Byron Bay and Brisbane

We arrived in Byron Bay late on Tuesday night and checked into Nomads hostel which was amazing. There were only 4 beds in the room, one was a double, there was a balcony and air con. They also had a really cool common area where you can drink before going out. We got ready to go out out and decided to go to a bar called Cheeky Monkeys which was very sleezy but fun with lots of dancing on tables!

The next morning I woke up feeling a bit worse for wear and looked out of the window to see a clear sky and sunny day. However, by the time Frankie and I were ready to head out to the beach, a dust storm had arrived from central Australia, you couldn't see anything in the distance and the whole town had this orange tint to it. I have never seen anything like this before, it was very strange and even the locals said it was very unusual. We still tried to lay on the beach for a while but it wasn't sunny and I even had sand in my mouth by this point so we went for a walk aorund the town and looked in the hippy shops. Byron bay is a really cool and chilled out place, I like it.

The next day we went on a day tour to Nimbin in a very retro looking van! Nimbin is a tiny town that you can walk around in about half an hour but it is full of hippies, hippy shops (my favourite being 'bringabong'!) and known for everyone smoking marijuana. It is still illegal here but there are so many people, smoking and dealing it that the seven policemen they have in Nimbin, cannot really handle the situation. The town has mardi gras every may where there are many protests for the legalisation of marijuana. It looks like a lot of fun! On the way back we stopped off at a pub for a bbq and then a nice waterfall which I was to scard to jump in to!

Frankie and I had to catch our bus very early the next morning so we decided to get up even more early to go and watch the sunrise and Byron Bay lighthouse. We cheated and caught a taxi there just before dawn and watched the sun do its thing! It was very beautiful and when the sun was up we saw whales and dolphins swimming in the sea. Amazing!

We then caught the bus to Brisbane and checked into a hostel. People always talk baout sydeny and Melbourne being the big cool cities of Australia but I really like Brisbane, it's a cool city. The high street is always busy with nice little bars and chiled out cafes in the middle where you can people watch. There is an arts festival on a the minute too so there are many different little street perfomances too.

The first day we went to lone pine Koala sanctury which is the biggest in Australia. I am not normally a fan of animals but I really enjoyed being there and the koalas were so cute I even cuddled one! That night we decided to treat ourselves to a lovely meal, check out more of the city and drink some nice wine rather than the horrible goon that the backpacker bars serve!

Today I had a big walk around the city. I crossed one of the bridges over the river to Southbank which is a lovely park with small swimming pools and fake beach as well had cafes and market stalls. I also walked to fortitude valley and chinatown where there were more bars and market stalls! This is the first chinatown I have been to in Australia ans it reminded me lots of Hong Kong! Tonight we are going to go back to the valley (by train becasue I am not walking anymore!) for dinner and a Saturday night out in a city. Tomorrow we will head to Hervey bay and Fraser Island.

xxx

In Oz and surfing!

I Was very sad to leave New Zeland. It is an amzaing place and I have had a fab month there. I flew to sydney but got there quite late so just chilled for the night. I did the harbour and bondi when I flew here the first time so the next day I went to Manly beach. It was a 30 minute ferry ride with really nice views and the place itself had a good atmosphere with loads of beach shops and cafes. I spent ages just chilling on Manly beach and Fairy beach.

I am travelling australia with a girl I met in New Zealand so very early on sunday morning, I met Frankie and we got the bus to woolgooga. It was a long ride but when we got to the surf camp it was all worth it. The surf camp is in the middle of nowhere but is lovely. As soon as we arrived we had dinner (three meals a day are included so I'm getting very fat!) and chatted around the fire. We had another early start on monday as we had a surf lesson. It only took about 45mins before we were in the water and standing up! I was very impressed with my little self! We even saw some dolphins in the water with us. After lunch, we went for a swim and a sunbathe followed by drinks and cricket on the beach. Lots of other people arrived that night so after dinner we played lots of drinking games and had a good night.

On Tuesday we were allowed to have a lie in and we had another surf lesson after lunch. I've got the standing up sorted, I just need to learn how to catch the waves! I really enjoyed it and I'm looking forward to trying it out on my own in Byron Bay!

xxx

Queenstown baby!

I love Queenstown! It is a small but very beautiful city full of adventure, shops, cafes and bars.
After going for a quick wonder around the city, we all went to the hostel bar for a free meal and drinks. I saw some people I knew from the other bus too which was nice. I have had drinks from fishbowls, buckets, and jugs but never from a teapot which is what one of the bars sold that we went to next!! The next day I chilled and had a legendary fergburger. Everyone talks about this being the best burger ever and is a must when you go to Queenstown. It was the biggest burger Iv ever seen and did live up to the hype!

Moving on from burgers, the next day I went skiing which was amazing and one of my favourite things so far! I havn't really skied before so I went in the beginners class and had a lesson in the morning and a lesson in the afternoon. They really helped and even before lunch I was wizzing down the beginners slopes! I then learnt how to turn and stuff and tried out a steeper slope in the afternoon. I didn't fall over once which I was impressed with! It was a lovely sunny day and the view from the mountain was incredible. I want to go on a skiing holiday as soon as possible!

After more drinks to celebrate a successful day of skiing, I had to get up early to get the bus to Christchurch. We stopped off at a couple of nice spots and saw a view of Mt Cook. I am now in Christchurch which is a pretty boring city to be honest! I've been for a walk to the museum and around the botanical gardens.

Tomorrow I fly to Australia. I have changed my plans a bit and will now fly to sydney and travel up to cairns because it works out a lot cheaper. I will be sad to leave New Zealand as it is an amazing country and I have had a lot of fun. However, I am looking forward to some heat on Oz!

xxx

Franz Josef and Wanaka

After way to many drinks at the bar in Franz Josef, I had to get up at 8am to go and hike up a Glacier! After putting on our sexy waterproofs, we had to walk for an hour just to get to the Glacier. We then attatched crampons to our boots and set off hiking up the Glacier. It was beautiful but a lot of hard work. We had to climb up very big steps and squeeze through tiny gaps. It was freezing cold and we kept getting bits of rain all day but I went in the slower group and our gide was very good. We were on the ice for about 6 hours and it was amazing!
Then I fell down.....

not really! But it was cold trying to do this photo!!

I was very tired after the day of hiking so had a quiet night before getting up to head to Wanaka. On the way we stopped for a short walk to a big waterfall which was nice. There was also an illusion where if you stare into the middle of the water then look away, the trees begin to move. Very strange!

We then arrived in Wanaka which is a beautiful little town by the lake. The sun was shining so I had a nice milkshake and read my book by the lake. I then cooked food for the first time as I realised I'm spending way too much money! We then went to the bar as there was a sweep stake on the rugby. Unfortunatly I didn't win and neither did the all Blacks!

Before we left this morning, we stopped off at puzzling world which, like the name suggests, is full of illusions and puzzles. I tried walking around the maze but got confused and bored so ended up exiting via the emergency exit! The illusions were really cool and really messed with your head.

I am now in Queesntown which seems like a pretty cool place. This is the view from my dorm window!

xxx

Nelson, Westport and The Poo Pub!

I left the north island and took a 3hour ferry ride to the south island. The first stop was in a town called Nelson. The hostel that we stayed in was very posh and more like a hotel than something you would find a bunch of backpackers in. We had a beer tasting session a lovely roast dinner with chocolate pudding. The hostels offer you these lovley meals so I accept them all!! Im definatly eating way too much!

A group of took a walk up a mountain by the hostel to the centre point of New Zealand. The views were cool and we managed to see the sun set.

After some drinking games and a couple of hours sleep, we all got back on the bus and made our way to Westport. On the way we stopped at a lovely lake for a picnic and a walk. It was freezing but looked lovley with the snow topped mountains. A few people went for a swim but I wasn't brave enough! Once in Westport we went jet boating on the river. This jet boats work by sucking in water then pumping it back out so thay can travel very fast and in shallow water. The driver kept doing lots of turns which got us very wet but a lot of fun!

I am at the front incase you're wondering!

There wasn't much time for rest as we got back on the bus in the morning and headed towards lake Mahinapua. On the way there, we stopped for several lovely walk along the west coast and saw some seals and pancake rocks. It took me a while to work out, but they are called pancake rocks becasue they are stacked like pancakes and nobody knows why or how.

We then headed to a hostel called The Poo Pub where there is a group dinner and a fancy dress party. The theme for the fancy dress was the letter 'p' so I wasn't very original and went for a policewoman outfit! There are a lot more people on the bus now so the party was a lot of fun and everyone had an awesome time!

We had a hungover ride to Franz Josef today where I will do a glacier hike tomorrow.

xxx

River valley and Wellington

On our way out of Taupo we stopped for a walk around the Tongariro national park. The park is basically three mountains, that look beautiful as they are topped with snow at the moment, a water full and just generally beautiful scenery.

After this, we drove to another waterfall that two of the boys jumped off naked! Quite entertaning!

We then arrived in River valley. There is nothing there apart from a river and a beautiful lodge that we stayed in. It was freezing but after a roast dinner cooked by the owners and a few too many glasses of wine by the fire, it was lovely. The next morning I got up to go grade 5 white water rafting down the river. I was the only girl brave enough to go too!! The guides hadn't been on the river for over a week becasue of a big flood. This meant that they had to keep stopping to work out if it was safe enough for us to go through some of the rapids. Unfortunatly we did have to walk around one of them becasue it was too dangerous and we only did half of another one. When we were through the second one the guide told us that 3 people had drowned in that part of the river a few months ago! Oh my god! It was quite fun but probably not as exteme as it could have been if we had done them all properly.

After a much needed hot shower and lunch, we set off for Wellington. Wellington is the capital city and has a really nice atmosphere. We arrived quite late so sorted ourselves out then headed out to check out the local bars. The hostel bars have been ok but it is so nice to be in a place where there is somewhere else to go! Good night!

Yesterday I went to the New Zealand Museum which was pretty good, the highlight being a 4m long squid that was found in 2007! Today I climbed up Mt Victoria where you can see 360degess views of the city. I decided to stay in Wellington a few extra nights so the good group from the bus before has been spilt up a little whihc is a shame. I get on the bus again tomorrow and head to Nelson on the south island.

Waitomo and Taupo

I left Rotorua early the next morning on a new bus with a different group of people. This bus is way more fun, the driver and the group of people are lovely.

On the way out of town we stopped off to do some activities. Some of the boys went zorbing and then about six of us did the swoop. The swoop is bascically a big sleeping bag that you are zipped into and hoisted 40m in the air. A cord is pulled then you are released into freefall then swing through the air! So much fun!

We arrived in Waitomo (which means water cave in Maori). The town is famous for its glow worm caves. The caves were flooded when we arrived so we just played ring of fire and went to the bar. The next morning the caves were fine so 5 of us went along to do the "abyss trip" through the caves. We changed into our very attractive wet suits and wellies and absailed down into the caves. Once in the caves we flew down a zip line where there was lots of water and the cave opened up. After a quick hot chocolate we got ourselves a tube and jumped into the freezing cold water. We all held onto each other, turned off our head lamps and floated through the gave looking at the glow worms. The glow worms are more like maggots and have a light in them to attract insects they live inside and outside caves but it was amazing to see them all glowing in the dark caves.

We then got out of the tubes and floated down a small waterfall. from here we just walked/swam throught he water and rocks. The guides who were with us were really cool and took lots of wicked pictures (which I will put on here when i have more time). One of them had to rescue me when we had to float uder a rock with only our mouth, eyes and nose above the water. I ended up going under the water and freaked out big time!!! We were in the caves for around three hours and it was amazing! One of the best things I have done so far becasue it was so different.

After a nice hot shower, we got on the bus to Taupo. Just as I was getting over my hangover we arrived in the town and went off to do a skydive!!! I have done it before but was still very nervous. We went up to 15,000 feet, the door opened and off I went. The freefall lasted fro 4mins whihc was amazing and when the parachue opened, the view was amazing and I even saw a rainbow.

We got to the hostel and I had a little nap before the group went out to do a pub quiz. I think this is the most crazy day I will EVER have!!!!

Today we walked for two hours up to the top of Mount Tahaura where you could see right accross New zealand. It was amazgin but muddy and tiring. I had another nap when I came back and now Im off for a few drinks before getting onto the bus to River Valley tomorrow morning.

xxx