Two Days Left to Go

Two days left, and I must say, I'm SO ready to be home.

Thursday - we MapQuested the dealership from which we bought our car... Started driving, got somewhat lost, but passed tons of other dealerships so we decided to continue on that road. We wanted to find a self-car wash but couldn't find one, so we stopped at a full service one. We sat in the little room waiting for our car to be finished and when we looked out the window, noticed our car was out and there were people under the hood... Well, since we hadn't ordered any cleaning under the bonnet, we decided to go out and see if there was a problem... Actually, there was a problem. The car we drove in about 20 minutes ago now wouldn't start... The manager explained that this was common with this model of VW and we just had to wait for it to dry out... Three hours - and a couple mugs of free cappuccino - later, they changed the broken coil (free of charge to us), we paid $45 for the wash (the wax and detail were free), and we were on our way with our very shiny car. The dealer across the street came over and offered us $1,500 for it, but since that was the first offer, we decided to get a second opinion... After driving around for 3 more hours and seeing every dealership close before our eyes, we were regretting our decision to look further... We were feeling doomed for the day and decided to drive back to the hostel... We saw one dealership that was open, accidentally passed it, spent 15 minutes trying to turn around, got lost, and saw another dealership that was about to close... We decided to check with the guy anyway - just in case... After a look behind the wheel, in the boot, and under the bonnet... He said he'd give us $1100 for it... Brandon, being the stud he is, got him up to $1,500. We signed the paperwork and skipped happily down the street toward the train station...

Friday was dreary... It rained all day and we sat in the hostel and watched movies. We went out a few times in search of food. We ate sausage rolls and boxtys for brekky and then Thai food for a late lunch. We skipped dinner. I read my new Paulo Cohelo book and we went to bed early.

Yesterday was also dreary... We are lucky enough to witness the hardest spring rains in over a century. Yay... Same drill as Friday, but we decided to go out last night. We bought a couple of jugs of Carlton Draught ($32) and copped our first buzz in weeks. Yay.

We woke up this morning, hungover in our room that smells like mould and stinky feet... Walked outside and it was SUNNY! The sunshine made everything much better for me. We walked down the street farther than usual and went to the cafe from which B bought some coffee the first time we were here. I had remembered the good looking breakfast and wanted to go back for a try... There were no open tables when we got there, so we sat with a couple of ladies at a table outside and ordered our breakfast... I ordered the big breakfast, complete with sausage, bacon (which is like our ham), roasted tomatoes, mushrooms, fried cheese, fried eggs, and toast. B got a salmon omelet, and we both got cappuccinos. It was completely worth the $40 we paid for it all. That was the best brekky I've had in a long time.

Again, I'll say it... One more day left after today, and I AM READY TO BE HOOOOME! ...

We made it!

After a day of driving to Sydney and a full morning of being lost just outside of Sydney with seemingly no way in... We asked a guy in the car next to us for directions and we finally made it!

We have checked into our hostel - Billabong Gardens - in Newtown and cleaned out our car - Sir Alfred Blue. Tomorrow, we're going to wash it and try to sell it back to the dealership from which we bought it. Wish us luck...

... I guess that's really all I have to say for now; I just wanted to take advantage of the FREE Internet! WOOHOO

Gold, Jerry.

We finally made it to paradise! Surfer's Paradise that is! It's warm and sunny and on the Gold Coast. YAY! Last night we went to a club called The Bedroom. It is a place where hot, scantily clad women abound. The music is bumpin and the strobe lights are aplenty. We got in free with our hostel and the first drink was on the house. This is the first time we've been out in several weeks and it was very entertaining. We also have a six-share dorm room to ourselves last night. Things are looking up. :)

Yesterday, we did a bus tour of Brisbane. Such an awesome city! It's built on the Brisbane River and is so modern and clean. We got off the hop-on, hop-off bus at the Botanic Garden just in time to catch a free, hour tour by a volunteer. We were lucky enough to have two volunteers and only three tourists (including me and B). We saw the tropical rainforest, the bonsai gardens, the Japanese Gardens, the fern area, and the herb garden. We saw plants, trees, lizards, flowers. We tasted bright, pink honey suckle flowers, smelled a unique variety of magnolia tree, and tasted herbs. It's so much more fun to be lead around by someone who knows what they're talking about - especially when it's FREE! Yay! We also went to the beautiful state library! A very modern building with open balconies on all four floors that look out onto the ground. (It's hard to explain, but just trust me that it's really cool.) Included in the bus tour was access to the CityCat - the water bus that goes all up and down the river. Very, very cool! We got on around 5:00 and rode up to the mouth of the river. There were huge, expensive houses and tall, glass buildings all along both sides. We stood out on the bow and breathed in the cool air and took some great pix. By the time the boat turned around, it was starting to get dusky, so as we came back to the city, the sky was dark and the buildings and bridges were brightly lit up. Amazing!

The day before that was all driving... but I did buy some material and have been hand sewing a purse. It's purple and brown and stripy. I like it... The reason we were driving all day was because we went to the Carnarvon National Park area. We took a long side trip to hike the trail, but when we got there, it rained on us all night and the trail was too muddy, and the weather too cold to be an enjoyable trip... So we drove to the middle of no where and camped for $34 for pretty much nothing...

The day before that, we CAMPED UNDER A BRIDGE in Emerald, Australia... Yes folks, a new height to our travels... We are officially very homeless. :) After we woke up from the dogs "next door" barking... we drove out to Sapphire and did some fossicking (digging for precious stones)... The bloke at the shop was, in our minds, the perfect mold of an Aussie - really friendly, wearing a big hat, short shorts, hiking boots and a collared shirt. He was an older, less commercial version of Steve Irwin. I really wish I had of taken a picture of him! After looking aimlessly for about an hour, the dude showed us how it was done. He came out and got on all fours and found a little zircon in about 30 seconds. After that, we had a better idea of what we were looking for, so we found several minuscule zircons and one tiny sapphire. Score!

Birds

Birds. Birds. BIRDS!

Imagine it. 6 a.m. Birds! All I hear is BIRDS! Squacking. Chirpity Chirping. Bleeting. Whiperwhilling. Tweeting. Twittering. Chattering. Thousands of them. Ringing in my ears. Can't sleep. I just want to SLEEEP! It's 6 a.m. for God's sake! QUIT SQUACKING! ... A momentary lul. Then they begin again. Louder this time! Larakeets. Gulls. Curlews. Brahmney Kites. Boobie Birds. Albatross. Pipers. Honey Eaters. Wedgetailed Eagles. Turnes. Cockatoos. Loud. soft. fast. slow. ALL-AT-THE-SAME-TIME! AHHHHH!!! WHY!??

We experienced our best Australian drive yet! The road from Cairns to the Daintree Forest was amazing! We curved along the ocean the whole way to the Daintree. There, we arrived just in time for a croc tour! YAY. We got a small electric boat, which we were assured would get us very close to the edge of the water - and to the crocodiles that may be lurking there... or sunbathing as it were. The boat was small - there was room for me and B, a family of four, two dudes from southern Australia and our Dundee-hat-wearing guide. We putted up the very calm waters, straight to our first croc... The guide knew exactly where it was from the last tour he took out... So he pulled right up, really closely in my opinion... eek! Would he come and snatch one of the little ones out and eat her up right before our eyes? ... It turnes out that that would be entirely too much effort. The six-foot lizard just layed there on the shore, bathing in the sun. He lazily opened his eyes once or twice to see what was disturbing his peace... We sat there for several minutes and snapped pictures while the guide told us some facts about crocs and about the Daintree... Apparently, crocs don't eat as much as the Discovery Channel would have us believe. They are satisfied with about a chicken a week, and they can go six months to a year without eating anything at all... Pretty crazy. Also, crocs haven't changed at all in the 140 million years the Daintree (also unchanged) has been there. They are perfect and need no evolutionary tweaks... So on we went in the other direction... the rainforest and Dividing Range (mountains) all around us. Beautiful. We saw a tiny, baby croc, which was no longer than the palm of your hand. He was sitting on a small branch, just over the river, also sun bathing. It was surprising how small those things are when they are born! He was, according to the guide, six months old. ... cool! Other life we saw, included lizards, snakes, birds, flowers, trees, etc. ... Cool.

We got back to the shore, said our goodbyes, ate some lunch, and listened to all the fun things we could do in the area. We decided to drive to the Daintree National Forest area, which is only accessible by ferry. It was very smooth "sailing" across the river, and we drove up the coast, through the very thick rainforest to our first lookout. From there, you could see the ocean, several small islands, and Cape Tribulation (our ultimate destination). Twas very beautiful, and foggy - perfect for a rainforest, we thought. We continued to drive along the small winding roads, with trees along both sides and arching over the top of the road. We saw clear, rocky creeks running under the road at several places. It was very magical, with all the fog and drizzel. We made it up to Cape Trib and walked around, took lots of pics and then found a camp site. We set up and then had dinner - pizza and a jug (a little smaller than a pitcher) of beer - at the cafe by the campsite. Twas our first jug here. It was nice to spoil ourselves a bit. It rained all night long, but our tent is a good one so we stayed dry.

We woke up early and started back down south, to Cairns. There, we stayed in the same hostel as before, ate at the same "free" restaurant. I had sea bass and B had chicken parm - all for $10. The next morning, we showered and checked out (showers are so wonderful and sometimes rare, so I have to point them out... LOL)... We were lucky, as the Cairns festival was going on this weekend. We saw two sets of Aboriginal dancers, lots of Aboriginal artwork, and ate some good, Aussie food - Kangaroo burger with tomato paste - it was soooo good! Yay!! After our wonderful day of good food and culture, we continued our drive south. We bought some oil for our car - for $13 dollars!! And stayed the night at a rest stop just past Townsville.

Yesterday, we came back to Airlie Beach - which has been our favorite place. It's a small town, with one main road, and beautiful ocean along the whole stretch. We have purchased several good books from a little used book store, with prices that are even more expensive than new ones would be in the states - APPRECIATE where you live, seriously! The books have kept us from going crazy, and spending all of our money! It's a little overcast and muggy today, but it is beautiful, and the breeze is cool. Yay for Airlie!! Today is a good one.

:)

We finally made it to Cairns! WOOT.

Yesterday morning, we got up at 7:30, packed our bags and walked down to the bus station for our daylong adventure. We were taken to the marina by the most beautiful aqua water I have ever seen. We - along with the other 33 passengers - were given a safety briefing and then led to our boat - the "Big Fury" - by a long haired 20-something Aussie named Cam. We had an hour-long boat ride out to the snorkeling bay where we were fitted with masks and fins (not to be confused with "flippers," which are dolphins :) ...), and then we jumped into the beautiful AND FREEZING water. We swam away from the boat and to the reef to see the brightly colored coral and fish. There were all shapes and sizes of both - green, yellow, purple, red, black. We saw a really huge clam, which didn't look like a clam at all. It was grown into the reef and was about the size of a basketball. If I hadn't been told it was a clam, I would have thought it was some kind of alien being. :) Very cool! After an hour, we swam back to the boat and had a cruise around the islands. After another hour, we hit the beautiful white sands of Whitehaven Beach. Apparently, before it was declared a state park, they dug up several tons of it to make the Hubble Telescope... We jumped out and played around in the water for a few minutes before being called to lunch of sandwiches, potato salad, pasta salad, prawns, fruits, etc. It was good and we were hungry! After a little more play, we headed back to Airlie Beach. We walked along the ocean back to our car, then we snuck a shower at the hostel we had already checked out of and hit the road. It was dark by the time we set out, but we drove and drove and listened to our iPod thru the tinny car speakers. Around 10:30, we found a rest stop that clearly said no camping allowed, and pitched our tent between some camper vans, very near other tents that were illegally set up. (We're so rebellious...)

This morning, we woke up bright and early and got back on the road. We arrived at Cairns around 1:30 and found a hostel near the ocean. It is much warmer in Cairns, as everyone said it would be. YAY! So we walked up the street to the lagoona and had a brisk swim, then laid out in the warm sun for about an hour. ahhhhh... After that, we walked around to the many tourist shops and wasted some time until the Woolshed opened at 5:00. The hostel we're staying at offers a free meal here - or you can upgrade to the regular menu for a few dollars more. We totally upgraded! B had a steak dinner and I had a Thai green curry and chocolate cake. YUM YUM! After dinner, we chilled on the couches in the very hip restaurant and watched music videos. Twas good! I've been longing for a couch and a good movie. Couch and music videos was almost just as good!

So now we're back at the hostel doing internet schtuff. We check out by 9:30 in la manana and are heading to the Daintree National Forest. Hopefully there, we won't want to spend so much money! I'm excited to check it out. We're in the wet tropics now, so the scenery is a little different from the scrub brush and eucalyptus trees we've gotten used to. We're also gonna go on a croc tour. Cross your fingers that we don't get eaten. :)

Miss ya!
A

How Ya Goin?

Sooo... We're coming home early... We couldn't get work visas and are running outta money fast, so we've decided to get the hell outta Oz... We'll be flying back on Tuesday, Sept. 7th. ... This is a good thing. :)

The past few days have been spent at Airlie Beach. It's not entirely warm, so we haven't been in the water at all. We've basically been walking around, eating, and playing on the internet... Not a whole lot to do when you're broke. And the Pokies (beers) are never under $5 each, so nighlife is sorta out too. We did buy some Goon, however, which is fake wine. It's pretty nasty, but it does the trick. All of the alcohol here is really expensive, even in the liquor stores, due to high taxes. The cheapest bottle of liquor you can buy is a small $20 bottle of no-name vodka. Rum is $35 and up, a case of beer is $45... Ouch...

Tomorrow shall be fun tho! We're going to go sailing, snorkling the Great Barrier Reef, and then to an awesome tropial paradise called Whitehaven Beach. Can't WAIT!

So a few random things about Oz...

A shopping cart is a Trolley. A baby stroller is a Pram. A small glass of beer is a Pokie. Layaway is called lay by. They say "cheers" a lot. It can mean thank you, or hello or goodbye. They also say, "How ya Goin" instead of what's up or how are you. Sunglasses are called sunnies. Breakfast is known as brekkie. The pharmacy is the chemist. You don't rent anything, you hire it. A car collision place is called "smash repair." Cars are really different here. New cars with pickup beds on the back of them are really popular. All of the road kill is kangaroo... They can really f up your car. There are signs for them everywhere, as well as for koalas and sheep. The town of Mackay is pronounced mack-eye. The town of Cairns is pronounced Caines (no r). They say mate a lot. The people are very friendly. It gets dark early ... 'cause it's WINTER. We're living in the future. It's 12:45 p.m. on Sunday here, and it's only 9:45 on Saturday night there. We're also walking around upside down. We're on the other side of the world, people!!!

xo
A