I've been on a boat mother f-er!

I think I can probably do anything after all my journeys. I survived camping and no toilets and now I've officially lived in a sailboat for 2 days and 2 nights. I did not get seasick, I slept like a baby and I've started a "wet ones" shower trend.

This boating trip was very cool. Got to help hoist the sails, met some chill people, had excellent food and got to do my first SCUBA dive on the Great Barrier Reef. We're heading back to Airlie Beach now to shower up and hopefully hit the after party for dinner later on. Tomorrow we head to Cairns and will spend the rest of our time in Australia up there.

I can't believe that 2 weeks from today we'll be flying home. I can honestly say that I'm ready to return to the real world. I'm ready to figure out where I'm heading, find a job, see my friends and cats and just get back to my regular daily life and activities. Doesn't mean I have to stay in Philly...I'm just ready to be home. I think after 1 more week of SCUBA diving and some sky diving and rafting and whatever else crazy things we do back in Queenstown, NZ I will certainly be ready to chill for a bit. Well, I say that now but then I guess if I move to Europe I could make some exceptions, eh?

This Halloween I'm dressing up as a backpacker

I just wanted to write a quick blog before I abandon my phone for a couple days again when we head out sailing and SCUBA diving on the Whitsundays. This is big for me people: no email, no internet...perhaps I can break my blackberry addiction. Ha. Probably not.

Also big for me: not dressing up for Halloween. It's my favorite holiday and I haven't missed it in years but instead of partying I'll be sleeping below deck on a large maxi sail boat. It's ok...I can be a backpacker...or SCUBA diver and I'll just have to make up for it next year.

Anyway, we left Rainbow Beach after our camping adventure on Fraser Island and headed north yesterday. We stopped in the town of 1770 which was founded in, yes you guessed it, 1770. It was gorgeous but no SCUBA diving was to be found so we moved on. We ended up in a tiny beach town called Emu Park and found a fabulously clean place to stay that was also having an $8 Friday night bbq. That may have been the best $8 I've spent in Australia not to mention the totally reasonable $3.50 glasses of wine. And what's better than an $8 bbq? An $8 bbq with frogs hopping out of your barrel table. One seemed to really like Evan's leg but I was not that lucky.

I met a couple of women (Sara and Sara who, despite everyone asking them, are not sisters) from England after the bbq and chatted with them for a while. They are 26 years old and agreed with my assessment that the east coast of Australia is super young and all about partying. It made me feel like less of a grandma and was actually super nice to have some fun female wine drinking companions for a bit.

Today I took a nice morning run along the beach and somehow managed to get slightly lost on my way back. I'm not sure how given there were only 2 roads to run on but I found my way and got an extra 15 mins of a workout.

We took off and drove to Airlie Beach. Evan let me drive today. It was my 2nd time on the other side of the road. The 1st was for about 5 mins to make a beer run. This was a good 2 or more hours. I did ok. Just like Evan when he started out, I seem to drift slightly to the left. I don't know why but I'm sure with some more practice I'll get better. Evan didn't seem to like my driving and I understand. It was really hard to be a passenger at 1st because everything is backwards and you have no control over the situation. We made it safe and sound though, booked our sailing adventure, grabbed some lunner, checked into the hostel, packed for tomorrow, found some free wifi to call Preston (who had surgery for a torn achilles last time I went out of cell range - we'll see what happens this time), and got some ice cream. I'm reading and heading to bed early so I can run and shower before we set sail tomorrow.

I survived Fraser Island!

So the pics above are of our day on Monday before the camping excitement. Evan chopped his hair off, we arrived in Rainbow Beach and we got to watch Sunday night football.

Tuesday bright and early we started our journey to Fraser Island. We watched our safety videos and learned about how to keep our food from the dingos and camp responsibly. I have to be honest...I was excited to see Fraser and had heard good things about the guided self-drive tour but as soon as I heard there were no toilets near our campsite I was very, very, very hesitant to go. (Story below). I am so glad I did!

We went in a full group of 31 people plus our guide "Mozzie." Our truck, the "A-Team" aka "Fuck off Dingos!" was 8 people: me (H), Evan (E), Nat, Kat, Laura B, Laura R, J, and Jacks. I couldn't quite figure out what Laura and Laura's nicknames were but no one seemed to use them anyway. We loaded up our truck with a small daypack each, food for 3 days (with detailed instructions), and a huge cooler full of beer, cider and "goon" (in the US this is boxed wine).

I could write a book on Fraser and the island but I'll try to keep it shorter. We drove our Land Cruiser to a barge and rode over to Fraser Island. Fraser is the largest sand island in the world with 2 fresh water lakes, fabulous creeks, treacherous surf (no swimming in the ocean) and wild dingos. The driving was done through soft sand beaches, hard sand beaches (depending on the tide) and across tracks through the island. Evan got to drive 1st and a couple more times. I think he was in heaven.

To be honest, the entire place and our few days there were unreal. Everything was gorgeous and we had such a great group I didn't mind being dirty and covered in sand and sleeping on uneven ground and without toilets from 5p.m til 9 a.m every day. The only bad/sad part were thousand of dead birds along the beaches. Apparently they hit a strong headwind on their journey from Siberia back to Tasmania and didn't make it. We saw some still in the process of dying. It was miserable but I guess natural selection at it's truest.

Our first day we saw Lake Mackenzie and explored the island a bit. Our "guide" drove a lead truck and we followed convoy style with 3 trucks behind him. I have to admit, it's pretty cool riding in a convoy and just 4WDing in general. Just before sunset we headed to set up camp. I've never been much of a camper. Our adventures in NZ were pretty much the best I've ever done with the outdoors life and we had showers and toilets and full kitchens everywhere we went. But...we all set up tents, put up a tarp roof and got to cooking our steak and potato salad dinner. Everyone helped, Evan directed and cooked what we chopped for him and it all ran wonderfully. We washed our dishes in a large pot/bucket in cool water (no soap) and no one really seemed to care much. J dug the proper hole to dispose of our cooking scraps and we then proceeded to hit the alcohol cooler.

Right after dinner, once it was dark, we had our very own dingo visitor. We shined our lights on her, clapped, yelled, covered our nipples (as per the safety video). She was not afraid of us in the least until Nat walked over and yelled "fuck off dingo!" and there she went.

Our 2nd day started and ended at Eli Creek with some champagne salt water pools and whale spotting from indian head in the middle. I have to say that the evening dunk in the creek to get some sand and grime off was incredible. Not a shower but enough to comb my hair and put on deodorant after 2 days of living outdoors which, if you didn't know, according to Laura R, could be camping or homelessness depending on where the fine line falls.

The 2nd night we chopped and Evan cooked an amazing stir-fry. We played some drinking games and even danced the macarena (yes, the whole campsite did it). My night ended with the girls from our group on the beach under an incredible moon and a sky filled with stars while eating a caramel chocolate bar split between us all. The moon was so bright we almost didn't need our flashlights and the glimmer on the ocean was like nothing I've ever seen. If I wasn't scared of a dingo eating me I could have slept there easily.

Today we hiked about 45 mins to a freshwater lake in the middle of a sand dune. Other than the wind plastering me with sand it was a perfect day. Laura R drove us back to the barge and a hot shower, shaved legs, and non-sandly clothes later I'm good as new and wouldn't mind doing it all again one day.

Back to the toilet situation...when you've got people drinking into the night chances are they are going to need a toilet. Well, we truly had none. It was us, the sand dune, the beach, and a wooded area. Given that the dingos were roaming around we decided to avoid the wooded area at night. We also decided to travel in pairs/groups. So our 1st night me, Nat, Jacks, and the Lauras had to pee. We grabbed our toilet roll and headed out to the sand dune which was the most private place we could find. Laura B said, "Here, this is how you do it. Just take your pants completely off and squat like this." And we did. Laura B fell (not while peeing) which set us all laughing AND all peeing. It was one of my greatest accomplishments...peeing in wilderness...it's a skill that has escaped me for 29.5 years and I've finally conquered it.

My family was always into hiking and it's important to be able to pee freely. I never could. The problem really was my performance anxiety. Just couldn't start. In 8th grade our class trip was camping on Mt. Cardigan (yes, I grew up in New Hampshire). When I heard we had only a hole I panicked and built a toilet seat out of a crate and a plastic toilet seat and hiked up the mountain with it. Until 2 nights ago I still was completely unable to pee freely. Even squatting over a public toilet has to be done when I truly truly have got to go.

Now, I may have to be naked from the bottom down but I can pee anywhere! Sand dunes, beaches, behind trees, even with other people around. It was a little like marking territory and, if you watch United States of Tara, I may have looked like Gimme, but I did it. Have you ever peed on a beach under moonlight and a sky filled with stars? You should try it.

Brisvegas

Yup, that's where we are..Brisbane aka Brisvegas, Queensland, Australia. We spent a night in Coolangatta on the Gold Coast after we departed Byron Bay. It was a chill beach town and we splurged in an actual hotel room that came with a buffet hot and cold breakfast and I got to do things like cut my toenails and wear a clay mask. Those things can't really be done easily in a hostel when rooms and bathrooms are shared with total strangers. Plus, I love clean bathrooms.

So now we're staying with Evan's friend Courtney and her family. They are fabulous. Courtney is showing us Brisbane and her mom is doing an excellent job feeding us. Last night Evan and I rode the CityCat (a commuter water taxi along the river running through Brisbane) to meet Courtney after work. Today I got to do some laundry (yay!) and then we went to the top of a mountain to see all of Brisbane and then Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary where we saw koalas, kangaroos, emus, platypus and even some kookaberra (sp?) which is a bird that's call sounds like a monkey. Evan finally got to cuddle a koala! We also got to see the South Bank of Brisbane for lunch and took a walk along the river.

We were all beat and decided an afternoon of mango daquiris on Courtney's patio would be fabulous. And now we're being completely spoiled and sitting on the couch watching new episodes of Southpark while her mom cooks us dinner. Sometimes it's nice to be "at home." Two more nights here and then we're off to Fraser Island camping and partying. I think this relaxation will come in handy once we get there.

I also discovered the magic of skype with webcams last night. It's one thing to email or bbm or even hear someone's voice but it's completely different to actually see someone's facial expressions and smile while you're talking to them after months of being away. Pretty cool.

Woodstock on the beach...Australia style

I think I left off as we were leaving Sydney in our lux rental car. It is very weird driving around in a brand new Toyota Camry after our "Wicked" campervan in NZ. It's almost like a whole new image and a little weird to show up at a hostel in a car that we could have easily borrowed from our parents but who's going to turn down a free upgrade?

We made it from Sydney to Port MacQuarie on our 1st day of driving and stayed at Ozzie Pozzie Backpackers. It was a cute beach town and a cute little hostel that I wouldn't have minded staying longer at if there was more to do in Port. We did make it to the Koala Hospital and saw some recovering koalas up close and personal and even some joeys getting ready for release.

From there we headed to Byron Bay and found the Arts Factory Lodge where everyone had told us to stay. We're here for 4 nights total. It is quite an interesting place...very hippie haven-ish. There are dorms, teepees, campground areas, a pool and hot tub, courtyards filled with wild turkeys and lizards and a cheap Buddha bar with fabulous happy hour specials directly across the carpark (parking lot). And there is also yoga every a.m as well as drumming and didjeridoo lessons. The hair and clothing styles here are really something and I've seen some incredible drum circles.

We can walk into town and to the beach or there is a bus that runs 24 hours from the hostel. Yesterday morning Evan and I did a great run through town and almost to the lighthouse (the hills combined with drinking the night before made the super steep climb to the lighthouse not so attractive...trying again tomorrow) and then took a small road trip through the "hinterland" to Nimbin for some more hippie-watching before settling on the beach and not moving for many hours. Today it's yoga for me and then some more beach time (I hope I miss less spots with my sunscreen today). Evan says he may take a surf lesson.

Would you like kangaroo meat on your pizza?

And we're moving on from Sydney, heading north and hoping to find some excellent beaches. Our goal is to get to Byron Bay tomorrow or Monday and then Brisbane sometime next weekend. We picked our rental car up today. Got upgraded from a Hyundai Getz to a brand-new Toyota Camry. It starts on the 1st try, it doesn't beep when we reverse and it accelerates up hills. The best part: we don't have to sleep in it. Pretty crazy, huh?

Sydney was great. We had some beautiful weather on Thursday and made our way to Manly Beach via ferry and then did a 10k walk to "The Spit." The Sydney harbor area is so nice and it was also nice to sweat and be a little warm (and to get some more color back on my skin). There were some crazy lizards just wandering the track and sitting on trees. I also bought some sunscreen and got a free lunch box cooler thingie. Score! Thursday night we ate at a Thai BYO. I don't even think twice about BYOs anymore given that Philly has tons. Evan hadn't been to one and kept his beer under the table because it felt illegal. I proudly displayed my bottle of wine on the table and proudly finished it as well.

Yesterday we had some cloudy drizzle so we attempted the koala breakfast. It wasn't on and Evan was kind of sad. I'm sure we'll get to hug koalas soon enough. Instead we went to the Sydney Wildlife World place and the Aquarium. The wildlife place was very cool and I learned all about Australia's poisonous lizards/snakes/spiders ants. Lovely. Even better was seeing real live koalas and kangaroos and a huge crocodile (who apparently didn't mate in captivity because he kept killing all the lady crocs he met). The aquarium would have been better if it wasn't filled with hundreds of waist-high school kids.

We tried out the Inner West neighborhoods last night for dinner/drinks. Met a bartender from NY who hates the Phillies...and the Red Sox. Oops! He was nice to us anyway though and hooked me up with a fantastic cheese plate and Evan with some Australian beer (no, not Fosters). I honestly think my greatest skills are wine drinking and eating (esp sweets and anything with cheese).

After making a rough plan for our drive today and agreeing to meet at 7 this a.m to run, we went to our hostel rooms. Although I should have just chilled so I wouldn't die on my 1st run in 6 weeks, I ended up wandering around with the Irishman (Eoin = Owen) and Tom and joined them in their quest for a pizza. They acquired this pizza at a Kebab house and decided to get the supreme and, in case it wasn't enough, they added jalapenos, extra cheese and kangaroo. Despite their peer pressure, I did not try the kangaroo. I may. But maybe not at a kebab house.

After the kangaroo pizza walk we found all the other guys playing drinking games in the room and they successfully peer pressured me into going to the hostel bar with them. It was worth it. The dancing that went on down there was priceless. No one was on the same beat, one girl was doing a strip tease, and a young asian man was practicing some quality ballet moves (I'm not sure if it was intentional or not).

I did successfully wake up this morning with enough time to skype (yes, in Australia thus far the computers are fast enough that I can skype) with Preston and gchat with Kiran and Dorothee before running a great 4ish miles, including sprinting the opera house steps and feeling like I could run plenty more in the end...even in my Payless sneakers and dealing with Evan's long strides (although he did slow a bit for me). Vegas 1/2 marathon in December looks like it could be a reality depending on the finances.

And that's about it. I'm beach ready, I've got clean underwear and I'm back to running. Australia is good with me.

Oh...and FYI, the law firm I quit, cut the hours of 1/2 the secretaries to half-time, ended up laying one secretary off and also let 1 lawyer go. Looks like I got out of there just in time.

I'm not cold, I'm in a city, sleeping in a bed (with a pillow) and it's sunny. Have I died and gone to heaven?

I'd like to emphasize that it's lovely to sleep in a bed. Evan and I are not in the same room at the hostel and apparently people think that's weird. Honestly...we just finished 5 weeks of living in a van together. A few doors apart won't kill us and I have some cool roommates.

It was sunny-ish and warm yesterday. WARM! We walked around Sydney, saw the bridge and the opera house and even took a boat to Cockatoo Island which is kind of like Alcatraz. Sadly, there were no Cockatoos BUT there were tons of baby seagulls (and angry mama seagulls threatening us for getting too close to their hatchlings).

It did rain a bit last night which had me worried but we found a cool tapas bar in the Surry Hills area and by the time we were done the rain had stopped. One problem is that Evan and I brought no "fancy" clothes and dinner here seems quite dressed up. We've decided just to ignore it and hope things get more laid back on the beaches.

Today we woke up to perfect weather. We hopped on a ferry to Manly Beach (yes, manly) and are hanging out here until we do a 3-4 hour coastal walk back to the city. The waves are so big here compared to the Atlantic and especially compared to the Mediterranean but the water is chilly. It just feels good to be warm, almost hot.

Supposedly it might rain tomorrow. Sucks. The good news is that there is an aquarium and Evan really wants to do a koala breakfast (this is not a joke, that's the 1st thing he said to me yesterday a.m).

I do know that I'm getting running sneaks on our way back to the hostel tonight now that I've scoped out some stores and prices. I cannot wait to "pound the pavement" as they say and allegedly I may be running a 1/2 marathon in Vegas on December 5th (or watching Kiran run while I drink). We'll see!