In search of warm weather and (more) good times

Back in aus, back home

My flight from Singapore landed in the early hours of Saturday morning, once reunited with Nala I headed straight for a spot I found next to the beach in Kirra the week before and slept pretty much most of the day. 

parking lot naps are my
speciality by now

It was a great day, full of naps, a swim in the ocean, a good book, a walk on the beach and pancakes for dinner. It was good to be home again.

It’s amazing how such a (relatively) small space, the inside of my Toyota RAV4, can become home. In all it’s possible ways. 

I had decided to (finally) take on the great tropical north of Queensland, Australia and that I would start back in Byron. So an hour back down the road I met up with all the wonderful people I lived with the past couple of months. I booked all my adventures through a friend at Peterpans adventure agent and went for drinks in the evening.

So my north-east coast trip had started! 

First stop: Byron Bay, April 2019

There’s so so much to do in Byron and surroundings I’m really happy I ended up living there for 3 months but it wasn’t until my very last day there that I finally went kayaking with dolphins (woohooo!) 

There are two major kayak adventure companies in Byron. Both located right next to the beach and right next to each other haha!

I booked my tour through the YHA, and went with Cape Byron kayaks. The other company is Go sea kayaks which offers (as far as I know) just about the same tour in the bay along Cape Byron. 

It was a great morning, a little chilly perhaps but all blue skies and loads of fun. The wind created some decent waves but we saw some turtles and I’m pretty sure I got a glimpse of a dolphin or two! The tour is very well done with occasional information on the bay and the surroundings and ending with tea coffee and tim-tams on the beach.

The Pass from Fisherman's lookout

If you're only passing through Byron for a couple of days the lighthouse walk is an absolute must. My advice is to take an afternoon or even a day for it. Pack your swimmers, a picnic, a surfboard, snorkel gear and whatever else you'd want on the beach and brace yourself for some of the best beaches in the world!

looking east toward Wategos
 and the headland
from Fisherman's lookout

Starting at main beach, which is always busy but has lifeguards and is merely a stroll across the road from town. Check out the shipwreck on your left or head to the right along the beach toward Clarkes beach. Head back to the walkway to get some great views across the boardwalk that swings you around to The pass. This world famous (longboard) surf beach also has a great lookout which provides you with panoramic views across the bay with heaps of chance to not only see loads of surfers but also dolphins, sea turtles and whales (June to Oct)!

The pass

If you're out of luck and it's high tide there isn't much of a beach going on here, so if you're not into the surf scene trod along the lighthouse track toward Wategos beach. Wategos has sort of a bay going on where heaps of fish are to be discovered while snorkeling. 

When you're all filled up with your picnic, surfed, snorkel and swam to your hearts content head back to the track for the last leg, about (half an hour to) an hour before sunset to finally reach the iconic lighthouse. 

lighthouse walking track

After a long day beaching around it's time for that well earned glass of wine or beer, which only tastes better with the magnificent views you'll have from the lighthouse. Get your picnic blanket out again and plant yourself in the grass and enjoy the panoramic views and (hopefully) magical sunset before walking back down again. 

Don't wait too long after the sun has set though,

it gets pretty dark pretty soon and there's no street lights 

on the way down.

Anyway, for me a shop, a lovely and unexpected afternoon catch up on the beach with a friend and quick shower later I was on the road again, off to Hastings Point where I’d set up camp for the night before heading further up to the Gold Coast.

Gold Coast

Broadbeach

So Tuesday I made my way up to the Gold Coast once again, yet this time I was headed for an old friend. I met Jenny over 4 years ago at the very first stud I worked at in Australia November 2014, we caught up again in February 2015 when I was heading up the coast that time and now April 2019 I found myself on the Gold Coast once again. It was so great to catch up after all those years even for the two short days we had. 

I don’t think I’d ever be able to actually live full time in Surfers Paradise (heart of the Gold Coast you could say) but I’ve definitely learnt to appreciate the beauty of the southern Gold Coast this time around.

Brissy

Two refreshing days Iater I headed up another two hours up the coast to Brisbane. Hello uncharted territory !! (personally uncharted obvs)

Southbank from the Victoria bridge

A little explanation here: During my previous Aussie adventures I ventured up to the Gold Coast to visited Jenny for about a week after which I drove up North west about 90k past Brisbane (thus bypassing it) for another horse job. I got pretty sick here though pretty soon so I ended up only staying for about 3 nights after which I decided to head back down to Port Macquarie where a Eva lived at the time, the daughter of my dad’s best friend. Thus I ended up crashing with her for a good week before heading down further back to Sydney to pick up my incoming sister instead of heading back up again.

So Brissy, woooo! I’d heard so much mixed ‘reviews’ about the city so I was dying to go explore it for myself and I’m very happy to report that I really liked it.

Southbank

Found a hostel about 4 (big) blocks from South bank with free parking, Brisbane backpackers resort is quite a decent hostel. It’s got just about everything you’d need or want from a hostel. Front desk staff are friendly, there’s a pool, kitchen isn’t too bad, rooms are pretty roomy with a fridge and cupboards, en suites and balconies. Only down things is that the night manager dismally failed at his job one of the nights I was there by failing to shut down a group of party people shouting and playing music on their balcony.  

Anyway, hostel is a good enough place to have as a home base to explore the city.

So Brisbane city is divided by the Brisbane river. South bank is (very famously) the perfect place to hang out with the big lagoon and the parklands which stretch over a good 17 hectares. It offers great places to chill, eat, drink and enjoy the views across the river. 

Venturing across the river into the CBD, the botanical gardens or to Kangaroo point is easy with the free city hopper ferry which has two stops along south bank, one right across the river next to the CBD, one on Kangaroo point, close to the botanical gardens and a few other that take you a bit further down stream. It’s a great way to see the city from a bit of a different views point plus, it was pretty warm in the ferry haha.

First day I ventured through the CBD, it had been almost 6 months since I’d been in a capital city like this and I honestly quite enjoyed it for the two days I was there. I’d bypassed Sydney on my way up and didn’t go back to Melbs after leaving end of October so it was nice to have that big city vibe going on around me again. Even though I’m very much a small city/country side-kind of person, I do really enjoy big cities every now and then. There’s just something in the buzz of a big city that I just love. And Brissy had just that buzz going. I spent the day pretty much (window) shopping, eating and just wandering around south bank until it got too cold when I went back home for a nap and to layer on some more clothes. 

When in Brisbane I most definitely suggest to explore south bank in the evening/at night too. There’s always something going on.

Day two was even colder and rainier so I hopped onto the free ferry and ended up falling asleep most of the way (typical me lol). Anyway getting off close to the Botanical gardens to wander through as I love to do. to head back into the city for a shelter from the rain in the form of a coffee. 

On your way out of Brisbane (north) it’s only too easy to make your way to Mt. Coot-tha, an easy drive up the mount leaves you with a magnificent 360° view of not only Brisbane but all the surrounding area. The cafe offers wonderful food and drinks with the views free of charge, there’s also walking tracks to waterfalls, other lookouts or all the way back down the hill to the planetarium.

For me it was time to hit the beach again, the Sunshine coast to be precise. And mercifully it was warm and sunny again when I reached Noosa. 

Noosa

newly redone boardwalk
from town to the headland
national park 

I had been told that Noosa is much like Byron, but more ‘grownup’ whatever that may mean haha!

But infact I was pleasantly surprised it to be correct. Noosa (heads) is a lovely little town and a very busy one at that as I had made my way up there on the first weekend of the Easter holidays. Jam packed with families I very luckily found a parking space quite quick so I could explore Noosa Heads, the national park. The walkway along the headland offers absolutely magnificent views all round and is easy accessible. The beaches along the way provide great surf (watching) opportunities as well as lookouts and fairy pools to refresh. The headland walk reaches all the way around to Sunrise beach, it’s an almost 11km return walk well worth doing.

surf watching 

I slept on the Noosa sea scouts grounds, which is a lovely family owned property/camping a little out of town (7km) with all the facilities you could wish for, all for the great price of 18$ a night (for just me and my car). 

Noosa is a great place to stop and rewind from the hustle and bustle from Brisbane, if I had the time I would’ve definitely stayed for at least 3 or 4 days but allas, time wasn’t in my favour (as usual lol) and just like that I was on the road again because Fraser Island was waiting!

Also, Noosa police patrol street parking seriously, got fined for standing in a free spot for too long  🙅)

sunset surf-sesh done right

Can't wait to tell you all about Fraser Island and 

my week chasing waterfalls in the tropics 😍

Stay tuned for more tropical adventures !

xoxo Liz

Not everyday has to be extraordinary, even in paradise

This is a line I think I read somewhere, although I can't remember where so it could also just be something that just came to me. Who knows. Doesn't really matter, what does matter is that by (finally) coming to this realisation my life truely has sort of changed. Or maybe it's more my look on life that has changed. Either way, it really helped me lift the pressure of adventure off my shoulders which resulted in me finding ways to find something extra ordinary in everyday again!

So this is the deal, here's some real talk.

I had never worked two jobs as such before in my life. I’ve always been busy doing about a million things at once combining my horses with music classes, high school and scouting for instance and still finding the time for a social life. But I never actually had to combine two jobs with life. Turns out that's harder to do than combining hobbies when you're a kid.  

So it took me quite some time to find a balance between working and still going on adventures/ having fun.

this was the result of a pretty
average day working both jobs

And in doing this I learned something really important. I decided to let go of the crazy idea that, because I’m living this travellers life in the far far away country that is Australia, that I should be doing something extra ordinary everyday because I would otherwise be “wasting” my time here in paradise somehow. 

Almost funny to think about it like that now, because after all, this is MY life and My adventure and if I feel like doing nothing I'm quite entitled to do so. And certainly because of some recent events that happened like some kid throwing up on (and effectively destroying) my laptop as well as some struggles I had with my skin I felt tired and just didn't want to do more then I was obligated to do with my work. Which is quite normal tbh, life's though and sometimes it just wares you down. It happens all the time and to everyone in certain degrees. Everybody needs down time.

But with only 5 weeks left to my time in Byron I decide to make sure I have at least 1 full day off a week, and to dedicate that day to exploring. This way I would be able to have my extraordinary days and see amazing things and still have my time to chill and do absolutely nothing at all in those 2 to 4 hours in between or before shifts. You see the thing is, spending time doing something you want or enjoy doing at the time isn't wasting time. I've come to understand that this is mostly just self care and self love, to let you just be you.

And so I started planning and setting out at least once a week exploring Byron Bay all the way. This lead to finding some great spots like the Killen falls, lunch at The Farm and dips in the tea tree lake with Loreto between shifts. Meeting up with Fien, an old friend from ponycamp and exploring the Springbrook national park on the Gold Coast hinterland. As well as solo day tripping to the Mynion falls and a lot of Byron bay hinterland along the way.

I'll take more about and give you all the deets on these great places to explore very soon!

First I'm dying to talk about my birthday adventures, which I'll be doing next. So stay tuned on all the sweet stuff about Phuket, Thailand!!

xoxo Liz

Nomadic going on settled

Byron Bay, January2019

Going to Byron felt like the next natural thing to do. As I was running out of money fast I decided to settle down there for a bit to earn and save. I arrived on a Saturday and was completely overwhelmed. Not by the town itself, which is small and hardly rises above 2 stories but by the amount of people. Tourists and locals alike were all out and about on the streets. I had not realised it was the last Saturday of the summer holidays so the town was absolutely packed. I planned on saving money and staying on a campground outside of town but on arriving I decided I needed to be in hub to get that social contact going again, which is another reason why I ditched the campsite far out of town and checked in to a hostel in town. 

Christina and I on the eastern most point of mainland Australia

The same afternoon I met Christina, a lovely girl from Spain with whom I spent the rest of the day on the beach and after we did the lighthouse walk for sunset. It was a great way to start my days in Byron. It’s always so incredible to find someone, between all the people you meet along the way, with whom you can relate to in so many ways. Christina told me how she had been looking for a job here for a week already now and hadn’t had any luck so she ended up flying to Melbourne on Tuesday. Obviously this made me worry as I was getting in desperate need of a job as accommodation was really expensive with the summer still in full swing. Despite this I still walked around hours handing in my resume to every- and anyone who could give me a job.

It’s these kind of people you meet though, who really make me love travelling. The kind of people with whom you just connect. It’s the kind of people where you share life stories with before having asked their name or just forgot it instantly lol. 

My first few hours in Byron were super overwhelming which sent me spiralling. It was another moment of crisis in my head which I let run me over for a bit. And almost made me leave again. I’m so glad I didn’t though, thanks to a Skype call home and this beautiful new friend I met I pushed through, once again.

The following day I started talking to some other guys in the hostel which ended up in us going to the silent disco on the beach, with the full moon. Needless to say it was awesome, it felt so good to feel so alive and happy in the moment again. 

After a couple of days in my first hostel I decided to move as I just didn’t feel the ‘vibe’ going on there (the vibe being: party). So I walked across the street and around the corner to the YHA and asked for a room. Of course this place was almost as expensive as the last but I walked around and had a way better feeling about the place than the last so I moved. And thank god I did. Funny how life sends you across the street like that sometimes (literally haha). 

Life had it that I was able to score a job for accommodation there which would save me sooooo much money, so naturally I immediately took it with both hands. Around the same time I had started working at Cypress tree, a small Mediterranean restaurant in town which serves magnificent seafood. It was quite a fun job and the hours were perfectly combinable with my work at the hostel. Unfortunately this wasn’t the place for me to work after all, after a good week the owner told me they weren’t in need of my help anymore. So I received my pay and was thanked politely for my help. 

But as if they were waiting for this to happen the very same day I got a message from a restaurant where I had walked in with my resume, if i was still looking for a job and if so, if i would like to come in for a trail in a couple of days. 

And so I started working at Fishheads, a nice little restaurant right on the beach. Better pay, more hours and still manageable with my other job made me a happy kiddo.

from housekeeping

to the front of house

The whole “work for accomodation”thing was the best opportunity I could’ve gotten as this enabled me to live super social while saving big time on acc. costs. Most hostels work with volunteers who work about 15hours a week for acc. The work depends obviously on the time of year and what the hostels needs having done but I got a position with housekeeping. And even though I don’t think you’ll ever find me doing that full time I was easy work in shifts of 4 or 5 hours 3 mornings a week.

During my very first day at the hostel I did the free lighthouse walk, which was one of the activities done by the hostel.

side note; I always try to do the activities organised by hostels I go to, they’re usually either free or very cheap and it’s an excellent (and easy) way to meet people. 

So on the walk I met Yanina, a not your typical backpacker girl from Germany who was on a vacation in Australia from her life on the (cruise)ships. Anyway, we started talking about the horse tattoo on my back. 

Yanina and I after yet another fun night out

again side note: I have found that tattoo’s are also always such an easy way to start up a conversation with perfect strangers. 

We ended up spending most her time in Byron together, going out for drinks and diner and to the beach. I was great and I was able to see her again a couple of weeks later due to a change in her itinerary and I hope to be able to see her again somewhere around the world wherever we may get to!

Loreto and I at the tea tree lake

The other good friend I made is Loreto, from Chile. We met as we were in the same dorm at the time and stayed in contact throughout my entire time in Byron which was so great. We both had jobs and she moved places but we still managed to get together for waterfall adventures, strange meditation sessions and just beach chills. 

Even with the rocky first few hours in Byron I am so great full for the opportunities I got (and took) in my new home away from home, the beautiful Byron Bay.

So as life in Byron settled and I was working almost 45hours a week some weeks I learnt some new things in life.

Stay tuned for more Byron livin’ !

xoxo Liz