Sep 2007

As everyone knows, Queensland is known for being the "Sunshine State." Everyone talks about the bright and sunny days, how wonderful it is, etc. So why is it that the 2 weeks I've been here I've seen all of maybe a couple of sunny days? hahah! Thats my luck! The rain is moving south, exactly the way I'm going. If I haven't already mentally become an Aussie with a "no worries" attitude, I may be more bitter about it, but hey, I'm in Australia and its AWESOME!!! And this rain is just part of an amazing experience out here (I guess, right?).

The last few days have been a whirlwind and I'm even having a hard time keeping it straight. I was at Aerlie Beach earlier this week. I did a 2-day "ocean rafting" thing there, 1st day was AWESOME (refer to my "paradise" blog), 2nd day - rain, but still fun. That same evening I went on a 12 hour overnight bus to Hervey Bay, where I am now. I came in at 6am, and got picked up at 7am to go on a 2-day safari to Frasier Island (which I'll talk about in a sec). So I just got back from that, finally have .2 seconds to relax (and its raining outside so no one is doing anything), and tomorrow at 7am I am going whale watching and right from there I head to the airport to catch a flight back to Sydney (where its supposed to rain this whole weekend, go figure). Sunday I leave for NZ. Wow!

So Fraser Island is the largest sand island in the world. Its 120km by 15km and supposedly has more sand than the sahari dessert because it is something like 600km deep. On the safari tour we were on a 4WD, which I have never been on so it was definitely an adventure driving on the beach and really 4WD through some rough (sandy) conditions. It cool because there are these amazingly huge sand dunes (or 'sandblows' because its super windy and the sand forms these gi-normous valleys up to 200km) that we climbed as well as a 'rainbow' of sand colors that has evolved from different mineral deposits, etc. In the almost million years that this rainforest developed from the sand, there are also lakes, gorges, and unique flora and fauna. I just can't explain how cool it is and how fascinating it is to even think about how it all evolutionized.

Here is a pict of some colored sand: (and yes, its not rock, its sand!)

So the story goes that this Batjala tribe woman was supposed to marry an older man but she was in love with this man nicknamed, "rainbow man." So story goes that she would meet the rainbow man at the beach, and one day the older man, who happened to be a skilled boomeranger, came out to chase her. She called for help and the rainbow man heard her, and just as the older man threw his boomerang at her, he stepped in front of her to protect her and got 'shattered' by the boomerang, and these shatter pieces formed this rainbow of sand color. There a lot of stories like this on the island, which is really interesting to here about.

There are also these 'dingo' dog-like animals (no, the dingo did not steal any babies) which we had the fortune of seeing right away (and more fortunately, we were in the car because they really are dangerous). Then for the 2nd time this trip (1st was at Crocadylus Hostel near Cape Tribulation), I slept in a tent in the wilderness. It was actually pretty comfy and except for a few loud rain showers that woke me up, I slept pretty well.

The safari group had a combo of Germans (which, by the way, are EVERYWHERE! They are definitely the most people I'm meeting), English, Irish, Hollanders, and this SUPER SUPER cute elderly couple from Australia that were more active then people I know my age. We all got along great and it was a good group. We also saw a large sea snake (which we got a little up close and personal too), some dolphins in the distance, some super cute little sea turtles, and some interesting rainforest trees and plants. And of course more nature.

All and all its been super fun! Time has been going by super quickly, but I have to say that meeting people from all over the world is sooo much fun! And its a small world, at best. A lot of travellers do the same trek (going north or south around the east coast) so you really do run into people (i.e. today I ran into someone I met at my previous hostel). Its fun to see a familiar face every now and then, huh?

So here I am in the most beautiful place in Australia, the Whitsunday islands. When I saw brochures, I was thinking, "yea, yea, this is probably like the Caribbean." But NYET, I was wrong. The water is crystal clear and the beaches are ahhhh-mazing. There is this beach called White Haven that has the whitest sand I've ever seen. I did this "Ocean rafting" little island tour (Whitsundays consists of 74 islands), and am doing it again today, and on the way we saw a family o dolphins!!!! It was just sooooo cute! They were trying to 'race' the boat, and were diving in and out of the water trying to follow us. Then on the way back there was a hunchback whale with a little calf!!!! From July to Oct the whales migrate back to Antarctica and they tend to hang around the coasts, actually, more around Harvey Bay, which I will be tomorrow (and for the next couple of days). Its just amazing to see both dolphins and whales just hanging out, live, doing there thang.

Here is a pict that doesn't nearly do it justice the beauty of it:

All and all, it was a relaxing day. A taste of paradise!!

Ahh... the Great Barrier Reef, a divers mecca. When I got certified 11 years ago (wow! Has it really been 11 years?!), the GBR was something people talked about with such awe and passion, that I was jumping out of my skin with excitement for finally being here! We decided to maximize this experience by doing a live-abroad (or overnight trip) on a boat.

So basically in 2 days, 1 night, you can get up to 7 dives in. Wow! I ended up getting 5 in, including a night dive and a 6:30am dive. I have to say, I was pretty pooped after doing 5 (can you tell I was tired?):

Seeing the coral reefs was incredible, but I love looking at the fishes and the underwater wildlife. Highlights were big o' tortoises, clownfish in the anenome (nemo!), big o' clams, parrotfish (I looove the colors).

Here's me scuba diving with Nemo:

It was kinda funny because we were on this big boat that could fit 52 passengers, and there was Lauren and I, and then these 3 young lads (a brit, a swiss, and a german)... and thats it! So we got VIP from all the crew, and it was nice just relaxing. Oh, and I finally saw Borat - funny! It was pretty much like a cruise ship with a little hot tub, cute rooms, and a full on deck. The hot tub definitely came in handy because our sched was: dive, rest a little, dive again, eat something, dive again, and on and on. It was pretty intense and exhausting. After the 5th dive, I just couldn't do it anymore - enough being cold and wet, ya know? But I really did feel I maximized the diving, which is cool! The water temp was pretty nice (around 70's) and visibility was pretty good. We broke it up a little and went on a nice glass-bottom boat tour.

To be honest, I found it amazing, BUT, I really have to say that The Red Sea off of the coast Egypt is probably the best diving I've done to date. Some of this is because unfortunately, there is a lot of dead coral out there, which is sad. Yes, the Great Barrier is the largest reef in the world, but a lot of it is dying, sniff sniff, and unfortunately again, this is due to it being overpopulated by tourist divers like myself (I guess its quality not quantity, huh?). But yes, all and all, I finally experienced The Great Barrier Reef and it was fantastic!!! Scoooooooobbbbbbbbbaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!!

Here's me enjoying the view of the GREAT Barrier Reef! Yes, a dream come true!