Now that I have returned home from my little trip round the world, I am sadly faced with the harsh reality that is life. I desperately need to find a job. More than just a job, I need to start my career, which is hard as I have absolutely no idea what I want to do anymore. Before I went travelling, I felt like I knew what I was going to do on my return…I had a plan. I was going to pursue a career in the media, specifically radio, or in the music industry, and I still would like to do that. It’s just that there are so many other things I want to do and to achieve before I settle down in a career. It doesn’t help that I have two very successful older sisters to live up to. With the fear of being the disappointment of the family, I am starting to feel the pressure mounting.
Taking three months to go travelling around the world was supposed to give me some perspective and help me decide what I wanted to do with my life. It was also supposed to get the whole travelling thing out of my system so that I would be ready to focus all my energies into my career when I got home. Three months, though, was sadly not long enough to satisfy my need for adventure, instead it was just long enough to whet my appetite for more. There are so many more places I want to visit- South East Asia, South America, Europe! And I know I would love to live in another country or two in my life. One of my biggest regrets in life is not studying French at A-Level, as I really wish I was fluent in a different language. This was highlighted during my travels, by the number of people I met who could speak more than one language, so at some point I would love to live in a non-English speaking country. If I could find a job that would allow me to travel, therefore, that would be the perfect situation so on that note I considered, for a while, pursuing a career in journalism, or more specifically, travel journalism. I can write and I like to travel… what more do you need? Apparently it’s not that easy though. In order to get into the industry, you need to have had writing published which means freelancing. Not the most lucrative business, especially when you’re just starting out. And it’s also quite a bizarre notion that you can start your career whilst sitting in your bed in your pyjamas, one that I am still trying to get my head around.
I have also been applying for jobs online. I have sent many a CV and cover letter out in the last few weeks however for most of the applications I have not even had a reply, let alone an interview! At the beginning of my online job hunt, I began by only applying for jobs in journalism and at various travel publications. A friend from university had suggested this as the key to success as applying for fewer jobs means you can really focus your application on the specific job, rather than just sending in a generic application that will probably just get overlooked. This is a good idea in theory, but when companies give you an application form to fill out that makes it hard to sell yourself if you haven’t already established your career in journalism, it is easy to get disheartened. And then very desperate. I am now applying for jobs left right and centre: anything that takes my fancy which means I am now even more confused as to what I want to do. Each day I set my sights on a different career…journalism, music producer, PA, events manager. I know I need to decide on one career and follow it, but I’m scared I’ll choose the wrong one.
Another problem I seem to be having is with my degree. I chose to study History at university because when I was 18 I had no idea what I wanted to do with my life (as you can see, nothing has changed) so I thought doing an open degree such as History, which has no set career option, would open more doors to me, and hopefully one that would lead to my perfect job. However, since applying for jobs in areas that I am interested in, namely media and the arts, no employer seems to want a History degree. Maybe I need to get some more qualifications? A masters? In all honesty though, I’d rather not go back to university, mainly because I can’t afford it, but also, because I feel my days as a student are over, for the time being anyway.
So you see, with so many choices I really only have one option, and that is to wing it. After the last few weeks of desperate job applications and tearful conversations with friends over several bottles of wine, about how I’m obviously a jobless failure, I have come to the realisation that I am just going to have to go with the flow. Obviously, I will keep applying for jobs, but as soon as I scrape enough money together I think I’ll head for the Big Smoke and see what happens. Life is an adventure after all.
Sunday, 24 July 2011
Saturday, 16 July 2011
The Land of the Free and the Home of MacDonalds
I realise this is a bit late in coming as I have been back in England for almost three weeks now, but I thought I should probably fill you all in on my thoughts and experiences of the Land of the Free, that is the USA.
I landed in LA and immediately had to come to terms with the massive difference in lifestyle compared to Fiji. Coming from a place where the people are so laid back, they’re practically lying down, LA was a definite shock to the system. Everything in America is so full on and over the top, that just walking around and soaking in the atmosphere is exhausting. A lot of this, I think, can be linked to the concept of the ‘American Dream’; the idea that everybody can make something of themselves as long as they have passion and are prepared to work hard. This lends itself to a plucky, ‘can do’ attitude and a lot of very enthusiastic people, which at times can be a bit sickening. America is also a strongly capitalist country, and even the merest whiff of Socialism causes people to go running for the (Hollywood) hills, as has been demonstrated by Obama’s recent attempt to introduce an NHS style health care system to the States. As a result there is a massive gap between rich and poor, noticeably more so than in the UK, and nowhere is this more apparent than in LA. I stayed in Hollywood, just off Hollywood Boulevard, and my hopes of glitz and glamour were quickly dashed as it is very disappointingly underwhelming. The area itself is quite rough, very dirty and not the sort of place you would expect to find A-list celebrities hanging out at glamorous premieres. I was also warned by many of the people staying in my hostel not to go out on my own at night, and even in the day to be careful. This immediately put me on my guard and made me incredibly wary of anyone wearing a hoodie (in Hollywood, that seemed to be every second person) and any cars driving past with tinted windows (again, more common than you’d think). I think this was probably slightly over the top, but the general vibe I got from LA was quite threatening. I decided therefore to head for Beverly Hills and Santa Monica instead- much more civilised, definitely my cup of tea, and immediately you notice that this is where the wealthy people live. Sadly, Beverly Hills was disappointingly average. Again, not the glitz and glamour you are brought to believe. I found this quite a lot with California in general- everything is so over the top that one’s expectations for things are so built up. The reality, however, is usually quite underwhelming. Santa Monica, on the other hand was much nicer- warmer with a good beach and great shopping.
After two nights in LA, I definitely felt it was time to move on and so I decided a trip down south, to the warmer climes of San Diego was in order. I took the train, which was altogether a much more enjoyable experience than train journeys back home. Like an airport, you deposit your suitcase at the station and then collect it again once you reach your destination. There is none of this racing to find a space on the luggage racks at the end of the carriage, or battling to squeeze your bag into the overhead compartments, where it obviously won’t fit. It’s also a lovely way to see a bit more of the country. Arriving in San Diego, my first feeling was one of relief. It was immediately better than LA- it was cleaner, the people were friendlier and the weather was much better. I can only describe San Diego as a really nice city, ‘nice’ being the operative word. It felt very wholesome and quaint America. Whilst there I went to a farmers market in one of the suburbs, and it was your typical American family day out, right down to the live country band playing. I also visited Old Town San Diego which, again, was a typically American experience. Instead of allowing it to be an old colonial Spanish town, it has been turned into what I can only describe as a Disney attraction, without the rides. People were dressed in nineteenth century outfits and every building had been turned into a museum: you could visit ye olde post office, ye olde cobblers, or ye olde Tibetan souvenir shoppe….everything just felt very fake, which is a shame because it probably could have been a beautiful old town. I found much of California like this: whereas a country like Australia, which also has very little history, focuses on the attractions they do have (namely beautiful beaches, and great weather), America seems to take the little bit of history they do have a really ram it down people’s throats in an incredibly unsubtle way. It definitely made me appreciate the history of our own country.
My final stop in America was San Francisco. This was definitely my favourite place in California- it was nicer and less scary than LA, yet was edgier than San Diego and had some of the quirkiness of a European city. I did a lot of walking which was hard work as there are a hell of a lot of hills! In fairness, the hills dictated my route around the city…I took any route that didn’t involve climbing up them! On one of my days in San Fran I visited Haight, famous for being a hippy hang out in the 1960’s, where the likes of the Grateful Dead and Janis Joplin (don’t worry, I hadn’t heard of them either) lived. Haight is best described as a cleaner, quieter Camden with great little boutiques, lots of bookshops and quaint little cafes to sit and while away the day. It also leads into Golden Gate Park. This is home to the majority of the city’s museums, but it’s also a lovely place to just sit. Although in the middle of this busy city, it is surprisingly quiet and peaceful. I was only able to spend a couple of days in San Francisco, but of the three places I visited in California, it was definitely my favourite. I also met some great people here, none of them American.
I am aware that my view of America, does not seem overly positive, but actually looking back on my ten days in the states, I did have a really good time, and I definitely have some fond memories of it. This is mainly because of the people I met. It wouldn’t be fair to say I disliked California, I just feel no desire to return: I feel like I have seen as much of it as I need to. Maybe this is very narrow-minded of me, and I am open to being convinced otherwise. I would like to visit other parts of the US though, especially the Deep South, just to see how they compare. Maybe then I’ll be converted to the American way…
I landed in LA and immediately had to come to terms with the massive difference in lifestyle compared to Fiji. Coming from a place where the people are so laid back, they’re practically lying down, LA was a definite shock to the system. Everything in America is so full on and over the top, that just walking around and soaking in the atmosphere is exhausting. A lot of this, I think, can be linked to the concept of the ‘American Dream’; the idea that everybody can make something of themselves as long as they have passion and are prepared to work hard. This lends itself to a plucky, ‘can do’ attitude and a lot of very enthusiastic people, which at times can be a bit sickening. America is also a strongly capitalist country, and even the merest whiff of Socialism causes people to go running for the (Hollywood) hills, as has been demonstrated by Obama’s recent attempt to introduce an NHS style health care system to the States. As a result there is a massive gap between rich and poor, noticeably more so than in the UK, and nowhere is this more apparent than in LA. I stayed in Hollywood, just off Hollywood Boulevard, and my hopes of glitz and glamour were quickly dashed as it is very disappointingly underwhelming. The area itself is quite rough, very dirty and not the sort of place you would expect to find A-list celebrities hanging out at glamorous premieres. I was also warned by many of the people staying in my hostel not to go out on my own at night, and even in the day to be careful. This immediately put me on my guard and made me incredibly wary of anyone wearing a hoodie (in Hollywood, that seemed to be every second person) and any cars driving past with tinted windows (again, more common than you’d think). I think this was probably slightly over the top, but the general vibe I got from LA was quite threatening. I decided therefore to head for Beverly Hills and Santa Monica instead- much more civilised, definitely my cup of tea, and immediately you notice that this is where the wealthy people live. Sadly, Beverly Hills was disappointingly average. Again, not the glitz and glamour you are brought to believe. I found this quite a lot with California in general- everything is so over the top that one’s expectations for things are so built up. The reality, however, is usually quite underwhelming. Santa Monica, on the other hand was much nicer- warmer with a good beach and great shopping.
After two nights in LA, I definitely felt it was time to move on and so I decided a trip down south, to the warmer climes of San Diego was in order. I took the train, which was altogether a much more enjoyable experience than train journeys back home. Like an airport, you deposit your suitcase at the station and then collect it again once you reach your destination. There is none of this racing to find a space on the luggage racks at the end of the carriage, or battling to squeeze your bag into the overhead compartments, where it obviously won’t fit. It’s also a lovely way to see a bit more of the country. Arriving in San Diego, my first feeling was one of relief. It was immediately better than LA- it was cleaner, the people were friendlier and the weather was much better. I can only describe San Diego as a really nice city, ‘nice’ being the operative word. It felt very wholesome and quaint America. Whilst there I went to a farmers market in one of the suburbs, and it was your typical American family day out, right down to the live country band playing. I also visited Old Town San Diego which, again, was a typically American experience. Instead of allowing it to be an old colonial Spanish town, it has been turned into what I can only describe as a Disney attraction, without the rides. People were dressed in nineteenth century outfits and every building had been turned into a museum: you could visit ye olde post office, ye olde cobblers, or ye olde Tibetan souvenir shoppe….everything just felt very fake, which is a shame because it probably could have been a beautiful old town. I found much of California like this: whereas a country like Australia, which also has very little history, focuses on the attractions they do have (namely beautiful beaches, and great weather), America seems to take the little bit of history they do have a really ram it down people’s throats in an incredibly unsubtle way. It definitely made me appreciate the history of our own country.
My final stop in America was San Francisco. This was definitely my favourite place in California- it was nicer and less scary than LA, yet was edgier than San Diego and had some of the quirkiness of a European city. I did a lot of walking which was hard work as there are a hell of a lot of hills! In fairness, the hills dictated my route around the city…I took any route that didn’t involve climbing up them! On one of my days in San Fran I visited Haight, famous for being a hippy hang out in the 1960’s, where the likes of the Grateful Dead and Janis Joplin (don’t worry, I hadn’t heard of them either) lived. Haight is best described as a cleaner, quieter Camden with great little boutiques, lots of bookshops and quaint little cafes to sit and while away the day. It also leads into Golden Gate Park. This is home to the majority of the city’s museums, but it’s also a lovely place to just sit. Although in the middle of this busy city, it is surprisingly quiet and peaceful. I was only able to spend a couple of days in San Francisco, but of the three places I visited in California, it was definitely my favourite. I also met some great people here, none of them American.
I am aware that my view of America, does not seem overly positive, but actually looking back on my ten days in the states, I did have a really good time, and I definitely have some fond memories of it. This is mainly because of the people I met. It wouldn’t be fair to say I disliked California, I just feel no desire to return: I feel like I have seen as much of it as I need to. Maybe this is very narrow-minded of me, and I am open to being convinced otherwise. I would like to visit other parts of the US though, especially the Deep South, just to see how they compare. Maybe then I’ll be converted to the American way…
Monday, 20 June 2011
'Excuse me sir, do you have the time?'...'Its FIJI TIME'
I am currently recovering from a week in Fiji. Recovering from a week of doing more or less nothing apart from a bit of snorkelling and a lot of sunbathing. Its pretty exhausting doing nothing! Having said that it was an amazing week and I met some really great people. Fijians are so friendly: you can't walk down a street without at least ten people shouting 'Bula!' at you. ( This is their equivalent of 'g'day mate!'). They are so helpful as well, and lucky for me there were lots of lovely gentlemen on hand to carry my suitcase wherever it needed to go. Pure bliss!
To make the most of my week in Fiji, I decided to do a spot of island hopping. Fiji has three hundred and twenty two islands in total, most of them uninhabited and a lot of them are teeny tiny. They are nearly all, however, the picture of a paradise island with white beaches, clear blue waters and lucious green vegetation. Heaven. The first island I visited was Coral View. This was up in the Yasawas, the furthest group of islands and approximately a five hour boat trip from the main island. When we arrived we received a traditional Fijian welcome which involved singing and a lot of shaking of hands! I soon discovered that Fijians absolutely love to sing, especially at Coral View. They literally sing about everything. Lunch, dinner, hello, goodbye: you name it, they have a song for it! The vibe here was very laid back, and all the staff were so friendly that after the two days were up, I was almost reluctant to leave, and in fact some of the people I arrived with decided to stay longer. In one guys opinion, deciding to stay on the island was like having a girlfriend: you know there's probably someone better out there, but you decide to stick with the one you've got. (Needless to say, he didn't have a girlfriend!). I decided to tear myself away in the hope of finding something even better in the shape of Korovou resort.
At Korovou I sadly did not get the same melodic welcome as at Coral View, however that was because I arrived on a Sunday and nothing happens on Sunday apart from going to church. It is God's day. They more than made up for the lack of entertainment on the second night though, where we were treated to a fire dancing show. It was all very exciting: topless men dancing with fire in little grass skirts. At one point they even set the floor on fire. Literally! I have to say that I was very impressed with the dancing skills of the Fijian men. Its a shame that British men aren't the same. Unless, of course, they've got a few pints down them! After the fire dancing there was a bit of audience participation (as there was at all the resorts, in fact). We all had to get up and do the Bula dance. This is basically the Fijian Macarena. Same moves, the only addition is that you have to shout 'Bula!' as you jump round, hence the name 'The Bula Dance'. At this point I did feel like I had been transported to a British holiday camp along the lines of Butlins. But everyone got involved and there was always the chance of winning a few free drinks.
The final island I stayed on was South Sea Island. This really was a tiny island. It looked as if it could get washed away at even the hint of a slightly bigger wave than usual. You could actually walk around it in two minutes and, according to one of the girls I met, hop around it in three and a half. What it lacked in size was made up for in hospitality though. Again, the staff were so friendly. We had a candlelit dinner on the beach followed by crab racing (highly competative and taken extremely seriously) and, of course, Bula dancing. Later on we all chilled out round a campfire, sang songs and drank lots of kava. Kava is the Fijian drink of choice. It is not alcoholic, as many of the islands are actually dry, so alcohol is forbidden, but it is a narcotic so will have some effect. It mainly makes your tongue go numb and gives you very strange dreams apparently. It is made from the root of a plant mixed with water and unfortunately it just tastes like muddy water. Not very pleasant.
On my last day in Fiji I went on a day sailing trip around the magical Mamanuca islands. I was lucky enough to do this trip for free as I had bumped into a couple earlier in the week who had paid for it, but were unable to do it on the day as they wouldn't have time. I did have to make a few changes to the ticket though, which involved a nerve wracking experience of me having to pretend to be someone else. As many of you know, my acting skills are not great and I was sure I was going to get caught and thrown overboard. Luckily it all ended well. This sailing trip was amazing. Not only was there unlimited free food and drink (I definitely made the most of the free cake!), but we also got to visit the island where 'Castaway' was filmed, visit a real life Fijian village (yes, it was as patronising as it sounds) and take part in a kava ceremony, which was a pretty big honour apparently. All in all, not a bad days sailing!
Life in Fiji, especially on the islands, is very different to the way of life I and most of the other people I was travelling with are used to. None of the islands had hot water, so it was cold showers for the week, and on Korovou, there was no electricity, apart from between six and eleven at night. This meant no phone signal or internet access and therefore no Facebook! It was actually quite nice. There was no point worrying about trying to get in contact with someone, because you literally couldn't. Instead you could just spend your time enjoying the simpler things in life. Such as sunsets. By god, I saw a lot of sunsets. In fact I think the majority of my Fiji photo album will be of sunsets! They were very pretty though. We also got to enjoy having time to do absolutely nothing. In Fiji, people run by Fiji time. This tends to be at least half an hour later than any of the clocks on the island. In fact, there aren't many clocks on the island. Although we all used to joke about Fiji time, it was a fully accepted method of time keeping amongst the locals. I once asked one of the locals what time it was, so I could work out how long I had to have a shower before the sun went down and we were plunged into darkness. He simply answered, 'it's Fiji time', as if that was a perfectly reasonable answer. It was very easy to get used to though, and by the end of the week my body clock was definitely set to Fiji time. It nade arriving in busy LA a bit of a shock, and definitely prolonged my jet lag I think! I'm getting over it now though and am enjoying the last stretch of my round the world adventure...
To make the most of my week in Fiji, I decided to do a spot of island hopping. Fiji has three hundred and twenty two islands in total, most of them uninhabited and a lot of them are teeny tiny. They are nearly all, however, the picture of a paradise island with white beaches, clear blue waters and lucious green vegetation. Heaven. The first island I visited was Coral View. This was up in the Yasawas, the furthest group of islands and approximately a five hour boat trip from the main island. When we arrived we received a traditional Fijian welcome which involved singing and a lot of shaking of hands! I soon discovered that Fijians absolutely love to sing, especially at Coral View. They literally sing about everything. Lunch, dinner, hello, goodbye: you name it, they have a song for it! The vibe here was very laid back, and all the staff were so friendly that after the two days were up, I was almost reluctant to leave, and in fact some of the people I arrived with decided to stay longer. In one guys opinion, deciding to stay on the island was like having a girlfriend: you know there's probably someone better out there, but you decide to stick with the one you've got. (Needless to say, he didn't have a girlfriend!). I decided to tear myself away in the hope of finding something even better in the shape of Korovou resort.
At Korovou I sadly did not get the same melodic welcome as at Coral View, however that was because I arrived on a Sunday and nothing happens on Sunday apart from going to church. It is God's day. They more than made up for the lack of entertainment on the second night though, where we were treated to a fire dancing show. It was all very exciting: topless men dancing with fire in little grass skirts. At one point they even set the floor on fire. Literally! I have to say that I was very impressed with the dancing skills of the Fijian men. Its a shame that British men aren't the same. Unless, of course, they've got a few pints down them! After the fire dancing there was a bit of audience participation (as there was at all the resorts, in fact). We all had to get up and do the Bula dance. This is basically the Fijian Macarena. Same moves, the only addition is that you have to shout 'Bula!' as you jump round, hence the name 'The Bula Dance'. At this point I did feel like I had been transported to a British holiday camp along the lines of Butlins. But everyone got involved and there was always the chance of winning a few free drinks.
The final island I stayed on was South Sea Island. This really was a tiny island. It looked as if it could get washed away at even the hint of a slightly bigger wave than usual. You could actually walk around it in two minutes and, according to one of the girls I met, hop around it in three and a half. What it lacked in size was made up for in hospitality though. Again, the staff were so friendly. We had a candlelit dinner on the beach followed by crab racing (highly competative and taken extremely seriously) and, of course, Bula dancing. Later on we all chilled out round a campfire, sang songs and drank lots of kava. Kava is the Fijian drink of choice. It is not alcoholic, as many of the islands are actually dry, so alcohol is forbidden, but it is a narcotic so will have some effect. It mainly makes your tongue go numb and gives you very strange dreams apparently. It is made from the root of a plant mixed with water and unfortunately it just tastes like muddy water. Not very pleasant.
On my last day in Fiji I went on a day sailing trip around the magical Mamanuca islands. I was lucky enough to do this trip for free as I had bumped into a couple earlier in the week who had paid for it, but were unable to do it on the day as they wouldn't have time. I did have to make a few changes to the ticket though, which involved a nerve wracking experience of me having to pretend to be someone else. As many of you know, my acting skills are not great and I was sure I was going to get caught and thrown overboard. Luckily it all ended well. This sailing trip was amazing. Not only was there unlimited free food and drink (I definitely made the most of the free cake!), but we also got to visit the island where 'Castaway' was filmed, visit a real life Fijian village (yes, it was as patronising as it sounds) and take part in a kava ceremony, which was a pretty big honour apparently. All in all, not a bad days sailing!
Life in Fiji, especially on the islands, is very different to the way of life I and most of the other people I was travelling with are used to. None of the islands had hot water, so it was cold showers for the week, and on Korovou, there was no electricity, apart from between six and eleven at night. This meant no phone signal or internet access and therefore no Facebook! It was actually quite nice. There was no point worrying about trying to get in contact with someone, because you literally couldn't. Instead you could just spend your time enjoying the simpler things in life. Such as sunsets. By god, I saw a lot of sunsets. In fact I think the majority of my Fiji photo album will be of sunsets! They were very pretty though. We also got to enjoy having time to do absolutely nothing. In Fiji, people run by Fiji time. This tends to be at least half an hour later than any of the clocks on the island. In fact, there aren't many clocks on the island. Although we all used to joke about Fiji time, it was a fully accepted method of time keeping amongst the locals. I once asked one of the locals what time it was, so I could work out how long I had to have a shower before the sun went down and we were plunged into darkness. He simply answered, 'it's Fiji time', as if that was a perfectly reasonable answer. It was very easy to get used to though, and by the end of the week my body clock was definitely set to Fiji time. It nade arriving in busy LA a bit of a shock, and definitely prolonged my jet lag I think! I'm getting over it now though and am enjoying the last stretch of my round the world adventure...
Thursday, 2 June 2011
A Sailors Life for Me!
So I have just spent the last two days sailing around the Whitsunday Islands and now I am hooked on a life on the seas. It's just so relaxing and a great way to sea some of the most beautiful sights in the world.
In fairness I did have a bit if a shakey start and suffered a small amount of sea sickness- I had to take a cheeky chunder over the side of the boat on the first morning but after that I gained my sea legs and was fine for the rest of the trip. I was, however, the only person out of the thirty-two passengers that managed to throw up and as a result I was the butt of a few jokes for the rest of the trip, especially amongst the crew.
On our first full day on the Whitsundays we got up at the wonderful hour of 7am (great) so that we could make the most of the island. And I have to say, it was most definitely worth the effort of getting up at that ungodly hour. The sand is the whitest sand I have ever seen. This is apparently because it is made of around 99% silicon. This also makes a good exfoliator, and my legs did feel a great deal smoother after a little frolicking on the beach. The water was so clear as well and luckily for us, we had a cloudless sky. It really was the picture postcard view of paradise. Sadly we only got to spend a couple of hours on the beach, but I could have spent the whole day there.
In the afternoon we went to a place called Luncheon Bay where we did a spot of diving and snorkelling. I attempted the diving and managed to complete two out of the three skills, however the sheer unnaturalness of being able to breathe under water meant I panicked slightly and didn't go ahead with the dive. Louis, the diving instructor, seemed a bit upset that I gave up. I may give it another go in the future, now that I know what to expect, but, I was happy enough just snorkelling, and I managed to see a lot of beautiful things, just floating on the surface.
On the last day, we did more snorkelling, this time much nearer to the Outer Barrier of the Great Barrier Reef. Here I managed to see a lot more of the famous corals, and got to swim with the fish (literally, not in a scary mafia way). It was so peaceful just floating around watching all the coral moving in with the motion of the waves, and the fish swimming around, without a care in the world. It is definitely hard to feel stressed out in this environment. I must say though, the reef itself wasn't as impressive as I thought it was going to be. The colours weren't as vibrant as they look in postcards and photos, and there wasn't that much of it. Maybe I was looking in the wrong place?! Still, it was amazing to see.
The rest of the two days was spent on the boat. Boats are very sociable places. I suppose this is because it involves a lot of people sharing a very small space. I had so much fun, and the crew that took us were sp much fun. We of course played the obligatory 'forcing people to eat a spoonful of vegemite'game. In this case, based around a game of 'fact or bullshit'- if you got the answer wrong you had to eat a spoonful of vegemite. Luckily I managed to avoid this. Maybe it was because they realised that me, being chunder central, probably shouldn't eat something as vomit enducing as vegemite. Thank god.
Anyway, the trip is over and I am back on dry land. Already, though, I am longing for the seas. I'm also sad because this means my last week in Australia is approaching. I'm really starting to get attached to this land down under. The people are so friendly and the weather is lovely. Next week I move onto Fiji though. Maybe that will be enough to make me forget Australia!
In fairness I did have a bit if a shakey start and suffered a small amount of sea sickness- I had to take a cheeky chunder over the side of the boat on the first morning but after that I gained my sea legs and was fine for the rest of the trip. I was, however, the only person out of the thirty-two passengers that managed to throw up and as a result I was the butt of a few jokes for the rest of the trip, especially amongst the crew.
On our first full day on the Whitsundays we got up at the wonderful hour of 7am (great) so that we could make the most of the island. And I have to say, it was most definitely worth the effort of getting up at that ungodly hour. The sand is the whitest sand I have ever seen. This is apparently because it is made of around 99% silicon. This also makes a good exfoliator, and my legs did feel a great deal smoother after a little frolicking on the beach. The water was so clear as well and luckily for us, we had a cloudless sky. It really was the picture postcard view of paradise. Sadly we only got to spend a couple of hours on the beach, but I could have spent the whole day there.
In the afternoon we went to a place called Luncheon Bay where we did a spot of diving and snorkelling. I attempted the diving and managed to complete two out of the three skills, however the sheer unnaturalness of being able to breathe under water meant I panicked slightly and didn't go ahead with the dive. Louis, the diving instructor, seemed a bit upset that I gave up. I may give it another go in the future, now that I know what to expect, but, I was happy enough just snorkelling, and I managed to see a lot of beautiful things, just floating on the surface.
On the last day, we did more snorkelling, this time much nearer to the Outer Barrier of the Great Barrier Reef. Here I managed to see a lot more of the famous corals, and got to swim with the fish (literally, not in a scary mafia way). It was so peaceful just floating around watching all the coral moving in with the motion of the waves, and the fish swimming around, without a care in the world. It is definitely hard to feel stressed out in this environment. I must say though, the reef itself wasn't as impressive as I thought it was going to be. The colours weren't as vibrant as they look in postcards and photos, and there wasn't that much of it. Maybe I was looking in the wrong place?! Still, it was amazing to see.
The rest of the two days was spent on the boat. Boats are very sociable places. I suppose this is because it involves a lot of people sharing a very small space. I had so much fun, and the crew that took us were sp much fun. We of course played the obligatory 'forcing people to eat a spoonful of vegemite'game. In this case, based around a game of 'fact or bullshit'- if you got the answer wrong you had to eat a spoonful of vegemite. Luckily I managed to avoid this. Maybe it was because they realised that me, being chunder central, probably shouldn't eat something as vomit enducing as vegemite. Thank god.
Anyway, the trip is over and I am back on dry land. Already, though, I am longing for the seas. I'm also sad because this means my last week in Australia is approaching. I'm really starting to get attached to this land down under. The people are so friendly and the weather is lovely. Next week I move onto Fiji though. Maybe that will be enough to make me forget Australia!
Saturday, 28 May 2011
Hi-di-Hi Campers
I have just returned from a trip that is a must do for all backpackers travelling up the East coast. That is, camping on Fraser Island. I know most of my friends reading this will do a double take at this as under normal circumstances I do not camp. But Fraser Island is apparently the closest thing to paradise I'll probably see, in fact it's aboriginal name, k'Gari, actually means paradise, so how bad could it be I thought?,
Fraser Island is one of the biggest sand islands in the world which is amazing to think considering it is covered not only with beaches but also rainforest. It is one of the top 20 world heritage sites in the world which means it is protected and so certain things are not allowed on the island- you can't introduce any new species of plant or animal onto the island, and devlopment of building on the island is greatly restricted. In order to preserve the island, flushing toilets are also very rare and this was the first obstacle I had to overcome. Although the campsite we were staying on had flushing toilets, everywhere else on the island were long drop style toilets. They actually weren't that bad- just don't look down! For that matter don't look up either. This is a lesson I've learnt in Australia, as you're almost guarunteed to see something you don't like. Our guide, Kirk, had told us that 7 out the 8 most poisonous snakes in Australia live on Fraser Island, along with a whole host of deadly spiders. Great. There are also wild dingoes roaming around the island, and lucky for us it was mating season so they were particularly active while we were there.
Our first night on the campsite was very interesting. As I said, wild dingoes roam the island, and on our camp there were 5 that had made it their home. Under normal circumstances they are fine if you just ignore them. We were taught about dingo safety which basically meant stand up tall, don't look small, don't wave your arms around and shine a torch in their eyes. If you fall over or run, you're basically screwed. In the evening when everybody was around the camp fire they didn't bother us much, they were just looking for food. I did have a mildly terrifying moment in the middle of the night though, when I had to make a toilet trip. I had to wake up one of the people in my tent to act as my dingo buddy and we started the 5 minute trek to the toilets situted on the other side of the camp site. Almost as soon as we stepped out of the tent, we bumped into a dreaded dingo. We desperately tried to blind it with my tiny little head torch, and backed away slowly. It was having none of it however, instead proceeded in stalking us round the cars until we made it back to the safety of the tent. In the end I just had to go in a bush- something I haven't done in a while. I learnt my lesson for the second night and drank enough cheap wine (aka goon) to knock me out for the whole night.
Despite the fact that it seems like everything on Fraser Island is trying to kill you, it is actually one of the most beautiful places I've been to. We were really lucky with the weather, and managed to sit in our bikinis for 2 out of the 3 days we were there. We saw some amazing sandblows- this is where masses of sand are steadily being blown over the island, and are beginning to engulf parts of the island, trees and all. We paddled in some of the purest water you'll find anywhere and swam in some beautiful lakes. We even spotted sharks and sting rays from Indian Head. It truly was paradise. I would definitely recommend it to anyone. And although I'm still not convinced by camping, by the end of the trip I was definitely getting into the swing of things. I even started to enjoy it!
Fraser Island is one of the biggest sand islands in the world which is amazing to think considering it is covered not only with beaches but also rainforest. It is one of the top 20 world heritage sites in the world which means it is protected and so certain things are not allowed on the island- you can't introduce any new species of plant or animal onto the island, and devlopment of building on the island is greatly restricted. In order to preserve the island, flushing toilets are also very rare and this was the first obstacle I had to overcome. Although the campsite we were staying on had flushing toilets, everywhere else on the island were long drop style toilets. They actually weren't that bad- just don't look down! For that matter don't look up either. This is a lesson I've learnt in Australia, as you're almost guarunteed to see something you don't like. Our guide, Kirk, had told us that 7 out the 8 most poisonous snakes in Australia live on Fraser Island, along with a whole host of deadly spiders. Great. There are also wild dingoes roaming around the island, and lucky for us it was mating season so they were particularly active while we were there.
Our first night on the campsite was very interesting. As I said, wild dingoes roam the island, and on our camp there were 5 that had made it their home. Under normal circumstances they are fine if you just ignore them. We were taught about dingo safety which basically meant stand up tall, don't look small, don't wave your arms around and shine a torch in their eyes. If you fall over or run, you're basically screwed. In the evening when everybody was around the camp fire they didn't bother us much, they were just looking for food. I did have a mildly terrifying moment in the middle of the night though, when I had to make a toilet trip. I had to wake up one of the people in my tent to act as my dingo buddy and we started the 5 minute trek to the toilets situted on the other side of the camp site. Almost as soon as we stepped out of the tent, we bumped into a dreaded dingo. We desperately tried to blind it with my tiny little head torch, and backed away slowly. It was having none of it however, instead proceeded in stalking us round the cars until we made it back to the safety of the tent. In the end I just had to go in a bush- something I haven't done in a while. I learnt my lesson for the second night and drank enough cheap wine (aka goon) to knock me out for the whole night.
Despite the fact that it seems like everything on Fraser Island is trying to kill you, it is actually one of the most beautiful places I've been to. We were really lucky with the weather, and managed to sit in our bikinis for 2 out of the 3 days we were there. We saw some amazing sandblows- this is where masses of sand are steadily being blown over the island, and are beginning to engulf parts of the island, trees and all. We paddled in some of the purest water you'll find anywhere and swam in some beautiful lakes. We even spotted sharks and sting rays from Indian Head. It truly was paradise. I would definitely recommend it to anyone. And although I'm still not convinced by camping, by the end of the trip I was definitely getting into the swing of things. I even started to enjoy it!
Tuesday, 24 May 2011
How to Make Friends...
When I decided to go travelling I also decided to take the leap and go on my own. It wasn't as scary as I thought it would be, but that was mainly because for the first month or so I would be meeting up with different people: Natalie in Hong Kong and Vicky and the girls in New Zealand. The real test would come when I arrived in Australia. Even then it didn't seem that scary as I spent a week with Ben, but now that I have left Sydney and am working my way up the coast, I have been completely on my own, apart from a couple of days with uni friends, Iain and Lauren, and will be for the next five weeks. AAaahhh! Scary!
Travelling on your own can be a bit lonely, especially when you see something amazing that you want share with someone else. For example, the other day when I was in Surfer's Paradise, I watched the sunset on the beach which was beautiful. As there was no one to say this to (apart from a strange, slightly overweight man doing star jumps, who quite frankly I didn't want to engage in conversation) I just had to take a photo, which is never really the same as seeing the real thing. It can also be quite tiring, especially if you're moving around quite regularly, as in order to make friends you have to make an effort all the time. Not just to be friendly, but to be normal as well!! Its definitely been an effort trying to hide all my quirks that hopefully my friends at home find endearing, but strangers definitely wouldn't. Such as my nack of telling very pointless stories. That certainly does not help on the making new friends front.
Despite this though, there are positives to travelling alone. You get to call the shots and decide where and when you want to go places. There have definitely been some places that I have been glad to move on from, sometimes a bit earlier than intended, where other people might have loved. Its also great because sometimes you just want some alone time, and you can do that without worrying about leaving another person on their own. The main positive though is that being on your own makes you more approachable to other travellers. Even though people told me that loads of people travel alone, I was still surprised at just how many do. I was also surprised that it's usually girls that travel alone, whereas boys tend to travel in pairs (and actually, the ones that travel alone are often a bit strange! Not always though, I must hastily add). As everyone is doing more or less the same route, you keep bumping into the same people in various hostels or on different buses along the way. I seemed to keep bumping into this one couple loads bewteen Byron Bay and Brisbane, and its nice to see a couple of familiar faces, even if you don't even know their names! I have met a couple of really nice people who I know will be in the same place as me at around the same time further up the coast, so its definitely a comfort to know that I'll have someone to hang out with later on.
Its amazing the sorts of friendships you make while your travelling. Most of the time, when you meet people you only ever see them for about two days, but in that time, you can build friendships almost as strong as ones back home (albeit, not as long lasting) mainly because you have to. I have been on a couple of nights out with people I have literally met a couple of hours before, yet once we've all got a couple of drinks down us, it feels as if we've known each other forever. And as quickly as you met them, you move on, with the high possiblilty that you'll never see each other again. It does make a night out a lot more exciting.
I have to say that travelling alone has had its highs and lows. I'm finally getting into the swing of meeting people, and as a result I definitely feel a lot more confident in social situations. I think I'm going to enjoy my next few weeks travelling, but I am most certainly looking forward to getting home and having a more familiar night out with friends I've known longer than an hour!
Travelling on your own can be a bit lonely, especially when you see something amazing that you want share with someone else. For example, the other day when I was in Surfer's Paradise, I watched the sunset on the beach which was beautiful. As there was no one to say this to (apart from a strange, slightly overweight man doing star jumps, who quite frankly I didn't want to engage in conversation) I just had to take a photo, which is never really the same as seeing the real thing. It can also be quite tiring, especially if you're moving around quite regularly, as in order to make friends you have to make an effort all the time. Not just to be friendly, but to be normal as well!! Its definitely been an effort trying to hide all my quirks that hopefully my friends at home find endearing, but strangers definitely wouldn't. Such as my nack of telling very pointless stories. That certainly does not help on the making new friends front.
Despite this though, there are positives to travelling alone. You get to call the shots and decide where and when you want to go places. There have definitely been some places that I have been glad to move on from, sometimes a bit earlier than intended, where other people might have loved. Its also great because sometimes you just want some alone time, and you can do that without worrying about leaving another person on their own. The main positive though is that being on your own makes you more approachable to other travellers. Even though people told me that loads of people travel alone, I was still surprised at just how many do. I was also surprised that it's usually girls that travel alone, whereas boys tend to travel in pairs (and actually, the ones that travel alone are often a bit strange! Not always though, I must hastily add). As everyone is doing more or less the same route, you keep bumping into the same people in various hostels or on different buses along the way. I seemed to keep bumping into this one couple loads bewteen Byron Bay and Brisbane, and its nice to see a couple of familiar faces, even if you don't even know their names! I have met a couple of really nice people who I know will be in the same place as me at around the same time further up the coast, so its definitely a comfort to know that I'll have someone to hang out with later on.
Its amazing the sorts of friendships you make while your travelling. Most of the time, when you meet people you only ever see them for about two days, but in that time, you can build friendships almost as strong as ones back home (albeit, not as long lasting) mainly because you have to. I have been on a couple of nights out with people I have literally met a couple of hours before, yet once we've all got a couple of drinks down us, it feels as if we've known each other forever. And as quickly as you met them, you move on, with the high possiblilty that you'll never see each other again. It does make a night out a lot more exciting.
I have to say that travelling alone has had its highs and lows. I'm finally getting into the swing of meeting people, and as a result I definitely feel a lot more confident in social situations. I think I'm going to enjoy my next few weeks travelling, but I am most certainly looking forward to getting home and having a more familiar night out with friends I've known longer than an hour!
Friday, 20 May 2011
I come from a land down under. Where beer does flow and men chunder.
I'm in Australia!!! Well I have been for the last two weeks but this is the first chance I have had to actually sit down and write about it. So far I have been to Melbourne, Sydney, Byron Bay and Surfer's Paradise (definitely not what it sounds like...loads of sky scrapers and not many surfers!). Whilst I've been here I have been trying to draw similarities with New Zealand and in fact Ben, who had the pleasure of putting me up in Sydney, asked which I preferred. The answer is that there is no comparison. Both places are so different. New Zealand is all about the scenery whereas here, its all about the surf. Well, surf among other things but the whole way of life is very different here. It's so much more laid back. As far as travelling goes, Australia is definitely more party orientated as well, which is fun but not very good for the purse strings!
So I started my Aussie Experience in Melbourne. It not a big city, but to be fair I didn't spend that much time in the city. Melbourne is the gateway to the Great Ocean Road which is about 300km of scenic coastal driving. I decided this had to be done, so took a day trip which, although provided some great photo ops(especially of the 12 apostles- 12 massive rock formations in the ocean, looks better than it sounds,)was overall slightly disappointing. I mean after a while, each bit of coast line looks much like the next. Definitely not something you need to spend 14 hours looking at! I imagine if you were with some friends and had your own car it would be much more fun, but as it was I was with 14 strangers in a rather uncomfortable mini bus. The next day I took another day trip to Phillip Island which was much better. I got to hand feed some kangaroos ( who are deceptively big and can be slightly terrifying...they have massive feet!), and watch the penguin parade. This is when hundreds of tiny little penguins waddle up the beach after a hard day's fishing. They were so cute! And it was very tempting to smuggle one into my bag. I really don't think anyone would have noticed...
In Sydeny I caught up with Ben and saw all the major sights, including the Opera House, The Bridge and of course Toronga Zoo- the main attraction!! Everything in Sydney is very expensive, in fact its expensive everywhere in Australia. Especially food, which is rather annoying. Apparently its because people get paid so much here. Someone working in McDonalds here can earn about $14 an hour! I am seriously considering moving here permanently! The lifestyle is so different to home especially in Sydney. I think its because although it's a major city, within 10 minutes on the train you can be on a beach. Everyone is so chilled out as a result. I've also noticed that everyone is so fit here! I did the Bondi to Coogee coastal walk which takes you about 1.5km along the coast, passing through different beaches. Almost everybody that passed me was jogging. Most of them men. Most of them topless...yes there's definitely an attraction to living in Australia!
So from Sydney I moved onto Byron Bay ( I survived the 12 hour bus trip) which was good fun- met a lot of people there, had a couple of good nights out- but definitely glad I only stayed for a couple of days. Byron is basically about the beach and the nightlife, and for the two days I was there, it rained almost constantly. Definitely not beach weather. Its pretty much the same here in Surfers' (again, more rain) except there are quite a lot of good shops. Not so great for living on a budget.
I'm moving steadily up the coast and have a few activities planned, namely camping on Fraser Island (don't worry, I opted for the campsite that has a flushing toilet and a shower) and two days sailing the Whitsundays. I'm praying for good weather there though as I imagine two nights on a boat in rough waters could potentially be memorable for all the wrong reasons...
So I started my Aussie Experience in Melbourne. It not a big city, but to be fair I didn't spend that much time in the city. Melbourne is the gateway to the Great Ocean Road which is about 300km of scenic coastal driving. I decided this had to be done, so took a day trip which, although provided some great photo ops(especially of the 12 apostles- 12 massive rock formations in the ocean, looks better than it sounds,)was overall slightly disappointing. I mean after a while, each bit of coast line looks much like the next. Definitely not something you need to spend 14 hours looking at! I imagine if you were with some friends and had your own car it would be much more fun, but as it was I was with 14 strangers in a rather uncomfortable mini bus. The next day I took another day trip to Phillip Island which was much better. I got to hand feed some kangaroos ( who are deceptively big and can be slightly terrifying...they have massive feet!), and watch the penguin parade. This is when hundreds of tiny little penguins waddle up the beach after a hard day's fishing. They were so cute! And it was very tempting to smuggle one into my bag. I really don't think anyone would have noticed...
In Sydeny I caught up with Ben and saw all the major sights, including the Opera House, The Bridge and of course Toronga Zoo- the main attraction!! Everything in Sydney is very expensive, in fact its expensive everywhere in Australia. Especially food, which is rather annoying. Apparently its because people get paid so much here. Someone working in McDonalds here can earn about $14 an hour! I am seriously considering moving here permanently! The lifestyle is so different to home especially in Sydney. I think its because although it's a major city, within 10 minutes on the train you can be on a beach. Everyone is so chilled out as a result. I've also noticed that everyone is so fit here! I did the Bondi to Coogee coastal walk which takes you about 1.5km along the coast, passing through different beaches. Almost everybody that passed me was jogging. Most of them men. Most of them topless...yes there's definitely an attraction to living in Australia!
So from Sydney I moved onto Byron Bay ( I survived the 12 hour bus trip) which was good fun- met a lot of people there, had a couple of good nights out- but definitely glad I only stayed for a couple of days. Byron is basically about the beach and the nightlife, and for the two days I was there, it rained almost constantly. Definitely not beach weather. Its pretty much the same here in Surfers' (again, more rain) except there are quite a lot of good shops. Not so great for living on a budget.
I'm moving steadily up the coast and have a few activities planned, namely camping on Fraser Island (don't worry, I opted for the campsite that has a flushing toilet and a shower) and two days sailing the Whitsundays. I'm praying for good weather there though as I imagine two nights on a boat in rough waters could potentially be memorable for all the wrong reasons...
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