Wednesday October 10th is my final day in Africa. I ship out of East London at noon, then from Jo'burg I begin a 13 hour journey down under. I arrive in Sydney at one o'clock in the afternoon on the 11th.
Not only am I leaving Africa, I'm leaving the company of others. Once I fly out, I'm solo, just me, no friends, no arranged meetings with friends of friends in other cities, no one else, just me. I've been thinking about this moment for months, ever since I began to plan this trip. I always knew I was going to visit Luke in Africa. I threw around many ideas for the other part of the trip, but Australia was always in my plans. A few of my friends teased me with the idea of them joining me, but the time away from work and the lack of money were factors going against them. So, I figured, I have the money, I can get the time off from work (or just quit,) screw it, I'll go by myself.
And here I am, about to ship off to a country, a continent I've never been to, know very little about and know NO ONE!!! At least they speak English, right? I was nervous about it before I left the states, then once I got here, I began to get excited about being solo. It was going to be a challenge, a test of what I'm actually capable of. And I'm still excited. I've got a tentative course laid out, a few places I want to see, a few things to do and a lot of room to improvise. I planned it like that on purpose. I figured, I'm by myself, no one else to make decisions, I will leave room for changes. If something pops up or if I find some new place, or if I get a suggestion from someone I meet, I can easily change my course. But, as of now, this is my rough course of action:
October 11th, I arrive in Sydney. Hostel it there for about a week. Check out the city: Harbor Bridge, Opera House, museums, markets, gardens, etc. I might try to figure out where wine country is and go do some Australian wine tastings. I also may try to catch an Aussie Rules Rugby game, at the suggestion of a few friends. I plan to travel north out of Sydney via Greyhound, oh yeah baby, I'm takin' the bus! No worries, Greyhound is actually a decent way to travel down there, its nothing like the shady half broken down system back in the states.
After Sydney is the Gold Coast of Australia, beaches and surfing!!! I haven't figured out what town I want to stop in yet, but once I do, it’s a few days there and hopefully some surfing this time! After I get my fill of the Gold Coast, it’s off to Brisbane.
I'll spend a few days in Brisbane sight-seeing and then its north again to Fraser Island, the world's largest sand island. I think I'm going to find some way to camp there for a night or two, maybe find an inexpensive tour to join. Very beautiful place, lots of photographs there, hopefully.
After Brisbane, its further north to Cairns. There is a few hundred miles between those two cities and hope to find a stopping point some where in between, but haven't found one yet. Once I get to Cairns, it’s all about the reef, baby! I've already booked my seat on a 10 person charter of the Great Barrier Reef. It’s a 3 day, 2 night charter on a 40' sailboat full of dives, snorkeling and sun!!! I haven't decided whether or not to drop the cash on getting certified to dive. I believe it’s a 2 day process with written tests and practice dives, not to mention a few hundred dollars. I'll cross that bridge when I get there. But, I will definitely be able to snorkel from the boat. I chose this charter over others I researched mainly because it’s on a sailboat and its only 10 passengers and 3 crew members. The crew encourages the passengers to help sail the boat. I figured, I've always wanted to learn how to sail, why not try it out while cruising over one of the 7 natural wonders of the world?!?! So, you can add sailing to my list of firsts on this trip. (Dylan and Rick, I'll show you guys a thing or two when I get home...ha, ha.)
So, Cairns is the last stop. I bought a flight back to Sydney on November 1st. And from Sydney, I fly on to Santiago, Chile. I had some difficulties arranging tickets to Tahiti and Easter Island. The travel agent I was working with since before I left the states decided to flake out on me. I inquired about my flight path in early August and received a quote from her. When I went back in September to start making plans to buy these plane tickets from her, she decided to change her story. It’s long and boring, but she couldn't get me to where I wanted to go anymore and was giving me the run-around as to why. So, thankfully, the Vehorns have a travel agent here in South Africa that they have been dealing with for years. I made one quick phone call to her and in a day had tickets. I chose to cut out Tahiti and Easter Island since it was so close to the date and prices were beginning to rise. I'm still flying to Chile, and I hope to find a flight to Easter Island from there. We will see though. That portion of the trip is still very far away and I'll cross that bridge when I get there.
As promised, there is my tentative schedule from now until I decide to come home. If anyone has any suggestions, advice, friends, family, or knowledge about Australia, I would greatly appreciate the information. I'm basically sticking to the east coast, between Sydney and Cairns and I'm still looking for places to visit in between. Its all one big adventure guys. The blogs will be flowing!!!
Sorry there isn't any pictures for this blog. Its literaly painstaking to wait for them to load on this internet over here. I promise beautiful photographs of Australia, as soon as I get there, and get fast internet. Thanks again for everyone's support!!! Wish me luck on this HUGE journey I am about to take! Much love!
Linds
7 comments:
Good Lord Lindz! Sounds like you've really got a full schedual of things to do. WOW!! I had no clue it was going to involve all this traveling. I only wish that I would've stayed in touch with my Ozie friends I made years ago. Might have been able to help you out alittle with getting around and meeting some good people. Been extremely busy with school here & family life but will try to give you a shout back too. Loved the painting that Linduke came up with. I be able to say "I knew her when..." one of these days. Keep your eyes to the future and your heart in the clouds. Luv ya kiddo. Be safe!!!
Rhonda
You've got this! Worry not, my friend, once you hit the ground you'll be like a kid in a candy store. Just don't forget to go straddle the other oceanic division, the Indian/Pacific. If you could somehow find a way to get to the Arctic Ocean, you will have spent time overlooking all four major world oceans. I don't know if you'll be able to jaunt up to Canada on such short notice, though! Keep writing and let me know just how cold it is at the southernmost point in your trip. I've always been curious about the weather in South Australia...
Geeze Lindsey!!! You have done so much in what seems like such a short period of time! I can't believe you bungee jumped off of the highest bridge in South Africa!! You are CRAZY lady!! You look like you are having the time of your life. I gave my mom your blog site so she can read and see all of your AMAZING pictures! I love you and I'll be in touch with you soon!
Oops!!! Forgot to tell you anonymous is me, Gara!! Love you!!
OK, now you're on the part of your trip where we start to worry! We're parents, we're allowed to! But we also know you, so our concerns are tempered by your strength. Trust your instincts on this part of the trip.
Enjoy yourself as you did in South Africa. You had a wonderful trip and we enjoyed sharing it with you. We hope to hear from you more often in Oz, just because it is a little more civilized and you should have more opportunity to post. I do have a contact in Sydney if you need it.
Just remember, you jumped off a bridge!!!! If you can do that, you can do anything!! Post as often as you can and be safe.
Love ya,
Dad and Col
You got this Linds!! Once-in-a-lilfetime trip, so enjoy it girl!!! You are one of the strongest people I know, so don't hold back on anything you want to do there!! If you start to miss us, then just remember that you could be sling'n drinks to the local drunks!!! Love ya!
Hey Linds, a couple of tips. I you want to get certified on the cheap, try stopping in Bundaberg. It's slightly north of Hervey's Bay, which is where you'll probably leave from to get to Fraser Island (which is awesome by the way) It's really cheap there b/c all the certifications are shore dives cuz the reef is really close to the shore. No boat fees = low dive prices.
ALso, I copied you on an email I sent to a friend who lives in Sydney. At least last I heard he lived in Sydney. You guys can start talking over email since you should have his address now. He's a cool guy, lots of fun, met him in Thailand a few years back.
Back on track, if you want places to stop between Brissy (as they call it in OZ) I would definitely recommend Airlie Beach. YOu can go on a sailing trip through the Whitsunday Islands, definitely a highlight of my time there. I saw humpback whales when I was on the boat there.
Townsville is another possibility which is further north than Airlie. You'll most likely run into other backpackers who are planning on going to Airlie as you make you way up the coast if you are staying in hostels.
It only takes about 12 hours from Sydney to Brisbane if I remember correctly, but from Brisbane to Cairns is twice as long.
Takes lots of pics for me in CAirns, especially of the esplanade area. That is where I lived there and am interested to see how its changed, I hear it has grown a lot since I was there 5 years ago. Can't wait to hear about your experiences in Oz. Its an awesome country, all the comforts of the States but much more laid back.
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