Life at the Arts Factory

Hey guys!

Well awsome news! A couple days ago I finally got ahold of the lady at the Surf Camp .... and as of Saturday morning, I'm headed out there to work for the rest of the season!!! Yay I was sooo happy I was litterally jumping for joy. I just have to drag my lazy ass with my back pack down to the main bus stop for 8am on Saturday morning and let the driver know that I'm comming down to work for em. I'm really nervous about it though. If something happens and I cant get on, I'll be royally screwed, since all the accomidation here is booked, and just to get an extra night at my current hostel I have to switch rooms tomorrow morning. What a pain >.< but if Steve-O is still driving, I think I'll be good. I think he liked me anyway.

I'm really enjoying Byron Bay out here. Its a very small beach town, only one main street, and you can walk the perimiter of the whole town in maybe an hour max. If Sundre had been like this, I might have seriously been tempted to move out there. Its really chilled out, and relaxed here. You dont feel like you should be rushing to do anything in particular, you can just hang out, stroll the streets and do what you want all day. Its a nice feeling.

I've spent the last few days relaxing, and chilling on the Beach. Last night was Nick and Laura's last night though so we went for a nice long beach walk and discovered a really tiny "Point break" (surfing term) where some beginners were honing there skills, and our first live crab was seen along here too. We climbed some seriously sharp rocks, and found a nice secluded beach for a bit before it got cold and we headed back. I'll have to upload those photos. Despite alot of the OzIntro crew still being in residence here in Byron, I've found I enjoy hanging out with the Surf crew alot more. Lucy, Robbie, Rory, Ali, Julia, Laura, Nick and a few others have been hanging out here, and with the exception of Nick & Laura, the rest of us are all here until Saturday when we split off and go our seperate ways. I'll be sad to see them go, they've been good friends and loads of fun to hang out with its nice to know a group of travellers who dont want to get "off their face" every day to have fun. Laura showed me a little shop where you can buy shell pendants. She bought a really nice abalone one, and I got a whitish one with a wave pattern on it. I've decided it will be my reminder of the surfing crew. How cheesy is that? heheheh I think Lucy and I were going to shop for some friendship bracelets anyway in town today. I also need to pay for my OzExperience bus pass today. what fun. I'm spending way too much money out here.

Oh right, so I guess I could take some time to tell you guys about where I've been staying. I havent gotten any photos yet, Ive been a little sick, but I'm staying at a lovely place called the Arts Factory. Its basically a hippie commune turned lucrative accomidation business. its about a 10 min walk from the center of town, set on a 5acre rainforest reserve with its own bar / lounge / cafe / restaraunt / library / cinema / pool / volley ball courts / camping ground .... basically everything you could want except a fruit vendor and bottle shop. (thats what they call Liquor stores out here, bottle shops.) its really cool. All the dorms are around the pool, and there are teepees and long houses that you can stay in too. There are also specialty rooms like the Hippy Bus (you litterally stay on a hippie bus) and the Love Shack ... which I've never actually seen the doors open to ... thats probably a good thing.

All the rooms are painted up with nifty designs. My current dorm is addorned with Sun patterns on the main wall and in all the corners. The rooms are small, but all in all, not too bad.

From what I gather, the arts factory started out as a commune and just kind of grew into a place for travellers to stay. There is so much to do though, its hardly like a hostel at all! Just today for example, there are yoga classes at 10, reiki or what ever at 12, salsa dancing and capoeira in the evening, a live DJ at the bar, and movies playing at the cinema. Yesterday, I went on a bushwalk with the most eccentric Aussie I've evermet. I should mention here that because of my horrible cold / cough, I've lost my voice entirely. I woke up yesterday and seriously couldnt even make a squeak. It sucked! All my friends made fun of me all day but it was funny. Anyway,right, the bush walk. So this guy named Cockatoo Paul does a couple things around the hostel during the weektime. He takes groups out to the reserve around the hostel and shows them how to use assorted plants for one thing. So I joined up with his tour yesterday. He showed us how to use a certain tree as insect repellent, how to identifty and get fruictos from certain flowers, and how to get water from a tree. He also showed us how to make bush toilet paper. Though he warned us very seriously about using the wrong part of this particular bark. It was umm how did he put it ... oh right "John Wayne toilet paper, rough as all hell and wont take shit off anyone" If I could have, I would have laughed really loud at that. As it was I managed a squeak, which resulted in my being called hoarse face for the rest of the evening >.< As we went out of the hostel proper and into the parking lot, Cockatoo decided it was time to learn to throw a spear. For some strange reason I vounteered. So now I have a photo of my holding a traditional aboriginee spear about to throw it. The good news was, my aim was good, but my power sucked. He threw the spear like 50 feet ... mine ... maybe 10 and instead of arcing and sticking in the ground it just kind of skittered along. ... Oh well it was fun. The walk might have been better had I actually been able to talk to the people around me, but thats alright. It was still cool. Afterwards, we headed to the hostel bar for a free glass of wine (horrible boxed wine I might add) and I grabbed a table in preparation for Cockatoo's evening musical show. Some of you guys will remember Dan-the-one-man-Band from Eua Claire ... well Cockatoo really puts him to shame. He writes all his own songs, and he uses a Didjeredoo, kazoo, guitar, maraccas, at least 6 drums, a tamborine, high hat, and um some piece of piping that he uses like a "didje" (the short term for Didjeredoo) It was an awsome show, and afterwards he was really trying to plug his CD. I'd have been tempted to buy it if A) it wasnt $20, and B) I had a CD player ...
A couple of things of note about Cockatoo ... hes a bushman with a cockatoo. He drives alot, spends most of his time on the road, and likes it that way. He also sells Road Kill jewlery... and no, its not just a name. He seriously collects the bones of dead animals that he passes on the road, bleaches and cleans them and uses them to make things with. ew. He was selling it this morning, and tried to convince me to buy a pair of Makoshark teeth earings. If it werent for the fact they were real teeth, I might have bought them. He assured me the guy he bought em from was "green" and used the whole shark, but all the same, I just cant condone that kind of thing. Some of his opals were cool though, and the Kangaroo teeth. If that hadnt been so expensive, I'd have bought one of the pendants, but I need to concentrate on more important things ... like food.

well anyway, I've gotta go and hit the bank and such, so I'll leave you guys with some amusing things again. If you are ever here remember they have no idea what Bandaids are, they are called Plastics, PLasters or Plasties here. try whispering to a lady at the pharmecy (because you cant talk) that you want bandaids and see the look on her face. It was hilarious. I'd also like to take a moment to lament on a couple of things. namely, no one out here has ever heard of NyQuil!!!!! I asked like 5 different people including a pharmacy tech and got nothing but blank looks. They also do not carry Advil liquid strength, any brand of feminine products that Im used to, or solid deoderant. Oh yeah, and all the English smell the same. They use this disgusting Aerosol spray deoderant that stinks up the room every morning and leaves me gaging it sucks, but they think that people in Canada must stink. Until I point out its too cold for us to sweat. Damn Poms Anyway, Ciao for now guys, This will likely be my last post for a while, since there is no internet out at Surf Camp. If I do come into Byron though, I'll do my damndest to grab a computer and update, but its likely going to be about a month till you hear from me again. So Dont worry! For my family, I will be keeping my cell phone charged and full of mins incase you guys need to get ahold of me, and I'm sure there is a land line there as well that I can use. I'll find out on Monday when I get back there

"cheers" as the English say, and I love you guys and Miss you tons! Mom, give my cat extra cuddles, Dad, well give Aggy and Sam and extra hug and kiss, and everyone else um. I dunno, do something and think of me. As for me, I'll toast to you guys with a Carona in hand when Im back on the road with the surf guys.

Cheers!
Amy