The Josh Franco Section
We went canoeing. We went to a sand island. We were on a boat.
Photos! Don't we spoil you? Look at them now or even in conjunction with the words you're reading!
Tuesday, 24 November 2009
On Some Islands In The Sun
The Josh Franco Section
We went canoeing. We went to a sand island. We were on a boat.
Photos! Don't we spoil you? Look at them now or even in conjunction with the words you're reading!
And we're back. How's it going internet? Last time we left you we were in the fine city of Brisbane and boy howdy has a lot gone down since then. The following section is the 'tours' part of our trip. All booked through Wicked Travel we worked our way up the East Coast on Greyhounds going from activity to activity. Tiring but fun times. So what am I waiting for? Type on.
So after Brisbane we took our first Greyhound up to Noosa. Greyhounds are great for making brief visits to hick petrol stations (at one we were served by a one eyed man called Bill and a young man called Junior), eating shit food and watching shit films (To be fair we've only been on one that showed films and they chose Phil Scullion favourite 'Angus, Thongs and Perfect Snogging'). Noosa was a cool little surf town. We didn't do a great deal here but prepare for our hectic trip schedule. I did buy some sunglasses many weeks after they first would have been useful.
From Noosa Bus Station we were picked up for our FREE TRIP at the Gagaju Bush Camp. Advertised as an eco camping, canoe safari it gave meaning to the phrase 'you get what you pay for'. But Steve you didn't pay anything? For this free trip you actually pay 50$ 'National Park Fees'. For your 'park fee' you get a mini bus ride out to the wilderness (basically a camp site where you get a dorm one night and tent for the other two), canoe rental, a 4 minute canoe lesson and a grouchy weird Australian man who openly admits to sleeping with his dog pointing at a map and telling you where you should go and rattling off crazy and probably entirely fictional stories of things that could go wrong if you disobey his commands. No map though. The first day our intrepid group of English, German, French, Scandinavian and Israeli strapping young things canoed up river where we parked up our canoes and walked to a nearly deserted soft sand beach. The second day our much more difficult canoe slog across rough waters as a bush fire raged on at the side of the lake led us to a shop and a pub. Canoeing is really, really tiring and we were hoping for something a little more spectacular for our efforts. That night we went back and played Ring of Fire and just got really hammered. Due to brain cells killed in this game I think I may have actually returned from the Eco Camp with less knowledge about the environment. We had fun but even though it was free what was provided by the staff was still a disappointment. I was expecting Eco Warriors and Ray Mears like Jungle Masters rather than grizzled drunks who just liked living outside of society because they didn't have the graces for living within it. Still, we had some laughs and I guess that's the main thing.
After the Bush Camp it was back to Noosa for a rest day and then back on the bus to Hervey Bay. We stayed a night here in preparation for Fraser Island. Fraser is the world's largest sand island and we chose to explore it on a self-drive 4x4 safari. This is pretty much exactly how it sounds. You're put with a group, crammed into a 4x4, ferried across to the island and then left to your own devices (with a helpful itinerary to guide you) to navigate the extremely difficult sand roads including the East Beach which is classified as a highway with an 80km p/h Speed limit (Nic had a go behind the wheel!). You carry tents and camping equipment with you and when the tide goes too high to drive on the highway you have to settle down for the night. To make things even more interesting there is a massive number of dingoes (basically dogs) roaming the island constantly on the lookout for food. On our first night we didn't see many although one disturbed the people trying to sleep under the stars by attempting to steal a rucksack. He was thwarted by loud noise. On the second night our larger camp was basically filled with them popping in and out. The educational video suggested crossing your arms and slowly backing away. We were alright with just letting them lick the pots and pans. Because you're in close proximity with the same people for pretty much 60 odd hours straight it was even more important here that we got on with everyone. Luckily we did. Shout out to Jez, Chez, Maddy, Danielle, Nick, Nicki (A different one!), Sussana, Katie and Hannah. The highlights of the trip were the Champagne Pools (rock enclaves filled in with sea water washed in from breaking waves), Lake Wobby (A huge green lake that you get to by running down a giant sand dune) and Lake McKenzie which has waters so clear that you have to see it to believe it. It's Freshwater so you can even drink it. We were there about 2 hours and I spent the entire time in the water it was so nice. See the photos! The whole island was an adventure from cooking in the dark to losing a flip-flop pushing the car out of one of the numerous deep sand traps it fell into. I would say it's my favourite place we've been in Australia and maybe since we started out travelling.
After Fraser we had a night back in Hervey Bay where we said goodbye to our new friends. The next day was spent pottering around this sleepy little town and then we had our first overnight Greyhound. Kind of like the day Greyhound except the stops seem even more surreal. We both slept better than I'd have expected. Getting off the bus we had to immediately check-in for our Whitsundays sailing trip. I'm on a boat and it's going fast and I've got a nautical themed pashmina Afghan. We got in at 7 and our Catamaran the mighty Avatar departed at 11.30am. Luckily the sea was incredibly smooth and after warnings of sea-sickness we were perfectly fine the whole time. The ship was nice and roomy with plenty of room for the 25 guests and 3 members of staff. Nic and I even had a private cabin which was sized like a couples coffin. For 2 days and 2 nights we sailed in perfect sunshine (except at night) and almost no wind (It was HOT) through the islands stopping only for a snorkel on The Great Barrier Reef and to relax on the whiter than white sands of the islands. We saw a huge amount of sea-life including Stingwrays and Reef Sharks. To make matters more awesome we had to wear special lycra Stinger suits which made us look like bizarre sexy Teletubbies when we were Snorkelling. On the boat we also enjoyed some pretty fine eating and not so fine (goon - cask wine) drinking. The last night was a wild night partying on a nearly deserted resort with salt water swimming pool which we had to dingy over to. Here we met some mining millionaires who struggled to persuade us hot young things to come to a Birthday party on their yacht. The only problem was they were too drunk to pilot their own dingy. As far as I know they're still there.
We got off the boat about 10am on the third day and had a couple of hours to kill in Airlie Beach before Greyhounding to Townsville (Confusingly a city). From here we got off the bus and with massive backpacks in tow jumped into a taxi and zoomed to The Dairy Farmers Stadium to watch the mighty North Queensland Fury in action. We got there with literally minutes to spare but we were soon joining the over 7 and a half thousand fans in cheering on the Fury. Despite having the legendary Robbie Fowler as their captain The Fury struggled. Robbie rattled the crossbar once but the rock bottom Fury limped to a 5-1 defeat to Central Coast. It was good to see Robbie though even if he is basically in retirement.
We then jumped onto a bus and arrived at The Reef Lodge Hostel absolutely exhausted. We then had a day in Townsville before the next adventure. Townsville is a great place to relax on a Sunday because literally nothing is open. Monday morning we were on the ferry and off to Magnetic Island. This small island is basically a couple of bays around a National Park and connected by one long road. We went on walks, to the beaches and rented a Topless Car. With this miniature beast we rolled around the island ripping it up old school style. To be honest the beaches are all very similar but the wildlife here is the real attraction. On our walks we saw Koalas (including a baby one - they make kittens look like shit), there were cheeky Possums bouncing around our hostel and at dusk we went to join the feeding of Rock Wallabies. After dropping off the Topless-mobile we returned on the ferry this morning and this afternoon we're in Townsville before getting an early bus to Cairns tomorrow.
Even with the speed at which we've been bouncing around things there's still loads of towns / things we haven't had time to do. The East Coast has pretty much got it all. We've now got about a week or so in Cairns and one more trip to Cape Tribulation and then it's back South for the final leg of the journey before New Zealand. It's gone so fast that I almost forgot it's my Birthday on Monday. It is my Birthday on Monday though. So don't forget. My Birthday on Monday. Also, Happy Birthday to Zoe, Jamie and H-Bomb for this week and anyone else we've forgotten. It isn't because we don't love you but just because we've been THIS busy.
Missing you all,
Steve & Nic
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Saturday, 7 November 2009
G'Day
The Josh Franco Section
We are in Australia. This is where Neighbours happens. I met Batman.
First
Photos!
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
G'Day sports its been longer than a kangaroos tail since the last time I was in touch but we've been busy, busy, busy here in the land of Oz.
So we arrived in Sydney two weeks ago now. It was a bit like returning to Earth after a short trip on another planet. Everything seemed the same but there were subtle differences that were kind of disconcerting (Damn you dirty apes!). The first day was spent basically fighting off exhaustion from the travelling and the time zone changes but soon enough we were back on our feet and seeing the sights. Sydney is a vibrant and happening kind of place and if you want to see it all you can't spend all day lying in bed with the 26 other people (and their occassional sexual partners) that you share your bedroom with. Yep we're in dorms now another big change from SE Asia. For our first few days in Sydney we did all the usual tourist stuff. Yes everybody does it but that's because it's brilliant. We checked off Sydney Zoo, The Opera House, Sydney Aquarium, more than a couple of museums, The World's Biggest Screen at The I-Max as well as walking across The Harbour Bridge. Because they're so famous all these sights seem strangely familiar when you first look at them but it doesn't make them any less impressive. After the near constant sunshine of Thailand and Bali we were also reminded that there are different types of weather. Here we experienced both rain and cold. We had pretty much forgotten how to cope with these things as was made evident by me struggling to walk around in my flippy floppies.
Hermit Crab Racing - Buy a crab, give it a name and then let it race. We partook in this extremely strange and incredibly fun sport at the Friend in Hand pub just outside the city centre. Nic's crab was called Mrs Crab Apple (Simpsons Quote - Bonus Points) and mine was Crabio Aurelio. As well as crab racing there was hula hoop competitions, balloon blowing up comps (Nic came 2nd) and the near constant spraying of guests with a garden hose. Nic's decision to wear a white t-shirt did not prove to be a good one. Still, after Crabio failing in the first heat (If he's anything like his namesake probably due to injury) Mrs C managed to scrape through to the final. Here she turned on the heat and managed to win Nic a free t-shirt by coming in 2nd Place. Mrs Crab Apple we salute you - a true hermit crab champion.
After crab racing we hopped on the train and headed out of the city centre toward the blue mountains. Despite having nothing to do with the great pop champions Blue this was again a really nice change of pace. We stayed in the town of Katoomba which is made up almost entirely of cafes and 2nd hand book shops. From this base we enjoyed the fresh mountain air and set about exploring the area on a hop on hop off tram trolley. We went for Devonshire Tea in a tea room with the world's largest collection of tea pots and a controversially large number of Gollywogs, went on a few walks and enjoyed the views from the clifftops overlooking a valley of rainforests. We also went on the Scenic train which has the world's largest incline for a railway (52 degrees) which was actually kind of exciting if short. This took us down to the rainforests where we again went for a walk and explore. The evenings were spent by the fire in the cosy front room that doubled as the guest common area. For Halloween we went to The Edge cinema to see The Box. Not only a great film but we even got a free large popcorn I think because the girl behind the counter was hot for me.
After the mountains it was back on the train (actually a rail replacement bus) and back to Sydney. Instead of staying in the centre this time we stayed in King's Cross which is pretty famous as home of a number of hostels and the city's red light district. There were a couple of gentlemen's clubs and many hungry hungry hobos but the area didn't seem all that bad. I had one strange confrontation as a man approached me in McDonalds:
Hobo - Guess what I hold the World Record for? Go on. Guess. I bet you won't get it.
Me - No idea.
Hobo - Cutting.
At this point I was preparing to be stabbed. It turned out he was (apparently) the Guiness World Record holder for cutting down sugar cane. From the look of him it didn't pay well. He also informed me he boned the 1973 Miss World a year before she won the title and was close personal friends with Ali. He did have some newspaper clippings to prove his claims but nothing to show the man mentioned in the clippings was him. Yes he was probably just a nut job wanting attention but I like to think he truly was a real life Forrest Gump. With our couple of days in Sydney we went to a few of the museums and galleries we missed the first time around. We also went on a day trip to Bondi Beach. To be honest we weren't sure what the fuss was about. It's just Brelades with jellyfish. Back in the city we also did some serious prep work for the East coast section of our trip booking with a guy at Wicked Travel who weirdly knew three people from Jersey I know (James Prendergast, Stef Downey and Joe McKenna if you're interested).
From Sydney we flew to the Gold Coast and then got the bus to Surfer's Paradise. We went to the beach (again not sure what the big deal is) but here we were mainly basing ourselves for some theme parking. First was Warner Brothers Movie World. There weren't a huge number of rides but the ones they had were of the highest quality. Superman - The Escape left me shaking the first two times on it (4.2 positive Gs and 1 negative G if that means anything to you). I also got my photo taken with Batman and The Flash and these will be appearing as my profile picture soon I can assure you. We also went to Wet & Wild which was certainly wet as it rained most of the day. This didn't matter though as it kept people away from the park and the queues for the rides nice and short. Our favourites were the kind of drop in tubes involving building up momentum and rolling up and down ramps before coming to a stop.
Whilst having lunch on our first day in Surfers we were approached by a couple of babes in gold bikinis. Of course this is a very common occurence for me but usually they don't ask me for money. These girls were called the Meter Maids and they spend their days going around collecting money and using it to fill parking meters to stop people getting tickets. They're basically super-heroes. Some day I will get a golden thong and do the same in Jersey.
After Surfers we got the bus and then the train to Brisbane. Here we had a day and a half to explore the city. On the Saturday we had a casual couple of drinks in the bar which after meeting some nice Irish people descended into Soulja Boy dancing at 3am in some random club. In case you were wondering I've still got it.
We are now in Noosa and preparing to hit a Bush Camp where I will surely become even more Ray Mears like, drive 4x4s on Australia's largest sand island and head to The Great Barrier Reef.
Missing you,
Steve & Nicki
xxxx