Destination Unknown

Hey all

Well its about time for another blog entry since I seem to be getting more and more lax about updating. oops!

Anyway, currently I'm sitting in a very hot and sticky Darwin, but first ... a recounting of the last few days / weeks

Right so, after a sad good bye to the lovely Airlie Beach, the girls and I hopped the bus to Magnetic Island. I'll admit that getting there was a little lack luster after the Whitsundays, but it was still gorgeous. We were lured in to Base Backpackers by the promise of a wicked (and safe / drug free) full moon Party and by the supposed endless sunshine that made up the climate here.

Well, sunshine there was plenty of, but as for the full moon party ... well it was a little less than wicked. First of all, our travel agent had promised us that our tickets were included in our package, which they werent, and second off ... how can you have a full moon party 3 days after the full moon? It was still a good night, which started with the 5 girls taking over the bathroom and covering ourselves in make up and body paint. Then it was off to a lovely little Pizza joint just down the road to enjoy some of said lovely pizza and some cheap drinks before coming back to the grossly over priced party at our hostel. It was a messy night. and that is all I'll say.

We spent the next day recovering on the beach and chilling on the Island before we split up again to head to our next destination : Mission Beach.

The Oz bus was actually on time for once, mostly because the driver had to catch the same ferry and bus as us all in the morning, and we got off to a good start. Somewhere along the short trip, I decided that it would be a good idea to pay our nice driver and book myself on a gut wrenching white water rafting. I decided that since I'd have to spend and extra day in mission beach anyway, i might as well make the most of it. and what a day it was! But first, mission beach.

Upon arrival into the Mission Beach area, we started to see signs that looked like emu warnings. Our driver soon corrected our thoughts though, tell us that they were in fact Cassowary signs. Mission Beach up to Cook town is the only place in the world to see these amazing but deadly, flightless birds. I had heard of them before, but never seen one, even at the zoos as we had never had time to go and look at them. But basically picture this. a Cassowary is like a small emu with the face of a turkey, the eyes of an emu, and a giant bone on the top of its head. ... Yeah... oh and a razor sharp raptor like claw on its feet. Ugly as hell, but cool all the same. Anyway, that was worlds worst description of these amazing birds, so if you want to see what one actually looks like, just google it.

Sadly, we didn't get to see any Cassowaries on our way into the city, but I was dropped off next to a giant one ... albeit a fake one.

Anyway, the Beach Shack was where we were staying, and it was actually quite cool. Had there been anything to do in mission beach, I might have considered staying there for a while. But sadly about the only things to do in this quaint little spit of a town is to Sky Dive (no thanks) , River Raft (already doing it) and um ... well thats it really. Oh yeah, you can chill on the beach or at the pool, but since its so close to Tully and one of the wettest cities in Australia, it rains. A lot.

After a nice night and a pleasant gecko filled night, I woke up very early to await my rafting pick up. I'll admit here that when I got up, I was feeling a little nervous. I'd never been rafting before and had heard all the horror stories of how people fell out of the raft and drowned under rocks and things (thanks Sam) so needless to say, I was having second thoughts. My bus came and picked me up though, and before long I had met up with another girl, Emma, who was from the Oz Bus and had booked with me. Funny how much less scary things are with company. We got to Tully township in short order, paid our fees and suited up in wet suits and some sort of sandal with lots of straps attached. We looked ridiculous! and I wish I had gotten photos.

Raging Thunder does a couple different tours along the Tully River, and you might be interested to know that one of the reasons the Tully is so popular is because at the top of the river is an electrical power dam thingy. That means that every day you have a guaranteed minimum water level. cool huh? Anyway, Emma and I had signed up for the "Extreme tour" which meant we got to start a little farther up the river than the rest, and we got to do it in smaller boats and do rapids backwards and things. Groovy.

After a very hasty breakfast our "Team Extreme" loaded up on the mini bus and headed to the river. It was here we met a couple of the guides who would be taking us down the river, as well as our fellow passengers. Emma and I were 2 of 8 people who came in from Mission beach, most of the others had to catch a coach bus from Cairns to get down to where we were. We picked our team though, made up of one Californian, 3 Irish boys, and Emma and I. We were a little slow to suit up, and ended up with a Kiwi guide named Casey, and boy was that fortunate. The man was a personality to be sure Right off he started making fun of the Irish (always amusing) and the fact that we would now be screwed because the Irish cant listen to instruction. It was this point where I started getting really scared. Emma and I jumped into the middle of the boat (we decided we didn't want to go in the front just yet) and started psyching each other up for our trip. The first rapid left me shaking, I was so freaked out. But by the end of the second one I was getting a hang of it. It wasn't long before I was having the time of my life going over the rapids and paddling with what I thought was expert skill

Casey was an excellent guide who took us to a few spots the other guides didn't go to. He took us over rapids backwards, and even took us Raft surfing, where you steer your raft so that one side is under the rapids and the weight of the water holds it there. That was fun He had us float down the river for a stretch which was relaxing, and had us practice pulling each other back into the raft in case someone did fall out. Then we got to swim through some rapids, which was fun. He pulled the raft up to the bank and all of us piled out and followed another one of the guides up a small hill. It was here they told us what to expect while swimming down this stretch. basically we were going to get held under the water with only 1 second intervals in which to get a breath. Oh yeah, and see those rocks on either side? yeah don't swim into them. They'll hurt. So when you come out of the rapid, start swimming hard for the left hand side or you're going to go over that waterfall there. eep! It was an experience to be sure, and it was over much faster than it seemed, so much so, that I almost didn't make it to the bank in time! I did get to the bank though, but the rocks were slippery, and some dunce from another boat crashed into me sending me back into the water lucky for me though, our guide was watching for something like that and helped me onto shore. it was just after here that we found out we could swim down the waterfall anyway, which I did because, well why not? It wasn't until I was already in the water, being held by my guide that he warned me not to open my mouth to scream because I'd likely drown. They are real good with that kind of thing sheesh! It was great though! I spent a while 5 seconds under the waterfall and there was nothing but green all around me! It was really neat ) Then it was off to lunch. mmm Food.

Afterwards we posed for photos in our boat before Casey steered us straight under a waterfall! I never knew what kind of force all that water could exude, but I felt like I was going to be pushed straight through the bottom of the boat! All in all, we didn't have anyone come out of our boat, though a couple of the others did flip over, which was kind of scary, but they all got back in ok. We spent most of the later part of the ride looking for water dragons and snakes (saw lots of the former, but no pythons) At one point, Casey stopped the raft at a large Island / rock in the river and we piled out again to follow another guide up to the top. It wasnt until I was at the top of this huge rock that I found out this was a cliff jump! By that time, it was too late to chicken out as Casey had already taken the raft passed us to wait. He politely waved as I called him an ass though. What a nice guy I did the jump though! And it felt like I was falling forever!

The day was over too soon though, and before we knew it we were at the bottom. Just for fun, Casey let us tip the raft and swim over to the boat ramp. The day was hugely exhausting! and I fell asleep on the ride back to Mission Beach.

It was pouring rain the next couple days, so there wasn't much to do besides sit inside and watch tv and dvds. Then it was off to Cairns

It seemed that the farther up the coast I got, the more i could notice the humidity every time I got off the bus. One of the stops we made along the way up was the Johnson River Crocodile farm. Rumor has it that the dude who runs the farm was the original inspiration for Crocodile Dundee ... though let me tell you he didn't look anything like Paul Hogan. Anyway, I got to hold several different snakes, which was really cool, as well as a blue tonged lizard, baby crocodile, and a dingo puppy We also saw a giant 5 meter croc named Greggory, and toured around the farm for a bit. The visit was entertaining once you got over the fact that the whole place was created to breed Crocodiles for slaughter.

Cairns itsself was more than a little touristy. In the CBD (Central business district) all there is to do is shop for tacky "discount" souvineers and look at the over priced menus of the many bars and cafes that inhabit the town. For a backpacker, there were tons of deals as long as you were willing not to use your taste buds. Things like free meals (you had to buy a drink though) and drink deals were offered in abundance which was nice. The meals mostly consisted of Spagetthi bolognaise, chili concarne and some kind of non meat meal. The SpagBol wasnt bad, but I'd steer far clear of the Chilli.

To be honest I didnt really enjoy Cairns very much, though to be true, I never really gave it much of a chance. Most of my days there I spent wandering around looking at shops and the various markets. One thing they did have there was a place called Rustys markets, which was just like the farmers markets from home! Pleanty of fresh, ripe, locally grown produce, and all at prices I could actually afford! its just too bad that I never really bought anything there, due to the fact that I wasnt sure how long I'd be staying in the area for. It looked good though

Upon arrival, as per usual the girls needed jobs and all 4 of them managed to get jobs in the first day they were there! So by the time I arrived the next day, everyone was headed off to their various places of employment. Helen and Jenna were working at a bar/restaraunt called Rattle & Hum which had a cool atmosphere and Sam was working for one of the more popular nightclubs, Soho. Erin managed to find herself work in a pleasant little cafe (with awesome food!) situated right in the center of the tourist district. With the girls all settled in and my funds running low, I knew it was time for me to once again move on before I wasted another 2 or 3 weeks spending my money in a town I didnt really like.

It took me a while to decide, but after about a week I finally settled on taking a plane to Darwin. I cried my eyes out in the Airport, but was comforted by the fact that I'll be seeing all my friends again in just a few short months. I can't imagine what it will be like when they all fly home.

I've been here in Darwin now for a few days, and the city alternately makes me want to stay and leave in equal parts. The first night I was here, I arrived to find a 55 yr old man in his tighty-whities sleeping in the bed next to me and a drunken Irish boy who was intent on wrestling said 55yr old man into submission.... interesting. Since then I've talked to both of them a bit, though in the usual Irish fashion, Derek is rarely sober. I've also made friends with some other boys who are working in the hostel and around the city. Most of the people at the Wilderness lodge seem to be German though, so there are very defined cliques of people who hang out in groups. Its a little sad, but such is life. I also had my food bag stolen last night, which needs a mention here purely out of the annoyance factor more than anything. Just another item to add to my growing list of items lost and presumed stolen. Sigh

Anyway, I head now to Kakadu in 2 days time, and I'm leaving with Adventure Tours, the same company who does OzExperience and who I did my blue mountains tour through. I cant wait, though i know its going to be an exhausting few days as I've signed up for a tour with more hikes than driving time.

So until then, Hope things are well at home ... I'm going grocery shopping ... again >.<

Ciao!
Amy