suppose this time was different from being in a museum in the city, we were actually in a real Aboriginal environment.


After this, it was time to head to the Great Ocean Road, a long coastal road running along the coast of Victoria, and the second part of our tour. In typical Victoria fashion, as we reached what is supposed to be a stunning and scenic stretch of road, the weather turned and became overcast and miserable. Hoodies on, we stopped at the Bay of Islands and the Bay of Martyrs. Lovely, yes; Amazing, no. It felt like I was just getting off the bus and taking photos because I felt like I had to.

Next, however, were the 12 Apostles (although only 6 or 7 remain) which were worth getting off the bus for. The 12 Apostle are rock formations standing tall in the middle of the ocean, just off the coastline, and are one of the reasons people travel the Great Ocean Road. So, typical of a tourist spot, it was full of snap-happy Japanese. The idea was that we'd get there for sunset, and that it'd be amazing, with great photos etc. But the sun was no where to be seen, hiding behind thick grey clouds. I only just managed to get my photo taken before it started to piss it down. We just managed to get to the London Bridge before the rain really spoilt it for us.

The 12 Apostles, London Bridge, Bay of Martyrs etc are all gradually being eroded by rough seas and the weather conditions, so it's more than likely that in years to come, nothing will be left standing.
Our guide told us about a group of tourists who walked across onto the London Bridge, and as they did so, part of it crumbled behind them, leaving them stranded until a helicopter came to their rescue! Now, it's all strictly out of bounds and you just walk within the rails.
We drove on in the pouring rain, after taking loads of photos that all pretty much looked the same, and checked into the Oceanview Backpackers in Apollo Bay. What a contrast from where we'd stayed the night before, looking out onto the choppy ocean and grey sky. It was such a shame the weather was bad because otherwise it was such a nice, peaceful seaside town.
We sat out on the deck (undercover) playing card games while our poor guide cooked us a BBQ under an umbrella. After yet another giant meal we just relaxed until we were ready for bed after yet another long day.
In the morning, at 6am again, we got up to watch the sunrise at the 12 Apostles, but decided against it when we saw that it was still pouring down. Instead we continued driving along this coastal road, not really able to appreciate it through the rainy haze.
At one point, on a part of the road that reminded me of Langkawi Island, Malaysia, where we stopped to feed monkeys, we pulled over to spot koalas (my favourite Australian animal)! I loved it, again like an excited kid. I was running through puddles in the forest in the pouring rain, desperate to spot some, annoyed when I couldn't. It wasn't til our tour guide pointed a few out to us that I realised they don't just dangle off trees waiting to be photographed by tourists. Instead, you have to look 100m up a tree, to the end of the thinnest, weakest looking branch, to spot this cute, funny creatures, curled in a ball, balancing, oblivious to us, the rain, or the fact that the branch could snap under their weight at any moment!
Like a typical child, I was making noise, whistling, clapping my hands, doing what it took to wake these animals from their slumber, to wave or pose for the camera, but to no avail. And they were so high up that in any photos I did take, they just look like a part of the tree. But still, I'm glad I got to see them in their natural habitat, even if they didn't smile for a photo!
Next, we were supposed to go on a trek through a rainforest, but we decided against it because it was just so wet. Instead we stopped in yet another seaside town, Lorne, for coffee and a cake, hoping for it to ease off.
After our rest stop, we went to Bells Beach, home of the Rip Curl surfing competition, somewhere I was supposed to go months earlier but didn't because of the weather. This time I didn't even get off the bus. I didn't see the point in looking at and taking photos of yet another rain-soaked beach. And so I slept, all the way to the city of Melbourne, where I'd left only 2 months previously. Even so, I was excited to be going back to somewhere I know and love.
This time around, instead of staying with my mates again in the suburbs and commuting into the city, I decided to stay at Urban Central, where I knew other backpackers, until I could find an apartment to rent for the duration of my stay.
So after a really great few days, only partly spoilt by the weather and the two non-English speaking backpackers, I was back in Melbourne, ready to get back into the swing of city life!

Renmark and the Riverland

Getting off the bus in Renmark I was pleasantly surprised. Here to do the same work as I’d done in hillbilly Gin Gin, I imagined the town to be the same. But, driving through at about 4.30pm, it seemed semi-normal. They actually had a few clothes shops, cafes and restaurants, overlooking the Murray River.
I called the hostel I was booked into so they could come and pick me up from the bus stop. When Collin arrived in the battered old camper van, any sense of normality I’d felt two minutes earlier completely vanished! He pulled up and helped me load all my bags into the van. He was a guy in his mid to late sixties, with the trademark no-toothed grin that I’d come across so many times in these small towns.
We drove to the Renmark and Paringa Backpackers, a small non-hostel looking building down a quiet residential street. I later found out the hostel used to be a Sunday school, which they’d converted, and then managed to cram two sets of bunk beds into seven small and basic rooms.
When I got to my room I met my three roommates, a brother and sister, Gun & Jai, and Stella, all three from South Korea, and none of them with any conversational English. My nightmare had begun….
Of the 28 backpackers, only six of us were Western. Even with the six of us, only four were English speaking. The other two were German with only a limited grasp of the language. The other 22 came from Japan, South Korea and Taiwan.
I was dreading the next three months or so that I would be spending in this town. That night, sitting on the sofa watching some crappy Ozzy reality TV show, (one good thing was that I’d rarely have to fight over the remote)! I was starving because I hadn’t managed to do any food shopping before the supermarket shut. Then, as though they could read my mind, two of the Japanese girls, Haru and Mai, brought me over a plate of sushi they’d made and a slice of cake. I instantly thought things wouldn’t be as bad as I’d feared.
The next day, being a Saturday, I wasn’t able to start my hunt for work. Luckily the sun was shining, so after walking around in circles exploring the place for about an hour, it was an acceptable time to start drinking. So I poured a glass of wine, and enjoyed the rays whilst sitting outside and reading my book.
By Monday I was bored; there was only so much sitting around and doing nothing I could do. At least I could get started with the jobhunt. After taking the Koreans to work, Collin drove me to a few places to apply for the usual picking/ packing jobs.
That day, I also met the other English-speaking people who were staying at the hostel, who had been in Adelaide for the weekend. They were an 18-year-old couple from New South Wales, on an adventure from the boredom of everyday life (Bless them – not much of an adventure)! Still, it now meant that I had people to talk to.
Within a few days I’d got work at nearby packing sheds, so at least I wouldn’t be climbing up and down trees picking fruit all day. Of the six of us at the hostel, one left to head back to Sydney. The other five of us all ended up working together at the sheds. The boys lifted boxes of tangelos, mandarins, oranges and the dreaded lemons.
Us girls were basically putting the fruit in boxes…all day! It was awful, back breaking and mind numbing!
We stood infront of huge conveyor belts, and went the fruit flew down we had to pack them according to size and quality (good fruit went to UK/ US, bad fruit went to Japan)!! All the really bad fruit we had to put in a giant bin, which then becomes orange juice. The stories I’ve heard about what goes into the juicers…. Besides manky oranges, people claim to have seen birds, rats and even snakes. It’s enough to put you off fruit juice for life.
We started work at 7am each day, had three short breaks, and finished at 5.30pm. Days were long and hard. Throughout that whole time, we didn’t get to talk to each other except on breaks. Also, ipods weren’t allowed, so we were along with our thoughts all day! One advantage was that I had time to think about what I was going to do once I left Renmark, and plan my trip. On almost a daily basis my plans changed… a result of having too much time to think about it! Other than that, I’d sing in my head, or sometimes as loud as I could because no one could hear me anyway, to keep me occupied.

Evenings were spent mainly at the hostel. The communal area was based around the kitchen, so we’d all cook together most nights. We also had some friends who were camping nearby. Occasionally we’d get a big group of us together and go to the campsite, take some beers, and have a BBQ, then sit around the campfire the boys had so proudly made! Two of the boys had guitars and were great singers, so they’d provide the entertainment for the night.

At the weekend we’d all go to the pub, which was as exciting as it got. Still, it wasn’t a bad life, but only because I knew it was temporary. It could’ve been worse, I could’ve been back in a tent in Gin Gin.
After a few weeks, work started to quieten down, going from six days a week to five, then four, til eventually we were only working three days some weeks. By now, the money I was earning barely covered the cost of living, which meant I couldn’t afford to put anything in savings.
One good thing with the lack of work was that it affected all of us staying at the hostel, so on our days off, in the glorious 35-degree heat, we could spend time together. We had BBQs aplenty, or spent the day sitting by the river with an esky full of beers eating fish and chips.
Sometimes, if the weather was crap and I was stuck in the hostel, all day, the Koreans would make me food. It’s tradition in their country to eat soup when it rains, so that’s exactly what we’d do! Spicy, Korean soup, it was lovely! And we weren’t allowed to wash up after either (even though we always offered), because they were the hosts. Instead, they’d all play rock, paper, scissors to decide who did the dishes!
Even better was when one of the Asians left. Not for that reason, but because they made the best food for the leaving parties! (Once I offered to pay them money to cook me all my meals instead of buy food myself, I loved it so much)! Anyway, everyone would come together for these parties; the Koreans, Taiwanese and Japanese, and all make dishes from their country. I didn’t…. I told them what I eat is boring –pasta/ rice/ noodles – so instead I’d buy a cake and nibbles, and a cask of wine. What a disappointment I am to the food of my country! But still, my contribution was always popular!
One afternoon, at work, after spending the morning outside due to an acid spill in the warehouse, the roster went up for the following day. I saw that again, I wasn’t rostered on the next day. It meant that three days into the week I had only worked once. Getting my 88 days done was going to take forever, and on top of that, I’d have no money saved by the end of it, in order to carry on with my trip (which was all planned by now)! An example of how unpredictable backpacking is, that you can never make definite plans because things never work out the way you expect.
You have to wonder how the locals in these towns survive, never knowing when their next day at work would be. Somehow they cope, despite having mortgages and mouths to feed etc. I’m lucky that I only need to look after myself!
So anyway on this day I’d just had enough and decided that I’d move on to yet another hillbilly town in search of more work. On that afternoon’s break, mind made up, I checked my phone, and as if I’d had a sign from above, I had missed calls and a voicemail from my old employers back in Melbourne asking me to come back. They’d called a couple of times before in the two months since I’d left, but as my priority was always to get my 88 days done, I’d not even considered it. In fact, I’d never planned to go back to Melbourne for long, just long enough to see my mates in Frankston and to pick up all the clothes I’d left at Beau’s house! But, because of my current work situation I didn’t even need to think twice about it. The moment I left work that day I called my old Manager at David Jones and told her I’d be back to start in my old job in two weeks, giving me enough time to finish work in Renmark and make my way back to normality.
My last week in Renmark, everyone decided to leave at pretty much the same time, but to go off in different directions. We’d all had enough. The 18year old couple had split up since we’d been there (the pressures of travelling get to everyone)! Tom was heading back to New South Wales and Renee was coming on the bus with me to Adelaide, to the nearest airport, so she could continue with her adventure. She’d grown into a really confident girl in the time that I’d known her and was happy to travel alone after her break up! Brummy Kev and two guys from Tazzy were going on a road trip to Western Australia. We were leaving just two people from our group of friends, and that’s only because they had no money at all so weren’t in a position to leave.
It was sad, as we’d all grown so close over the last 8 or so weeks, living and working together. But as always with travelling, you meet people, have fun, and at some point have to say goodbye. We were all going on to better things, and more importantly, leaving Renmark behind us!

Do you want to go to the seaside....

I landed in Adelaide having only had 3 hours sleep. Feeling grumpy but excited at the same time, I waited outside the airport for my mate James to pick me up.
I met James and his brother, and a load of their friends, when I lived in Portugal and they were travelling around Europe.
I’d been in touch with him since I’d been in Oz, and he had offered me a place to stay in Adelaide. We drove to his lovely house in the beautiful seaside suburb Glenelg. I fell in love with the place the moment I arrived.
After we’d had breakfast and a much needed coffee I went with James’s girlfriend Alice on the short tram ride into the city.
Adelaide itself isn’t a very impressive city. It’s very small in comparison to Melbourne, with only about a quarter of the population. One nice thing about it though is the architecture, lots of old buildings and churches…. Melbourne is full of modern skyrises.
So Alice showed me around, which took all of about an hour, and then we went shopping. By lunchtime I was ready to collapse in bed.
Back at James’s I slept for most of the day, then got up, got dressed, and went to his local pub for a few beers, which then led on to a few glasses of wine…and so on!
On the Sunday James and Alice had planned to take me to McLaren Vale which is a winery about an hour away. South Australia is known for making wine and they have loads of vineyards all over the state. In fact, my friend Justine’s family own one of the most successful wineries in Australia – it even gets a mention in the Lonely Planet guide! (I met Justine in Portugal too).
So anyway, the plan was to go to McLaren Vale for some wine tasting, but, feeling a bit fragile, we decided against it. Instead, we walked along the beach and the marina, as it was such a beautiful winters day, and ended up stopping in a nice bar at the marina pier for a hair of the dog – what a surprise! The rest of the day was a write-off; we crashed out on the sofa watching movies til it was time for bed.

When I woke up on Monday everyone was at work. Being yet another lovely day (I was really lucky with the weather the whole time I was in Adelaide) I walked the dog, Alfie, along the beach, a nice start to the day. Then I went to the Bay Discovery Centre in the Glenelg Town Hall. I actually went because I’d read in the Lonely Planet guide that there was an exhibit about sharks and shark attacks, which are really common in that area. But when I got there I found out that the exhibit had moved about a year ago! Still, I stayed and read about the history of Glenelg. When James was home from work I told him what I’d learnt, none of which he knew. It’s typical that when you live somewhere you don’t take the time to learn about it.
The next day, on my own again, I got the tram into the city to have a wander around the well-known Central Market, stopping in Chinatown for lunch in a budget (but very nice) Asian restaurant recommended by the Lonely Planet.
After lunch, as always with cities that I visit, was the South Australia Museum and then the Art Gallery. Neither was particularly interesting, but what can I expect from a country that doesn’t really have any history. Apart from a load of information on the Aboriginals, the museums over here don’t seem to have anything else to offer.
Back at James’s it was time to start looking for more ‘agricultural’ work somewhere in South Australia, so I could complete my 88 days. There was a fair bit I wanted to do in and around the city, but I didn’t want to carry on going out during the day and spending money without knowing when I’d next be earning again.
Looking for this sort of work is difficult, because once you have a job you still need to find a working hostel to live in. This is the hard part, as there are more backpackers than there are beds in hostels. I called 4 different ones everyday, always told they were full.
Finally, on about my fifth day of trying, I found a hostel that had one bed available, which the lady told me she could only keep for 24 hours for me. I immediately booked the first bus out of Adelaide the next morning the minute I hung up the phone.
With today being my last day by the beach, I headed down to the pier to watch the sunset. The whole time I’d been in Oz I’d been on the east coast, so this was the first time I’d get to watch the sun set over the sea (we all know I love a sunset)!
Later, was a night out at the Maid and Magpie bar in the city. It was a friend’s birthday (another person I met in Portugal), so luckily I was able to go out and catch up with everyone I knew in Adelaide before leaving so suddenly.
I was only in Adelaide/ Glenelg for a week but that was long enough. As cities go, Adelaide’s not the greatest, especially having come from Melbourne. Glenelg however, was just beautiful. But being winter, it wasn’t like I could make the most of the beach, sea etc.

The place I was heading to for work was Renmark, a small riverland town about 4 hours from Adelaide, close to the Victoria border.
I was disappointed that I hadn’t done a great deal here, but I knew that in a few months I’d be coming back via Adelaide, hopefully by the time it warms up for some quality beach-time!

Melbourne 2 Part 2

After 4 weeks of splitting my time between Frankston and the city, I decided to give commuting a go. This would save me 5 days of hostel fees, and instead i'd only have to pay the train fare, which is only $50. It's great because it's so cheap, and includes trams and buses in and around the city. But there's a reason it's so cheap.... the service is crap!

I would leave the house at 6.50 each morning to catch the bus to the train station. I would just make the 7.32 train, which would then take over an hour to get to the city. The distance from Frankston to Melbourne is the same as Shenfield to London, which we can do in 25 minutes. But this train journey was so slow, or delayed, or would break down half way there. By the time i got to the city, with the 10 minute walk to the office, I was lucky to be at my desk by 9 each morning. And then i had to do it all over again on the way home, never arriving before 7pm. Luckily I worked with a nice bunch of women who didn't mind if ever I was late in the morning, and so I carried this on for the next 6 weeks of working there. I was exhausted every day, but had about $150 more in my savings each week.
By Friday's I was always too shattered to go out, and then Saturday's I was at the footy with the boys, as usual.

Occassionally I'd stay in the city mid-week if i had plans to go out with the other backpackers i'd met. We went to Dracula's Cabaret, which is apparently a 'must-see' for all tourists. It was an interesting night to say the least. Every waiter/ waitress is in character the whole night. We had a 3 course dinner, ending with a dessert which was a coffin made of chocolate. Cocktails had skulls floating in them, and we got a ghost train to our table. The cabaret was great too. It's not something I'm usually interested in nor will i do again, but it was a good night. (Except you weren't allowed cameras in there)!

Back at the hostel, every night was themed. Monday - poker night; Tuesday - quiz night; Wednesday - live band; Thursday - some sort of fancy dress in exchange for an hour of free drinks. This was always a good night, so when i went to the city in the week, I'd try to make it a Thursday.

About an hour from Frankston and further from Melbourne, is Phillip Island, another tourist hot spot, because of the Penguin Parade. At sunset everyday, hundreds of penguins come out of the sea, and run/ waddle across the beach to burrows in the ground.

So one Sunday, Beau, Kirsty and I headed down there early morning. First of all we went to a nature park, where I saw koalas for the first time since being in Australia, and i completely fell in love with them. They are the cutest creatures and so funny to watch, even sleeping they made me laugh.

Also there were wallabies, which we had eating food out of our hands. I saw my first wombat, and loads more native Ozzy animals like kangaroos and dingoes, which i'd already seen when we were camping.

We left there after an hour or so, me acting like an excited kid, and drove to where the penguins were. Not having thought about this when we left home, we were about 7 hours too early for the penguin parade!

We got out of the car and walked along the boardwalk anyway, which is built into the side of a hill overlooking the sea. At one point we had to stop because our paths were blocked by a family of Japanese down on all fours taking photos. I bent down to see what they were looking at, and there, all on it's lonesome, was a poor little lost penguin! I was so pleased, even if i only got to see the one, and in the only photo I took I managed to chop the top of it's head off! Still.... at least I saw a penguin.

The following Friday was my last day of work. I'd been there 10 weeks, really enjoyed the work, and saved enough money to keep me going for a while, or until i decided to finish off my 'agricultural' work.

Having spent 3 and a half months in Melbourne, it was time to move on, and so i booked a flight to Adelaide for 2 weeks time.

I was absolutely not allowed to leave before Jeff, my Mum and Dad's friend, came to Melbourne to watch Fulham FC play. Having not seen my parents for 9 months by now, Jeff was the closest to them I was going to get!

So, for the weekend he was going to be here, I booked myself 4 nights back at the hostel.

On the train into the city that Friday morning I was so excited. I went to the hostel, chucked my backpack in, and went straight out to meet him and his friend at a Starbucks nearby.

We had a quick catch up over lunch at a cafe near to their hotel, then went our separate ways so they could sort themselves out and get checked in.

Later that night I met back up with Jeff and Graham and took them to Chinatown for dinner. After that, acting the tour guide, I took them to a bar. (Two bars actually, the first one we went to Graham got knocked back for being too casual)!

After a few drinks, it was time to head back to the hostel for the night, ready for a long 'sightseeing day' the next day.

Back in my dorm, I got chatting to one of my room mates, Louise, a girl from Oxford who had only been in Melbourne 3 days. We ended up talking for ages as it turned out we'd travelled to nearly all the same places in Asia. Louise, like me, had left home with a friend but was now travelling alone, so we decided that over the weekend (when i wasn't seeing Jeff) that Louise and I would do some touristy things together.

The next morning I took Louise to one of Melbourne's many famous laneways where we could sit and watch the hustle and bustle of Melbourne life over coffee and a cake.

Next was the Arts Centre, where they had a ballet exhibit. We were so disappointed not only by the exhibit but by the rest of the gallery that we left after about 30 minutes and went to the National Gallery instead, which was just as disappointing. This was a real shame considering how much I usually enjoy visiting art galleries and museums in every city I go to.

So after wasting a couple of hours, but thankfully no money, I headed out to meet Jeff and Graham back down the laneways for lunch.

After lunch, we went to the Eureka Tower's Skydeck, where i'd been before with my mate Simon. It probably wasn't the greatest idea to go on this particular day, as it was so windy it felt like the building was shaking, never a good sign when you're 88 floors up!

Still, the boys were happy as they got photos of the football stadium, where they were watching Fulham play later that day.

At the hostel I met up with Louise and we decided to use one of our many backpacker discounts to entertain ourselves on a Saturday night.

We went to the "Chill On Ice Lounge", which was $30 for 30 minutes inside (which is long enough), and included a cocktail and shot.

When we arrived they kitted us out with big parka jackets, Ugg boots and two pairs of gloves, but i still couldn't feel the tips of my fingers! Everything from the furniture to the glasses, even the walls, were made of ice. Stepping out into the winter air afterwards actually felt warm!

For dinner we went to a tacky looking Vietnamese restaurant that I'd walked past so many times before and was always full of Asians, a good sign that the food is probably as authentic as it gets in a Western country. We went in and had a bowl of noodle soup amongst the Vietnamese, taking us both back to memories of travelling around Asia.

On the Sunday morning, Louise and I went to the Arts Centre Crafts Market by the Yarra river. A lovely market, full of all sorts of creations the locals had made; frustrating for us both, because as a backpacker you're limited to what you can buy and carry around with you.

We sat and had pancakes by the river, and then I left to meet Jeff and Graham at their hotel.

While in the city, the boys wanted to go and see an Aussie Rules game, we were in the home of AFL afterall. (Over half of the football teams who play in the AFL are from Melbourne and it's suburbs).

We walked down to the Melbourne Cricket Ground, (MCG), and bought our tickets for the Melbourne Demons vs Port Adelaide game.

Then the boys dragged me almost kicking and screaming into the MCG Sports Museum. This was by far the worst museum of them all! Great if you're into sport, as it has the history of almost every kind in there, but not really of any interest to me. But, it passed some time until the game started.

We decided we were Melbourne supporters, for obvious reasons, although apparently neither of the teams playing are any good! But it gave us someone to cheer for, which Jeff did especially, funny as it was the first game he's watched... he got right into it. The atmosphere in the stadium was great despite the small crowd. What i found amazing was that everyone sits together, regardless of what team they support, and there's no trouble at all.

At the end of the game Melbourne had won by 11 points. It was really good fun, and I definitely want to go to more games while i'm in Oz. Watching it on TV still bores me to tears, but seeing it in the stadium is brilliant.

After the game we followed the crowds back to the city, then ended up in the trendy Transport bar for a couple of (very expensive) beers. This was followed by dinner in a nice restaurant on the river where Jeff tried, and enjoyed, his first kangaroo steak.

The next day I went by myself to St Kilda, a seaside town about a 10 minute tram ride from my hostel. Considering how long I'd been in and around Melbourne, I'd neglected this part, surprising as it's so popular with backpackers.

First I surprised a friend from home who I knew worked in a cafe nearby, and I still hadn't seen yet. After a quick coffee and catch up I took a stroll down the beach and along the pier. Then as it clouded over and got darker and darker, I stopped in a restaurant for lunch to avoid the massive downpour that lasted about an hour and flooded the streets.

Next was Brunswick street, famous for it's 'alternative' clothes shops. I have to admit it didn't live up to what I was expecting, so I wonder if I missed something. Maybe I caught the tram to the dodgy end!

I met Jeff and Graham later that day for one last beer at a pub where they had become regulars over the last few days. I said my goodbyes, then went to the Crown Complex to meet Louise at the cinema. We saw The Hangover, such a funny film, and the first time i'd been to the cinema in 9 months.

In the morning I got up early, checked out of the hostel, then Louise and I went to the immigration museum, and learnt all about the 10pound Pom! How I wish they still did that now...

After a quick lunch it was the end of my extremely hectic weekend, and i was back on the train to Frankston.

Absolutely exhausted, I had two days to recover and get myself organised, before flying to Adelaide and starting on the next chapter of my travels!

Melbourne 2 Part 1

I landed at Melbourne Airport and was straight on a bus into the city. I got the first train out to the suburbs, keen to get to Frankston and back to Beau's as soon as possible.
The sun was shining and I had a great feeling after the month i'd just had. The moment I walked through the door, as expected, the boys were in the bar waiting for my return with a fridge full of ice cold beers. It felt so good to be back.

That first week back in Melbourne was all about spending time with Steve before he jetted off to Canada for the next year or so. While everyone else was at work, Steve and I enjoyed the last of the summer weather lazing on the beach. After the very sad day that he left, possibly the last time i'll ever see him, it was time for me to get back to reality for the first time in 6 months. It was time to join the real world and get jobhunting!

I'd already asked my mum and dad to send a load of work clothes over, to save buying an entire new wardrobe. So as I waited, I spent most days while the others were at work, glued to the laptop applying for any contract HR roles in Melbourne's Central Business District. Unfortunately, with the word 'Recession' in the air, it was taking longer than i'd hoped. Vacancies were low, and of course, keeping the Ozzies employed was the main priority. I jobhunted by day and caught up with friends I'd met previously in Asia, by night.

First was Lizzy and Lolly, 2 girls the same age as me from Southampton, who i'd met in Laos and then again in Thailand. We would go out and enjoy the Melbourne restaurants and nightlife; Shanghai dumplings for $6 a bowl in Chinatown's laneways, clubs that don't close for the entire weekend, and rooftop bars that look over the whole city.

There was also Flo, who I met in Kuala Lumpur. She and I did the typical touristy bits, browsing around the Queen Victoria market and wandering around the city, camera in hand, snapping away at all the 'artwork' and sights Melbourne has to offer.

Next was Si, who i met in Thailand. We went up the Eureka Tower to the Skydeck, the Southern Hemisphere's highest viewing platform, which has impressive views across the city. After the tower we had drinks at the Crown Casino Complex. Drinks only....no gambling, which we should be rewarded for considering how huge the complex is and how tempting the urge to gamble.

Back in the suburbs, most weekends were spent in the bar in the back garden, drinking plenty of wine, (from a bottle, i'd gone up in the world since my camping/ drinking $15 wine from a carton days) and having a laugh with the boys. I also discovered a new interest in Aussie Rules Football. What an Ozzy calls football is not what we call football, although I still couldn't tell you the differences and similarities! What I do know (which is pretty obvious) is that the ball is shaped like a rugby ball, and it's a contact sport. You have to have the fitness of a superhero to play the game!

One of the guys I lived with played for a local team, Karingal FC, along with a lot of the other boys I know. And so, pretty much every Saturday for the next 3 months or so, excluding maybe 3 games, I went to the footy, home or away, to support Karingal FC with the rest of the boys who didn't play. We would stand at the sidelines, beer in hand, cheer on our team and abuse the opposition. After all that time I still don't know the rules! Some might say it was because, by half time, I'd already had a load of beers, trying to keep up with the boys. Or it might have been the distraction of a field full of fit young men in short shorts tackling eachother! Nevertheless, i was a supporter, even owning the team's bright red 'Karingal Bulls' footy jacket, which we all wore with pride regardless of the result of the game.

And then there was Robyn (who gets a special mention as i know she'll be reading this)! who took me under her wing. Not only was she my mates mum, she was also the President of the club. She invited me to the Karingal FC Ladies day lunch (which i didn't have to pay for) where I got a lovely 2 course meal and all the free drinks, including champagne, that i could manage. So while the boys watched the game outside in the cold, I was inside in the warm with the ladies, sipping/ gulping champagne and enjoying the festivities. And I even have my very own pink Karingal FC stubby holder to show for it.

FYI - a stubby holder is what the Ozzies use to keep their beers cold.

Outside of the football, Robyn was my surrogate mum! Making sure I was well fed by inviting me round for home cooked dinners, something I hadn't had in a long time - Thanks Robyn!

So anyway, after 3 weeks of applying for jobs and getting no where, my work clothes finally arrived. Instead of sitting around on the computer, I decided to be proactive. I packed a bag and checked into a hostel in the city, so that I could register with agencies, and hand my CV in at places, dressed corporately rather than like a backpacker. I'd decided that if I couldn't work in HR, or in an office environment, then i'd work as something completely different like a cocktail waitress.

I spent a whole day wandering the city, with a load of CVs printed and ready. After an exhausting 6 hours or so, I stopped at a bar overlooking the Yarra river and and rewarded my efforts with a nice cold beer. Aware of the fact that I was sitting in a bar on my own, I pulled out my phone and decided to call all the agencies I'd registered with online over the last week or so. This proved to be the best thing i could've done... One agency got excited when they heard about the type of HR/ in-house recruitment experience I had, and asked me to come in to meet them first thing the next day. And so in the morning, dressed the best I'd been since last October, I headed into the Central Business District to meet the recruitment consultants.

After 3 hours of going over my CV and computer skills tests, she said she should be able to help and would be in touch, typical recruitment consultant talk! True to her word, about 15 minutes after I left, she called to tell me I had an interview the following day.

The company is called David Jones, and they are Australia's top department store, sort of a cross between John Lewis and Selfridges. After my informal chat with an HR Advisor there I was offered the position of HR Assistant to start immediately on an ongoing basis. For the next 4 weeks I split my time... 5 days in a hostel in the city, walking distance from work, and the weekends back in Frankston. God forbid i miss a football game!

I loved this routine. I was meeting other backpackers and going out in the city during the week. And it meant I could catch up with friends who lived nearby, such as Lolly and Lizzy. I also caught up with 2 guys I met in the Summer of '07 when I was living and working in Portugal.

At the weekends it was nice just to lounge around in my PJs watcing TV, something you can't really do in a hostel. And of course, the highlight being Karingal footy games with the boys and drinks somewhere afterwards.

After these first 4 weeks of working in the city and splitting my time, it was my 23rd birthday, which fell on a Friday. Being away from the house all week I had no idea what, if anything, the guys had planned for me. I got back to the house around 7pm, and was delighted to see i'd received a load of mail from home, which i wasn't expecting, being on the other side of the world! I poured a glass of wine and sat myself in the bar while I opened all my cards from my friends and family. Then, Kristy (who I also lived with) came outside to tell me that Beau had booked a restaurant for the 3 of us. I was pleased that they'd arranged something, but disappointed that Sammy, who we also lived with, had already gone out, and there was no sign on any of the other boys.

We drove to a little Italian about 10 minutes away and as we walked in it was completely empty. My hopes that maybe they'd organised a surprise dinner went out the window, and I'm sure it was obvious that my smile had faded. We were led to a table outside, and there they were. 10 or 11 of my mates were all sitting and waiting for me at a long table. I was so so pleased that my birthday wasn't going to be the same as any other Friday night. Also, I don't think i'd had a surprise arranged for me before! At the end of our meal, after the waitress had brought out a chocolate cake (which i don't eat - typical)! and they'd sung happy birthday and i'd blown out the candles etc etc, it was present time! Kristy handed me a giant card, signed by everyone, and then a small envelope. Inside was a voucher for the flight centre, worth $400, which i can use for flights or accommodation at almost any location worldwide. This was quite possibly the best present I could have got as a backpacker (aside from money)!!, and also as someone who much prefers the experiences in life compared to material things.

Anyway..... I've run out of time, internet access is limited... I will update on life in Melbourne soon!

A bit of Byron Bay, a month of fun in hillbilly Gin Gin, and a couple of days in Agnes Water/ town of 1770

On our first day back in Byron, after our ‘holiday’, the 6 of us sat on the beach in the glorious sunshine in the early afternoon with an esky full of beers and wine, and had a few drinks til the sun went down.
It was nice to be the 6 of us again, but it was short lived. The next day, Tom packed up his tent and carried on with his travels up the coast.
After a couple more days in the pouring rain, again, Keeley, Paddy and I went off with the car in our search for fruit picking work. Giraffe and Sander were meant to come with us, but in the time since the rest of us had been in Surfers, they’d been having such a good time that they decided they weren’t ready to leave yet.
Keeley and I spent an entire day in Byron searching the web and calling workers hostels to see where there was any work available. Having no success we decided to do it ourselves by just driving around and asking at places along the way.
We drove and drove along empty roads that seemed to go on forever. After about 4 hours, as it was starting to get dark, we stopped at a small town and went into the local pub for a beer. I don’t remember the name of the town, but it was definitely somewhere where they don’t get a lot of visitors. As we walked in, the place went quiet and people stared....and I swear the music stopped and out of the corner of my eye I saw tumbleweed roll past!
Sitting out the front of the pub looking over vast amounts of nothingness, we got chatting to the locals, who were considerably pissed despite the time of day. Ignoring the ripped clothes, missing teeth and six fingers, they actually turned out to be pretty useful. They told us about a place we’d never heard of called Gin Gin, where there’s lots of fruit to pick, which we wouldn’t have known about otherwise. It’s not a place that’s in your standard travel book, and soon we would find out why...
And so, with a place to head for this time, we hit the road again, map in hand, and headed towards Gin Gin. As it was getting darker, and still being God knows how many hours away, we stopped at the next town we came across to find a motel to crash for the night. We ended up in Maryborough, another nothing town, and got ourselves booked in for the night. The motel we stayed at had a bar attached so we popped in there for a quick one before going to bed.
This bar was nothing special, but it was for some people...While we were in there a minibus full of guys pulled up outside. It was one of their birthdays, and this was a crazy night out for them in the small town of Maryborough, going to a roadside motel bar! What exciting lives these country folk lead! Without them there the place was almost empty.
The next day, well rested, we were back on the road. We stopped a few times to ask for any information or directions at small towns we came across along the way, asking in the local shops or petrol stations. That afternoon we arrived in Gin Gin and were far from pleasantly surprised. Gin Gin consists of a small post office, library, hotel with bar, and a few petrol stations selling every variety of fatty deep fried food known to man. It’s a true truck-stop town with nothing beyond the main road.
We went straight into one of the petrol stations to ask where we could find the nearest campsite, to be told we were already there! Round the back of the petrol station was a caravan park, with a patch of land where we could pitch our tents!
Before taking a proper look we went off in search of the citrus farms we’d been told about. It really was a wild goose chase; we were being sent in all directions. Tom told us to find Dick with the silver Nissan truck, who sent us towards the house where Harry lived who mentioned Doris who had a house next to the farm where Rick worked... you get the idea. So after being sent round in circles we found Rick, working hard amongst rows and rows of lemon trees on this hot and humid Sunday afternoon. After a quick chat he agreed to give us a trial in 3 days time.

Incase you didn’t realise, I have a one year working holiday visa for Australia. In order to extend it by another year, we need to do 88 days of ‘agricultural’ work in a rural area. So basically, fruitpicking in the middle of the outback. We were certainly not doing this for fun!

We left the farm and drove the 10km back to the petrol station/camp site, our new home for who knows how long, to set up our tents. After getting ourselves organised we drove down the road to the Gin Gin hotel, the only establishment in the area that resembled a pub. Unlike pubs at home with a beer garden that would be busy on a sunny Sunday afternoon, this one was empty. After a few schooners of low carbohydrate beer we were back in our camp, just the 3 of us, cooking dinner on our gas stove, when the first of many of our neighbours came over to day g’day.
His name was Bill, he was probably in his late 40s, and lived here in his caravan. He was covered in tattoos, skinny, but with a gut hanging over his jeans, wearing what i’m guessing used to be a white vest but was now a dirty shade of grey. He had long hair, no bottom teeth, and a rolled up cigarette permanently in his hand. We had a chat and he offered us his tarp, after he’s spent a while watching Paddy attempting to put our too-small tarp up over our camp. He even offered us the use of his fridge, which he had in the awning joined on to his caravan. This was an offer we couldn’t refuse as it was so hot that even an esky full of ice couldn’t keep our food cold. We never went inside his caravan, despite him offering for us to watch TV in there several times, and there was a good reason for this. His awning stank of stale cigarettes and coffee. There were dirty stains covering everything from the floor to the table and chairs, even all over the fridge. But we were in no position to judge, we needed a fridge and he had one to spare!
Our next neighbour to introduce himself was Sam the bird man. Sam was Italian but had lived in Australia for a long time, I think since the 70s, but that’s a rough guess as he has the strongest accent that is nearly impossible to understand. Sam was an old guy who was on his own. Again, he lived in the caravan park. At all times of the day he could be found sitting on his step, watching nothing go by. And then there were the parrots. At the same time every day hundreds of wild parrots would swoop down on the patch of land outside his caravan and eat out of the six plates of bird food Sam had left there for them. This was a nightmare, the noise drove us, and I’m sure everyone else, crazy, every day. But you had to feel sorry for Sam. He was an old man on his own with only his birds to keep him company. It was never a good idea to make any kind of eye contact with Sam, as he took that as an invitation for a chat. And as sad as it was to see him alone, the conversations never ended, and none of us could understand a word he said. So that was Sam the bird man.
Behind our tents we had a giant blue Winnebago, one of the old school ones that was probably about 20 years old. It had grass growing up the side of it, about 10 inches high, so it was clear these neighbours hadn’t been anywhere in a long time. They had an air conditioning unit attached to the side, balancing on a wooden shelf which was nailed to the Winnebago. Outside the front were a load of cars, all with parts missing, and then there was all sorts of other junk. In the 3 and a half weeks I was there, I never quite figured out who lived there, or how many of them there were. People were coming and going all the time, and I don’t think one of them weighed less than 20 stone. How they all fit in there I have no idea!
The day after we arrived, with nothing to do for a couple of days, we drove to Bundaberg, about 45 minutes away. Bundaberg is where we were originally heading, as they have about 7 workers hostels there, where they help backpackers in search of fruit picking work. Bundaberg is a big town in comparison to Gin Gin, but it’s nothing special. We just wandered around, stocking up on camping supplies and stopping for lunch. We asked in a hotel where the nearest beach was, and she pointed us in the direction of Moore’s Park, about another 45 minutes away. Off we went in search of this beach, realising just how far from the coast we were in Gin Gin. A figure like 90% of Ozzies live by the sea, so to be an hour and a half away shows what a rural area we were staying in.
We had to walk through a wooded area to get to the beach, and suddenly through the opening you could see the sea. It was beautiful, and the sea was so warm. We hadn’t intended on going to the beach when we left our camp so none of us had any swimwear. So instead, we just sat on the beach talking and looking out to sea. After a while, I started to notice splashes in the distance, only about 70 metres from the beach. As I watched closely I realised they were dolphins, loads of them, splashing in and out of the water. It was a real surprise. Here we were in the middle of no where, miles away from anyone, on this beach that was tucked away, watching dolphins swimming in the sea.
After a day sitting around our campsite doing nothing, it was time to start work. In preparation, when we were in Bundaberg, we’d bought factor 30 sunscreen and big floppy hats, aware of how strong the sun gets and that we’d be out in it all day. We joined an induction at 7am, with a group of backpackers who’d come by minibus from Bundaberg. After hearing about health and safety, we were given our bags and sizing rings and set to work. We took our car down and parked it in between two rows of lemon trees. There were lemon trees as far as the eye can see, and we were given two rows each to work on. At the top of each row were our step ladders. Basically what we had to do was measure every lemon on the tree, which is why we were given sizing rings. Anything too small we couldn’t pick, and the farmers came round to check! We were given snips, and shown the way we were to cut to lemons from the trees. This was something else the farmers checked. If any length of stalk was left on the lemons, it would dig into the other lemons and therefore ruin them! The rules were endless, but ultimately what we had to do was get up and down the trees as quickly as we could, filling our bags (which were strapped to us) and emptying them into a half-tonne crate.
We were paid by the amount of crates we filled, and each one was worth around $90. Have you seen what half a tonne of lemons looks like?! An impossible task is what it is! On our first day we worked ourselves so hard and none of us filled one more that ¾!
Something else we weren’t warned about prior to starting were the thorns in the trees. These grow up to two inches long and were so sharp. Despite being given gloves, they pierced straight through, going under our nails, into our hands, and scraping all over our arms and legs through our clothes. When we got in from our first day we were exhausted and scratched and scarred. It was horrific, as though we’d been attacked by someone with a penknife! And this was day one, 87 to go!
Each day came and went, and we gradually got better, learning techniques from the locals who had been doing it for years and picked four crates by lunchtime, and we were eventually picking just under two bins a day. Still not great, but a massive improvement. I feel like now I could answer any questions about lemons you fire at me. In fact, it got to a point that at one stage all we ever talked about were lemons, I even dreamt about them! Worrying indeed.... They were taking over my life for the time that I was there! If we went into the supermarket, we’d look at the lemons, which were often small, and wondered how whoever picked them got away with picking them so small without being caught by the farmers!
Despite the occasional spiders, snakes, and once even a kangaroo, our days working amongst miles and miles of lemon trees were pretty uneventful. You had to work alone, so it was pretty boring and mind-numbing. I used to take my i-pod and speakers, and leave them playing music full blast under a tree. It was the only way I could get through the days.
With a cyclone coming, we were warned that we could be off work for a few days. Most people would be glad to have time off work, except us. We lived in a hillbilly town where there was nothing to do. And if there was a cyclone coming, our little camp was certain to get destroyed!
We couldn’t work for about 4 days (picking lemons when they’re damp bruises them), so we had to entertain ourselves somehow. Thankfully the cyclone didn’t hit us head on, and so our tents were safe.
On our second or third night I had noticed a campervan which had set up camp not far from where we were. I’d gone over to explore, and met Lisa. Lisa was a 27 year old primary school teacher from New South Wales, who was relocating to Brisbane. While waiting for her job to start in Brissy she had decided to pick lemons in Gin Gin! She worked on a different farm to ours, but hated it just the same.
Lisa became my absolute saviour! For me, travelling with a couple was really difficult, and no matter what, you’ll always be the third person. So after meeting Lisa I spent all my time over at her camp, drinking cheap wine from a carton, playing cards, listening to music and talking rubbish about nothing for hours on end. Over the days when we were rained off from work, the two of us would go for drives to see what else was around this redneck area. Or we’d just happily play cards for hours without even realise how long we’d been playing because we’d been talking the whole time.
One day, still off work and with Lisa not around, we discovered that it was Gin Gin’s 130th birthday. Not wanting to miss such a special occasion, me, Paddy and Keeley followed the (small) crowds of rednecks to a field where they were having a celebratory fayre. This was an interesting insight into how these small town people lived. I’m sure for some, this was the highlight of their month, maybe even their year, preparing for this special event! First was a parade through the only road in the town, which led to the fayre. At the fayre there were all sorts of exciting things going on. They had camel rides, face painting, and even the ‘Gin Gin Cloggers’, a group of about 15 middle aged women tapping away on stage til they were red in the face and could barely breathe!
Not fitting in amongst the locals (because we had all our teeth, clean clothes, and weren’t wearing a cowboy hat), we stayed long enough to get a feel for the celebration and then left to head back to our camp, to do nothing, again.
By now it had been about 3 weeks since we’d left the boys in Byron, and I was hating every minute! We came here to work, and were rained off so many times that I’d probably only worked half the time I was there. One Friday morning, after having been at work long enough to pick ¼ of a bin, it started to rain, and so of course we were sent home. When we arrived back at the camp, Lisa was also there having been sent home. I went over to her to partake in our usual card-playing, wine drinking routine when we realised we probably wouldn’t work for the whole weekend.
With this in mind, we decided to go on a road trip. I left my tent pitched but grabbed my backpack, and jumped into Lisa’s campervan. We headed towards Agnes Waters and the Town of 1770, which are homes to Queensland’s most northerly surf beaches. It took us a couple of hours to get there, and the rain was horrendous, but it was worth it when we arrived. Saying that, of course anywhere is an improvement on Gin Gin and its surroundings!

The weather cleared up enough for us to appreciate the beautiful beaches and landscapes. The coastal roads were lined with holiday homes that must cost a small fortune to rent out to tourists, and they were absolutely stunning, set into the hillsides.

In the Town of 1770 they have a huge marina, but no yachts, more like the local's fishing boats, nothing that looks like it's worth a great deal.

We arrived quite late, but not too late to get some fish and chips in this small seaside town and sit on the beach to eat them.
The following morning, after spending the night sleeping in the campervan next to the sea, we were up bright and early to hit the beaches of these two towns, which are 5 km apart. We made picnics and went to sunbathe, and feel considerably lazy watching all the other backpackers learning to surf with the various surf schools. I promise myself I will do it one day! There’s not a great deal to do in these towns aside from learn to surf, or relax, but the beauty of it makes it worthwhile!
At the end of the day, after enjoying chilling out in the sunshine, swimming in the lukewarm sea and having eating in the town’s cafes, it was time to head back to face the reality of fruit picking!
We didn’t have work the next day and so it was back to the normal routine of playing cards under Lisa’s tarp in the pouring rain. It was that day that I decided it wasn’t worth me staying in Gin Gin any longer. Lisa was leaving soon and I wasn’t up for being the third person every time it rained, and considering it was Queensland’s rainy season it was bound to be a regular occurrence. And so I made an appointment at the library, the only place in the town that has access to the internet, and booked my flight out of there!
My plan was always to head down to Melbourne at the end of March, as one of my good friends Steve was flying over for a holiday. I booked my flight from Brisbane to Melbourne for a week later, and went into the local shop to arrange for a bus to collect me and take me to Brisbane where I would spend the rest of the week. I worked one last day at the farm, then packed up my tent, and slept my last night in the car. At 5 in the morning, Paddy and Keeley took me to the launderette, where I had to wait for the greyhound coach to pick me up.
Whilst making my decision, Tom, who was travelling with us previously, had got in touch to say he was back in Surfers Paradise, and so I decided that once I’d spent 8 hours on the bus, (in what would have been a 4 hour journey by car), I would arrive in Brisbane and get the train straight out of there to Surfers, where Tom was waiting to pick me up.
I don’t think I’ve looked forward to seeing anyone so much before! He’d booked an apartment in Surfers, a different one from where we stayed before. When I arrived he’d filled the fridge with all the food he knew I liked, and bought me bottles of rose wine, a nice change from the cheap stuff I’d been drinking out of cartons. On that first night we sat on the balcony having a drink and catching up on the events since we’d last seen eachother. Safe to say he’d had a better time than I had! At that moment in time I couldn’t think of anywhere I’d rather have been.
Gin Gin was an experience, but not a good one. I only managed to get about 15 out of my 88 days fruit picking done in just under a month. Had I stayed any longer I’m sure I would have gone insane with boredom, especially after Lisa had left. The only good thing to come from it was that at least I’d got some work done and out of the way, and I met a new friend who I’m sure I will see again when I eventually get to Brisbane and spend some time there.
I only spent a few days in Surfers with Tom, doing nothing different from what we did the first time we were there, but I had a great time being amongst people in the real world. Being able to wander from the apartment into the town centre to grab a starbucks, or get a chinese takeaway, were real novelties after the last month I’d had!
On day four, I was up, ready and waiting at 6am for my bus that was taking me to the airport, to head to Melbourne, yet again.