Hello once again. I was pretty shocked last night when a friend received a text yesterday afternoon saying Steve Irwin was dead, I hoped it wasnt true, but i received one myself soon after confirming it. It was maybe 7 weeks or so since I visited the Irwin family's Australia zoo. Although he was generally regarded as a humourous figure, I left with a great deal of respect for the man and Im pretty gutted hes gone. He lived his dream, and he worked in a field that he was phenomenally passionate about. He seemed to love his life and he lived and died doing what he was passionate about. Rest in Peace Steve Irwin. But life goes on, and my prayers are with his wife and 2 young children. Incidentally, my life has been going on these past few days... its back on to the proper travelling for me! Sydney was quality for me and a good break to the hectice travelling I had been doing. Since I last wrote on here Id done a harbour bridge tour, been to the massive Imax screen, and even managed to go to Cirque du Soleil which seemed to be a mix of ballet and circus, but good fun, and all the while spending quality time with my family. But i've left that all behind now! Yes, Ive given up the comfort of having my own room, family cooked dinners, my laundry done for me and traded it all in for a room full of crazy people i dont know, fast cook noodles and random nights out with people i met 5 mins ago. Gotta love it! I was a little anxious to restart the whole travelling mode once again but Im back in the swing of things and loving it. I am currently staying in the weirdest hostel though, where everyone seems to either be crazy or gay! The first guy I met was a stacked well built Maori (indigenous people of New Zealand if u didnt know!) who seemed really friendly.... Since then I think hes a little too friendly! It turns out hes gay (i didnt know the fearsome Maori could be gay!), and i am quite worried he may have a thing for me! Hes very tactile and despite being a really nice guy i do wish he would be a little less friendly! Oh yeah, and the girl sleeping opposite me in my room is lesbian, and u could tell a mile away! Also in this hostel I've had one of the most hilarious incidents yet, although it was pretty freaky at the time! I came into my room and there was this guy with long black hair, unshaven and with long nails. I said hello to him and he responded with a grunt. I figured he was the rudest person ever, or maybe just french. So i ignored him and read my book while he stood staring into space. Eventually, 15 mins later, he started! "Im really paranoid... really paranoid.... and so are u." I looked at him, and i have never seen pupils so big, they took up his whole eye! I tried to reason with him but nothing was getting through. He continued: "You... you're like me.... Im not sure where I am.... i cant see.... oh wait, there you are.... you're like me.... we're just clones.... oh i need to translate this.... what language am i speaking.... me and you, we're duplicates of each other....I... I... I cant tell if im speaking or not... was i just speaking?" I was pretty freaked out at this point! So i decided to go downstairs and call the local mental asylum let them know they had an escaped patient! "We're connected, we need to do everything the same to make sure there is the right balance. We cant disrupt the balance, we're duplicates. We have to do the same thing or i'll die. I dont want to die" By this point id gotten to the lift where he had followed me, copying all my mannerisms and movements! His life depended on it dont forget! He followed me all the way to reception, bare foot, where he then began typing away on the desk (there wasnt a keyboard, but it didnt bother him) and moving his hands not unlike a jedi using the force. He was still convinced he would die if he didnt copy me, but what posessed him to take out his wallet and throw it as far away as he could is beyond me! 45 mins or so later, after the security man had spent the whole time saying ''dont touch me'' to crazy drugs man, the ambulance turned up. They cuffed him and he obediently hopped into the back, and that crazy and hilarious episode had thankfully concluded, but not before everyone at the bar had played 'lets go and talk to the crazy man at reception'. It appears Captain Planet was right, drugs really arent cool. Other than avoiding gays and encontering drugged up weirdos, I've quite enjoyed melbourne. I've been to a museum or 2 and been out a couple of times too. Tomorrow Im going on a free tour of the south of the city, but I leave her on Friday. I've booked my great ocean road> adelaide> Uluru tour. So the travelling is well and truely back on! Take care all, stay in touch. Si