During our travels up the east Coast of Austrilaia we did some amazing trips to some magical places. The following entry is for the Australian state of Queensland !! The statement that is written on the vehicles number plate in Queensland is "The Sunshine State". Let me just say that this is not the bloody case and after reading this entry you may realise that Aus is not all blue clear skies and hot temperatures. Sadly we discovered this the worst way !! On the second attempt of leaving Byron Bay, we headed straight to Surfers Paradise. This part of the gold coast is the most aggressively developed patch of Australia as the landscape is a sea of high-rise accomodation complexes, theme parks, airport sized shopping malls and resturants. Everyone who we spoke to prior to the journey advised us to stay clear of surfers as it apparantly was a tacky and trashy area. However, when we arrived there we were surprised by how much we liked the place. Even though the town was clustered with bright neon lights and bars, we thought that it was a tasteful and trendy place that provided loads of entertainment. The resturants were very posh looking and the bars had a cool vibe. At night, it was very Vegas like but that is expected when the primary purpose of the area is to be a holiday destination where everyone can enjoy themselves. The beach at Surfers stretches for about 35km along the gold coast so there was no risk of the beach becoming over crowed and packed. The beach was located in front of the town so everything was accessable and convienient. It was a very clean and pretty beach and the sea was great to swim in. The waves were pretty impressive, so we had great fun body surfing. We spent 4 days at Surfers, and we had a wicked time there as we were always occupied and entertained by everything they was on offer. On one of the days we ventured out for some fun and excitment and visited the wet and wild water theme park. We had a fantastic day there and had loads of fun on all of the impreesive water rides. Some of the rides were terrifying but yet so much fun. Our favourite ride was called the Tornado which propelled you down a vertical slide on a dingy, causing the dindy to swing up and down this huge oval slide. We spent many hours on this ride as it gave you the most incredible adrenaline rush and it put a permanent smile on your face. They had an awesome racing slide at the park which matt and nory took a great shine to !! By the end of the day the boys had perfected the technique of this slide and so they made us race with them at least 30 times. By the end me and kat were getting sick and tired of running up the steps to race as i kept on getting disquailified for cheating !! Sadly I never came first or second in the race and so i was increasingly becoming frustrated with my lack of success. Matt found this highly amusing as we are both so competitive and so he loved the fact that he was beating me on every race. They also had a wicked camarcasie ried that were vertical steep death defying slides. They were very scary and i nearly wet myself everytime i took the vertical plunge. We went on all the rides at least three times during the day and so we had loads of fun and excitment. During our stay in surfers me, matt, kat and nory decided to indulge in an all you can eat pancake resturant that at the time seemed like a great idea. When we arrived at the eatery we thought we would each manage at least 10 pancakes as we all had great appetites. However when they were served to us we were shocked to discover that an individual pancake was the size of the 9 inch plate and was about an inch thick. They were all covered in whipped butter and maple syrup and we were quite sickly to look at !! We are ashamed to admit that matt managed to eat the most pancakes with the grand total being a crapy five !! We were all so stuffed as they were so heavy on the belly and after 4 pancakes we all felt as though we were going to vomit !! The person who holds the record is a lady from the UK and in an hour she ate 22 pancakes !! She must have been a poker as to me that would be an impossible task !! During one of the days in Surfers we all played tennis for 4 hours, as the weather was dull and gloomy and the tennis facilites were free. It turned out to be a cool day as we all played tournamnets and doubles and as we are all quite completeive, there was alot of fun bantering being spoken !! We al aplyed in bare feet so i took a few tumblings and at the end of the session we could barely walk on our sore heels !! After spending 4 entertaining days in Surfers, we headed to Brisbane which is the largest city in Queensland. On first impressions of Brisbane me and matt did not rate it very highly as it did not possess any wow factor. All of the other Australian cities have had some endearing quality to them which makes them unique and enjoyable. However Brsibane did not really compare to the other Aus cities as it had no fascinating features and it did not boast any real culture or character. After being in the city for 5 minutes, we decided that we would spend a mazimum of two days in the city as that would give us sufficient time to do all the sight seeings that was on offer. Another initial downfall of Brisbane was that the city was split into two main areas that were a 40 minute walk from each other. The main area was the cental Business District that included all the main shopping highstreets and arcades. This area was really lively and the Queens arcade was a great shopping mall that had loads of wicked boutiques and shops. The atmosphere in the main highstreet was really uplifting and there were a couple of talented street artists that specialised in "space art" which were really entertaining to watch. The other main area of Brisbane (which is where we set up camp for the duration of our stay) was called Brunswick Street and it was the student and backpacker quater. This steet included some retro and arty shops, cheap eateries and some funky bars. The area was mainly targeted for the average backpacker as everything on offer was cheaper and therefore more apealing. Also another crazy aspect of Brunswick Street was that every second shop was either an Adult shop or a dirty cheap strip club. Therefore at times you felt as thou you were in the red light district and from this we concluded that backpackers in Brsibane are horney and enjoy the sleazy atmosphere !! Just off Brunswick street there was China town which had some wicked resturants and supermarkets that were really cool to wander around in. When you make the 40 min trek into the main highstreet (which in the intense heat and sun was extremely exhausting), we did realise that Brisbane was quite a pretty city. Next to the city was a river that seperated the main CBD from the grassy banks and parks. This did make Brisbane city very scenic and beautiful to view. The walk along the river provided a very tranquil and appealing setting and it did make us appreciate Brisbane in all its glory. At the end of the river was a man made beach and lagoon which was built for the sole purpose to allow the locals and tourists to cool off as the heat in Brisbne was quite intense. The lagoon was really pretty, with a huge man made pool that was surrounded by beautiful palm beaches and white sands. It provided a perfect setting to cool off and just chill out !! In the couple of days that we were there, we walked around the city, did a bit of shopping and took great advantge of the free internet in the state library. On one the days we all (me, matt, kat and Micheal) watched a wake boarding competition that was taking part on the river. This provided us with great live entertrainment as the athletes were extremely skilled and performed amazing tricks and jumps !! In the evening we would trot over to the guys hostel and chill out with them and watch TV or a video!! On the second night of being in the city, we randomly bumped into a few manchester ladies that we met breifly in Byron Bay. We started chatting to them and we both realsied that we were on the same Fraiser trip as we were both doing the 3 day tour with a company called Koalas. As we got on really well with the girls we decided that would do the trip together, which was a great relief on our part as we were a bit apprehensive about who we would be sharing our 4 wheel drive with !! (not that any of us  were to know at this point but we ended up travelling the whole of the east coast together as we could not escape each other and we enjoyed each others company). After Brisbane we headed to the gorgeous oasis of Noosa !! For us Noosa was the underdog of Australia as neither of us had heard of the place but it turned out to be the most incredibly beautiful and tranquil town. Noosa was an up market version of Bryon Bay without all the crazy drunken backpackers. It was a much quieter town as there were not as many mad nightclubs or bars ! Nossa was extremely classy and posh and it provided us with a perfect few days of just chilling out whilst admiring the stunning surroundings. The main beach of Nossa was next to the town and it was a gorgeous stretch of white sand and clear blue turquoise seas ! Nossa was regarded as one of the hottest spots in Aus to surf but as we had stopped surfing at this point, we decided to relax and sun ourselves for a few days !! We met up with everyone in Nossa (kat, Nory, Steph, Ali and Maz) and whilst staying there we met the most craziest canadians ever. They were two teenage lads that loved to get pissed and naked !! I lost count of the times that we all saw their willies, but no one mined as they were too nuts to care ! For the four days that we were there we just relaxed on the gorgeous beach and spent alot of time body surfing in the waves in the sea. On the first day we all acted like carefree kids and dug huge holes and buried mat and steph deep in the sand !! It was so much fun as we just mucked around like you do when you were kids on holiday. However during the day we were rudely interrupted by the lifeguard as our hole that we had dug was too big and as a result he made us fill it in. Apparantly some one complained that it was too dangerous and that a kid could easily be killed if they dropped into it. We just laughed it off as it was a ridicolus statement as they impllied that we were not being careful and that our hole digging was posing a threat to everyone on the beach. We thought this was a little irrational and came to the conclusion that some people are such party poopers !!!. As we had stopped surfing, i decided to use Nossa as the ideal opportunity to do some light exercise and so every day me, kat and nory would run the length of the beach a couple of times. It was quite exhausting as running in the blearing heat was extremeley tiring, but it helped stop the hard earned muscle I had built turning into flab !! We had a few crazy nights out in Noosa as the backpackers that kat and nory were staying in had a wicked nightclub that served cheap drink (which is very rare in Aus as alchol is so flipping expensive). We had a couple of nights on the beer whilst being widely enterained by the mad anrtics of the crazy naked canadians !! For us the best evening we had was one night when we all bought loads of food and goon (cheap wine) and had a wicked bbq by the beach !! They had fantastic bbq facilites in Aus and we took advantage of these awesome outdoor cookers by tucking into Good Assie bbq meat !! On this particlaur night we had an awesome feast as the head chef (aka matt) cooked us all a fabolous meal which was cooked to perfection !! Noosa is surrounded by a national park which provided gorgeous views and walks. On the last day at Noosa we decided to explore the stunning scenary by walking the coastal route of the national park. In total we walked about 10 miles and we witnessed some breathtaking beaches, coves, lagoons, rainforest and rugged clifftops. We walked along the cliff top for the duration of the walk and we were taken back by how amazing and beautiful the tranquil scenary was. The beaches were clean and untouched and so they were gorgeous to view. For 5 hours we were kept enterained by the wonderful settings and it truley was one of the most spectactular walks that we have done in Aus. Nossa was famous for the national park and after completing the trek, its easy to see why !! We spent the 5 hours nattering away as we were getting to know the girls well and i think at the end of the walk matt craved male company. Also during our stay in Noosa, we took a trip to the legendary Australian Zoo that Steve Irwin owned and built. It was an our drive from Nossa and as the zoo provided free transport to the zoo, we took advantage of this service to save Snoopys petrol. We had a fantsic day at the Zoo and we saw all the animals and creatures that were housed there. I am apprehensive when it comes to visiting zoos as i hate the idea of animals being locked up in cages with having limited space to walk and roam around. However upon arriving at Aus zoo, my fears were calmed by the fact that all the animlas had huge spaces of land to run and play and relax in. Steve Irwin was so passionate about conservation and protecting the helpless animals that it was evident to see that no act of cruelty was placed upon the animals. There were loads of different species in the zoo, and we saw loads of crocodiles that were enormous in size. There were 2 crocs that were called aggro and argo and they were approx 16ft in size !! They were really scary to look at as they just stare at you, but you could easily see how Steve was so passionate about these dangerous vicious creatures. In the crocosium (which is a huge arena that Steve built to enable the public to have closer interaction with the crocs) we watched the crocs being hand fed by the crazy parkpeople and they also educated us on what to do if we were approcahed by one. We saw a snake and bird show which released hundreds of gorgeous coloured birds and parrots. At the zoo we saw two elephants (which were steve favourite animals), tigers and huge ancient turtles. Watching the elephants was amazing as one of them was playing football. He kept on feeding this huge football through his feet and then booting it around and chasing it. It was fascinating to watch as he was clearly having lots of fun with the ball and he looked so happy and content. The elepahnt could have given any premiership player a run for his money. Visiting the zoo provided us with an ample opportunity to feed native Aus animals like kangaroos and koalas. For me handling and feeding these cute furry animals was the highlight of my day as they were both extremely gorgeous and cuddly animals that were so timid and friendly. The kangaroos especially loved the interation with humans and so they were a pleasure to watch. Matt fell in love with the koalas, he kept dragging me to a different koala sanctuary as he loved watching them. I think at the end of the day we had 100 photos just of koalas !! On the way home we watched a video of steve that showed how he bravely caught the crocs (Argo and Aggro) that were now homed in the zoo. The video clearly demonstarted the courage he had and how he was so fearless of these fericious reptiles. In the zoo there was a huge shrine dedicated to him and it was quite upsetting to read all the messages that have been written to him from the Auusie public. It was evident to see that everyone from around the globe adored and worshiped him. He was a legend to the Aus people and a few of the messages brought a tear to our eyes. We actually cried on the way home from the zoo as we were showed a video of steve and how his best friend (his dog) was shot by accident when they were in the bush catching crocs. The scenes were really upsetting as steve vunerable side was exposed by him crying and mourning for his dog. He could not leave the bush for weeks as he could not face reality without his beloved dog. I really tried not to cry while watching the video but i could not contain my emotions and tears were streaming from my cheeks. However i was comforted by the fact that nearly every girl on the bus was also crying by the sadness, one lady was even howling which i thought was a bit over the top, but each to their own. It was such a sad video and because i am such a sucker for dogs, it really depressed me. However on a happier note, we had a brilliant day and i am sure the legacy of steve will always remain. After having such an awesome time in Noosa, we were all really excited for the Frasier adventure. We left Harvay Bay which is the gatweay to Fraiser island and me, matt and the girls (Stephanie, who is a cardiff lass, Alison and Maz) did a three day adventure trip to the largest sand dune in the world. Half of the dune is full of sand and the rest of the sand dune is covered with lush and vibrant rain forest. We did a self drive tour as we thought this method of transport would allow us to see the entire island in all its glory !! We drove around the island in a huge 4x4 van (there was 11 of us in total in our van, 3 swedes, me, matt, the girls and 2 Germans) and we saw some gorgeous lakes and scenary. There were two beautiful lakes that were jaw dropping to look at and all of us were gobsmacked by how gorgeous the isalnd was. In particluar there was Lake McKenzie and Lake Birrion which were both freshwater lakes that had crystal clear blue water which was so pure and fresh to swim in. The water was warm, the sun was shinning and the scenary surrounding the beautiful lakes were incredible to view. It was an ideal setting to relax and splash around in and we all entertained ourselves by having several races into the lakes, with each race being in a different body position. It was alot of fun and at the end we were all dizzy from doing all the hand stands. The sand surrounding the lakes was pure silicon so it was very nourishing for your skin and hair. They are known as beauty lakes as they rejuvenate your skin and hair by making them softer and cleaner !! We all took advantage of this beauty therapy and covered ourselves with sand each day. In my opnion the sand acted as a cleanser as our skin became much smoother and healthier looking. Even thou we did not shower for the three days (there were no showers on the island) and we probably smelt really bad, at least we were comforted by the fact that we had soft skin and hair !!

The primary fun factor of Frasier was that it allowed you to do some fun and exciting 4 wheel driving along roads that were just dirt tracks. Therefore Fraiser island was brilliant fun to drive around on as we got to drive on unsealed roads and beaches which were extremely bumby and unpredictable. For hours we would be bouncing up and down in this large van and crashing into each other. There were so many occasions when everyone would fly into the air after driving over a huge bump in the beach or road. Even thou some of us became quite bruised by the endless rocking, no one stopped smiling as it was so much fun and provided great amusement. Matt was in his element, I dont think i have seen him smile that much in ages, he was the main driver so he had hours of fun !! He was a great driver and he loved the endless compliments he recieved on his impressive driving skills !!

In the evenings we would set up camp by picking a descent spot at the back of the beaches. We had all our cooking equipment provided so each night chef matty (he was nicknamed Chief on the trip as he did most of the driving and cooking which fournately are his two main passions). On the first night we had a huge bbq feast which was superbly cooked by the chief! After eating we would all just chill around the camp and drink and chat and just generally get stupidly drunk off the foul tasting goon. We had some great laughs in the night with the girls as they were alot of fun to hand around with. On both nights that we camped, the weather was not kind to us and it rained alot. Therefore we were basically sleeping in a puddle and getting annoyingly dripped on through the night. As a result no one really slept well as we woke up shivering, freezing and soaking wet. The tents we had were useless and let all the rain in, which as you can imagine was not very comforting. On the first morning, our camp site got attacked by the savage dingos. They ripped apart all of our food bags and made a huge mess that was not fun to clean up as we all had awful headaches from the previous night drinking!! Dingos are the main wild life on Fraiser and they are known to attack when food is in sight, so i am so glad that i did not get up to pee in the night as they would have been lurking around our tents waiting for more food to surface. A funny aspect of fraiser was the toilet system as sadly the island did not have any toilets on the beaches. Therefore when nature called we would trek along to the beach (making sure no one was aound to see your bum) and then we would squat and do what we had to do. It was highly amusing when you had to do a number 2 as firstly we had to dig a hole, aim for the hole and then use a spade to cover the hole up after we had finished. It was not exactly lady like but it was the only way we could go and it provided many laughs and conversations. Everyone was too scared to go by themselves as wild dingos would be hiding somewhere so throughout the three days we would accompany and assit people to the toilet (aka the beach)!!

As Frasier is the largest sand dune in the world, the island boasted some huge sand dunes that were awesome fun to run down !! Lake Wobby had this huge sand dune which was about 30 meters high and for hours we would run down this dune and dive into the stunning water !! Indian heads was a amazing scenic point on the island and provided stunning views of the vast landscape of gorgeous sany beaches. The view at the top of the hill was incredible and we could not get over the fact that Fraiser was a fantstically beautiful island. The island was lush to look at and we were mesmorised by the beauty of the clifftops and beaches. From the clifftop we were extremely lucky and saw huge Tiger sharks and manta rays swimming around looking for their prey. We were not allowed to swim in the sea that surrounded the island as tiger sharks regulary circle the island waiting to take a chunk out of you. However on the day that we were watching the tiger sharks swim around the rocks, these two idiots decided to go for a swim right next to where the sharks were swimming. We were specfically told not to go into the sea as we would get eaten but obviously these guys had a death wish. Everyone on the beach just watched them in amazement, and everytime they went under the water I was convinced they would not resurface. However the sharks must have not felt hungary that day and did not attack them so they came out untouched and safe. They thought they were so cool swimming with sharks but everyone ignored them as they acted like prats !! We camped on the beach for the three days and it was alot of fun, it is undoubtably one of the best trips that i have done so far in my travels !! We were lucky with the weather in the fact that it did not spoil our trip. It rained lots in the evenings and also when we were travelling around the island, but everytime we would stop at a lake or beach, the sun would surface and the skies would clear!!

After Fraiser we travelled up the coast and visited Airlee beach where we did a three day trip on the Whitsundays. After looking at matt previous photos of the whitsundays, I was so excited about sailing around the magical islands. I envisioned gorgeous blue skies with brilliant sunshine, turquiose coloured clear lagoons and water and lush white sandy beaches. This would have been the case had we did the trip in winter but as queensland suffers from a rainy season that lasts 3 flipping months, the chances of experiencing  these sunny settings would be painfully low. When we arrived in Airlee beach which is also known as The paradise, the rain stared to pour down with an avengance. The weather was extremely stormy and the rain pour was hard, violent and disheartening. I always thought this was going to be the highlight of the travels but judging from the black sky and weather forecast, we sadly would be seeing the amazing islands in cloud and rain !! We were both dissapointed with this but we realised that you can not predict the weather and that we should have not travelled Queensland in their rainy season !!

We set off on our trip in the heavy downpour of the tropical rain and sailed around the 74 gorgeous islands on a 22ft maxi sailing boat. The boat was called the Matador and it had previously competed in 52 races around the world and had been undefeated. It has won some prestigious races and was hailed as one of the best sailing boats in Austarilia. The boat was very basic as it was soley designed to sail, race and compete, so we had basic bed bunks and facilities. This happened to add to the experience as it was different from the other luxury catamarans and it was alot of fun. On the day we set out the weather was terribly awful and it was very scary sailing in the strong tropical winds and rain. We all had to sit on the deck in the down pour as if you ventured under the deck you would become severley sea sick from all the rocking and swaying. Matt thought it was great fun as the boat was being violently hurled through the water knocking everyone all over the boat. All of us were dripping wet after half hour at sea as the waves would crash into the boat soaking everyone in their path. I have to admit that it did add a fun factor to the sailing trip as you experience what sailors go through when they sail in the horrendous conditions. However as I suffer from sea sickness I was not feeling my best and looked green for most of the day. On the second day at sea the weather took a dramatic u turn and brightened up a little with the rain slowly easing. Everyone become more optomistic and started to enjoy the trip and all the scenary that was surrounding us.

We visited Whitehaven beach which is classed as one of the top 10 beaches in the world, and it did not dissapoint as it was very beautiful. The sand on the beach is known as the whitest sand in the world and so the island and beach was absoloutley gorgeous to view. We hiked to the top view point on the island and it was breathtaking as we could clearly see all the lush surrounding islands and beaches. We even had 5 minutes of blue sky to see the island in all its glory so were very lucky. The waters started to sparkle, the sand glistened, it truley was a magical setting !! Many of the other crusies were not able to visit White Haven that day as their boats could not handle the rough seas and stormy weather. Consequently we were very fortunate that our vessel was built for terrible conditions as it enabled us to visit the stunning islands that are famous for their beauty. In the afternoons of each day we did alot of snorkelling around the islands and we saw some fantastic marine life. We dived at a place which is nicknamed "Fish world" and it was awesome, as there were hundreds of beautiful fish swimming closely around you. It was incredible as we were swimming next to fish that we nearly the same size as us. It was with out a shadow of a doubt the best place that we have ever snorkelled at !! We saw loads of Maribass which were these gorgeous electric blue fish that were enormous in size and spectacular to swim by. We spent hours snorkelling in our extremely sexy stinger suits (they prevent you from being stung by the deadly box jellyfish) as we were so transfixed on the beautiful coral and fishes that we were surrounded by. The most favourable aspect of the trip was the many hours of sailing that we did around the islands. We were travelling on a world class racing vessile, and therefore were lucky enough to encounter speed sailing. While sailing, the huge boat was tipped to one side and leaned vertically into the waves, allowing the sail to efficiently catch the wind. When this occured it was fantastic and me and matt enjoyed the thrill of being on such a powerful boat. We lent a hand with the sailing, as we helped with the release the sail which was great fun but yet extremely hard work. However as soon as the engine stoped and the sails rose high, everyone just laid back and enjoyed the tranquility and the fun of sailing. Everything was silent and it was great way to admire all the islands and scenary before us!! It was a wonderful three days and we met some lovely people on the boat who were great fun to be around. Also we can now say that we have sailed one of the best sailing maxi boats in Australia.

After sailing the Whitsundays we went and dived a shipwreck which was called the Yongala. It was 100m long and it was a very freaky and scary dive as everyone (129 people) died on the ship when it sunk. Sadly the dive of the wreck was probably one of the most traumotising days of our life. It was a three hour boat ride to the wreck site and as there was no coral or land to protect the site from the weather, the conditions were extremely dangerous. After being on the boat for half hour, I  wanted to die. The sea was terribly rough and vicious and the small boat (that was not very solidily built) was being hurled everywhere. The waves were at least 2.5/3 meters high and they happily told us that the conditions we were in were the worst that they have ever encountered when travelling to the wreck. We were not comforted by this comment and i desperately wanted to get off the death boat. All of us were so sea sick and everyone wanted to vomit and curl up into a ball as you pleaded with the nauseas to dissapear. At one point, me, matt and the girls were on the top deck and the boat crashed into this gigantic wave, hurling me into the air. The impact of the wave caused me to rise about 3 meters off the bench and then I smacked into all the navigational equipment and windows. The captain crashed into me on my landing and as he was a big heavy man he really knocked the wind out of me. I could have easily being really hurt, Steph thought i was going to brake a few bones on my landing as i was violently bashed into everything that was sharp and dangerous. It was then that i realised that we were not safe and that the crew were not being wise or thinking of our well being. The trip out there seemed to last a life time and when we finally got to the sight, the situation only got worse. They crew demanded that we jump into the water straight away but the seas was not excatly inviting. The waves were ferciously crashing into each other and as the wind was so violent,it looked like a death trap. To amke matters worse none of us were confident about our equipment as we were so sick when we were setting it up. The crew desperately wanted us to jump into the terrifiying waters as the conditions were worstening and so they kept shouting for us to jump in. Everyone was paniking and worrying, i was shaking uncontrollably as i was suffering from sea sickness and at that point i really wanted to cry. The service was absolutely atrocious and the crew did not consider our safety, they were only concerned about the money they would loose if we did not do a dive. When we entered the water we had to cling onto the rope that was attached to the boat for dear life as the current wa extremely ferocious and violent. It was awful and we were so scared !! When we decended to the dive, we were all preety disspaonited with what we saw. Even thou it was a wreck dive, we could not envision the boat as a whole, all we saw were lumps of steel sticking out of the coral. It was not what we had imagined and we did not feel as thou we saw a wreck. Apparantly it was guranteed that amazing marine life will always be a certain at the Yongala, but sadly we did not see anything new or any marine life that wowed us !!. Admitably the fish swimming around us were huge and fasincating to look at, but we had previously seen them on the snorkle in the whitsundays, so we were not shocked and awed by what we saw. Because the conditions were so rouugh, it meant that the visibilty was appauling. We had only 5-6 meters visibilty which meant that you only saw the fish when they were right next to your face. We had to swim at a fast pace as the dive was very demanding and if you slowed down you would loose all your buddies and then the situation would be very frightening. The dive only lasted 30 min which was poor and when we resurfaced the waves and current were stronger. When we were back on the boat, the sea was even more vicious casuing the boat to rock violently from one side to another. The sea sickness resurfaced and everyone felt like death again. We were suppossed to do another dive but the skipper informed us that we had to head back to land as the conditions and wind were too extreme to be out on. IIt was the best news that we had heard all day, we were so relieved to be heading back to stable main land. It took us 3 hours to get back and it was not as harrowing as the journey out there but it was still not pleasureable. The whole day was terrible, and even thou the dive could potentially be the best in the world, the crew and the company had effectively ruined it for us. They provided appauling service and we had no confidence in their ability as dive instructers. On the way back they even started to slag off the english, which summed them all up as peices of scum. When we got of the boat it was the best feeling as we wer on stable land, but for the rest of that evening we all suffered more sickness. We were all extremely gutted about the day as we had been looking forward to doing the dive for months. The trip was a majour disspointment and the main contributing factor was the comapny had spoilt it all for us.

After diving the death trap, we headed back to Magnetic Island which is an island 12 Kilometers long that boasts gorgeous beaches and rain forests. We did alot of walks on the island and saw some great animal life. One of our walks provided us with an opportunity to see some wallabies (mini kangaroos) and they were beautiful to look at. Eventhough they were wild creatures, they were extremley curious of us and they were no fazed by us or of human contact. They were gorgeous timid creatures and we were glad to witness some in the wild. We walked for hours on the island and saw some memorable forts and gun barracks that were built when Australia came under attack in world war two. The views from the forts were outstanding and they allowed us to see the stunning island in all its glory. The weather was a little dissapointing when we were there and we got caught in a few tropical storms, but we did not mind as it added to the fun !!

After Magnetic we headed to Mission beach where we did some Extreme White Water Rafting on the Tully river (which is the best river in Aus for white water rafting). It was so much fun as we were racing down the raging rapids in a small dingy raft. There were 5 of us in the raft and we had to race down big water falls whilst dodging all the huge rocks that were in our path. It was quite dangerous and three people had previously died in the rapids but as long as you were not dragged under the rapids you were safe. The raft capsized a few times, causing all of us to topple out of the raft and into the cold river. This was great fun as we were vertically propelled out of the raft and into the water. At times we were trapped under the raft when it was up side down so a few of the guys were quite nervous as they were claustrophobic. Me and matt loved it as it just added to the fun and excitment of the situation. We also did some rock jumping which provided great amusement as Matt split his shorts in the bum area from the impact of the jump. This meant that he exposed himself everytime he walked so he had to manually cover himself up which was so incredibly funny. The best adrenaline rush of the day was the rapid swimming that we did in the grade 2 rapids. We swam in these vicious waves and currents which were extremely scary to swim in. The rapids draged us under in such a violent manner that swimming in them was really physically demanding. It was really scarey as on occassions I struggled for breath when I was swirled into a raging current or wave. We just composed ourselves in the rapids and by not paniking we were able to swim through them safely !! The whole day was such an adrenaline rush and we loved every second of it. We spent 5 hours on the river and it was such an awesome adventure, we can not wait to do it again !!

After the mini adrenaline rush we then headed to Cairns. At first we did not think that we would enjoy life in Cairns as so many people had previously told us that it was a town that was boring and dull !! However we were quite suprised by how much we liked and enjoyed the place !! It was a lovely spacious town that retained alot of character from the old buildings and streets. The buildings were quite old fashioned and traditonal so it was a great lively town to wander around in. Cairns provided us with ample things to do and it boasted loads of wicked resturants to dine in and great shops to spend the dollars at. We were never bored there as in the evenings the night market provided us with hours of entertainment. The bars there were also awesome and we had a few nights out on the larger with the girls !! Sadly no one was able to swim in the sea around Cairns (as the box jellyfish will kill you), so to ease the blearing temperatures and crazy humidity, a man made lagoon was situated in the centre of Cairns. It was a great pool to chill in as it cooled you instantly and as it was enormous, it was great to swim in and cool off. Most days we would end up legging it to the lagoon to cool off as the heat and humidity in Cairns was suffocating. As it was the rainy season in Queensland, the heat was at its prime and so it was intensely stuffy and close. Any form of movement would cause you to sweat profusley, and as a result we craved any building or shop that provided air conditioning.

Our main purpose of spending time in Carins was to sell the van "our home for 5 months, Snoopy". After a couple of days we hit the jack pot and a builder bought the van from us for a decent amount of money ($4500). We were overjoyed with this new found richness and had a great night celebrating. We were sad to leave Snoopy as he was our life for 5 months and gave us so much freedom and independance !! However we were both ready to move on and say goodbye to the many evenings of unberable heat and sleepness nights. Also a warm shower and the lush benefit of Air Condiitoner was incredibly appealing and inviting. Selling the van was amazingly rewarding but it was also quite scary as it meant that for the two weeks we were carrying 4500 dollars around with us. We were a muggers dream but gladly no one knew about our richness to care to steal it. For the last few days we checked into a hostel and had the best nights sleep in for months !!

In Cairns we did a two day tour to Cape Tribulation which was the oldest rain forest in the world. We spent two days there and saw some gorgeous scenary that was jaw dropping to view. We swam in some amazing natural gorges where the water was crystal fresh and we did a boat ride down Daintree River where we went Crocodile spotting!! It was great fun as the gorges and streams were stunning to relax in and the views that surrounded you were absoultey fantastic. What makes Cape Trib so wonderful is that it is the only place in the world where two World Heritage areas meet (Cape Tribulation which is listed as a beautiful wonder meets the Great Barrier Reef which is the only living organism you can see from Space). It was quite an amzing place and we had a great time chilling there and taking in the stunning and peaceful settings !! After Cape Trib we sadly sad goodbye to Maz, Al and Steph who we had spent 3 glorious weeks with. It was great travelling with them and we had numerous laughs and giggles with the ladies. We were gutted to say goodbye to them as they were heading to the red centre but we had many happy memories with them. They made the east coast more enjoyable for us and we were fortunate to have met and travelled with them. It was also extremely upsetting to say our goodbyes to Kat and Nory who we had travelled most of the world with. We had an amazing time in their company and we experienced so many magical and awesome countries with them. We were so happy to have met them as they made our travels much more joyous and entertaining. We regarded them as true freinds and so it was awfully sad to leave them.

One of the main trips that we wanted to do in Carins was diving the Great Barrier Reef. Even thou we had heard that it has become over rated due to the coral being trashed by inexperienced divers, we still desperatley wanted to dive the reef, as after all its one of the seven wonders of the world. We went with a comapy called Quicksilver as they were recommended to us by the girls and were supposed to be the best company in Cairns. After the Yongala experience we were very apprehensive about dive companies and the service they provided, but luckily we had a great day on a superb looking boat called the silver sonic. The hole day was absolutely fantastic and we had a brillaint time on the boat and on the reef. The trip was quite expensive but it was worth every cent as the service was impecable as we were treated like kings and queens all day. Everything was provided for us and so we did not have to worry about our equipment or setting it all up. Therefore we just sat back and enjoyed the gorgeous surrounding of the reef in the comfyness of the huge grand yaught. We decided to venture to the outer reef as there was less chance of it being destroyed. We travelled from Port douglas (which was an hour north of cairns and provided some of the most beautiful costal scenary in Queensland) and then we travelled 3 hours to the outer reef on the luxurious boat. We did three dives through out the day and each individual dive was superb. However I have to admit that the coral was not as beautiful as the Ningaloo reef, but that was to be expected as the barrier reef is more commercailised and is visited daily by divers. The outer reef that we saw was gorgeous and we saw some huge pinnacles that were surrounded by massive schools of vibrant and colourful fish. The marine life on view was awesome and we were shocked by the abundancve of fish that we saw. We were lucky to see a few huge black tip reef sharks that were fascinating to look at. We also saw lots of different coloured nemos (which we amazing as we had missed seeing the gorgeous clown fish). We were also lucky to come across many different speices of fish that we had not encountered before, so that was really exciting and interesting. The group that we dived with was small and as the servie was so organised and efficient, it meant that me and matt were able to stay under water for longer periods of time. Our first dive was 49 minutes long and this was excellent as it enalbed us to see loads of different marine life and coral. We did not miss an entire fish or organism that swam near as we had ample time to view everything that was around us. We also got to explore more of the reef in detail, and as a result we saw loads more than we anticipated. During the day nothing was rushed so we felt really safe and felt as thou we were in trusting hands. The food on the boat was superb, matt was in his element with all of the variety that was on offer. They catered for everyone desires and so there were loads of sea food and meat on offer. The vegetarain options were scrumptous so we were both extremely satisfied with the delicious food. Our dive instructor was the cream of the crop, she was so nice and we had a great time with her through out the three dives. The whole day was perfect and it was the ideal treat for selling the van. We had an awesome time and it made us realsie how pathetic and unorganised the Yongala service was. In comparison the dive on the quicksilver was 10/10 with 5 star treatment and service. The barrier reef exceded our expectations and we were so happy with what we saw !!

After selling the van within a week (which was an added bonus) and doing all of what Cairns offered so early on, we decided to leave Australia three days earlier and head to NZ so we could make the most of our time in the adventure capital of the world. In total we spent 5 glorious and exciting months expolring Australia and we loved every second and day that we experienced in Aus. We explored the country throughly and we had witnessed some fantastic and truley spectatcular places that will always remain in our memory. Aus is a fascinating and diverse country and we were very fortunate to explore it in such detail. Our favourite state and place in Aus was without a shadow of doubt WA, as it was incredibly beautiful and it represented the best features and qualities of the amazing country. Our fav city was Meblourne as it retained loads of character and provided us with hours of endless enertainment and amusement. Overall we loved Aus, we had the most fantastic and unforgettable 5 months there and as we travelled the huge country in our home "Snoopy", we were able to experience so much more of what Austrailia offered.