We got in to Townsville on Friday afternoon and checked in to our hostel then went for a wonder around the city. That evening Beth, daisy and I decided to head out in to the town and had a few too many drinks followed by what we thought was professional dancing at the time, which was good fun!
Saturday we were up early and headed down to the ferry terminal to get the ferry across to magnetic island. Once we got there we got a bus across to our hostel which is possibly the best located and nicest hostel I have ever been to! The hostel was right on the beach and was like a little village with huts for the dorm rooms, a lovely pool looking over the beach and a big restaurant / bar / chilling area. That afternoon we just relaxed by the beach and the pool in the lovely sun and then had a few drinks and a pool comp in the evening.
On the Sunday we chilled out by the pool in the morning then I went for a snorkel early afternoon. I saw quite a few sting rays and the coral was very pretty. After that the three of us caught a bus and headed out to the fort walk. This is a 2k walk up to an old fort and you walk through bush that Is meant to be one of the areas with the most kualas in in Australia. After completing the trip we saw a grand total of none! When we got back to the bus stop there was a family that had just been on the exact same walk that saw kualas, wallabies and snakes, so not sure how we missed them! That evening we had some dins then had a few drinks down on the beach!
On Monday I was up early and caught the ferry back to Townsville. The girls were doing another night on Magnetic but I wanted to see a bit more of Townsville.
After checking back in to my hostel I headed off for a walk down the coast which had lovely beaches. At the end of the coastal line was a huge man made rock pool with a fake beach where I stopped off for a kip in the sun and a dip! I then headed over to castle hill and started my walk up it to watch the sunset over Townsville and magnetic island in the distance. I had to climb 1,500 steps to get to the top but it was well worth it as the view was stunning.
On Tuesday I met back up with the girls at the bus station and we headed up to mission beach on the greyhound.
In mission beach we were staying in a resort that was up in the rain forest and had lovely views back down over the trees to the beach. We just chilled here by the pool for the rest of the day then had a game of scrabble with a couple bottles of wine and then watched gladiator which they showed on their big projector screen!
The following morning we caught the shuttle bus back down to the beach and just chilled in the sun all day! The beach here went on for miles and was very pretty with the palm trees lined up all the way along.
On Thursday we were back on the greyhound and headed up to cairns. We got there just after mid day and checked ourselves in to the famous gilligans! We had a wonder around cairns that afternoon then headed back for some dins. That evening we headed downstairs and enjoyed a few drinks and a dance at the bar!
On Friday we headed down to the huge lagoon on the seafront and relaxed in the sun.
The girls headed out to the reef on the Saturday with Dave whilst I headed out to do a bit of shopping and found a gym for a workout! We all met back up that evening and headed out to a few bars around cairns.
Sunday morning we were up early as the girls and I were going on a day trip up in to the rainforest and to see the waterfalls. This involved a lake swim, a rainforest walk and three different waterfalls you could swim around. One of these was the waterfall where Peter Andre - Mysterious girl was filmed as well as the shampoo adverts! (Girl flicking her hair back of out the water one!) Another waterfall you could slide down like a big natural slide which was good fun. Overall this was a great day out and when we got back to the hostel I was shattered and just hit the hey!
Monday was a nice sunny day so we just spent the day by the lagoon in the sun and I headed for a workout at the gym in the afternoon before some beers in the evening.
Tuesday wasn't such a nice day as it was raining so the girls, Dave and I headed to the local cinema. In the evening the girls and I headed out for a pizza and a drink, and this is when I heard from home about Oscar being put down :-( I was obviously very upset about this and just spent a lot of the evening talking to the family and walking around cairns.
Not much sleep was had tuesday and on the wednesday the girls took me to the lagoon and then took me for a walk around the marina to try and take my mind off of things. They also took me out for a meal with Dave in the evening and generally just looked after me :-)
Thursday was the last day for the girls which i was gutted about as i really enjoyed travelling with them for the past three weeks. We just hung out in the morning and said our goodbyes to daisy who left first, then i got some lunch with Beth then said my goodbyes to her in the afternoon. To keep my mind active and not think to much about oscy I went to the gym later that day then Dave took me to the cinema in the evening.
Friday was Daves last full day so after the gym in the morning I headed over to Daves hostel and played monopoly cards most of the afternoon which is the most addictive game ever! Friday night we went out to celebrate daves last night!
As the Saturday brought no girls, no Dave, still obviously upset about Oscar and all the guys away in Spain for Jacks stag do, which I was gutted to be missing, i had booked a tour up north to keep me active and my mind off the above!
I was up early and caught the bus up to cape tribulation. On route we stopped off at an alligator river and did a boat cruise up and down looking out for alligators. We saw two adults and two babies on the way up. We then got back in the coach and headed up in to the Daintree rainforest, the oldest rainforest in the world. Here we did a hike through it learning about how the aboriginals lived and what they used as materials to survive. After this we headed down to the resort where I was staying at and checked in. As this was in the rainforest and in the middle of nowhere there wasn't much to do! However, I did do a walk down to the end of the rainforest where it met the sea and this is the only place in the world you can stand on two world heritage sights at one time, the rainforest and the Great Barrier Reef, pretty cool!
After a much needed 12 hour sleep I got up on the Sunday ready to head down to Port Douglas. We got on the bus and headed down to a local aborigine school where we spent a few hours and learnt about their history as well as their position in society today. We also got to swim in the gorge running through their village. After getting in to port Douglas in the evening I checked in and went out for some dins.
Monday I got up, hired a bike and cycled around Port Douglas. This is a very nice city with many a luxury resort. I think I'd describe PD as Cairns, but for the richer folk! I then cycled to the beach where I spent the afternoon.
Tuesday I was heading back to Cairns in the evening so found a local gym, had a workout and went or a swim in the sea before getting my coach back.
On the Wednesday I was up early as was heading out to the Great Barrier Reef for the day! The boat took two hours to get to our first reef as we were heading out to the prettier outer reefs. It was a little choppy and a lot of people were being sick down the back of the boat so I just stayed up front enjoying the sun and the bumpy ride!
Our first reef was a little island which was home to birds and turtles. Here I did an introductory dive which was awesome and saw a couple of smaller sharks, stingrays, and amazing coral. I then went for a snorkel nearer the island and saw some amazing fish of all shapes and sizes and also swam side by side with the huge turtles, which was one of the most amazing things I've ever done!
After this we had lunch on the boat then headed out for another hour to our next reef.
This reef was just in the middle of the ocean, so people were a bit weary about jumping in from here! I wasn't too bothered so got my snorkelling gear on and jumped in! As soon as I did I saw an 'elvis' fish. These are absolutely massive beautiful fish and it was quite funny as a Chinese lady jumped in behind me and when she saw it she started screaming and splashing that there was a massive shark trying to get her! This made me laugh quite a lot and resulted in a mouth full of water through my snorkel for me! The reef here was beautiful, so many different colours and fish, I loved it!
After this dive we had some afternoon tea on the boat then headed back on the three hour trip to the marina.
Thursday I checked out of the hostel and made my way to the airport where I flew down to Brisbane. I had to do this as my next stop was Singapore and they didn't fly there from Cairns!
It's now Friday and I am currently on the plane from Brisbane to Singapore. I have been very lucky and have the entire back row of seats to myself! I have made a lil bed and am just lying down watching food whilst being offered free beer and lots of food so all is good!
My 2 months in Australia have been absolutely awesome, although it is incredibly expensive here and my budget has been well and truly ruined! It was all worth it as I have had some amazing experiences, seen some sights I never thought I'd see and have met some awesome people who will be mates for years to come!
I am in Singapore for 3 days, Kuala Lumpur for 3 days then back to Singapore for another 2 before flying out to Vietnam on the third so will update you then! Speak soon! x