Howdy.
I've managed to blag free internet by being super dooper helpful and rejigging a few of my trips to help out the guys here at Dingos hostel Rainbow Beach, so thought I'd do an update. It's quiet here and not much to do. Me and Lauren have been taking it easy as Fraser Island is supposed to be pretty full on in the late nights and early mornings stakes. We were supposed to be going tomorrow but due to a booking cock up we have moved it to Tuesday as I said to help out the good guys here at Dingos. Anyways...yesterday we went for a chopper motorbike tour around the area. Was pretty cool, these little 50cc mopeds like something out of easy rider. We had a few drinks with some Irish guys who were in our room last night, actually we drank snakebite something I swore I'd never do after Mummys little shennanigans way back when, but it's cheap and that the name of the game. To hell with my health apparantly. We haven't done our sea kayaking yet as it was cancelled on Friday de to weather conditions. We do that tomorrow now. There was a huge storm yesterday so hopfully that will have passed by the time e go to Fraser as sand and tents and rain isn't really my idea of a good time, but then again I guess it is all part of the fun. Just got to hope we don't get stuck with a rubbish group, although once again our helpfulness has secured first dibs on group choice. We're so nice. Not really a lot else to say.
Oh Rainbow Beach itself is pretty cool. All of these different coloured sands. reds, pinks, oranges, yellows and browns. Very cool and the surfs pretty sweet. I'm getting annoyed with still being white though! I'm browner at home. Me and Lauren have finally just done some washing! Which is useful as I'm currently running around commando as my last clean pair of undies went in the pool last night in a moment of drunken madness. It wasn't my idea for once though!
So yeah that's about it from the fun and exciting world of base camp Rabbit.
Mulu x
Saturday 25 October 2008
Thursday 23 October 2008
Sailing and Horses
Whitsundays were beautiful, realy good bunch of people and we just had a fab time. Was really nice not to have to worry about food and stuff. The chef made me all vegetarian, gluten free meals so all I had to do was relax. First time I've really felt like i'm on holiday.
Got back to Airlie Beach and went out with everybody for dinner and then a few drinks.
Left early doors Wednesday morning for an 11 hour journey to a compulsory Oz Experience stop at a Cattle Station out at Kroombit. Felt like I was on a school trip. I won the mechanical bull competition, but after the journey was suffering a sore neck. Woke up Thursday morning and could barely move. I'm still not 100% so i'm glad they had to cancel sea kayaking this morning due to conditions. Couldn't compete in the rodeo (goat wrestling etc) and couldn't afford to do the cow muster which trurned out to be a blessing in disguise as you're only allowed to walk around on a horse and that would be pretty boring for me.
Left the Cattle station and trekked another 9 hours down the coast to where I now am, Rainbow Beach. Go to Fraser Monday which should be amazing.
I'm skint hence the lack of contact and trip details, descriptions etc internet is costly.
Hope you're all well.
Mulu x
Got back to Airlie Beach and went out with everybody for dinner and then a few drinks.
Left early doors Wednesday morning for an 11 hour journey to a compulsory Oz Experience stop at a Cattle Station out at Kroombit. Felt like I was on a school trip. I won the mechanical bull competition, but after the journey was suffering a sore neck. Woke up Thursday morning and could barely move. I'm still not 100% so i'm glad they had to cancel sea kayaking this morning due to conditions. Couldn't compete in the rodeo (goat wrestling etc) and couldn't afford to do the cow muster which trurned out to be a blessing in disguise as you're only allowed to walk around on a horse and that would be pretty boring for me.
Left the Cattle station and trekked another 9 hours down the coast to where I now am, Rainbow Beach. Go to Fraser Monday which should be amazing.
I'm skint hence the lack of contact and trip details, descriptions etc internet is costly.
Hope you're all well.
Mulu x
Saturday 18 October 2008
Jack Sparrow Eat Your Heart Out
We are currently at Airlie Beach which is pretty much just one big party town. In less than a km of street there are 37 licensed bars and restaurants. They don't even have a cinema here. Me and Lauren had a TV in our hostel so we haven't been out at all. It's not a very nice place really. They don't have any beach because of the crocs and the harbour, but they do have a huge lagoon to make up for it. It is a full on Boganville though. A bogan is a term for someone a bit like a hillbilly. This place was full of them last night when I went to go make a phone call, all drunk and being well Bogans. Truly, truly not a fan of Australian boys. Have met only a few who I can stand to be around. Not a very nice breed the ones I've met so far. Chavanistic, racist, sexist bigots is a very accurate description.
Anyhoo...
In a few hours we go board our AMAZING pirate ship.
Go and look it up on the web...
Soulway Lass Whitsunday Sailing.
We will be vising Whithaven Beach. 99.89% silica sand. Supposedly it's like snow. I'll be totally out of contact for the next 3 days, but will do a blog as soon as I can upon my return to dry land. Internet costs a fortune some places though and as i'm running short enough on cash as it is you'll just have to wait to hear about all our adventures.
Mulu x
Anyhoo...
In a few hours we go board our AMAZING pirate ship.
Go and look it up on the web...
Soulway Lass Whitsunday Sailing.
We will be vising Whithaven Beach. 99.89% silica sand. Supposedly it's like snow. I'll be totally out of contact for the next 3 days, but will do a blog as soon as I can upon my return to dry land. Internet costs a fortune some places though and as i'm running short enough on cash as it is you'll just have to wait to hear about all our adventures.
Mulu x
Thursday 16 October 2008
Magnetic Island
We've just spent the past few days on Magnetic Island at BASE backpackers. Most beautiful hostel, right on th ebeach. Really lovely. Have done nothing, but laze around in the sun really. Well the boys hired 4x4's and we went trekking around the island in those which was a pant wetting, finger clutching experience at some points. Especially when Greavsey is literally driving on the edge of a cliff. This was really a drinking on the beach and having fun with good people experience as oppossed to anything else. I ended up in the ocean every night (of course) and then discovered that there's a 3.5 metre croc hanging about the place. We took the 4x4's and went to West Point on the Island so that we could see the sun set. When you do the East Coast you'll never see the sun set over water. Well we didn't get to see it here really because someone stuck a bunch of clouds in the way! Then we drove back to the East Coast and watched the moon over the water. Pretty cool. We were going to do kayaking and snorkelling, but the sea was to rough so we couldn't.
Not really a lot to say about Maggy other than that. Oh I got a bit burnt, as did Lauren. We had a row (as per) and I told her I want us to go our seperate ways at Byron Bay, we'll see about that when we get down there.
Other than that, I believe that's everything for this blog.
Mulu x
Not really a lot to say about Maggy other than that. Oh I got a bit burnt, as did Lauren. We had a row (as per) and I told her I want us to go our seperate ways at Byron Bay, we'll see about that when we get down there.
Other than that, I believe that's everything for this blog.
Mulu x
Monday 13 October 2008
Just Like Daddy :)
Skydive...easily the best thing I have ever done. Couldn't do it on Sunday afternoon had to do it Monday morning for weather reasons in the end. Definately cleared away the 8am cobwebs though.
You get about a 3 minute instruction of cross your hands over your chest, put your head back on your guys shoulder, when your out of the plane you'll get a tap on the shoulder and then you should stretch your arms out, on landing lift your legs and hook your hands under your knees so that you land on your bum. Oh and because we're diving over water, that yellow thing around your waist is a lifejacket. We'll tell you if you need it. (what like you think I won't notice we're about to hit the water?) That's all your instruction. For a country that is so stupidly regulated and all mental about safety I was really rather surprised, but glad as a long arse safety briefing wasn't high on my to-do list as we had to check out of our hostel by 10am and I still hadn't finished packing. Anyways so I was going to go out of the plane first, wasn't scared until just before we went, but I think that my excitement just squashed anything at all that wanted to freak me out. At 12000 ft the oxygen got a bit thin and I went all light headed and woozy, but got it together eventually. Anyways I was teamed with a guy called Strop who was a bit stroppy at first. Got up in the plane and I was sat right by the door obviously as I was going first and we go up and up and up and up. Took about 20 mins to get up to the full 14000ft, but you have no idea of height and distance because you've got nothing to measure against, it's very strange. The little plane reminded me of when I was a little girl and Daddy put me in a little plane somewhere. First time I ever flew. I'd already doner the whole proud daughter bit on the ground when I was telling everyone how I'd always wanted to do this, just like Daddy used to. Some of the instructors were giving it the big I am and paratroopers are cak etc, but I brought them back to earth when I reminded them of the dangers involved, having to jump out of a plane with all this excess baggage that won't open it's arms when you tap it on the shoulder and won't walk itself off when you land and come rain or shine conditions etc, etc. They soon went quiet.
Anyways...
We're right up there in the atmosphere and they've been trying to freak me out with their little height watches the whole way and I'm still just excited, then it's "I'm just clipping you on" and next thing open the door and my bum is no longer touching anything and my legs are hooked under the plane. Got my googles on and I'm in the position thinking come on let's go, but after about a minute they pull me back in and close the door saying it's to cold! I was a bit freaked out then, was weird to just be hanging over the edge of the plane with your options in someone elses hands, unlike the bungee where jumping was all down to me. So second time hanging out to dry and then...
Nothing. I can't even begin to tell you what I was thinking because I didn't know, I just knew it was amazing. Looking back at the time it seemed to go so fast, but now I remember little things like giving him the thumbs up, trying to scream, trying to breathe, just basic things I did that had nothing to do with what my brain was feeling. Strop called it sensory overload. The ground doesn't even rush up at you, even though you're going at 220kms an hour. I've only ever been that fast on Daddy's motorbike I think. You fall 9000ft in 55 seconds. Intense. It was excellent when he opened the canopy though, if a little uncomfortable. He did it just as we were coming into a cloud so all of a sudden, the rushing in my ears stopped and I was just surrounded by all this white. Like being in a room filled with odourless smoke and your just floating. Kind of like a pure childlike version of heaven, like I was an angel or something. Totally amazing. Then we break through the cloud and the scenery is just mind blowingly beautiful and you're just up there flying above it all. So we have a few minutes of chatter and canopy ride as we descend. It's fun when they pull the leads and you swing out and around and stuff. The whole thing about jumping at Mission Beach is that you land on the beach which I did, but me and Strop did it via a tree. Literally I've got my hands under my knees, which is hard as anything in that harness and we go crashing through the top section of a bare tree and I get a branch in the face. So I fell out of a plane with the Strop and landed in a tree.
Spectacular. I highly recommend it to anyone. Hopefully we're going to do the Frans Joseph when we go to New Zealand which is over a glacier from 15000ft. I didn't get a DVD of this one, but Lauren did. I'm going to get a DVD of the other one I think. Everyone says it's the best and because of the mountains and stuff you really get a feeling of the height which you don't really get on this one.
It was so good though.
You get about a 3 minute instruction of cross your hands over your chest, put your head back on your guys shoulder, when your out of the plane you'll get a tap on the shoulder and then you should stretch your arms out, on landing lift your legs and hook your hands under your knees so that you land on your bum. Oh and because we're diving over water, that yellow thing around your waist is a lifejacket. We'll tell you if you need it. (what like you think I won't notice we're about to hit the water?) That's all your instruction. For a country that is so stupidly regulated and all mental about safety I was really rather surprised, but glad as a long arse safety briefing wasn't high on my to-do list as we had to check out of our hostel by 10am and I still hadn't finished packing. Anyways so I was going to go out of the plane first, wasn't scared until just before we went, but I think that my excitement just squashed anything at all that wanted to freak me out. At 12000 ft the oxygen got a bit thin and I went all light headed and woozy, but got it together eventually. Anyways I was teamed with a guy called Strop who was a bit stroppy at first. Got up in the plane and I was sat right by the door obviously as I was going first and we go up and up and up and up. Took about 20 mins to get up to the full 14000ft, but you have no idea of height and distance because you've got nothing to measure against, it's very strange. The little plane reminded me of when I was a little girl and Daddy put me in a little plane somewhere. First time I ever flew. I'd already doner the whole proud daughter bit on the ground when I was telling everyone how I'd always wanted to do this, just like Daddy used to. Some of the instructors were giving it the big I am and paratroopers are cak etc, but I brought them back to earth when I reminded them of the dangers involved, having to jump out of a plane with all this excess baggage that won't open it's arms when you tap it on the shoulder and won't walk itself off when you land and come rain or shine conditions etc, etc. They soon went quiet.
Anyways...
We're right up there in the atmosphere and they've been trying to freak me out with their little height watches the whole way and I'm still just excited, then it's "I'm just clipping you on" and next thing open the door and my bum is no longer touching anything and my legs are hooked under the plane. Got my googles on and I'm in the position thinking come on let's go, but after about a minute they pull me back in and close the door saying it's to cold! I was a bit freaked out then, was weird to just be hanging over the edge of the plane with your options in someone elses hands, unlike the bungee where jumping was all down to me. So second time hanging out to dry and then...
Nothing. I can't even begin to tell you what I was thinking because I didn't know, I just knew it was amazing. Looking back at the time it seemed to go so fast, but now I remember little things like giving him the thumbs up, trying to scream, trying to breathe, just basic things I did that had nothing to do with what my brain was feeling. Strop called it sensory overload. The ground doesn't even rush up at you, even though you're going at 220kms an hour. I've only ever been that fast on Daddy's motorbike I think. You fall 9000ft in 55 seconds. Intense. It was excellent when he opened the canopy though, if a little uncomfortable. He did it just as we were coming into a cloud so all of a sudden, the rushing in my ears stopped and I was just surrounded by all this white. Like being in a room filled with odourless smoke and your just floating. Kind of like a pure childlike version of heaven, like I was an angel or something. Totally amazing. Then we break through the cloud and the scenery is just mind blowingly beautiful and you're just up there flying above it all. So we have a few minutes of chatter and canopy ride as we descend. It's fun when they pull the leads and you swing out and around and stuff. The whole thing about jumping at Mission Beach is that you land on the beach which I did, but me and Strop did it via a tree. Literally I've got my hands under my knees, which is hard as anything in that harness and we go crashing through the top section of a bare tree and I get a branch in the face. So I fell out of a plane with the Strop and landed in a tree.
Spectacular. I highly recommend it to anyone. Hopefully we're going to do the Frans Joseph when we go to New Zealand which is over a glacier from 15000ft. I didn't get a DVD of this one, but Lauren did. I'm going to get a DVD of the other one I think. Everyone says it's the best and because of the mountains and stuff you really get a feeling of the height which you don't really get on this one.
It was so good though.
Saturday 11 October 2008
Noa's Ark
Yesterday was our first time on the Oz Bus and i'm glad we've decided to take that down the coast. They took us to a crocodile farm and it was mad to see crocs getting fed up that close. The sound a crocs jaws make when they snap is fantastic. Really hollow and sharp. Got to Mission Beach and we're at a fab hostel called Scottys. The lads we met up in Cairns are here and loads of other fun people. Finally a hostel with a bit of character.
Last night we had a BBQ (I had halloumi and peppers) and a fair few drinks. I ended up in my tutu being calm first aid lady with an Irish girl. There's a yound Welsh girl here who was on our bus and she was skulling goon (really cheap wine that gets you hammered, all the backpackers drink it really) like it was water. She then starts going round the table (not ours I point out) necking other peoples drinks. She's almost sick, then carrys on. eventually her friend gets her off her high perch on the table, down to a chair with a bin in front of her. She promptly falls off the chair into the bin and then attempts to get up and carry on drinking. After her second fall into the bin, she appears to have passed out and so some people take her off to her bedroom and lay her down. When someone goes to check on her a little later these girls all come out screaming for an ambulance and crying and panicking like a bunch of lemmings. Mummy Rabbit gene kicks in and I leg it to this girls room amongst a bunch of idiots milling around crying as she's choking on her own blood. So me and the Irish girl whack her into recovery, clear her airways, try and bring her round, suss out the situation etc, etc. Would appear she has rolled of the bed and lost part of her tooth and smashed her nose. She's also lost the ability to control her bladder as her knickers are soaking and a puddle of urine around her. So here we are covered in this silly girls piss, my fingers are in her mouth clearing out blood and we've had a few too you know. I get her friend to sort out her medicare and insurance stuff etc and a change of clothes plus wash stuff so she doesn't have to wear her manky stuff back from the hospital. We clear all the blood away and realise that her tooth is still in her mouth it's just halfway up in her gum. Don't think she'll be doing that again. Ambulance turn up and I go shower before returning to my convivial evening that ends with me, Lauren and the lads ditching everyone in the pool. I was actually the first to get ditched in by Phil after wrestling with him because he was being quiet. Oh me and Lauren had a tiff and she made me cry because she was a nasty, spiteful little cow. And you all think she's so lovely. She told me this morning she wasn't that drunk so i'm not sure how forgiving i'm feeling about her cut below the belt. Hmmm...
Anyways for the main attraction. Rafting!
We ended up in a boat with 2 Dutch, 3 Israelies and an instructor named Sean. One of the Israelies was called Noa (no H, but who cares) so immediately I christened the boat Noahs Ark. Seans first words after the first rapid we something like, "I totally thought we were going to like flip out there dudes." He promptly got renamed Turtle after Turtle (who i'm sure is called Sean) from finding Nemo. The Dutch woman was tiny and cold and getting thrown around like a jumping bean and I said she should be teddy bear because she was so cute. She said no her partner was her Teddy Bear. His name was Winston AKA Winnie...Winnie the Pooh. So now we have Rabbit, Pooh Bear and Turtle in Noah's Ark and she becomes Piglet because well it works if you see her. And Piglet and Pooh have always been sweet on each other haven't they. Then we call the Israeli boy Kanga and the other Israeli girl Koala because she's all cuddly and Lauren is of course Monkey. I wanted them to be Eeyore and Owl, but they weren't having it. So we have half the cast of A.A.Milnes books and a few randoms chucked in for good measure. I probably should have been Tigger as I didn't shut up the whole time (3 hours of sleep and a load of adrenaline will do that to me, plus I had a bit of a hangover which always makes me nuts) Pooh bear got stuck getting in the boat like he did in Rabbit's hole and we were all heaving like nobodys business to drag him in (should probably cut down on that honey), you can get out of the boat at points and float down this crocodile infested water and me and Lauren were wetting ourselves as we were playing a real live version of Pooh sticks, we went under a waterfall which was the storm, before Kanga pulled us in on a tree AKA The Olive Branch and Turtle kept calling out to us in Hebrew so we litterally were on Noahs Ark. Too funny. The Israelis spoke English, but it's much more fun shouting AKUDA! instead of forward. Paddling was hard work, but I gave it my all, i'm aching that's for sure. The Israelis had all just been in the army, but you would think it the amount of effort they put in. Their paddles spent most of their time out of the water out of time with everyone else and when they were in the water they were half arsed. But it was good. We managed to chuck Turtle out. He was attempting to get me out as I hadn't come a cropper off a particularly viscious rapid, but a few of the others had, he underestimated the strngth of my legs though. See those tree trunks are handy!
It was a good day though, again we've got a DVD. Really, really beautiful, to be going right through the middle of the rainforest and lucky for us there was a good bit of cloud cover so it wasn't to hot. Just a long hard day, but worth it.
Tomorrow sky dive. I hope these clouds clear up. Apparantly you can see the reef really well from up there. I'd guess so if you can see it from space.
Mulu.
x xx x
Last night we had a BBQ (I had halloumi and peppers) and a fair few drinks. I ended up in my tutu being calm first aid lady with an Irish girl. There's a yound Welsh girl here who was on our bus and she was skulling goon (really cheap wine that gets you hammered, all the backpackers drink it really) like it was water. She then starts going round the table (not ours I point out) necking other peoples drinks. She's almost sick, then carrys on. eventually her friend gets her off her high perch on the table, down to a chair with a bin in front of her. She promptly falls off the chair into the bin and then attempts to get up and carry on drinking. After her second fall into the bin, she appears to have passed out and so some people take her off to her bedroom and lay her down. When someone goes to check on her a little later these girls all come out screaming for an ambulance and crying and panicking like a bunch of lemmings. Mummy Rabbit gene kicks in and I leg it to this girls room amongst a bunch of idiots milling around crying as she's choking on her own blood. So me and the Irish girl whack her into recovery, clear her airways, try and bring her round, suss out the situation etc, etc. Would appear she has rolled of the bed and lost part of her tooth and smashed her nose. She's also lost the ability to control her bladder as her knickers are soaking and a puddle of urine around her. So here we are covered in this silly girls piss, my fingers are in her mouth clearing out blood and we've had a few too you know. I get her friend to sort out her medicare and insurance stuff etc and a change of clothes plus wash stuff so she doesn't have to wear her manky stuff back from the hospital. We clear all the blood away and realise that her tooth is still in her mouth it's just halfway up in her gum. Don't think she'll be doing that again. Ambulance turn up and I go shower before returning to my convivial evening that ends with me, Lauren and the lads ditching everyone in the pool. I was actually the first to get ditched in by Phil after wrestling with him because he was being quiet. Oh me and Lauren had a tiff and she made me cry because she was a nasty, spiteful little cow. And you all think she's so lovely. She told me this morning she wasn't that drunk so i'm not sure how forgiving i'm feeling about her cut below the belt. Hmmm...
Anyways for the main attraction. Rafting!
We ended up in a boat with 2 Dutch, 3 Israelies and an instructor named Sean. One of the Israelies was called Noa (no H, but who cares) so immediately I christened the boat Noahs Ark. Seans first words after the first rapid we something like, "I totally thought we were going to like flip out there dudes." He promptly got renamed Turtle after Turtle (who i'm sure is called Sean) from finding Nemo. The Dutch woman was tiny and cold and getting thrown around like a jumping bean and I said she should be teddy bear because she was so cute. She said no her partner was her Teddy Bear. His name was Winston AKA Winnie...Winnie the Pooh. So now we have Rabbit, Pooh Bear and Turtle in Noah's Ark and she becomes Piglet because well it works if you see her. And Piglet and Pooh have always been sweet on each other haven't they. Then we call the Israeli boy Kanga and the other Israeli girl Koala because she's all cuddly and Lauren is of course Monkey. I wanted them to be Eeyore and Owl, but they weren't having it. So we have half the cast of A.A.Milnes books and a few randoms chucked in for good measure. I probably should have been Tigger as I didn't shut up the whole time (3 hours of sleep and a load of adrenaline will do that to me, plus I had a bit of a hangover which always makes me nuts) Pooh bear got stuck getting in the boat like he did in Rabbit's hole and we were all heaving like nobodys business to drag him in (should probably cut down on that honey), you can get out of the boat at points and float down this crocodile infested water and me and Lauren were wetting ourselves as we were playing a real live version of Pooh sticks, we went under a waterfall which was the storm, before Kanga pulled us in on a tree AKA The Olive Branch and Turtle kept calling out to us in Hebrew so we litterally were on Noahs Ark. Too funny. The Israelis spoke English, but it's much more fun shouting AKUDA! instead of forward. Paddling was hard work, but I gave it my all, i'm aching that's for sure. The Israelis had all just been in the army, but you would think it the amount of effort they put in. Their paddles spent most of their time out of the water out of time with everyone else and when they were in the water they were half arsed. But it was good. We managed to chuck Turtle out. He was attempting to get me out as I hadn't come a cropper off a particularly viscious rapid, but a few of the others had, he underestimated the strngth of my legs though. See those tree trunks are handy!
It was a good day though, again we've got a DVD. Really, really beautiful, to be going right through the middle of the rainforest and lucky for us there was a good bit of cloud cover so it wasn't to hot. Just a long hard day, but worth it.
Tomorrow sky dive. I hope these clouds clear up. Apparantly you can see the reef really well from up there. I'd guess so if you can see it from space.
Mulu.
x xx x
Thursday 9 October 2008
Learning To Fly...
Bungee jump today. Not to much detail as I have a DVD for you all. I did 6 jumps in total and no it doesn't get any easier with each passing one. And an interesting fact...
the thing around your ankles that you would assume to be a harness is actually a bunch of towels and they're just strapped up. and it's heavy having three towels wrapped around your feet and 100 foot worth of elastic pulling you over the edge of this 160 foot drop.
So for the jumps...
First was a regular forward swan dive.
Second a backwards jump (which is weirder than jumping forwards, just feels really unatural to throw yourself off backwards).
Third was the pendulum which is where you are lowered by the bungee guys to an 90*-ish dgree angle backwards and dropped.
Fourth was backwards elevator which is where you put your hands on your shoulders, elbows out in front of you look up and jump.
Fifth was bloody scary. You had to hop around the side of the gaurd rail and wiggle along, then lean back and grab a bar a bit away from the platform below your feet, grip youir hands around, take your feet off, smile for the camera, look up at your hands, then 5-4-3-2-1 let go.
Sixth, was the running man. Bungee harness goes around your waist you go up a ladder onto the roof and run along a 10ft-ish platform and throw yourself off like a superhero.
I've never been so scared in my life. I didn't hesitate once though, as soon as they finished the countdown for every jump I went. Not sure I could have done another one after that though, my heart may have exploded. Lauren managed to overcome her fear of heights and do one, but the first 2 times she took an eternity to go which annoyed me because it was taking up time that I could have used to do another jump. we were on a package deal of unlimited jumps, but I ended up having to pay extra for my running man because we went past the 3.30pm deadline for unlimited jump passes. Selfish cow aren't I.
Tonight dinner at the Hare Krishna, good, cheap, vegetarian food and an early night as tomorrow we're off to Mission Beach.
Mulu. x
the thing around your ankles that you would assume to be a harness is actually a bunch of towels and they're just strapped up. and it's heavy having three towels wrapped around your feet and 100 foot worth of elastic pulling you over the edge of this 160 foot drop.
So for the jumps...
First was a regular forward swan dive.
Second a backwards jump (which is weirder than jumping forwards, just feels really unatural to throw yourself off backwards).
Third was the pendulum which is where you are lowered by the bungee guys to an 90*-ish dgree angle backwards and dropped.
Fourth was backwards elevator which is where you put your hands on your shoulders, elbows out in front of you look up and jump.
Fifth was bloody scary. You had to hop around the side of the gaurd rail and wiggle along, then lean back and grab a bar a bit away from the platform below your feet, grip youir hands around, take your feet off, smile for the camera, look up at your hands, then 5-4-3-2-1 let go.
Sixth, was the running man. Bungee harness goes around your waist you go up a ladder onto the roof and run along a 10ft-ish platform and throw yourself off like a superhero.
I've never been so scared in my life. I didn't hesitate once though, as soon as they finished the countdown for every jump I went. Not sure I could have done another one after that though, my heart may have exploded. Lauren managed to overcome her fear of heights and do one, but the first 2 times she took an eternity to go which annoyed me because it was taking up time that I could have used to do another jump. we were on a package deal of unlimited jumps, but I ended up having to pay extra for my running man because we went past the 3.30pm deadline for unlimited jump passes. Selfish cow aren't I.
Tonight dinner at the Hare Krishna, good, cheap, vegetarian food and an early night as tomorrow we're off to Mission Beach.
Mulu. x
Wednesday 8 October 2008
Dreams Do Come True (kind of...)
Today I got to be a mermaid. Yes a mermaid. Can you even begin to imagine how happy I am?
Awoke from our hostel Bohemia Central in Cairns and wandered down to the marina to board our vessel Ocean Freedom. Straight away we secured ourselves a spot up front kicking back relaxing for the journey out to the Great Barrier Reef. When we get out there we board a glass bottomed boat making sure we take our snorkels, masks and fins, so that when we land on the island (read: tiny piece of sand randomly sticking up in the middle of the ocean) we can snorkel back over to the boat. Driving over the reef wasn't all that good to be fair so I kind of stopped bothering to look and listened to some rather interesting facts instead. Corals optimium temperature is between 24*-29* which is why the GBR doesn't grow any furthur south or north of where it is. However it is versatile and has begun to grow in warmer waters, due to climate change. Coral is given its colour by algae that live within it, but algae can't stand to much heat and so when summer comes and the water gets to warm the algae will get out and leave, so the coral reverts to a white-ish colour, but when it is cooler the algae will return to the same piece of coral.
Anyways we get over to the island, do the old spit shine for our goggles and get ready to have a good look around. Snorkelling is bloody hard work. My legs were aching, fat feet getting pinched by the fins and trying to not bite down to hard on the snorkel and giving yourself copious jaw ache is all a bit much. There wasn't as much colour to it as you are lead to believe down there. Apparantly they photoshop a lot of the images they use for postcards and promotion etc, but it was still pretty cool to see all of the goings ons. Fish queing up next to each other so that the cleaner fish will get them next, literally at the car wash. Eating coral, whole schools swimming all in and out. Pink, green and purple holographic looking fish, NEMO (did you know he's of the pirrana family?), sting rays, black and white fish, big fish, baby fish, blue starfish, sea cucumbers. I've taken pictures so you can all have a look at them when I get back. I'll be doing scrapbooks of my adventures.
So we get across to the boat (I am now being towed along on an orange ring by one of the guides as I can no longer stand the pinching of my fins and have taken them off) we get briefed on scuba stuff and get ready. Weight belts are about as comfortable as a foot up your jacksy, as is the tank when on dry land. One of the lads pouring water on our googles to wash out the spit decided it would be amusing to ditch the bucket of water on me and then it's time to step out over the edge. My guide is a guy called Pete Tong (also the name of a very famous DJ, which impresses me no end to have to hold his hand swimming the reef) and he takes us down. Lauren has a bit of a freak out and has to go back to the surface so we're just hanging about waiting for her to get it together and when she does we're off.
I was a mermaid.
It was a bit annoying having to hold the guides hand, but to be swimming around breathing under water with all of these fish was a dream come true for me. It's a shame about the Darth Vader noise of the oxygen, but it's so quiet and peaceful and, serene, that even that takes on a really nice rythmn eventually and you just feel weightless. Actually weightless is probably the wrong word as even one of the guides said when I came up that she kept having to put air in my jacket because I just sink like a stone and I pointed out to her that'll be because of my solid tree trunk legs dragging me down, but you feel completely different to anything you've felt before.
We get back on the boat after about 30 mins down have lunch and me and Lauren promptly fall asleep on the front deck, being awoken about an hour later to get ready for our second dive. This time we went down just 3 of us with a girl named Hayley and we were allowed to just do our own thing as long as we stayed behind her and within a reasonable distance. This time we went lower and I had an absolute nightmare trying to equalize my ears. I was blowing, yawning, wiggling, the works, but they were just refusing to sort it out. At one point it was getting pretty painful and I thought I was going to have to go up, but I just stuck it out because I really didn't want to miss the opportunity to get pictures of it all. Fully felt like a mermaid then, not having to hold hands or anything. I even put my ankles together sometimes and swished my legs like I had a tail. I love playing pretend.
Once we'd finished that dive we got back on the boat where I stripped off my gear and dived off the back of the boat for a little swim. All around and under the boat were these huge fish that
came up sp close you could touch them. If you stuck your finger out they'd try and nip them like they were food. Was brilliant that they just kept coming up to you and brushing your hand. I got dunked a few times by some of the boat lads (if we'd have been at school i'd have said they were a bit interested...) After my swim that was the trip over and just chilled out on the hour or so back to shore by eating fruit, cheese amd biscuits and cake that the ship provide (stock up on the free food!) and doing a bit of writing. Writing out on the open sea is just something else.
Agreed to meet up with Pete Tong for a few bevvies later on, but instead have opted to stay at the hostel and chill out with a few English lads in the room next to ours.
That's all folks.
Bungee jump tomorrow, wahey!
Mulu x
Awoke from our hostel Bohemia Central in Cairns and wandered down to the marina to board our vessel Ocean Freedom. Straight away we secured ourselves a spot up front kicking back relaxing for the journey out to the Great Barrier Reef. When we get out there we board a glass bottomed boat making sure we take our snorkels, masks and fins, so that when we land on the island (read: tiny piece of sand randomly sticking up in the middle of the ocean) we can snorkel back over to the boat. Driving over the reef wasn't all that good to be fair so I kind of stopped bothering to look and listened to some rather interesting facts instead. Corals optimium temperature is between 24*-29* which is why the GBR doesn't grow any furthur south or north of where it is. However it is versatile and has begun to grow in warmer waters, due to climate change. Coral is given its colour by algae that live within it, but algae can't stand to much heat and so when summer comes and the water gets to warm the algae will get out and leave, so the coral reverts to a white-ish colour, but when it is cooler the algae will return to the same piece of coral.
Anyways we get over to the island, do the old spit shine for our goggles and get ready to have a good look around. Snorkelling is bloody hard work. My legs were aching, fat feet getting pinched by the fins and trying to not bite down to hard on the snorkel and giving yourself copious jaw ache is all a bit much. There wasn't as much colour to it as you are lead to believe down there. Apparantly they photoshop a lot of the images they use for postcards and promotion etc, but it was still pretty cool to see all of the goings ons. Fish queing up next to each other so that the cleaner fish will get them next, literally at the car wash. Eating coral, whole schools swimming all in and out. Pink, green and purple holographic looking fish, NEMO (did you know he's of the pirrana family?), sting rays, black and white fish, big fish, baby fish, blue starfish, sea cucumbers. I've taken pictures so you can all have a look at them when I get back. I'll be doing scrapbooks of my adventures.
So we get across to the boat (I am now being towed along on an orange ring by one of the guides as I can no longer stand the pinching of my fins and have taken them off) we get briefed on scuba stuff and get ready. Weight belts are about as comfortable as a foot up your jacksy, as is the tank when on dry land. One of the lads pouring water on our googles to wash out the spit decided it would be amusing to ditch the bucket of water on me and then it's time to step out over the edge. My guide is a guy called Pete Tong (also the name of a very famous DJ, which impresses me no end to have to hold his hand swimming the reef) and he takes us down. Lauren has a bit of a freak out and has to go back to the surface so we're just hanging about waiting for her to get it together and when she does we're off.
I was a mermaid.
It was a bit annoying having to hold the guides hand, but to be swimming around breathing under water with all of these fish was a dream come true for me. It's a shame about the Darth Vader noise of the oxygen, but it's so quiet and peaceful and, serene, that even that takes on a really nice rythmn eventually and you just feel weightless. Actually weightless is probably the wrong word as even one of the guides said when I came up that she kept having to put air in my jacket because I just sink like a stone and I pointed out to her that'll be because of my solid tree trunk legs dragging me down, but you feel completely different to anything you've felt before.
We get back on the boat after about 30 mins down have lunch and me and Lauren promptly fall asleep on the front deck, being awoken about an hour later to get ready for our second dive. This time we went down just 3 of us with a girl named Hayley and we were allowed to just do our own thing as long as we stayed behind her and within a reasonable distance. This time we went lower and I had an absolute nightmare trying to equalize my ears. I was blowing, yawning, wiggling, the works, but they were just refusing to sort it out. At one point it was getting pretty painful and I thought I was going to have to go up, but I just stuck it out because I really didn't want to miss the opportunity to get pictures of it all. Fully felt like a mermaid then, not having to hold hands or anything. I even put my ankles together sometimes and swished my legs like I had a tail. I love playing pretend.
Once we'd finished that dive we got back on the boat where I stripped off my gear and dived off the back of the boat for a little swim. All around and under the boat were these huge fish that
came up sp close you could touch them. If you stuck your finger out they'd try and nip them like they were food. Was brilliant that they just kept coming up to you and brushing your hand. I got dunked a few times by some of the boat lads (if we'd have been at school i'd have said they were a bit interested...) After my swim that was the trip over and just chilled out on the hour or so back to shore by eating fruit, cheese amd biscuits and cake that the ship provide (stock up on the free food!) and doing a bit of writing. Writing out on the open sea is just something else.
Agreed to meet up with Pete Tong for a few bevvies later on, but instead have opted to stay at the hostel and chill out with a few English lads in the room next to ours.
That's all folks.
Bungee jump tomorrow, wahey!
Mulu x
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