Melbourne Update

So I have successfully started a mini life here in Melbourne. I am staying with Ellen at the moment in her new apartment in Kensington. Despite the lack of furniture it is a nice place and I am just thankful to not be staying in a backpackers.

I have a new job. I am working at a cafe called the Limebar where I wash dishes and help out in the kitchen. Take that! college degree. The people I work with are lovely and the manager has already given me a nickname...Sassafrass or Sass for short. Quite fitting, eh?

So during the week while Ellen is at work I explore the city a bit. I have even joined the Kensington Rec Center, so I can go swimming and take yoga. This past Saturday Ellen and I had quite a day. We started off at a photography exhibition called "The Earth from Above" and then to see the Astro Boy exhibition at the National Gallery of Victoria and finally to the Sexpo where sex shops from all around tried to sell their various goods. It was quite a cultured day to say the least.

So, I am here until after the New Year and then off the New Zealand.

Culinary Delights

Melbourne being the culturally rich city that it is has many options for pleasing your taste buds. I particularly enjoy the chocolate cafe that has a large array of hot chocolates and desserts.

Ellen has been kind enough to introduce me to her friends and their kids. I have begun the live this mini life as a soccer mom, going to dance class and the museum with all the moms and their kids. So on Thanksgiving I embraced this new role and cooked a Thanksgiving feast for them all. Seeing as this was my first time doing this I would say it was a great success. Thanks to the emails from home with recipes.
I also enjoy that Australia sticks to the old custom of having separate stores rather than one giant superstore. There are many fruit stands, delis, bottle shops, butchers and bakers lining the streets in most neighborhoods. This culture would make Super Wal-Mart go down the tubes. Not to mention the wonderful food and craft markets that go on during the weekend. This next one is of Queen Victoria Market.

Brisbane and new home

Not much to report from Brisbane. I said goodbye to a few friends that I had been traveling down the coast with for a bit and off I flew to Melbourne. After seeing the beautiful beaches of the east coast I was welcomed to Melbourne beach by AJ and Milla. (see it? blue towel=water, yellow pillow= sand).

I get a good vibe from Melbourne and I think I will try and stay here a while with Ellen. Perhaps get a job, basically just take a break from hostel living and backpacking.

Noosa Heads

After a whirlwind trip to Fraser I headed to Noosa where I was expecting some relaxation, not really expecting to make many friends. But I was wrong. A girl from my hostel in Hervey Bay was actually staying in the same room as me, so we made buddies with our roommate and there we had the start of our Noosa clan. The first night there was a huge hail storm which brought all the travelers together in the hall. This group also wanted new names. So Keren soon became LuLu, and Elysse became Jess, we had a Shaggy, Billy Bob and Spaz. No name spelling with hips though, which is a shame. Noosa is sort of a place where all the rich people come and have their holidays. They have gorgeous vacation homes on the river and ride up and down it with their house boats. There is a national park that surrounds it, where I was able to see a kookaburra, and the beach there is quite lush too. This is where many people learn to surf for the first time. So we went on some hikes and swims and even rented a pontoon boat for a day.

Fraser Island

Fraser Island started off with an interview at my hostel. Little did I know this would be a crucial part of the fun times that lay ahead. As you can see, a group of 11 backpackers will all go in together and rent a 4 wheel drive jeep in order to navigate around this island made entirely of sand. So we loaded into Lucy and made our way to Fraser. Through out the trip we made many rules to enhance the fun on our trip. We started off making new names and nationalities for ourselves. We had Dirk from Holland (Dave, UK), Dara from Iceland (Julia, Germany), Michelle from Switzerland (Franzi, Germany), Claire from Ireland (Katrina, Germany), Rosita with her flamenco dancing feeta from Argentina (Pipien, Holland), Ramaramadingdong from Africa (Gaz, UK), Jesus from Israel (Jay, Ireland), Christ from Egypt (Kaur, Estonia), Moses (Audrus, Estonia), Mary (Merike, Estonia) and finally Sally from Canada. Many of these names I didn't know until the end. The second rule was that there was only English speaking and if they spoke in their language they got an "X", 5 "X"'s mean you have to spell your name with your hips. Also if the other English speakers were hard to understand, they too would get an "X". We also had another game going on where we had tasks we had to perform on other people which also made us act that much more crazy. The back of Lucy became our own karaoke booth with Jesus and I leading the songs.
We stopped by a crystal blue fresh water lake called Lake McKenzie and had a dip. We were able to run into a few dingos there. Now remember, they are very dangerous animals, should you come across one, cross your arms over your chest and stare them down. Or run up to them and take their picture. That night we set up camp on the beach and had dinner and drank away. It was great waking up next to the sea (at 5am) but not so great waiting until 10 in the boiling sun with sand flies biting you everywhere, until the tide goes down to get on with your day.
The following day we went to Indian head and looked out for dolphins and then to Eli Creek where we floated down the 2 foot deep creek. We ended our time on Fraser, completing all of our tasks and spelling "Dingo" with our hips and proclaiming how much we loved Lucy. Yep, we were the obnoxious people on the trip.

The Whitsundays

In Queensland (North Eastern Oz) many backpackers follow the same trail. They start in Cairns and head south along the coast. First stop is usually Magnetic Island and then to Airlie Beach to experience the Whitsundays which is a group of islands off the coast. Most people will do a sailing adventure which is exactly what I did.

I went on a boat called Siska which was actually a racing sailboat in the past. We spent 2 days and one night sailing around this gorgeous group of islands. We were able to stop and snorkle 3 times, we had to wear stinger suits because it is stinger season in the north, and we stopped at a beach called Whitehaven which has the most beautiful white sand I have ever seen. When you step on it, it feels as though you are walking in flour.

Life as a Backpacker

I want to post pics with the recent adventures I have had, so I will hold off for now writing about the Whitsundays and Fraser Island.

Diet: Breakfast: Sometimes hostels have free brekky which is usually toast or cereal

Lunch: Bread, tomatos, cheese, hummous or some other dip

Dinner: Soup or pasta, although some hostels will have a cheap evening meal.

This is day in and day out.

Sleeping: Sharing a room with 4 at the least and about 8 at the most. No privacy, which kills me at times. I have had only one semi bad experience, so I consider myself lucky. I miss privacy and just chilling out in front of the TV.

Friends: Everyday a new friend is to be made. If you are lucky you will find 5 or so people staying at the hostel the same time as you. Usually you cling onto eachother for things to do during the day and at night.

Partying: If you believe it or not, I have not been out a single night. Most nights I hang around the hostel drinking with above friends. Best way to save money because bars are expensive.

So backpacking is going well, although after only a month I am sort of getting sick of it!