Tag: travel

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Balinese Introduction

Touch down in Asia. IndonAsia. Indonesia. Bali.

“Om Swastiastu.”

I was trying to learn popular phrases on the plane. Totally lost on pronunciation though.

We were a bit late arriving and it was 11pm before I was done with customs. I learned my lesson from New Zealand and pre-arranged a shuttle to my accommodation. It seemed like a particularly smart call at this hour until I walked out toward the pick up area and was immediately overwhelmed.

There were at least 50 drivers holding signs with names on them. Ooof. A needle in a hay stack.

I walked the line like a lost puppy a few times without seeing my name. Maybe my guy didn’t show or waited forever and thought I wasn’t coming? It was back to doing it on the fly. I made my way toward the exit. When I turned a corner, I saw another 100 drivers smushed together waving more signs.

Round 2.

After another bit of looking I found a guy with “Nathan.” Phew. I went up to him and he was taken aback. Ok. Turns out there are other Nathans out there. The search continued…

I pushed past 30 people trying to get me to take their overpriced taxi before I finally found my driver. We had to push back through everyone to get outside.

Things were so much different than anything I’ve ever experienced. The new country elements: people, architecture, sounds and smells.

On the ride to my hostel, I was even surprised by the streets, which seemed more like alleys. They were narrow and unassuming. With sharp curves, my driver was honking before going around the bends to let possible oncoming traffic know he was there.

I saw countless motorbikes manned by helmetless drivers. They were zooming everywhere, seemingly without a lane assignment, easily able to avoid the plethora of stray dogs obliviously meandering in the middle of the road. Traffic patterns on the whole were interesting to observe. I think we only had one stoplight the entire drive. Zero stop signs. Every intersection was a clustercuss that somehow got sorted without the need of signals or an obvious system. 

When we arrived at the hostel, I was still processing. I missed the sign asking me to remove my shoes before entering but did so quickly. It was a cozy spot tucked back off the main drag. There was a lot of bamboo. Wood and white.

During the check-in process, I got to deal with the currency for the first time, the Indonesian Rupiah, which is based in thousands. So a normal price for a large bottle of water is 10.000rp (72¢). I briefly thought about the fact that I was a billionaire here. Status.

I was shown up to my room, a relatively sterile 8-bed dorm. One thing that stood out immediately was the intense smell of mothballs. At least I wasn’t going to be swarmed by spiders in the night.

My bed was nice though. It had a lot of space, a privacy curtain, and a light + power outlet which is always clutch. I settled in for the night and figured I would wake up early the next morning to figure out my next move.

I woke up to gamelan playing — traditional Indonesian music featuring various percussive instruments. It was a pretty calming way to greet the day. I went downstairs for breakfast and did a bit of planning.

I was in Kuta, somewhat close to the airport, which I’d heard was just a busy place. Seminyak was on a few lists I’d researched and not too far away so I set my sights there. I made another hostel reservation and then was looking at transportation.

They don’t really have public transportation options here. Different. The most popular way to get around is to rent a scooter, which I was not feeling confident about after the initial ride in. I could also get a taxi or motorbike lift. Another option was Grab, an Uber equivalent.

I didn’t want to be exploited by a local this early in my trip, so I decided Grab was my best bet. A 20 minute ride ended up being around $2.86. Pretty killer. I learned later that it’s so cheap because they don’t have to pay any local taxes. However, they’re only allowed to operate in certain areas on the island. The Balinesian drivers are up in arms about it since they have allocate 30% of their fares to the government and helping the local village.

In any case, I got to Seminyak well before lunch and wanted to get out and have a look around the place. I also needed to pick up a new SIM at some point.I set my bags down and hit the street.

  • Warrior Shrine
  • Temple Door #1
  • Fem Shrine #2

There was a market next door that I perused for like an hour because I was so fascinated by the products and prices. I was still trying to wrap my head around the value of the currency. I revisited each aisle about 3 separate times. The employees were probably questioning my sanity.

I was too. Always am.

Eventually I escaped the curiosity of barbecue steak-flavored Cheetos and walked the streets. The first thing I noticed was all of these little intricate incense trays on the ground in front of stores and scattered around shrines. There were hundreds and the contents of each one was unique. I saw some with cigarettes, others with candies or shots of juice.

Canang Sari

Canang sari is a daily offering to the Hindu gods that represents praise and prayer. It’s quite incredible how each household and shop owner obsessively prepare their little masterpiece each day. This is special to Bali too, as the majority of Indonesia is Muslim, not Hindu.

So after a few hours of wandering around, I was beginning to pick up the vibe. You could not walk by a single person without being offered a scooter rental or to have a look in their store. A couple I spoke to on the plane told me I would be sick of horns within a day. I certainly heard my fair share, whether it was actual traffic usage or trying to get me into their taxi. I appreciated it as part of the overall soundscape (in that moment at least).

The streets were lined with various fashion and furniture stores as well as restaurants and cafes. This is Seminyak’s main claim to fame I suppose. For a tourist on a normal holiday with room in their bag and a job to return to, they could acquire a lot for a little from these vendors.

I inquired at a few stalls about a SIM but it took a while to find a solid option. Once that was all done I went back to the hostel to check in and get situated.

Double Six Beach

After I got set up in my cubby bed, I went down to the beach to see what was up. Walking out on the sand was an interesting experience because there was so much trash everywhere. Double Six was the popular spot, but it seemed a bit unremarkable, especially with the huge piles of debris and rubbish.

I decided to go back to the city and find some food and a happy hour special. I got two beers, some tasty dumplings and a good portion of fried rice for under $10. I was starting to get a giddy feeling about the money saving options in Bali. I ended the night on that positive note.

The next day there was more exploring on the docket. I was expanding my search and scouting out some solid sunset watching spots.

I ended up on a different beach and followed it north toward the bigger places in the distance. It was cleaner in the morning which was nice. A mile or two down the way I peeled back inland and walked around the outside of a temple. It looked nice but I was a bit intimidated to go inside because I wasn’t fully up on the customs.

Instead, I worked my way over to the sprawling campus of the W hotel to see what that was all about. I had to go through a security check just to get on the grounds. I felt like I was secretly trespassing into rich people territory.

When I got inside, I was impressed. Surprise, surprise. The place was massive and super nice. There were several levels of comfy seating areas and like 3 different restaurants/cafes within 30ft of each other. The pool set up was really the star attraction though. There were lounge chairs following every contour and well-placed palm trees adding that tropical flair.

I got a smoothie with a W-branded cup and was hoping that would be enough to make it look like I fit in. Within a minute of sitting down on one of the lounge chairs I was asked for my room number. That area was only for hotel guests. Damn.

The good news was only a few feet away was a poolside bar that I could sit at and still get swimming privileges. Bonus. I ordered a bucket of beers and posted up on a couch for the day.

I had a beer, got some sun, took a dip, had a beer, napped, had a beer and chilled hard. I think that was the closest I’ve ever been to living in the lap of luxury. I still felt like barbecue steak Cheetos in a caviar tin, but that didn’t stop me from enjoying it.

By the time I finished my last beer, the sun was getting ready to set and this was the perfect spot to watch. People were showing up in droves, so it actually paid off that I stumbled in early and stuck around. There wasn’t a single seat left anymore.

As sunsets go in Bali, it was kind of mediocre colors-wise, but the atmosphere made it exceptional. My afternoon playing someone with real money was a smashing success.

Status.

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In Summary: Australia

(At least the East Coast)

I remember when I first landed in Melbourne and was shocked by the amount of people and the heat. Turns out it was an abnormally hot day. But still, I encountered people and heat in varying degrees (no pun) on my journey down under.

The cities were big and spread out and had distinct subsections of culture.

I learned what it was like to live either barefoot or in thongs (flip flops). I learned the capital wasn’t Sydney. I learned that there were many breathtaking sunrises and sunsets to be seen.

Initially, I had concerns about all of the dangerous wildlife. Thankfully, I was never stung, bitten or clawed by any of those animals. I never even saw a snake in the wild. Did I? I don’t think so. I did see a few spiders and jellyfish, but nothing that threatened immediate harm.

At first, I had a hard time finding my rhythm. It’s difficult to pinpoint why. It’s not like I had to make a major adjustment or anything. Regardless, I don’t think I really settled in until I was almost a month into my time in Australia. That’s when I understood what was on offer. Traveling up the east coast was mainly about enjoying the beaches and water.

Indian Head Views

I was adopted into a large friend group of ex-pats in Sydney. They were welcoming and generous and gave me a sense of community. It was a kind of security blanket to fall back on if I ever needed it.

Speaking of people, my two marquee experiences were on tour groups. Actually, the main difference between having an awesome time in Australia vs. New Zealand came down to people. In NZ, I had plenty of fun just walking in nature. In Oz, fast friendships made the biggest impact. An interpersonal connection can easily add more value to an adventure. Since I consider myself a low-key extrovert, bonding with a few different groups of people really elevated whatever I was doing. I was fortunate enough to enjoy this on a few occasions.

There will always be something drawing me back to Australia. Part of it will be to visit the central and western areas of the country. The other part…I’m not exactly sure. To sky dive? Maybe. Either that, the crystal blue water or the gorgeous women.

It’s certainly not Vegemite.

“Awe, yeah?”
“Yeah, right.”

By the Numbers

Days in Australia: 56
Days at Workaways: 16
Nights in Hostels: 31
Multi-day Tours: 2
Hours in Transit (Bus or Train): ~60
AUD Spent: ~$4,342.18
USD Spent: ~$3,192.78 (Avg conversion rate of roughly 1.36)

You can see my full cost breakdown here.

For those interested in visiting one day, here’s a list of where I went and how I ranked stuff:
(click the top left button of the map to expand the list view)

Favorite Places:
1. Fraser Island
2. Melbourne
3. Whitsundays
4. Byron Bay
5. Brisbane		Favorite Beaches::
1. Whitehaven Beach
2. Lake McKenzie
3. Little Wategos
4. Bondi Beach
5. Balding Bay
Favorite Activities: 
1.  Pippies Tag Along Tour
2. Mandrake Sailing Trip
3. Snorkeling the GBR
4. Three Sisters Walk
5. Uncle Brian’s Rainforest Tour
Favorite Sunrises/Sunsets:
1. Cape Byron Sunrise
2. Cathedrals Dune Sunset
3. Horseshoe Bay Sunset
4. Sunset Bay Sunset
5. Surfers Paradise Sunrise
Favorite Attractions:
1. Hill Inlet
2. Sydney Opera House/Harbour Bridge
3. Melbourne Walking Tour
4. National Gallery of Victoria
5. Lone Pines Koala Sanctuary
6. Curtain Fig Tree
7. Gallery of Modern Art (Brisbane)
8. Queen Victoria Market
9. Gog & Magog
10. Sydney Fish Market

Lastly, below is my “best of” photo album. Let me know if you want any to frame or put in Nat Geo cuz they’re so sick, etc.

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Aussie Finale

If I was feeling a bit old after my sailing trip on the Whitsundays, it was quelled somewhat by the guy who sat next to me on my bus ride up to Magnetic Island.

Dave was a 55+ guy from Phoenix. He told me how he recently sold his business and his house to long-term travel. We were on similar trajectories but in different phases of life. And traveling in different ways as well. He wasn’t doing the hostel thing yet. “Private rooms,” he said, “with the occasional house sit.” I’m keeping my eye on that game because like Workaway, it’s a great opportunity to extend that budget.

We parted ways when I got off in Townsville to catch the ferry over to the island. I was once again playing it by ear at this destination. I’d done basically no research about what there was to do. I reserved a hostel based on the recommendation of someone from my Fraser trip, but that’s about it. I heard it was a very chill spot without all that much going on.

I got off the ferry and realized I had to catch a bus to the other side of the island. I expected everything to be in walking distance but not quite.

On the bus ride, I could see why a lot of people suggest making the trip over. It was an island that had a lot of mountains that opened themselves up into beautiful bays. And it seemed like people were scarce wherever you went. Not bad.

Geoffrey Bay

My hostel was a collection of cozy cabins around a relaxing pool and bar, with a wildlife center on the grounds as well.

The cabins didn’t look like anything special from the outside but they were pretty comfortable on the inside.

On my first full day, I wanted to go for a long walk. I found a trail up to an old Fort site that I believe was used in WWII. The soldiers had pretty sick views while they were there, that’s for sure. Although it must have sucked to transport all of the building material up there. I saw a handful of koalas sleeping up in the trees on my way down too.

I kept up the walk on a bush trail that cut inland for a ways. I was the only one on it and anxiously waiting to cross paths with a snake or a rock wallaby. Surprisingly, no such encounters. It was insanely hot though. The sun was taking no prisoners on this day.

I got to an area called Arcadia and took a break to cool down and grab a bite to eat. I grubbed on a toastie and some chips until I stopped actively sweating. An hour later, I continued along a coastal path.

Eventually, I made it to Nelly Bay, which was the main settlement on the island. It’s where the grocery store (yes, ‘the’) and the ferry terminal are. I think there were a few bars/restaurants but I didn’t see all that much.

After pausing for another sweat break, I retraced my steps back to the hostel and b-lined it for the pool. All in all, I walked for around 4 or 5 hours, maybe 15kms or so. It was nice. I was feeling deficient in exercise so it was good to get a wander in.

The next day I went for another stroll to explore the northeast part of the island. The nearest area to the hostel was called Horseshoe Bay and was a popular swimming spot since they had a stinger net set up.

I found another bush trail that would take me to two other pretty isolated bays. I went up and down a small mountain to get to Radical Bay. I figured there would be a smattering of people enjoying the sun and water. I got there to find just one family on the other side of the bay. Presumably they belonged to the sailboat that was moored just a bit off shore. Still, that was it. Two adults and a child. Not too shabby.

I climbed back up the mountain and down a different path to the neighboring Balding Bay. The signs advertised it as the nudist spot. Again, I was anticipating several beach towels under pairs of old balls and leathery skin. I passed an unfit man on the way down and felt ok that he was leaving. Good timing.

I stepped off the path and onto the sand to find literally no one. Not a soul in this small, secluded bay.

I made my mind up that I was going to participate in the nudeness just to see what the experience was all about. Plus, my ghostly thighs could benefit from a few rays. 

The emptiness made it a little anticlimactic. At the same time it was kind of exhilarating to have the whole place to myself. Then I realized that there was a couple over yonder as one of them uncamouflaged and went into the water. Then some dude kept walking 3 steps off the path to take pictures. I’m sure he was trying to get a sick snap of the serenity for Insta but I couldn’t help but feel it was a faux pas to spend that much time on your camera at the nudist beach.

I left after a half hour or so as to not lobsterify the private bits. I passed a couple and a family right as I was getting back on the path. Close call, kids.

That evening I hung out in Horseshoe to watch a setting sun disappear over the protruding land that comprised the left side of the shoe’s U.

Sunset at Horseshoe Bay #2

It was definitely a chill time on the island. There were a fair share of palm trees that gave it a tropical feel, juxtaposed by the rocky inner hills and mountains.

The following day I caught the ferry back to the mainland and rode a 6 hour bus up to Cairns. This would be my last stop in Australia, and I had 3 big excursions planned to finish it off on a high note.

The first day I was up at 6am to catch a fishing charter. It was an inlet trip that had 5 other people on it.

I had high hopes of hooking some bigguns until we spent the first hour watching the captain unsuccessfully throw out a net to catch some live bait. Seriously, we went to like 5 different spots and looked on helplessly as he kept saying, “You just never know where they’re gonna be,” and pulled up an empty net. “Nope. Nobody home.”

Finally, he motored us out to the first spot where we were able to get our lines in the water.

Two people caught finger marks that were too small to keep. Two creepy looking eels were also landed. Or at least reeled in to where we could see em and then cut the line. The one in the video below is the smaller one. The big boy was probably about 3 times its size, which is nuts. My phone was too scared to record it.

At the second spot, I caught a small basic fish. I was surprised because the bait seemed too big for this thing to be snacking on. A short while later, somebody caught a modest catfish. The most exciting thing that happened was a monster strike. The sad part is that it was likely a sting ray because it booked it and was so heavy that the line snapped.

We went to two more spots where not much more was caught. It kind of felt like the skipper was moderately inept. It’s also possible that I had this feeling because I was bitter we didn’t have a stronger day. I understand that’s the nature of fishing, but I felt like we could’ve been set up for more success. It was at least cool to get out and cast a few lines again. It had been so long.

I was back to the hostel by 1pm so I got some lunch and hung around to socialize. I ended up running into Janina from the Whitsundays trip. We hung out for a while and chatted with some random people from the hostel. She went to some ladies night event and I decided to turn in.

The next morning I geared up for a “fun and falls” tour in the tablelands/rainforest. The company was called Uncle Brian’s and came recommended by Stephany. I gathered outside with a few others and boarded a full bus of some 20 people.

Our guide, Adam, was a hilarious and energetic dude. He wore a set of fake hillbilly teeth when he went around to pick everyone up. I was curious about em and glad they were a joke.

He told some pretty good stories and gave us good background on various Australian enigmas on our way out to the first stop.

By the time we got there, we were getting the full effects of the rainforest. It was pissing outside but we still took a walk to see the Babinda Boulders, which were a series of rocks that have been hollowed out by running water.

Next, we went to Josephine Falls which had a rock slide and swimming pool from mountain runoff. Initially, Adam was wondering if we’d even be able to swim because there was so much rain that the river’s whitewater could be too powerful, making the conditions unsafe.

When we got to the spot it was all good. He did a demonstration run and then let the group go for it. There were a few unconfident swimmers that stayed ashore and watched the rest of us get our slide on.

The water was running with a pretty strong current and it was difficult to swim in certain spots. The rocks were also super slippery, so I could see how it could be risky.

That actually ended up coming into play when it was time to go. We’d been there for about an hour and the water level probably rose about 6 inches to the no-swim line. However, there were several group members that still had to make it across the pool back to the safe side.

There was particularly one girl that wasn’t a good swimmer and made a few unsuccessful attempts before she started to panic. Adam and another guide had to jump in and throw some ropes to get her to land.

In getting himself back across, Adam was swimming and missed his mark. He almost went down a grinding section of river. He was literally hanging onto a rock by his fingernails before another guide went out to help him get a strong enough footing. It was real dicey and after that point it was clear no other groups would be allowed in.

We were able to steady our nerves with some lunch before heading to another waterfall. Millaa Milllaa Falls is a picturesque waterfall where people take one of a few iconic Australian photos. It’s an Herbal Essence-type hair flick, capturing the arch of the water trail perfectly with the falls in the background. They really shot a commercial there once. A lot of people in the group nailed it, even some of the guys. Unfortunately, we will never see the evidence because Adam misplaced the camera at the end of the trip so we weren’t able to get the images. A pretty big bummer because I wasn’t using my own camera since it was raining so much. Maybe it will turn up at some point. Fingers crossed.

En route to the next spot, he instigated a sing-along/jam session by busting out some percussive instruments and a bubble machine. The highly amateur cymbal and tambourine playing got grating real fast but somehow the bubbles made it ok. A nice group of fellow tour-goers kept spirits high throughout the day even though we had brutal weather.

We stopped at a freshwater lake that had a crocodile in it (that we didn’t see) and a gnarly fig tree before heading back to Cairns. It was a decent little trip in the end that could’ve only been made better by some sun and some photos of the experience.

That evening I did a free booze circuit by winning trivia at the hostel (free shot), going to a hostel-hosted event (free mixed drink), and going to an Uncle Brian’s after party at another bar (free pitchers). I need to exploit this train more often.

For my last full day, it was time to snorkel the Great Barrier Reef.

I boarded the SeaQuest at 8am and watched the rain clouds swirl into Cairns. As we departed the harbor and got our safety briefing, it began to pour. Seemed like it was going to be rough weather yet again.

After cruising out to sea for a little over an hour some of the clouds parted ways and it was looking like maybe we’d be able to avoid the serious rain.

There were more divers than snorkelers on board so they went out to prepare first. Then the 6 of us top water folk were able to jump in. I was paired with an older gentlemen since all of the other people were coupled up. Buddy system and all that.

At the Reef

Firstly, I was surprised by the setting. I thought we’d be in really shallow, crystal blue water with panoramic views of the reef. It kinda looked like we were just in the middle of the ocean near a barge and two other ships. The overcast day may have played a part in that.

Anyhow, we got in the water and immediately saw a ton of fish loitering around our boat. We swam out a little ways and found the reef. It was a lot more vibrant and lively than any of the reefs I snorkeled in the Whitsundays. Conditions-wise, it was a lot more turbulent being the ocean and whatnot. It was funny because whenever I got pushed around by a wave, I could see the same happen to all the fish a few feet below.  Interesting that I thought they wouldn’t be affected.

The reef ranged from 3-30ft deep, roughly, so it was cool to see the difference in aquatic life at those two depths. We saw one turtle and of course a million different varieties of fish.

We were called back to the boat after what felt like 20 minutes but was actually an hour and a half. Time for lunch and to move the boat.

After we grubbed, we were given another hour and a half in the water. My elderly partner took a nap after lunch, so I was finning it somewhat solo out there.

The boat didn’t move all that far but it was enough to see a different section of reef. There were a few moments where I was being stalked by some mammoth fish off in the distance. I kept turning my head to see it looking at me, then it would move on a little bit and be on my 6 a few minutes later. It looked pretty gnarly too. Like some dark prehistoric thing with large fins and a thin stinger at the bottom or something. It never came close enough to be a real problem, but it was unsettling. I also saw a black tip reef shark at one point. It was swimming slowly along near the bottom, like 20ft down so I wasn’t able to get a great look at it.

Fish Stalker

I returned to the boat just in time to beat a heavy rain that moved in quickly. The whole GBR snorkeling experience went by in a flash. It would’ve been cool to have a little more sun to make the colors of the reef stand out more but it was still righteous. I was also hoping for a few more marquee species, but I’ll take what I can get.

We sailed back to the marina and that was that. All of my notable Australian adventures had come to a close (for this time around).

The only thing left to do was repack my things and shuttle to the airport for my flight to Bali the next day.

It’s hard to believe that another few months have elapsed. There were some highs and lows in there without question. I’ll throw together a little summary of Australia post in the next few days to wrap up all of my thoughts.

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Above Deck

A nightmare.

I mean a night bus. But that’s what I was thinking it would be. A 14 hour trip up to Airlie Beach on a budget coach.

It actually wasn’t all that bad. Bus travel here, even with a no-frills company, is still 10 times better than in the US. Apart from two girls yucking it up the entire time, I got a surprising amount of shut eye. It wasn’t a recuperative night’s sleep by any means, but it was enough to get me through the day.

I arrived at 9:30am and went straight to the hostel to set down my luggage. I had the day to kill before embarking on my sailing trip the next afternoon.

During a bit of exploring, I got the impression that Airlie Beach was a place where there was a lot of money. It was small and tourist-centric, but everything was nice. There were fancy marinas and houses with views. I guess it makes sense considering the Whitsundays has one of the most popular beaches in the world.

In the morning when I was packing up my stuff, I found out that a dorm-mate was on the same boat as me. Janina was a 19yo German girl with an accent that leaned more UK/Aussie.  She’s the kind of person that becomes fast friends with everyone because she’s comfortable carrying the conversation about whatever topic. She had plenty of crazy stories about her experience traveling Australia. Her family also runs a brewery in Southern Germany, so I need to remember that.

When it came time, we walked to the marina together and met the rest of the tour group. Our ship, the Mandrake, held 14 passengers, plus the skipper, a deck hand and a volunteer. What’s funny is of the 14 tour takers, 11 of them were German. There were separate groups of 5 guys, 3 girls, 2 girls and then Janina.

That was a big difference from the Fraser Island experience, which had more solo travelers on it. It meant that the groups kept to themselves a lot more so there wasn’t as much socializing amongst everyone.

After boarding, we got our bunk assignments and dropped our belongings. As we were leaving the harbor, we gathered above deck to get our safety briefing from deckhand Michael, who was our chef, doctor, janitor and source of information for the trip.

Airlie Beach looked pristine from the water as it was slowly disappearing behind us. Once we got far enough out, the sails went up and we were legit sailing.

Mandrake was built in the 80s I think, and it was a cruiser at that time. Its sister ship actually won the America’s Cup back then at some point and I think that was the first time a non-US vessel took home the top prize.

Overall, it was a pretty low key first day. We sailed to a spot called the Hook Island Pass and moored there for the night. We watched the sunset and ate a pretty tasty dinner.

We had a few beers as it got dark and chatted with the skipper.

Everybody turned in because it was an early wake up call the next morning. Myself, Janina and the 2 German girls, Lisa and Tessa, decided to sleep on deck under the stars. I had to find a spot to put my bed sheet and pillow case. It’s not like there were a lot of cushioned spots available, so it didn’t really matter.

It was a relatively solid night in the ocean air. I was woken up by a few chilly winds and a quick sprinkle, but all in all it was nice.

Greg, the skipper, came above deck at a little after 5am to get the motor running and we were on our way shortly thereafter.

We pulled into Tongue Bay by 7am I want to say.  We were shuttled over to Whitsundays Island in two dingy trips and from there went up to Hill Inlet lookout. It was high tide, so we had the chance to see the before/after of the swirling sands a few hours later as the water went out. Quite a beautiful site.

Swirling Sands Pano

We found out that Whitehaven Beach is the most Instagram’d beach in the world. Insane. It’s silica sand is super white and fine. Some of the girls actually did a mini exfoliating session and refreshed some of their jewelry with it.

Since we were there so early, Janina and I were the first ones to set foot on the sand. We got an exclusive exploration session, had a photoshoot at a beached tree and a swim in a lagoon before another group showed up. Later when we left there were around 200 people filing in.

Back on the boat, we ate lunch and made our way to the next location. Turtle Bay was the spot where we were doing our first snorkel.

It took a minute to acclimate to solely mouth breathing, but after that it was pretty sick. Michael threw some food in the water from the dingy as the group was basically surrounded by all kinds of fish. There were a few big and gnarly looking ones that gave me a brief freak out but it was quite exhilarating in the end. There wasn’t much of a reef, but the fish activity made up for it. I could’ve floated there all day watching everything move around me.

At some point we had to re-board the ship and head on. Most of the group were already out of their stinger suits and snacking when Janina and I climbed the ladder. We kept ours half on since the next stop was another snorkel anyway. This was a clutch decision because as we were about to leave, two turtles showed up.

We jumped back in and got to witness them share a jellyfish for lunch. It was a pretty surreal experience. I was almost too mesmerized to mind the little particles that were starting to surface and could still sting. Luckily, I avoided them all.

The next spot wasn’t as good for the swimmy creatures, but there was a much more vibrant reef system that we got to check out. In some spots it was just a foot or two underneath us too, so that was a unique site to see. Again, I had to be dragged out of the water so Michael could get dinner started.

We set up for the night in Sunset Bay, which is a good spot for whale watching.

Sunset in Sunset Bay

Kidding. It was a good spot to catch an unobstructed sunset. We also got to see a mass exodus of bats fly overhead. If you’re wondering, there is a word for a grouping of bats similar to a murder of crows. It’s colony or cloud. I Google’d.

In any case, we ate some beef stew and cheesy mashed potatoes and then fell back into the beers and chatting routine.

There were only 3 people that elected to sleep on deck that night, so I got a yoga mat to put beneath me. I’m not sure it made much of a difference but it was a decent night. Still had a few cold winds, a bright moon and then a more substantial shower that forced me inside for the last 30 minutes of sleep.

We had breakfast and an uneventful morning snorkel before we were headed back to harbor.

The sails were up but there wasn’t much help from the wind. The cool thing was that Greg got out his fishing rod and dropped a line behind us as we cruised. Maybe 30 minutes later there was a fish on. He was thinking it was a mackerel but it ended up being a weird tuna which he said wasn’t very good for eating. He still landed it so we could check it out and then tossed it back. It was fun to watch. Fishing used to be a huge hobby for me in my younger days, so it kind of reignited that desire a bit. I’m going to look for a charter when I get up to Cairns and try to reel some in.

That was the last big thing that happened before we were docked back in Airlie. As we were pulling in, I wondered if it was too late for me to become a deckhand. It was a small and super chill group. Sailing, snorkeling, sunsets. I really like being on the water. Something to think about.

Anyway. the experience wasn’t over yet because there was an afterparty that evening at a bar where we got a few discounted items.

I repacked my bags and took a much needed shower before it was time to reconvene with the group.

The 5 German dudes had apparently been at the place since the early afternoon, Lisa and Tessa were an impressive bottomless pit for food and alcohol based on how fit they were, and Janina was going hard with a skydiving trip lined up for 4:30am. This is when I realized, if not for the first time then once more, that I’m an old traveler. At least for the way I’m traveling — hostel life, tour groups, buses, whatever is cheapest. I had 10 years on the majority of the group. Maybe everyone.

It probably wasn’t all that evident until the next morning. I had to get up and check out early to catch my next bus and I think I was still drunk. It was definitely a cloudy situation. I remember being at the second bar and standing in a group yelling over the music to talk to someone. Then the next minute searching the bar without finding anyone. These two instances could’ve been 2 minutes or 2 hours apart. Regardless, I know that’s when I left. Thankfully I made it back to the right place and heard my alarm.

I was sweating buckets by the time I got to the bus station and really hoping the AC worked on that piece because otherwise it was going to be a touch and go ride.

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The Birth of MegaPrime…and FIPPL

I had to hustle off the bus and into a safety briefing for the Fraser Island excursion because I was already late. I think the entire group was waiting on me.

There was a group of 26 people that got split into 3 cars.

Car #3
Aida (England)
Kirsty (Scotland)
Marvin (Germany)
Max (Germany)
Nathan (USA)
Sabine (Netherlands)
Sonja (Germany).

A good mix. We worked through a few rounds of paperwork and a horrendously old 12 minute long informational video. Then most people went their separate ways to sort out the alcohol and snacks they were going to bring.

  • Aido
  • MegaPrime 4×4
  • Down & Up the Dunes

All 26 of us reconvened around 6am the next morning to grab a quick breakfast and pack up our vehicles. That’s when we also met our guide, Aido, who endearingly referred to us as “critters” the entire trip.

Our SUVs were equipped with very necessary 4wd, an AUX cable so everybody could DJ, and a CB radio to communicate with the convoy.

Fraser Island is the world’s largest sand island and stretches over 120km. There’s very little infrastructure, so it’s mostly camping. To get around, you’re either driving on the beach or some incredibly sandy and bumpy paths.

Aida volunteered to take the first driving shift which seemed to be a fun one. She got to load us onto the ferry and do a bit of inland driving right off the bat because it was high tide. Ended up being a pretty good chunk of time which the group used to start getting to know each other.

Our first destination was Lake McKenzie. It was a beautiful, crystal clear natural lake. For my money, I think this was the best stop. We all took a dip in the water which was the perfect temperature. The sad part was that we didn’t get to spend much time there. But, on the bright side, this is where we settled on the name of our vehicle: MegaPrime. It was a mixture of Megatron and Optimus Prime (the best parts of the good and the bad) and also the new Amazon delivery option we invented. When you choose MegaPrime shipping, your item is delivered to you immediately upon payment. Let  us know how much you’re willing to buy that Service Mark for, Besos.

Lake McKenzie

Everybody was hungry and the next stop was lunch, so at least we were getting to satisfy that urge. On this leg of the drive, Car 2 started to develop a reputation of being the black sheep of the group. “You’re too far to the left Car 2!” It was a common refrain, followed by an abyss of silence on the CB and no adjustment of course.

In the deep sand, it was important to follow the existing tracks and avoid oversteering the car. There are plenty of people that have gotten bogged or flipped from fighting what the car naturally wanted to do. It was sort of comically tense for a minute but thankfully it all worked out.

We arrived at Central Station, the old logging hub, and set up a wrap buffet. Wraps. We got to know them very well as that was our lunch for all 3 days. I think everybody wrote that down on the feedback form.

In any case, the entire group got a chance to mingle and then go on a walk through the forest. There was a creek that was practically invisible because of how clear it was. The short loop track brought us back to the pavilion and then we headed out.

We made it to basecamp in the early afternoon where Aido gave us the lay of the land and a brief talk about snakes, spiders, and other animals we might encounter. Everybody claimed a tent, unpacked some gear, and gathered back up to crack the first beer.

The majority of us went for a stroll up a large sand dune to watch the sunset. There was initially some worry about clouds, but it ended up being a solid one.

Once we got back to camp, we fired up the BBQ and had community dinner. There were card games, lots of chatting and all the good stuff associated with group bonding. Several hours into the night, a small group went for a quick walk to the beach to look at the stars. The sky was brilliant without any light pollution and you could clearly make out the Milky Way. It ended up being a relatively tame evening by the time we were all zipped into our tents and ready for bed.

Personally, I got a pretty shit night of sleep. First off, it was smotheringly hot. There wasn’t really a way to ventilate the tent because you had to keep out the bugs. And that was the second reason I was partially on edge the whole evening. The spider talk was in the back of my mind and I found a weird cricket trying to share rent just before I turned off my headlamp for the night.

I was half conscious when our 7am wake up reggaeton started playing. It took the group around an hour and a half to have breakfast and get ready to depart for our day 2 activities.

It was the best day.

First we drove for a while on the beach to a spot called Champagne Pools. The rocks and waves created a pool like formation that you could swim in. Or you could stand out on the edge and attempt to get swept away by a rogue wave crashing on the rocks. Most people just chilled and watched the “swoosh” happen.

Next we went for a short walk up Indian Head to a cliff outlook with awesome panoramic views. We realized pretty quickly that it was a well-crafted green screen and Dolby 8.12 surround sound. I think that was the number. It still looked really amazing for being fake so we didn’t let it disrupt our experience.

Indian Head Views

Then we did a quick scoot back to camp to have lunch. Obviously wraps. Before we left on our next adventure, somebody found a huntsman in their tent. Aido picked it up and a few people had a run letting it crawl on them. Gnarly.

Once that excitement died down, we made our way to Eli Creek which was kind of a lazy river. I mean, it was really lazy in the fact that it couldn’t be bothered to be high enough to easily float down it on a tube. It also was pretty short and crowded. Still a chill situation with awesome weather.

Two groups took a quick plane ride around the island. It was a tiny little prop guy that took off and landed on the beach. By all accounts, it was worth the $60 price of admission.

On the way back to camp, we stopped at a shipwreck to scope out the rusted SS Maheno. It was nifty to see the skeleton of a ship so close up. I wonder how many years it’ll take to completely rust it away.

For dinner, it was a group effort to cut up a bunch of veggies and get a bolognese together.

As it was the last night, it was the go hard night. Miracles happened that night, some would say. They would mainly be talking about the creation of the world’s newest and carb-friendliest drinking game — PastaPong — and the league that supports it. CLICK HERE for a list of the official rules.

That’s what happens when you combine alcohol, a huge community table and a bunch of leftover penne.

The night digressed a bit from there. Although we did make up a game for cleaning up the errant pasta. There was never a chance it was going to last long enough to get it all though.

After a few other miscellaneous games, there was a good vibe at the campfire. Xavi, a guy from Barcelona, was playing some songs on his guitar, as is fitting, and everybody was digging the situation. At some point Aido came down and was crushing some tunes as well. There were some good jams and I think marshmallows? I didn’t catch that part.

Gradually, the group petered out. A small contingency went to find the party beach but got lost along the way and ended up stargazing again.

I’m not sure how many people were ready for the 7am reggaeton alarm, but there it was again.

It was our last few hours on the island. We packed up our stuff and said goodbye to the campsite.

MegaPrime was sadly infiltrated by two people that wanted their chance to drive. We later found out that they weren’t even supposed to because they didn’t attend the briefing. Our convoy also got stopped and breathalyzed by the island police at one point, which Aido said was like the third time that had happened to his tour in 6 years or something.

Anyway, our only destination for the day was Lake Garawongera. It wasn’t as picturesque as Lake McKenzie, but it was substantially less crowded and offered us a great place to have a swim and chill.

We had our final round of wraps and drove to the ferry to be shepherded back to the main land.

We returned to the hostel around 4pm. The consensus was to keep it going with some dinner and more beer. We played a few games around a nonexistent campfire and made one last pilgrimage to the beach to check out the stars.

The next morning was bittersweet in that everybody was leaving. It was nice how everybody got up and was intent on seeing each other off though.

I was the last man standing, waiting on a 7pm bus.

What an amazing experience. It’s hard for me to rate Fraser Island based on the island though. I think it was really the group of people that made it such a worthwhile trip.

My two hopes are that we keep our Party Pippies Puppies chat alive for a long time and that my Whitsundays sailing excursion can somehow compete with this outing.

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Surfers Paradise & Brisbane

Even though I was only about 70km away from Byron Bay, I was in a new state and time zone. Queensland.

I didn’t do much research on this spot but I was able to find an AirBnB that was like half the price of all the hostels over the New Years period.

I found out why when I got to the house. I was in a shared room, which was just two mattresses on the floor. The kitchen was a mess, there wasn’t really any fridge space, there were…5 Brazilians living there and there was only one bathroom. Plus the place was hot as shit without any air conditioning.

I was intending to relax at the place but the amenities weren’t really all that pleasant. There was decent internet which was a silver lining.

One cool thing about Surfers Paradise is that there was water everywhere. There were a ton of random islands and inlets weaving all over the place.

I met up with Karalee (20yo Canadian), a fellow traveler I connected with on a FB Backpacker group. She was dogsitting for a family friend in a sweet house a block away from the beach.

We walked around the town and boardwalk while eventually formulating a plan for New Years Eve. There was a small group of other travelers from the same FB group that were interested in getting together too.

Everybody assembled at pool for a BBQ and hangout. I was the elder statesmen of the crew, which felt kinda weird. The next in line was a 25yo guy from India, then a 23yo German guy, 21 and 20yo German girls and Karalee.

Really pleasant people though. The mood was light and friendly. We had good conversation, took a dip in the hot tub and grilled up some sausages. Nobody was hitting the booze hard or anything. I actually got a 6-pack of Goose Island IPA to have that familiar taste of home.

As it got closer to midnight, we changed venues to Karalee’s place so we were closer to the beach for midnight. We marveled at the dog and played the Australian version of Cards Against Humanity to kill some time. The youngest German girl crushed us all, even with the language barrier.

We got out onto the beach and prepared for midnight. We were in one of the first time zones to ring in the new year. There was a decent fireworks show over the ocean. After the show, the group shared a few lessons learned from 2018 and some goals for 2019.

NYE Fireworks

It ended up getting whittled down to just me and Karalee at some point. We posted up under a blanket on the beach and took a short nap before waking up for the sunrise. That was a somewhat popular idea as there were a decent amount of other people scattered along the beach. A few dudes even went for a chilly swim.

It was close to 7am by the time I got back to Casa de Brazil. All of the tenants seemed to be away so I zonked out for a while and pretty much did nothing until I had to catch a bus up to Brisbane the following day.

Brissy, Brissy, Brissy can’t you see?

It was time for another Workaway. The house was in a suburb about 40 minutes via public transport outside of downtown.

I was greeted by Lozz, the very gregarious host. There was also a pretty Colombian Workawayer, Carolina, that arrived a little bit before me.

Lozz walked us through the basic everyday tasks and was very loose and informal about any other stuff we had to do.

Our daily charge was to walk the dog, look after the chickens and tidy up the pool area. We had a few other random tasks here and there but nothing extreme.

Chili Tofu Tortillas

Carolina and I tackled pretty much everything together. We also cooked some super solid vegetarian meals, as that was everybody else’s dietary preference. The chili tofu tortillas we whipped up were pretty dope.

I was helping her with English and she was sharing miscellaneous Spanish phrases with me.

We all got on very well. It was one of those situations where everybody felt immediately comfortable and familiar with each other. Lozz was so appreciative and positive about everything we did. Her kids, Ryan and Bri (30s), were cut from the same cloth as well. Just awesome people; really bright and energetic.

As far as exploring went, there was a day where I went to a Koala Sanctuary. The koalas (which are large marsupials and not bears) usually sleep for 20 hours a day but I showed up at the right time because the staff was changing out the eucalyptus leaves which meant feeding time. They were up and moving around which was cool to see. Super cute little things munching away. I also got to pet a kangaroo finally. And I was stared down hard by an emu. Unnerving.

I bussed downtown to wander around the city center and a few of the good suburbs. I went to the Gallery of Modern Art which was neat. My kind of museum.

In the evening, I met up with Jonathan, the guy I did Abel Tasman with back in NZ, and we did a touch of brewery hopping.

A few days later, I did a quick 40 minute walk up to the Mount Coot-tha summit, right by the house. Then I walked a few other suburbs, explored a park, checked out the artificial beach in the city and gave a few other beers a try.

Brisbane has a few unique things to offer that some other Australian cities don’t. It might not be as hip as Melbourne, or have as much going on as Sydney, but it still seemed like a good spot to be.

I was actually a bit sad to be leaving. I totally could’ve kept with the vibe and the people for longer. 

Next up on the agenda was something tasty though. I was heading north to do a 3 day excursion on Fraser Island followed by a 2 day sailing trip around the Whitsundays.

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Central Coast & Byron Bay

I arrived in Gosford after an uneventful train ride and met my host, Peter, in the parking lot.

Rainbow After Hail Storm

He gave me a lift to his place which was about a 20 minute drive. Insane property and house. Basically a mansion. It was 3 levels and I’m not even sure how many bedrooms. This was the first Workaway I’d done with fellow Workawayers and we all had our own rooms if that says anything.

There was also an indoor and outdoor pool. Huge bonus.

José (18yo Mexican), Leena (20yo German), and Luca (21yo French) had all been there for a few days already and were doing garden work starting at 7am. I, on the other hand, would be working inside helping Peter make some videos for his personal development business. He was looking to gain more of a following on social media as well as drum up interest for his year-long 2019 program.

It was back in saddle for me. Did I remember how to make a video out of nothing? I was working with very little creative direction and assets. That was the norm for the job I left back in the States. It was an experiment to see if I could still apply myself and harness the old creative problem solving skills.

We started by having a conversation about exactly what he was looking for and how he viewed his business. I had to some of his insight in order to utilize it in the vids. Plus I had to bone up on the whole personal development scene. I didn’t know any of the intricacies.

After diving into some YouTube clips and digesting the info session, we began the production phase. He had a daily series of videos called “For Pete’s Sake” where he discussed a particular topic a person could address to make an easy change in their lives. Sometimes he would take on a more controversial subject to get a rise out of people. His stance on the “traditional Christmas” that people celebrate was unique and hilarious. Likely offensive for the average person as well.

We started small by making a simple one and getting the look down. Once that was dialed in we cranked out a few more so the rest of the week was stocked up. Then I began to tackle the promo/teaser for his Odyssey program. That was the big boy because it was supposed to be intriguing, enticing and inspirational. And we had almost no footage of past success stories or anything.

Over the course of the week, I fell into my old pattern of spending way too much time on something to make it perfect. I overworked the hell out of this joint. I completed the requisite amount of Workaway hours in like 2 days. I even edited another video for him on the train after I left. Needless to say, I have a weird relationship with video editing. It’s an awesome exercise in creativity but probably an unhealthy level of commitment.

Outside of all the time I spent staring at my computer and pressing buttons, it was a fun time. Peter and Mel were both interesting people who were very accommodating.

The group went on a field trip out to this park with the promise of being able to see and pet wild kangaroos. When we got there, there was a lady who’d blocked off access because she was their “caretaker” and thought they were being mistreated by the public who was visiting them. The thing was, it was at the entrance of a mental hospital, so we weren’t sure if she was legit or just a random patient. It was a really strange and unlucky situation. We took a brief walk in the bush and ended up seeing a ton hop off from afar. I really wanted to see a buff ass, gym rat ‘roo but I’d have to save that for another day.

That was the most socializing the group did. Dinners were usually pretty quiet and they all went to bed early since they were waking up to work.

Everybody left on the Friday before Christmas. I had a different arrangement since the editing was working out. Peter and Mel were comfortable letting me stay for a party they had planned.

They hosted a few of their friends and kids for a day and night. It ended up getting pretty wild because they were crushing beer and wine like water. There was beer pong (undefeated) with some random streaking, a gift exchange with some scandalous presents and a late night swim and hot tub sitch. All good fun. Super nice of them to let a relative stranger take part in that.

I waited too long to book my transportation to the next place so I ended up staying on Christmas Eve and helping with more videos. They were also totally cool giving me a lift to the train station on Christmas morning.

I spent almost all of Christmas Day in transit. It was a gnarly 10 hour train ride followed by an hour+ bus to Byron Bay.

The only interesting thing about the train ride was that two super drunk dudes rode it for like 4 hours before getting kicked off because they didn’t have tickets. They were hammered at 10am when they boarded too, so it was mildly impressive.

I was told how nice Byron Bay was from a few different travelers. The added bonus was that Stephany and her friends were there too. That was a partially motivating factor to go there in case any holiday loneliness set in.

I woke up at the ass crack on Boxing Day and took a 40 minute walk up to the Cape Byron Lighthouse to see the sunrise. I think it might be the most eastern point in Australia? At least in Byron Bay. It was a pretty solid morning. I also got to video chat with some of the fam as they were opening gifts.

Cape Byron Sunrise #1

The main draw to Byron Bay is all of the beautiful beaches. I was determined to darken my shade of whiteness so I hit the sand in the afternoon (Main Beach). The trick was to not get burnt. And that was actually quite difficult because the UV index was continually at a high of like 14 – “extreme risk.” I used an extreme amount of sunscreen so I was safe after day one.

On day two, I met up with the crew at a different beach (The Pass) and chilled out. The water was insanely blue and refreshing. Beaches, man. They’re pretty awesome apart from the sand. I’m not the only one that thinks it’s a nuisance, right?

We all got cleaned up at our various places after getting our fill of sun and reconvened at the girls’ AirBnB for dinner. They went HAAM on buying food when they first arrived so it was one of those meals with a collection of miscellaneous sides that was awesome. There was promise of going to a brewery after but everybody bailed from sun fatigue.

I went back to the hostel and met up with one of my roommates. Philip was from Sweden and he was hanging out with a few guys who lived in the Netherlands. We all went out to a bar that had live music for a beer. It turned into several.

We changed venues to a place called Woody’s, a pseudo-club. One of the dudes was the most friendly drunk ever. Pretty sure he introduced himself to everybody in the establishment. Toward the end of the night he was going around and collecting half-empty drinks. Bold move. He has herpes now but he saved a decent amount on alcohol. Worthwhile trade off?

In the morning, I met the group at their spot again. We had a pretty solid breakfast and then went to yet another beach (Little Wategos). It was a somewhat secluded spot that also had a nice shady area for me to take refuge in after I felt the burn coming on. The sun variety, not the herp. I didn’t share any of the foraged drinks.

  • The Pass Beach
  • Surfers Going In
  • Little Wategos

It was everybody’s last night in Byron, so we planned to go to the brewery for real and then go from there. After a sunset beverage, they called an audible. I couldn’t take a two-day brewery tease with no payoff so I split from them and agreed to meet up later. I rendezvoused with Philip and we started walking.

We were almost there when some people heading the opposite direction told us they were at capacity and not letting anybody else in. Dammit.

We ended up going to a converted railway station. It was a super popular spot with a large outdoor area. They also had music on and the band was crushing it. They did pretty exceptional covers of Bohemian Rhapsody and Hey Jude.

Once the band was done, we met everyone at a bar called the Sticky Wicket where there was also live music. It was all relatively well behaved until things moved upstairs to the dance floor. The night seemed to end in a quick blur from there. We closed the place down and I said a brief and segmented goodbye to all of the lovely people I’d hung out with there and in Sydney. Then I went back and got terrible sleep in my sauna of a dorm room.

In the morning. I repacked my bag and hopped on a shuttle bounds for Surfers Paradise. This is where I would spend New Year’s Eve.

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Sydney Pt. 2

Even though the trip to Blue Mountains was a long and draining day, I was up at 6:30am the following morning. Not just because the heat and city noise in my room was next level, but because I was headed to watch a soccer game.

Tottenham were playing an important Champions League match away to Barcelona and the 7am kickoff time was manageable. Plus, it gave me the opportunity to watch it with the local supporters group. And my hostel’s internet was dog shit so I wouldn’t be able to stream it or pull up a replay later.

The Sydney OzSpurs met at a hotel (bar) in walking distance, so that was convenient. There was a turnout of probably 25 people. There were having projection issues for the first 5-10 minutes so a few people had pulled it up on their phones.

It got sorted out and we all watched anxiously as it took to the 85th minute for our boys to draw level and get the result they needed to advance to the next stage of the competition. It was actually a super fun moment when we scored. The place went nuts and I pumped my fist so hard my bracelet flew off (it was later found). That meant everybody was leaving happy, to start their days at 9am.

I bumbled around town for a little bit. Nabbed some internet from a cafe and had a small bite to eat. I went back to the hostel around noon and ended up taking a critical 4 hour nap. It felt like work to rouse myself from the dead.

Once I was alive again, I went to check out the architecture of the Queen Victoria Building and The Strand Arcade. Both were nice looking indoor malls.

Then I walked down to the Circular Quay to scope the Opera House at night. I had a good time finding different setups and learning some new capabilities of my camera.

In the morning, I checked out of my hostel and transferred all of my stuff to Stephany’s place in Bondi. Maria returned home, so Steph was nice enough to let me crash on the couch.

After a lazy afternoon, we caught a bus down to the beach and she showed me some cool spots. We hopped on some rocks to a lookout called Ben Buckler, then walked North Bondi to Dudley Page Reserve, which had a great view of downtown Sydney.

Our intention was to watch the sunset there. Instead, we were watching a gnarly lightning storm over the skyline. Some guy set up a full news-style camera next to us. That should’ve been a hint. It seemed like the clouds were moving closer to us, but not at an alarming rate. I had just stopped filming myself when lightning struck incredibly close to us. I could feel a small electric pulse from my camera. The dude next to us “beat feet like a fuckin track star.”

It was for sure the closest I’ve been to being struck by lighting. We immediately headed for the bus and hoped it would be there before the downpour came.

Lightning Strikes at Dudley Page #1

Thankfully, we were still dry when we got scooped up. By the time we got dropped off, though, the rain was comin on down. We had to wait under an awning for 10 minutes before it was tolerable enough to brave. Even then, we had to wade through an ankle deep river in the street.

This started a trend of intense evening rain after getting off the bus.

The next morning, Steph and I put on our walking shoes. We were set to do a coastal walk from Watson’s Bay back to Bondi with a few detours here and there.

Diamond Bay Reserve Gateway

It was a warm day. We were getting some good views and an obvious sweat on. A few kms in, we reached a sweet bluff and cove called Diamond Bay Reserve. She took me down a pseudo-secret path that led to this gateway to death.

I took out the drone and was getting some tasty footage. I was starting to get good at 3 part simultaneous movement.

Then I crashed it on some rocks close to the water. Oops.

We followed its position on the map and Stephany spotted the lights. It was in a dangerously inviting spot. There was a few ropes and a ladder that sort of led down to where it was. But it was way too unsafe to venture down there without a harness or any sort of safety equipment. Stephany was game to climb, but I didn’t feel good about that optjon. As much as I wanted it back, even if it was damaged, it was too risky.

I hopped on a few Sydney forums to see if I could get in contact with somebody that had done the climb before without any luck. We had to leave it behind. Brutal. A very costly mistake. So many thoughts in hindsight.

An hour later when we got off the bus near her apartment, it started raining heavily yet again. That along with waves crashing on the rocks would’ve claimed the electronics anyway. Still sucks. A repair is cheaper than a full re-buy. Also, the sweet footage.

But that was that. The only way to make it better was to have a beer.

The solution to that was Marta’s office Christmas party. Coincidentally it was in a WeWork space, which is the company my brother works for.

The event was catered and there was booze galore. Draft beer FTW.

All of Stephany’s friends from the pool party were there. I also met a few other people throughout the evening. Potentially the most miraculous thing is that I lost at tic tac toe like 3 times. Not even sure how that happens. There was some rough karaoke to take my mind off of it.

Once it wound down, the group went to a place called Retro where there was dancing. I saw the real-life version of that Dane Cook joke about girls putting their purses in the middle of the floor and dancing around them. 

After coming out of the bathroom, I got approached by a random dude. He was trying to sell me hard on photographing his friend’s wedding on some island in a few months. I kept trying to tell him I was amateur at best and couldn’t even figure out how he knew I had a camera to begin with.

Eventually, it came time to eat a late night kebab and catch a bus back.

The next day Stephany was working a concert. I went back to the scene of the crime to see if 1) drone baby had been swept into the sea or 2) people were out for their Saturday afternoon climb and could help a brother out. The answer was ‘no’ to both scenarios. Still didn’t have a solution of how to get it back so I said a fond farewell.

Apart from arranging my next Workaway, that was pretty much my entire day. Cool.

On Sunday, we hung out for a little bit by the pool. Then we went to another person’s place to have a few bevs and snacks on the way to see “Christmas Carols” on Coogee Beach. Unexpectedly, it was a full on concert with a ton of different acts and a million people. They did have a pretty good firework show at the end before everyone dispersed.

Since it was my last night, Steph busted out some solid Japanese whisky and we debriefed on my time in Sydney.

Her hospitality and guidance around the city was an obvious highlight. The lowlight was clear. Tried not to dwell on it. We had a nice chat and then I repacked my bag as is necessary every few days.

I got up the next morning to catch several modes of public transportation up to the Central Coast.

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Sydney Pt. 1

Sydney is not the capitol of Australia FYI. From what I heard, the rivalry between Melbourne and Sydney led to a compromise which saw Canberra receive the honors. I thought that was an interesting tidbit.

My bus had a quick pit stop in Canberra on the way to Sydney but I can’t say I saw much of it.

We arrived in Sydney around 930pm. The Central Station stop was right across the street from my hostel. Clutch. Sydney’s CBD was much more spread out than Melbourne’s but being by this hub was perfect.

I checked into my hostel, Wake Up!, and had a look around. It was a relatively new place with modern amenities. It had good reviews and reflected that in the cost.

I was in an 8-bed dorm. The first night I was woken up to a guy pissing on the floor at 6am. The last time I experienced something like that was in college. Bros. Ugh. My bag was so close to the danger area too. The dude checked out in a cloud of shame the next morning. Or he was just moving on anyway, but I’ll pretend.

A big benefit was that the hostel offered a free walking tour so I hopped on that. It was a big group and the tour took around 4 hours. I enjoyed the walking aspect and the places we stopped, but it was less informative than I thought it would be. Either way, it was a good intro to the city.

It was Friday and the adjoining bar was offering free drinks to hostel guests, so I capitalized on that. It seemed like watered down Goon (Australia’s Franzia). In any event, there was a limited amount so bottoms went up.

That led to a few hours of dancing. There was a DJ that played live saxophone along with a few songs. I hadn’t experienced that before. It made the set marginally more interesting.

The next morning there was another group walk to the Glebe Markets. At first I was underwhelmed by the amount of thrift clothing tents but then I found my jam. It was a guy making one-of-a-kind items from up-cycled materials. There were some fresh hats. Two for $50 which really wasn’t bad but I didn’t neeeeeeeed it. I did a few more laps around the market to see if it continued calling to me. I popped my head in a few more times but couldn’t pull the trigger.

I still want one.

I never got a card and don’t know what the shop was even called. Amateur hour. I did overhear the guy saying he was working on getting his website and Instagram accounts up and running. Damn. I may never find them again.

Regardless, I had somewhere to be that afternoon anyway. There was a pool party going down in Bondi. I was connected to this sitch through a friend of a friend (thanks, Makaye!). Stephany used to live in Richmond but has resided in Sydney for the last 2 years. She’d been advising me on cool shit to do and also invited me to hang out with her and her friends. One of whom, Maria, was in town from the US and formally lived in Richmond as well.

Pool. Party.

*Photo Courtesy of Maria

I was mad excited to chill at a pool with a group of people my age who were residents of the place. There was a BBQ, there was beer, there was sun and everybody was really nice to talk to. It was also an informal congratulatory party for Jules and Denise getting engaged.

I later ended up going back to their place to borrow some clothes from Jules to go out. He also took me on an impromptu tasting of some whiskeys and piscos. Incredibly fun and passionate people.

We rejoined the rest of the crew at a hoity-toity cocktail bar called Mrs. Sippy’s. Everybody there was paying someone to bleach their teeth and their assholes. Separate people, probably.

It wasn’t really that bad. But it kinda was. Also, the only piece of my outfit that belonged to me was my underwear. I’d like to think that played no part in my assessment of this bar.

Eventually, we moved to the Coogee Bay Hotel & Bar. As an aside, “hotels” are largely just bars. I don’t think they let drunk patrons sleep there, or anyone for that matter. I don’t know. Maybe they were all hotels during the Gold Rush but then converted to restaurant/bars at a certain point.

Either way, this place was massive. It had several bars, a live band with a dance floor, and a grill with some delicious looking sausages.

There was a moment where two of Stephany’s friends dragged me on the dance floor and told me that I had to enjoy this song because it was the most Australian song ever written. I have no idea what that song was. I recall it being relatively dad-rocky, but have no clue beyond that.

Around 3am, I decided it was time to head back. I got a bus card and rode that puppy home.

The following day was a Santa-themed pub crawl around Manly Beach. I caught the ferry out of the city in the early afternoon. On Sundays, it only costs $2.50 for unlimited public transportation which was sick. Nice to get that perspective of Sydney for so cheap.

Sydney from the Water

Myself, Stephany, Maria and Marta lounged in the sand for a bit before donning our Santa gear. The girls all looked great and I looked ridiculous (on purpose). I was wearing a scandalous apron. Notice the strategically placed mistletoe.

The crawl began. Apparently it had been off to the races for a while. At the first bar we went to, which seemed completely chill, a chick vomited through her hand onto the floor. It was 2:15pm at best. Giddyup. The second place had music blasting and a saucy dance party happening insane. The line outside, however, which we were in, came to a stand still right when it was getting good (video doesn’t do it justice).

We went to another hotel (bar) and chilled on the balcony for a few beers and snacks before catching the ferry back to downtown. Stephany took Maria and I to a semi-classy rooftop spot with a solid view of the Opera House.

In case you were wondering, I was still wearing the apron. Two people were kind enough to mime some extremely sexual actions while I ordered my drink. It was an experience.

Light Show at St. Mary’s Cathedral

We ended the night by watching a holiday light show displayed on St. Mary’s Cathedral. It was a story for children about making friends or something. The voice actor had to do some weird singing and “meowing.” Nonetheless, a solid cap to the evening.

The following day I wandered around the city some more. I retraced a few of the walking tour steps to spend more time at a few places and checked out some carnivorous plants. Then I met up with Stephany and Maria to head to the fish market. It was almost closed, but we were able to snag a sushi donut for $10, which I’m told is a steal. I wasn’t familiar with the concept before. To clarify, it’s various types of sushi in the shape of a donut. There is no actual dough. The construction and taste were quite fantastic. I’d highly recommend if you’re ever in the area.

  • ANZAC Memorial
  • The Calyx #2
  • Sydney Fish Market

Next, we took a train over to Newtown, an artsy suburb, to walk around. That meant finding a brewery and getting a flight. I was in my element. The beer was aight. We went to yet another hotel and I got a local Strong Ale. Again, deece/sub-deece.

We made a plan to venture out to Blue Mountains in the morning, so we went back to our corners to rest up.

It was an early morning rendezvous at Central Station to catch a train to Katoomba. We had visions of doing a 3 hour trek around the Three Sisters before doing a 3 hour canyon walk. The guy at the information desk essentially laughed at us because there just wasn’t enough time in the day to complete it all.

Three Sisters

Instead, we hit the lookout and also walked down to touch the Three Sisters. Then we went on some crazy track down the Furber Steps. Aptly named because there were so many steps.

Along the way, we heard a sonar-like ding, echolocation noise happening that was really bizarre. Turned out to be Bell Miners (birds), even though we couldn’t see them.

At a junction on the trail, we came to one of the strangest signs I’ve ever seen. There were two options that would both take 45 minutes — one was “medium” and the other “moderate.”

Very curious if there will be a clear consensus on this question.

Anyway, we chose the moderate path and continued on. I was leading the group and we walked through a section that was very much in the bush. I kept thinking that I was going to either get webbed and bitten by a spider or step on a snake. Thankfully none of those things occurred. We found a cozy picnic table under a canopy and had lunch before furiously climbing a shit ton of steps.

In the town of Leura, we had a victory drink and then boarded a train back to Sydney.

As Stephany napped, Maria and I had a solid conversation about spirituality, death and legacy.

I’m abusing polls now for some reason.

I walked back to my hostel as they caught their connecting train back to Steph’s flat. It was nice to do a decent walk in Australia. I’d been missing that since leaving New Zealand.

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First Impressions of Oz

It’s big. It’s hot. There are lots of people.

I flew into Melbourne and took the bus from the airport to the CBD. My hostel was in the thick of things — Flinders Street. I walked 1km to get there and was embarrassingly sweaty when I got to reception. It was 10am.

I dropped my bags off and looked for a quiet corner where I could lounge for a bit. I got less than 2 hours of sleep the previous night and didn’t sleep much on the plane.

After struggling with internet connectivity and keeping my eyes open, I found the TV lounge. An oasis. There were 3 levels of bean bag type chairs. Booyah. I sat down and put Horrible Bosses on. That movie is hilarious so, again, I didn’t sleep much. Then somebody came in and started No Country for Old Men.

By the time the movie marathon was done, I was able to check in. Thankfully, I drew a bottom bunk. It was in an 18 bed dorm. I honestly didn’t know you could fit that many beds in one room. It was real. And actually not that bad.

Partially because like 12 of those 18 people were attractive females. Something I noticed about Melbourne as a whole. So many attractive people. A combination of the amount of people and Melbourne being a popular destination for backpackers I guess. Fine by me.

I got my SIM card sorted out and nabbed some groceries. By the time I was situated, I was ready for a goodnight’s sleep.

I went down in the morning and was stoked to remember that this place had free pancakes, cereal and toast. So clutch. They also had free rice and pasta available any time. It was a real coup in the complimentary food department.

There’s this company that does free walking tours of the city each day. Choice. I missed the departure from the hostel but was able to rendezvous with them before it actually began. There was probably around 20 people or so in attendance. A surprising turnout.

Walks 101 – Free Melbourne Walking Tour

Our guide, Nicole, took us through the cozy laneways, showing us the cool shops and street art. We went past the art gallery, Federation Square, the train station (where the phrase “meet you under the clocks” became popular), and several other arcades/malls.

Under the Clocks at Flinders Street Station

Interesting tidbit: Melbourne was originally called “Batmania” after its founder. We also learned about the Ned Kelly gang who were Robin Hood-esque. I forget why that story was so influential. It was a 4 hour tour, so there was a lot of information being thrown about.

Free Tram Zone Around the CBD

The tour disbanded and I did a lot more wandering on my way back. There was a free team zone that covered about a square kilometer of the CBD which made it easy to get around.

I relaxed for a bit when I got back to the hostel and made a decent dinner. Yes, it involved pasta. This was actually the first time I’d made pasta and sauce even though everybody pegs that as the quintessential backpackers meal.

I decided to take the advice of our tour guide and go to the Shrine of Remembrance to try and catch the sunset over the skyline of the city. It was a 20 minute walk from the hostel and a pretty nice vantage point. There was a tower I could’ve gone up but that junk cost money.

  • Sunset Over the Skyline
  • Shrine of Remembrance
  • Night Colors at the Shrine

The following day was somewhat lazy. I obviously capitalized on free pancakes. From there I went to a cafe and worked on some photos.

In the early afternoon, I did a hidden bar crawl with the same company that did the walking tour.

It was an interesting group. Two 20 year olds that barely knew what drinking was, a British couple that mostly kept to themselves, a dude from Minnesota, a miscellaneous Chilean and a chick who was working in New Zealand but originally from Charlottesville (an hour’s drive east from my house). Classic travel encounter.

To my relative disappointment, we weren’t really “uncovering hidden laneways bars” as the name of the crawl suggested. There weren’t any secret knocks or passwords to enter. The first stop was right off a main drag. That being said, the places did have a sweet divey feel.

First, we went to a whisky place where I ordered a Boilermaker. It’s the same as an RVA Happy Meal. For those who still don’t follow: it’s a shot and a beer. I chose the Australian variety, because when in Australia…

Apparently whisky and craft beer are really starting to catch on but there isn’t much supply so it’s all expensive. I think the bartender said Jack Daniel’s produces in 11 seconds what the entire Australian industry produces in a year. Yowzers.

Then we went to a converted shipping container (beer bar), a basement spot (cocktails) and an old brothel rooftop (cocktails).

Now that I’ve written that out, I suppose the places were decently unique.

  • Boilermaker
  • Whitehart Bar
  • Beneath Driver Lane
  • Dark & Stormy

A few people elected to go to another area of the city and explore. It was time for my free pasta fill up though. I did have a night cap at the downstairs bar with a few people before calling it a night.

The next day, I checked out the National Galley of Victoria and the ACMI museum, which is an exhibit dedicated to moving images. I enjoyed Federation Square once more and walked along the Yarra River for a bit.

NGV #3

I decided I would create my own informal rooftop bar crawl that evening. I was attempting to find another good spot to catch the sunset.

Unfortunately, I set out too late and my first selection was only a 3-story roof that was dwarfed by high rises. It was still a really cozy spot. I had a quick beer and moved on.

The following place was really close by but I was having trouble finding it for some reason. I noticed two ladies having the same issue so I joined forces with them and we immediately located the door because it was right in front of us.

We rode the elevator together and chatted a bit. Then we were going to part ways once we got inside but they invited me to hang out with them. Sweet. They were also babes.

We had a really awesome chat. One was an American living in Melbourne and one was from Melbourne living in Seattle. Odd things. They were super nice and offered me a place to stay if ever I was in their cities again. They also bought my beers which was incredible.

I went to another hip spot where I had the opposite experience of talking to no one. Thems the breaks.

I got up early the next morning to catch a bus tour along the Great Ocean Rd. There were probably about 18 of us total. It was a full day thing and I was looking forward to seeing some sites.

First, we pulled over at the official sign marking the starting point. I mean, ok. It was a sign with predictable words on it. Nothing crazy. There were some decent views on the drive to our next stop. Again, somewhat similar to the California PCH, but with bluer water.

Next was a brief stop to interact with some wildlife. And it wasn’t really by choice. There were two types of parrots that were very keen to land on peoples’ heads and chill for a minute. There was also one koala sleeping way up in a tree. I saw its furry bum.

From there, we had a break for lunch in Apollo Bay. There wasn’t much view of the bay from where we were though. I chatted with a Dane, a German and a Brit.

Mait Flats

Shortly after that, we did a brief nature walk in Mait Flats. There were some large trees and a slight concern about a poisonous black slug but I didn’t come across any. Seemed like kind of a pointless stop.

The next 3 were the main attractions anyway. There was two large rock formations in the ocean named Gog and Magog. I took the Gibson Steps to get a view from the beach as well.

Then there was the 12 Apostles, which are also rock structures in the ocean. It was a straight zoo of people though. By far the most touristy situation I’ve been in since leaving home. Kind of undesirable.

Finally, we were given just under an hour to explore Razorback, Shipwreck, Loch and Gorige. I hustled to see all of them cuz I was missing a good walk. I saved the best for last because I was able to actually dip my feet in the water. It felt nice.

  • Gog and Magog
  • 12 Apostles
  • Loch and Gorge

Overall, that was the highlight of the day. I was disappointed in all of the stops being insanely crowded with people. I wasn’t expecting that so it threw me off.

We had roughly a 3 hour drive back to Melbourne. The upside was that we got dropped off at the Queen Victoria Market, which just so happened to have a night market going on.

Queen Victoria Night Market

It was a large tent with a ton of food and craft vendors, bustling with people. The smells and styles were cool to take in. The city backdrop was quite nice as well.

I captured a few of the night scenes on my way back to the hostel. Then I packed up my stuff.

In the morning I checked out and boarded a 12 hour Greyhound to Sydney.