attack of the cashews

It isn't very often that I splurge and spend the money to take a tour, but when you're at Airley beach and the Whitsunday Islands are so close you can almost taste it (along with the beautiful Whitehaven Beach and amazing snorkeling on the Great Barrier Reef) you have to suck it up and dish out the money. Because we are all on a pretty tight budget, we shopped around and found a deal for two nights and two days on a boat, plus two free night in a hostel (we got this through the tour desk at Beaches) which set us back $349 each (I asked around on the boat, some people paid $399 with no free hostel nights).

We were on Wings 2, which is not a “party” boat (you can find cheap boats that take you around the beaches and organize crazy drinking games all night too... but we thought that getting inebriated and the inevitable hangover would take away from the beauty of where we were) this boat was geared around diving (or snorkeling) sailing, and the beach (of course there was drinking as well, just not too excessive). The crew on board (there were three of them, the skipper, the dive instructor, and the cook) were all young (my age-ish) and fun, the other 21 guests on board were mainly aged between 18 and 30 (besides the one older couple... they were prolly in their 40s).

our boat

riding out to sea!

The trip was amazing (at least the first 3/4 of it). We sailed around (it was not a full sail boat, I can't remember what it was called, but it was more stable and spacious than a regular sail boat) chasing sunsets and sunrises (thanks to our friendly skipper), hitting as many snorkel spots as we could, and spending an afternoon at the beautiful world renowned Whitehaven Beach (apparently its the second nicest beach in the world... I'm curious what the first is because that place was incredible.. the sand is 90something% silica and doesn't burn your feet in the sun!). The weather was intermittently rainy and cloudy, and I am thankful for that... if it had been clear and sunny the whole time I think I may have gotten heat stroke (there was limited places on the deck that were out of the sun) we all got to cloud-tan and that was sufficient!

Kate, Alex, and me

Sunset

Whitehaven Beach

More Whitehaven Beach

The sand is really cool

From a viewpoint looking over Whitehaven

Snorkeling in the rain was a lot of fun... the sites we were taken to had the reef so shallow that you could easily chill at the surface and lazily watch the world underneath you (which was soooo cool... colourful reef, crazy looking fish, deep crevices... nothing I have dived before this was as interesting and colourful) but when it rains, the fresh water mixes with the salt water and makes it murky for the first two meters, so you are forced to dive down deeper to see all the good stuff. That's when you really feel like your doing something, holding your breath for as long as you can to swim beside that fish, or get a better look at that reef... that's where it gets challenging and fun! (and where I take a mouthful of saltwater because I momentarily forget that I am snorkeling not diving). The most exciting thing I witnessed underwater was a giant turtle eating a jelly fish (which apparently gets them stoned).

all ready to go snorkeling

In the evening the crew put together a slide show to show us where we had been that day, underwater pictures of the things we would have seen, and pictures of us that they had been taking all day. Then we were able to chill out on deck, have a few drinks, and watch the stars. I was surprised at how comfortable my sleep was (in such a teeny weeny bed)... the rocking of the boat was comforting like being rocked to sleep as a child (which was pleasantly surprising for me as I generally get sea sick).

watching the stars in the evening

Here's where the trip gets shitty... (get ready for the emergency trip back to shore)

My friend Alex has a nut allergy (which she CLEARLY stated on the form we filled out before we got onto the boat). The first night they gave us assorted cakes... right before Alex took a bite of hers she realized there were nuts in some of them (and they were all on the same plate). After that close encounter with nuts Alex took the time to explain her allergy in detail to the cook: what exactly she was allergic to (not peanuts, but all the other ones), what cross contamination is (duh), and how serious her allergy is (she could die). A few other allergy girls stepped forward to ensure she was aware of theirs as well (another nut allergy, and a coconut and pineapple allergy). The next morning there was pineapple on the fruit platter (pineapple girl was not impressed... no fruit for her). That evening we were enjoying our very yummy spaghetti bolognaise when the other nut girl stopped, looked at Alex and asked if she could feel it too. Alex's allergy takes a very long time to take effect (up to four hours) so she felt fine and thought maybe the nuts were in the other girls wheat free pasta (sometimes there are strange ingredients in things). The other girl went inside and soon after the cook came out, told Alex to stop eating immediately an come in. After investigating the ingredients, it was found that she had put tomato pesto in the sauce (which contains pine nuts and cashews).

don don don

The next couple of hours are a little blurry... it was stressful, it all happened at once, people were hovering and asking too many questions, and I was getting sea sick from staying below with my friend. Basically, because Alex's allergy can have such detrimental effects, knowing that it could be four hours before we know the severity of those effects, and the fact that we were two hours out to sea, we had to drive the boat in and get Alex to an ambulance. At this point, Alex was being her selfless little self and not wanting to “ruin everyone’s trip” (to which we told her to shut up, everyone will understand, and we are getting off the boat with her to take care of her) everyone on board was really supportive and kind (they were just going to go straight back out, so the only difference for them was they were driving through the night) the crew were great, the cook clearly felt awful (she was a really nice girl, just not properly trained to be cooking for 25 people... I mean, who doesn't know about cross contamination?? as well, she was new, and this was the first time she had dealt with allergies... personally, I didn't realize there were nuts in pesto... since I don't have an allergy, I don't notice those kinds of things... however, it IS her job to know) they were all very attentive and it was clear they all really cared about what was happening.

I was feeling very empathetic for both my friend and the crew... that is, until they made me sign something stating that I am voluntarily getting off the boat and am not entitled to any reimbursement of any sort (Alex and the other nut girl got full refunds, but as the friends, apparently we were supposed to stay on the boat and get drunk and go snorkeling the next morning while our friend is in the hospital) I don't think that I should have gotten a refund or anything, but I think it was pretty shitty that they had me sign that, I don't think they should have made money off of my trip, and I think that they should have done a little more to appease me. When we got off the boat, the manager of the company was waiting along with a paramedic. After checking Alex out the paramedic said that since she had people to care for her it would be more comfortable if we watch Alex for the night and phone immediately if things go south, rather than sit it a hospital all night waiting and watching. He insisted that we have a comfortable place to stay, and said that he would talk to the Wings management if we had a problem getting them to arrange and pay for that.

We were brought to a hostel and the Wings manger found someone to check us into a room, she told us that we had to pay a key deposit because she couldn't put that on her credit card with the rest (which suggested that she was funding our room for the night... you know, since her company poisoned our friend and we had to cut our trip short, and we had payed for a bed to sleep in that night). The next morning I went to sort out our accommodation (it was the same hostel we were getting two more nights in) ... that's when they asked for payment for Kate and I. ??? really ??? Alex phoned the company and gave them a piece of her mind (the girl was really rude) and after fighting with her, they agreed to pay for all of our nights (not without putting up a fuss because we had signed something saying we were not entitled to anything because we left “voluntarily”). When we went in to collect Alex's refund we got to speak with the owner. She was the first person to really apologies (besides the crew) but then turned around and stated that ALEX needs to be more careful with her allergy (???? really ????). And, we were entitled to nothing as the friends because the skipper didn't follow protocol (which is Alex should have left alone and taken an ambulance to the hospital and spent the night there... what ever happened to trying to do whats best for your customer?? Clearly going to spend the night in a hospital would have been far more traumatic than having your friends care for you... and who would stay on the boat when their friend is in a life threatening situation??)

We are really lucky... this could have turned out a lot worse. If there wasn't another nut allergy on board, Alex wouldn't have known. She would have eater four times as much as she did, she wouldn't have vomited up everything she ate, and she wouldn't have taken antihistamines (which we think is the reason she turned out to be ok). Basically, she would have gone into anaphylactic shock in the middle of the night and they would have had to get a helicopter to get her out of there. But, you know, according to management, Alex just needs to be more careful.

what happens on magnetic island...

It's been just under a week since we left Cairns and I'm already losing track of days again (that didn't take long) It's amazing how quickly I have adapted back to a life that is constantly changing... it kinda feels like the whole four months in Cairns was just a dream (except of course the fact that I am with different people now)

oh oh, but you know whats funny?? (not funny “haha”... funny “oh shit”) I am already halfway through my money that I saved for these next few months (guess whose going back to work earlier than she wanted) On my defense, these first few stops are the most expensive visits on our list... so hopefully once I leave here I can live VERY frugally and HOPEFULLY make it to Byron Bay (there is no question now that I will be working as soon as I get there... I just hope I don't get stranded somewhere along the way...)

That brings me to the whole point of this (well, clearly the point is me getting to prattle on and on and you feeling obligated to read it since you love me) where exactly am I and where have I been that is so expensive???

Well, we are traveling at a similar pace as I usually do (which makes me oh so happy)... that means no super early mornings, and driving only 200-300km a day. Our first night was spent in Innisfail (hahha, which is about an hour out of Cairns) it wasn't a planned stop, but we realized it was gonna rain and we didn't feel like camping in tropical wet season (yes yes I know there is a serious lack of planning regarding the timing of this trip) so as we were grabbing groceries we decided to call up a friend who lives there and “camp” in his yard (by “camp” I mean sleep on their couch). We made them dinner as a thank you and left early(ish). (Yes, our first night “on the road” we just crashed at a friends house. But isn't that what travelings about anyway?? Phoning up old friends and extended family so you have a free place to stay is as much a backpacker tradition as staying in actual hostels) That morning we were INCREDIBLY excited to find our first beach that wasn't closed due to stingers... (thank you Mission Beach) our enthusiasm wasn't even waned by the fast approaching rain clouds (which was regrettable once we realized we had no head start and now had to drive in the rain... thank you Alex for being the man (yet again) and driving through it)

Kate and Alex cooking our first dinner on the road

Finally a beach we can swim at!! Rain won't stop us now...

Unfortunately the rain almost stopped the driving....

This is where it gets pricey... we headed for Magnetic Island (which is totally worth it). After hearing from a few people that Townsville (where you catch the ferry) is a bad place to leave your car (and ours is apparently once of the easiest cars to break into) we decided we didn't want to leave it unattended for too long (you know, loosing all your shit in the first week of a road trip is kind of a downer) so we opted to take the car over the ferry. After doing so, I would advise anyone to NOT do that. It cost us $175 return to bring the car (although you can have up to six people in it) and it's only $30 each return to walk on. If you are worried about your car go with FantaSea (there are two ferries) because they have a gated parking lot with cameras (the other ferry is passenger only and does not have a secure parking lot). There is a cheap bus on the island to take you all around, so getting around isn't a problem.

Magnetic Island is BEAUTIFUL. Just like the pictures... white sand beaches, palm trees, beautiful rocky coast lines, diving opportunities (yeah I did), and hikes to stunning look outs (nope, I didn't...way to lazy). We spent three nights in a Base ($29 a night for the 6 bed dorm... but, I was never there... I camped in the car... and by “camped” I mean I snuck into Alex's dorm and shared with her... which worked out really well since there were no other people in their dorm). Base is full of the really young backpackers, so we ended up just making friends with the staff for the most part. There is a YHA hostel on the other end of the island, we chose Base because it's supposed to be the “fun” one with the bar so we thought it would be easier to sneak in (yea yea yea i'm going to hell) and Base is right on the beach.

The dorms were pretty cool... almost felt like I was in summer camp

One of the many beautiful views from the hostel

At Picnic Bay

More Picnic Bay

I paid $100 to do two intro dives (they have a dive school in the hostel), one was in the day and one was called a night-tro... they let you do a night dive!! Apparently this is one of the only places that will do that, so if you wanna scare the shit out of yourself by going on a night dive when you have little to no experience under water, go there! (clearly I had to do it... I mean, if someone else says it's to dangerous to do and this place will let me do it... I HAVE to take that opportunity) I had a MUCH better experience than the time I went diving in Indonesia, here I had basically no “work” to do before hand, they just get you in the pool, show you how to clear your mask and use the regulator... then you jump in and see the reef!! AND the instructor controlled my BCD (buoyancy control device... the reason I had such a problem maintaining buoyancy last time was because they had me working it myself) so I got to just swim around and enjoy the view... TECHNICALLY it was “the” reef... you know, the great barrier reef... so TECHNICALLY I can cross that off my list of “things to do before I die” (or... “things I'm doing that will probably lead me to an untimely death”) but it's not anything like the rest of the reef... it was... well... dull and full of ugly plants. BUT during my two dives I got to feed bread to a bunch of colorful fish that tried to eat my hand (are they supposed to eat bread??) I saw two singers, a big turtle, and I pet a shark!! (just a little guy... but he was a shark!). Night diving is pretty cool too... just you and a flashlight... it's like driving at night, in a sense that all you can see is what your headlights show (which makes it super scary... you know, you drive slow in case a deer pops up... what do you do if a big scary shark pops up???) Honestly, that experience was really overwhelming for me... since I have no idea what I am doing when I'm underwater, and I'm still just trying to get used to the whole breathing aspect of it... I really just clung to my instructor and started wide eyed at the dark world around me.

Besides diving, lazing around in hammocks, and burning my butt in the sun, Magnetic Island is also a GREAT place to get drunk. The bar at our hostel has games and drink specials... Wednesday is ladies night (free punch for girls) and they use the term “lady” loosely... a guy in a dress counts too... Thursday is trivia... Friday is bar games... which turns into a whole lotta fun. Guess who won the game of collecting the most clothes and naked people into a line?? yeah I did. Seriously... first thing I won in my life. EVER. There may have been a lot of people streaking down the beach as well... Apparently they have great full moon parities too, and the bar stays open till 5am or something (it closes at midnight every other night)... I've heard they are worth it, and from what I saw on a regular Friday night, I'd say a full moon party would be a night you might want to forget.... (in a really fun way)

Needless to say, Magnetic Island was a lot of fun...somehow we managed to get the nickname “crazy Canadian pixies”... and two days after leaving the island I am still nursing my aching body: muscle pain EVERYWHERE... skinned knee... multiple bruises... perhaps I am getting to old for this?? NOPE.

Coming up next: more prattling!! hahha... just kidding, this is too long. I'll leave where I am currently for another day...

i'm baaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaak

Let's try this whole blogging thing again.

I have been living in Cairns for the past four or so months (just to refresh your memory, that is in Northern Queensland, on the east coast of Australia). In that time I have managed to save my goal of $3000 (even though I continued to have a healthy habit of drinking five nights a week) working as a waitress in a local restaurant. I have been living in a share house with an average of 8 other travellers (people come and go... there has been 6 to 11 people living in the house while I have been here, all aged 20 to 32... and then there was the old ozzy guy who stays sometimes... he's the landlords ex husband... when he's around it feels like dads home!). I have met some amazing people here, and made some friends who I hope I keep in contact with (but lets be honest here, I am terrible at keeping in contact with people... thankfully we have facebook). I have been busying myself with $7 jugs of cider at PJ O'Briens (my favourite place to drink), late night swimming at the esplanade (watch out for security guards... they always catch you and threaten to give a hefty fine), chilling at the house with my mates, and the odd trip to a local swimming hole (favourite would have to be Josephine Falls, it's absolutely beautiful... and you can slide down the rocks like a slide!).  I got to spend Christmas in a Bikini, introduce others to Canadian Thanksgiving, and learn a lot about how similar we all are... no matter where you are from, there is always some common ground you can find. I have genuinely enjoyed my time here, but alas, it is time to leave. I am already halfway through my visa here in Oz, so I better move on and see some more of the country!

Josephine Falls

I am leaving Cairns with different people than I arrived here with (this will be the third time I have changed travel buddies). I met a girl at the restaurant I worked at (known here in Cairns as my other half, as we are rarely seen oot and aboot without the other) who had plans with her friend to drive down the east coast (which is exactly what I wanted to do) and we figured we had so much fun working together, we HAD to give a shot at travelling together too. So, I have a new family. We are team Canada (hahahha) since we are all from (you guessed it) Canada. Alex (the girl I worked with) and Kate (whom I like to refer to as my mail order bride... I agreed to travel with her months before I met her, so the day we finally met I was all nervous and excited... will I like her?? will she like me??) are both from Toronto (well, Alex likes to say she was born in England, but I have claimed her as Canadian). We bought a car (the van died... I sold it for $600 to some ozzy mechanic) it's a 93 Commodore Holden or something (an ozzy car) I think we actually got a good deal this time (as opposed to the van that blew a head gasket). We paid $1100 for it, (Kicairn is her name... cuz we bought it from a Kiwi in Cairns... well I call it Kicairn... we haven't officially agreed on a name yet) it has had a lot of work done to it recently (new brakes and hoses etc) and it has 6 months of rego on it (which would have cost us an additional $600 to get) oh, and the BEST part?? It's a red car... so naturally we painted a maple leaf on the roof. (yes. You can laugh now)

Kicairn... Team Canada's car! aka my new home

from the left: Kate, me, Alex <3 my new family <3

This last week in Cairns has BY FAR been the most eventful time I have had in this city thus far (excluding nights out drinking). Since I have been unemployed (that’s right... I'm unemployed again!! woot woot I'm a dirty unemployed backpacker!!) I have had the time to go to the places I wanted to see: Stoney Creek, Crystal Cascades, Josephine Falls, Cape Tribulation, Port Douglass, white water rafting near Lake Placid... the only thing I didn't tick off the list is diving and/or snorkeling the reef (I KNOW that’s a big one... and I even lived with two dive instructors this whole time!) but I will have more opportunity for that... it IS a big reef, and I AM going down the coast.

Cape Tribulation was a really fun trip. It was our “trial run” with the car, as we plan on camping a lot down the coast, this gave us an opportunity to see what more we need before we embark on this trip. It's definitely worth the drive if you are in the area... they say it's where the jungle meets the beach meets the great barrier reef. It took a couple of hours up the coast, and the road follows the water which makes for a very scenic (albeit windy) drive. We had a bit of car trouble on the way... nothing serious, just our spoiler was dragging on the road. When we stopped at some construction the car behind us let us know... so we did a truly Canadian fix and just taped it back up ;-) Just past Mosman you take a ferry, it costs $22 return and is just a short few minute ride. Once you get on the other side it's another world... the road is narrow and windy (like a roller coaster!!) and shaded by thick vegetation... you can hear the jungle while you drive, the sounds of the birds and the bugs... it really is alive in there! There are speed bumps every where to protect the Cassowary's (no... unfortunately we didn't see any, but I DID hug a statue AND get a picture of the roadsigns!)

view from a pull off on the hwy

look mom! like new :-)

me and my cassowary friend

funniest looking road sign animal pic

the hwy follows the ocean for a big chunk of the drive

After around 30km of driving through true beauty you arrive in Cape Tribulation (which is really nothing more than a general store and some camp grounds). We stopped at the visitor info place to decide where to camp, they recommended PK's for a budget friendly and fun place (it's where the bar is, so “fun” is a euphemism for “loud”). We paid $35 for three to camp (they also have cabins and dorm rooms for those who aren't keen on camping) and set up our little home for the first time. Alex brought a swag to sleep in (a bed/tent thing that is a very popular Australian thing) and Kate and I figured out our tent (we are not as adventurous as to sleep in a swag), once home was ready, we wandered down to see the beach. Of course, being stinger season, it's not safe to swim (although Alex is a little crazy so she went in anyway... I, on the other hand, am pretty scared of box jellyfish) We wandered the beach for a bit and then went to PKs pool to go for a SAFE swim. We had a snack and some coffee to perk up (and decided that we REALLY need chairs and maybe even a table... sitting on the ground to eat is not fun) and went back to the beach to drink some wine and (warm) beer while watching the stars come out. We met some friendly people on the beach having a fire (evidently it is a nightly occurrence on that particular beach) and chilled out with them for a while. It was beautiful and relaxing.... finally... back to the life I have missed. Lazing on the beach, not caring what time or day it is, seeing and doing new and interesting things, and meeting new people.

our little home...

alex and I testing the waters... I chickened out... she's the man!

walkway down to the beach at PKs

watching the stars come out

The next day we stopped at Mosman Gorge on the way back, it's a nice little swimming hole where you can jump off the rocks... perfect place to wake up during a long drive. We also checked out Port Douglas and had some fish and chips for lunch (finally tried barramundi... it's kinda like halibut, light white meat fish) unfortunately all of the beaches up that way were closed due to stingers, even the ones with stinger nets (which means there are LOTS of stingers out) and we did stop at a few of them jsut in case one happened to be open. Unfortunately none were :-(

Port Douglass look out

no swimming :-(

SO after a successful trial trip, we are ready to leave Cairns!!! We will be driving out on the 17^th and are headed south to Byron Bay (yes Byron, I will take a picture of the sign for you). Kate fly's out of Byron mid February, so we have about a month to get there... some planned stops will be Magnetic Island, Whitsunday Islands, Brisbane, and Toowoomba! Then I think I will chill out on the beach and run around barefoot in Byron Bay for a few weeks :-) I have no plans for after that... I am sure I will be out of money again around then, so I will have to follow where ever the work is... or whatever opportunity comes around...

back to my REAL life

I shall try to keep up on the blogging... but unfortunately my computer is broken (it has to be plugged in to work) so it may be hard for me to find a plug AND free internet... but, that's what McDonalds is for right?