Friday, June 23, 2006
Saturday, June 17, 2006
byron bay, global gossip internet cafe - i'm a card-carrying member.
i'm staying at "the arts factory" - a hippy-dippy hostel with an equally hippy-dippy clientele. it's cool and there's a painted old double-decker bus you can sleep in - still it's a little contrived - hipsters rolling joints and rolling their eyes at each other. whatever - the beach is gorgeous! AND - i rented a board and tried surfing for the first time~ i spent all day on the fence about it. the weather was kind of crappy and the water was cold and grey, then there was the $25 for the gear rental. i knew if hazen had been there, there would have been no stopping us from getting in there and tearing it up, but me on my lonesome? i found 2 kids from the hostel who wanted to go and we three got wet-suited and spent 2 hours stuggling in the waves. it was hard to catch one - i was in the wrong place for most of my time out there. finally, toward the end i figured out where i needed to be and caught a few - even got up on one and rode it in. not too impressive, i assure you - it was really hard work, but it was fun! i'll just have to live on the ocean one of these days and get into it.
i walked to the lighthouse today and looked out for migrating whales. i didn't see any, but the view was spectacular and i did see some some dolfins. coffe to go on a rainy sunday.
i'm staying at "the arts factory" - a hippy-dippy hostel with an equally hippy-dippy clientele. it's cool and there's a painted old double-decker bus you can sleep in - still it's a little contrived - hipsters rolling joints and rolling their eyes at each other. whatever - the beach is gorgeous! AND - i rented a board and tried surfing for the first time~ i spent all day on the fence about it. the weather was kind of crappy and the water was cold and grey, then there was the $25 for the gear rental. i knew if hazen had been there, there would have been no stopping us from getting in there and tearing it up, but me on my lonesome? i found 2 kids from the hostel who wanted to go and we three got wet-suited and spent 2 hours stuggling in the waves. it was hard to catch one - i was in the wrong place for most of my time out there. finally, toward the end i figured out where i needed to be and caught a few - even got up on one and rode it in. not too impressive, i assure you - it was really hard work, but it was fun! i'll just have to live on the ocean one of these days and get into it.
i walked to the lighthouse today and looked out for migrating whales. i didn't see any, but the view was spectacular and i did see some some dolfins. coffe to go on a rainy sunday.
Thursday, June 15, 2006
surfers paradice, nomad's backpackers internet cafe. $2.50 for 30 min. rip-off.
after fraser it was some major sleep recovery in hervey bay and again on the bus to brisy. i stayed there 2 nights, walked around - beautiful city - class a. not loads happening, maybe, but the planning and developement were first rate. the cliffs along the river can be used by the local inhabitance as a climbing and repelling gym. the river itself is used for cheap public transportation~ groovie. OH! and i got my flight sorted out - i will be back in the us early july via a week in fiji and a stop in LA!
swinging brisbane!
after fraser it was some major sleep recovery in hervey bay and again on the bus to brisy. i stayed there 2 nights, walked around - beautiful city - class a. not loads happening, maybe, but the planning and developement were first rate. the cliffs along the river can be used by the local inhabitance as a climbing and repelling gym. the river itself is used for cheap public transportation~ groovie. OH! and i got my flight sorted out - i will be back in the us early july via a week in fiji and a stop in LA!
swinging brisbane!
4x4 adventure~
my 2-night, 3-day, 4-wheel drive adventure on fraser island was amazing!! the groups met in the hostel on the morning of and were assigned teams. i was in team B of 2 - a 4x4 of 10, mostly americans and irish, one german girl. 2 ran off to shop for all our food supplies, and i took everyone's booze orders for the bottle shop~ it was boxes of wine all around. we watched instructional vidoes on how to drive a 4x4 on the beaches and roads on fraser, how to share the road (beach) with landing aircraft, how many ocean creatures can kill you, and how to be "dingo safe".
our odd grouping bonded in record-setting rain that night with both teams cramed into 2 tents (set up under the kitchen pavillion at base camp) and in the cars. by the time the clouds cleared we were on the ferry back to the mainland. but what an incredible place! beautiful lakes, white sand, boxed wine! we did have a few dingo sightings, but didn't feel threatened. good times. good people. that was worth doing for sure!
my 2-night, 3-day, 4-wheel drive adventure on fraser island was amazing!! the groups met in the hostel on the morning of and were assigned teams. i was in team B of 2 - a 4x4 of 10, mostly americans and irish, one german girl. 2 ran off to shop for all our food supplies, and i took everyone's booze orders for the bottle shop~ it was boxes of wine all around. we watched instructional vidoes on how to drive a 4x4 on the beaches and roads on fraser, how to share the road (beach) with landing aircraft, how many ocean creatures can kill you, and how to be "dingo safe".
our odd grouping bonded in record-setting rain that night with both teams cramed into 2 tents (set up under the kitchen pavillion at base camp) and in the cars. by the time the clouds cleared we were on the ferry back to the mainland. but what an incredible place! beautiful lakes, white sand, boxed wine! we did have a few dingo sightings, but didn't feel threatened. good times. good people. that was worth doing for sure!
Wednesday, June 07, 2006
airlie beach, global gossip email&internet. calls home $.05 a min. internet $3/hour with membership - but $8 to burn a cd?! shameful.
2 nights on magnetic island! nice~ i took a few short hikes and saw some beautiful bays and even a wild koala! the place i stayed falls into the category of "backpacker resort" - this means that it's got everything a traveling youth could ever want or need - and is thusly designed to take as much money from you as possible. it was however, a nice place to stay, and in a beautiful location. the island was nice. that was a greyhound ago - now i'm on the way to frasier island to join a self-drive 4w-drive, 3-day tour of the island! it's been talked up by most of the north-bound travelers i've met here. there seems to be a list of must-sees that pretty much everyone is doing. anyway, check it out!
x-base backpackers resort, magnetic island
2 nights on magnetic island! nice~ i took a few short hikes and saw some beautiful bays and even a wild koala! the place i stayed falls into the category of "backpacker resort" - this means that it's got everything a traveling youth could ever want or need - and is thusly designed to take as much money from you as possible. it was however, a nice place to stay, and in a beautiful location. the island was nice. that was a greyhound ago - now i'm on the way to frasier island to join a self-drive 4w-drive, 3-day tour of the island! it's been talked up by most of the north-bound travelers i've met here. there seems to be a list of must-sees that pretty much everyone is doing. anyway, check it out!
x-base backpackers resort, magnetic island
Saturday, June 03, 2006
cairns, internet cafe. $1/15 min. freezing in the air-con.
crap-ass tourist town - i'm outa' here. i've had all the cairns i can stand! i was up north in the rainforest and on the beaches of cape tribulation~ it was pretty remote, but they did still manage to clear a space for a few backpacker "resorts". i got to see some crocs from the river boat on the way up and there was some wildlife living around the hostel. i took a guided walk and learned all about the many species of plant and animal that can kill a man within seconds. i did make it back to cairns without deadly incident, but i'm not sure that's a good thing. it's a total tourist sham! did you know that cairns doesn't even have a beach?!!?!
i'm rolling south on a greyhound today, but now i've got to go and buy a ticket. peace.
crap-ass tourist town - i'm outa' here. i've had all the cairns i can stand! i was up north in the rainforest and on the beaches of cape tribulation~ it was pretty remote, but they did still manage to clear a space for a few backpacker "resorts". i got to see some crocs from the river boat on the way up and there was some wildlife living around the hostel. i took a guided walk and learned all about the many species of plant and animal that can kill a man within seconds. i did make it back to cairns without deadly incident, but i'm not sure that's a good thing. it's a total tourist sham! did you know that cairns doesn't even have a beach?!!?!
i'm rolling south on a greyhound today, but now i've got to go and buy a ticket. peace.
Monday, May 29, 2006
perth, britannia on william youth hostel 'compuda' - one of several, $3 AUD / hour. raining - still, not bad weather all things relative (to michigan).
i played a little guitar in this trendy outdoor mall yesterday. i saw other "musicians" doing their trade there in the afternoon, but the only thing they really succeeded in doing was habitualizing the pedestrians to ignoring street performers. no luck. anyway, persuaded by the sudden onset of boredom and bad weather, i've decided to jump a last-min. flight to cairns! i should be on the great barrier reef by the end of the week!!
tonight is my big chance to hit the town with deborah and her friends, we'll probably check out the infamous brass monkey bar just down the street from here~
lazy-ass kangaroos
i played a little guitar in this trendy outdoor mall yesterday. i saw other "musicians" doing their trade there in the afternoon, but the only thing they really succeeded in doing was habitualizing the pedestrians to ignoring street performers. no luck. anyway, persuaded by the sudden onset of boredom and bad weather, i've decided to jump a last-min. flight to cairns! i should be on the great barrier reef by the end of the week!!
tonight is my big chance to hit the town with deborah and her friends, we'll probably check out the infamous brass monkey bar just down the street from here~
lazy-ass kangaroos
Sunday, May 28, 2006
Saturday, May 27, 2006
perth, australia. deborah's obnoxious, pushy little powerbook.
dude~ that was a solid week of living it up in southwest aus! It was cool to hang out with mom and deborah and we did all the kinds of things a family does on vacation (and that I usually don't do when I'm traveling alone on-a-count-a the cost). we stayed a few nights in margaret river at a super cute bed and breakfast called the noble grape. we did wine tastings and ate great food. we visited animal parks and looked out for whales from the southern cape - didn't see any, unfortunately. one cool thing we did was go on the "bush tucker" river tour. our guide was the most aussie bloke you can imagine - blond surfer, barefoot, tan, and floppy hatted. he canoed us to a shmorcusboard of 'edible' and 'medicinal' plants that can be found in the bush. for lunch he provided a feast of pestos and chutneys that he prepared using ingredients he plucked from the wild! it was great - we made kangaroo and emu sandwiches with them - what a trip~ i didn't try the 'witchity grub'
we were so busy with all the fun that we all conked out early most nights. but we had a good time seeing the sights and there was lots of singing in the rental car and chilling on the beaches. it's unbelievable that so much of that coast line is undeveloped! it was amazing.. just thinking about that same coastline if it were somewhere in america makes me cringe. it would be condos or high-rise hotels as far as the eye can see. let's hope they don't screw it up, huh?
i'm blaming the powerbook on my lack of picture posting. maybe tomorrow.
dude~ that was a solid week of living it up in southwest aus! It was cool to hang out with mom and deborah and we did all the kinds of things a family does on vacation (and that I usually don't do when I'm traveling alone on-a-count-a the cost). we stayed a few nights in margaret river at a super cute bed and breakfast called the noble grape. we did wine tastings and ate great food. we visited animal parks and looked out for whales from the southern cape - didn't see any, unfortunately. one cool thing we did was go on the "bush tucker" river tour. our guide was the most aussie bloke you can imagine - blond surfer, barefoot, tan, and floppy hatted. he canoed us to a shmorcusboard of 'edible' and 'medicinal' plants that can be found in the bush. for lunch he provided a feast of pestos and chutneys that he prepared using ingredients he plucked from the wild! it was great - we made kangaroo and emu sandwiches with them - what a trip~ i didn't try the 'witchity grub'
we were so busy with all the fun that we all conked out early most nights. but we had a good time seeing the sights and there was lots of singing in the rental car and chilling on the beaches. it's unbelievable that so much of that coast line is undeveloped! it was amazing.. just thinking about that same coastline if it were somewhere in america makes me cringe. it would be condos or high-rise hotels as far as the eye can see. let's hope they don't screw it up, huh?
i'm blaming the powerbook on my lack of picture posting. maybe tomorrow.
Monday, May 22, 2006
perth, australia. deborah's dorm room, deborah's cute little powerbook.
oi - only 3 flights and 18 hours from phuket to perth~ deborah and her friends greeted me at the airport!
my last days in thailand were spent going backwards through my travels via return-ticket. i did get a chance to try a few more new foods and spent the last of my bhat on some mekong whiskey to share with my guys (the next time we're all together, dudes - let that day be soon). so much more to see - so much more to explore. i can't really put my finger on what i like so much about thailand. there's entertainment and natural beauty in limitless abundance, but there's something endearing about the place - an otherworldly charm that sucks people in so completely that they never leave! lucky i got out when i did, but i want to go back someday.
i've seen a little bit of perth - not much yet, but it seems like a chill city with some sweet beaches~ today we went to this animal park that had fallen into total disrepair. there were giant dinosaur statues scattered around the park and the animals had FREE REIGN!! it was kind of sureal, actually. we saw lamas, kangaroos, peacocks and variations on those themes. then we got to pet little koalas! i'll upload some pics.
oi - only 3 flights and 18 hours from phuket to perth~ deborah and her friends greeted me at the airport!
my last days in thailand were spent going backwards through my travels via return-ticket. i did get a chance to try a few more new foods and spent the last of my bhat on some mekong whiskey to share with my guys (the next time we're all together, dudes - let that day be soon). so much more to see - so much more to explore. i can't really put my finger on what i like so much about thailand. there's entertainment and natural beauty in limitless abundance, but there's something endearing about the place - an otherworldly charm that sucks people in so completely that they never leave! lucky i got out when i did, but i want to go back someday.
i've seen a little bit of perth - not much yet, but it seems like a chill city with some sweet beaches~ today we went to this animal park that had fallen into total disrepair. there were giant dinosaur statues scattered around the park and the animals had FREE REIGN!! it was kind of sureal, actually. we saw lamas, kangaroos, peacocks and variations on those themes. then we got to pet little koalas! i'll upload some pics.
Thursday, May 18, 2006
ko phi phi, internet spot, waiting for ferry back to phuket.
well - bad weather continues, it's just that time of year. i woke up early because they were chainsawing the trees that had fallen, smashing some of the tin roofed neighboring guest houses. i was hung over but i decided to go ahead and join the isrealies for a snorkeling and secluded beach boat tour~ i'm glad i did! i saw some wild stuff and got to try snorkeling for the first time - LOVED IT! wild fish, jellies, and all the crazy aquarium plant/animals that are freaking crazy! we had some rough water and the isrealies (in the military, i'll remind you) chickened out and demanded to be picked up by a water taxi. later, i climbed around on bamboo beach i found a clam shell the size of a football! it was totally unreal! sadly it had to stay on the island and my camera was on the boat.. so it won't be featured..
not it's back to phuket with an early 3 flights to perth! a week is not NEARLY enough for thailand - there's a lot to see and do - i'll just have to come back someday. off to AUS!
viewpoint on ko phi phi
well - bad weather continues, it's just that time of year. i woke up early because they were chainsawing the trees that had fallen, smashing some of the tin roofed neighboring guest houses. i was hung over but i decided to go ahead and join the isrealies for a snorkeling and secluded beach boat tour~ i'm glad i did! i saw some wild stuff and got to try snorkeling for the first time - LOVED IT! wild fish, jellies, and all the crazy aquarium plant/animals that are freaking crazy! we had some rough water and the isrealies (in the military, i'll remind you) chickened out and demanded to be picked up by a water taxi. later, i climbed around on bamboo beach i found a clam shell the size of a football! it was totally unreal! sadly it had to stay on the island and my camera was on the boat.. so it won't be featured..
not it's back to phuket with an early 3 flights to perth! a week is not NEARLY enough for thailand - there's a lot to see and do - i'll just have to come back someday. off to AUS!
viewpoint on ko phi phi
ko phi phi, harmony guest house internet 2 bhat / min.
man - the weather has been wild! fronts of wind and rain come in like the world's freaking ending and as quick as they come, they go. the sidewalks are flooded and people get drenched, but it couldn't bother me less. people on the beach drinking buckets of booze (literaly) and dancing like man people in the rain! it's been fun, but it bothers me how predictable i am as a tourist.. i like all the shit they're selling me; parties, iced coffees, bob marley on the beach, fire shows. and it's got nothing to do with the thai culture.
there was massive tsunami damage on the island last year - but most tourists seem to be pretty fucking insensitive to such things. here's a short conversation i overheard as a was walking along a cobbled road to the beach. buildings no longer line the street, only a mess of rubble and debris.
idiot girl: ".. and he was like, 'if i snore just elbow me in the ribs and i'll stop', so i did and he DID stop but he stopped BREATHING too and then he started coughing and he'd wake up and then go to sleep and just start snoring again!"
moronic girl: "i know~ and i pretty much couldn't sleep at all. i think it was the red bull."
idiot girl: "i know! i was so wasted~"
moronic girl: "well - i hate to add to the mess, but.." THROWS AN EVIAN BOTTLE INTO A PEICE OF BROKEN HOME
idiot girl: "well - it looks like this is where they throw all their garbage anyway."
moronic girl: "yeah - what a total dump." WONDEROUS BEACH LOOMS AHEAD
idiot girl: "and boring - nothing to freaking do here."
moronic girl: "yeah - three days was definately enough for ko p.p." PASSES THE TSUNAMI MEMORIAL GARDEN WITHOUT A GLANCE
ass clowns. all of them. no one should have the priviledge of such ignorance and total arrogance. it's painful.
man - the weather has been wild! fronts of wind and rain come in like the world's freaking ending and as quick as they come, they go. the sidewalks are flooded and people get drenched, but it couldn't bother me less. people on the beach drinking buckets of booze (literaly) and dancing like man people in the rain! it's been fun, but it bothers me how predictable i am as a tourist.. i like all the shit they're selling me; parties, iced coffees, bob marley on the beach, fire shows. and it's got nothing to do with the thai culture.
there was massive tsunami damage on the island last year - but most tourists seem to be pretty fucking insensitive to such things. here's a short conversation i overheard as a was walking along a cobbled road to the beach. buildings no longer line the street, only a mess of rubble and debris.
idiot girl: ".. and he was like, 'if i snore just elbow me in the ribs and i'll stop', so i did and he DID stop but he stopped BREATHING too and then he started coughing and he'd wake up and then go to sleep and just start snoring again!"
moronic girl: "i know~ and i pretty much couldn't sleep at all. i think it was the red bull."
idiot girl: "i know! i was so wasted~"
moronic girl: "well - i hate to add to the mess, but.." THROWS AN EVIAN BOTTLE INTO A PEICE OF BROKEN HOME
idiot girl: "well - it looks like this is where they throw all their garbage anyway."
moronic girl: "yeah - what a total dump." WONDEROUS BEACH LOOMS AHEAD
idiot girl: "and boring - nothing to freaking do here."
moronic girl: "yeah - three days was definately enough for ko p.p." PASSES THE TSUNAMI MEMORIAL GARDEN WITHOUT A GLANCE
ass clowns. all of them. no one should have the priviledge of such ignorance and total arrogance. it's painful.
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