The Next Adventure

The time comes and we all need to move on.It was coming into the Australian Winter so I decided against going south and instead opted for Darwin.

I flew from Perth to Darwin and I was lucky enough to get a window seat, allowing me to take photos of the gorgeous Australian landscape:

 Darwin is absolutely gorgeous. It's a lot like Cairns (my favourite!), but it feels a little more resort-like. The hostel I stayed at was one of the top rated in the city and I spent my two days there exploring the city and taking photos.

 Now I did love Darwin, but I realised that nowhere did work for accommodation, looked at my pitiful savings and panicked! Decided on impulse to buy a flight to Cairns and go back to Global! A little pathetic, I know. Travelling is supposed to be about new experiences, new places and new people but I couldn't face the thought of my parents having to scrape together the money for my flight home and I knew in Cairns I'd be able to find work for accom at least, if not paid work.

If I'm honest, I also really wanted to see my friends again!

So here I am, back at the Global desk, preparing to go home after a year in Australia!

 I've arranged to meet my sister and Gillian in London and I'm really excited! I put my sister's flights and the hotel on my credit card so I think I'm going to go home in quite a bit of debt unfortunately. Seems ridiculous considering the money I earned here.

It's hard to believe, but I'm less than a month away from the end of my visa! Here was me thinking I wouldn't make it 3 months. It really has been amazing and I feel like I've grown up and changed for the better in the (almost) year that I've been here. If anyone is thinking about doing it my advice would be go for it - it's one of the best things I've ever done.

If I were to do my year again I would probably have tried to travel more. I spent a great deal of my time in Cairns and as much as I love it here, Australia is a big country with so much to see. Money issues and a broken ankle put a little damper in my grand Australia plans though, so c'est la vie.

In all honesty, I wouldn't really change a thing though - I've had an amazing time here and met the greatest people. Unfortunately it looks likes I'll be unable to see Uluru like I'd hoped, but I've got the rest of my life - I do plan to come back to Australia, definitely see Uluru and perhaps the East Coast. It all comes down to money and time, doesn't it? So much to see, not enough time to do it!

So thanks Australia. For being like, awesome and stuff.

2013 already.

NEW YEAR'S!!

New Year's Eve was spent getting very drunk at various bars, and I got to do it in 20's costume again because that was PJ O'Briens theme of the day. I knew that Halloween Costume wasn't a waste of money!

January has mainly been spent working and maybe going out to eat a couple of times. Jennifer and I are a little over the club scene here. It's so quiet here now for wet season that it almost doesn't seem worth it!

So here I am nearing the end of January and potentially nearing the end of my time in Cairns. Next month I should be in Innisfail doing farm work!

Here's hoping!

Christmas and The End of the World

December meant a) the end of the world and b) Christmas. I got to dress up as a zombie at work for the 21st of December (end of the Mayan Calender) and as a green t-shirted reindeer for Christmas.

Just before Christmas Jennifer (my roomate) and I decided to go with Nelli and her cousin Eric to Fitzroy Island. Like Green Island it's an Island just off the coast of Cairns, but it's a little more fun. It has kayaking and a trampoline in the ocean. 

I spent Christmas day having a BBQ on the rooftop of my hostel - it ended very messily with a food fight and many people (including myself) being thrown into the pool fully clothed.

Birthdays and Broken Ankles

November was a cool month, I can tell you. Originally it was going to be the month that I finally left Cairns and started my farm work for my second year visa. That didn't really work out though, since I went out for my birthday on the 14th, got ridiculously drunk, started dancing on a table - and fell off, breaking my ankle. Oops!

Gillian left for her Asian adventure as well, which made me very sad! She's back at home now which is a little surreal considering I'm still here in Cairns! I couldn't waitress anymore with a broken ankle so unfortunately I had to give up working at Ala Turka! On the plus side, I started working as a receptionist at my hostel for better hours and better wages so every cloud has a silver lining I guess!

Even with a broken ankle I managed to get quite a few nights out!

Island Hopping and Halloween

In October Gillian and I decided to visit Green Island - a cool chilled out island just 45 mins boat ride from Cairns. When you visit Green Island there are options for snorkelling, a submarine ride, lying on the beach and visiting the wildlife reserve which houses the (second) largest crocodile in Australia.

We also decided on a road trip to Port Douglas and Mossman Gorge for funzies. 

 October is, of course, also HALLOWEEN month! I love Halloween - any excuse to dress up, I'll take it!

I decided to dress up 20s style, Nelli went as a devil and Gillian dressed up as a Hawaiian Hulu Girl. 

Kuranda

Gillian and I went to Kuranda this month, the cute tourist town north of Cairns. I've found so much of Cairns is cute and touristy, if you're into that kind of thing.

The village is accessible by cable car and train. We only went on the sky rail and decided to just get the shuttle bus back. Not only is the town super cute with it's markets - including a Scottish shop (short bread, yay!) they have 3 wildlife reserves - one for butterflies, one for birds and one for Australian animals such as Koalas, Wallabies, and crocodiles!

Obviously no month in Cairns is complete without a few messy nights!

The First Month

August. My first full month in Australia. Spent in Cairns, Queensland. I got a job in a Turkish Restaurant called Ala Turka, located on the Cairns Esplanade. I work with two lovely ladies called Nelli (German) and Satomi (Japanese). I love it here, the work is fun, the people are lovely and the food was delicious.

I also visited  Palm Cove, It's one of a stretch of beaches about 20 minutes outside of Cairns. All of the beaches are beautiful, but palm cove is perhaps the most touristy one - lots of cute shops and cafes.

Paronella Park which is a Spanish-style Castle that was built in the 20th century but fell to ruin after the original owner died. The current owners are revitalising it for a new generation and it was the cutest place ever.

and Mission Beach in this month.

Obviously I went out drinking and dancing a lot too, since that is almost obligatory in Cairns life!