Kookaburra

The hostel I am in right now is a really original one. It is called the Samurai Beach Bungalows. It reminds me of being at camp; we are surrounded by a rainforest, we sleep in cabins, there is a pretty pool, and an outdoor kitchen. It is really beautiful. Because it is so outdoorsy, we have been able to see a ton of really original, Australian animals. Tonight, while we were cooking in the outdoor kitchen, a giant bird flew into the kitchen. It was a really cool looking thing, with a really huge head. We could that tell it was eyeing something because it was acting all suspicious. Suddenly, perfectly timed, when nobody was looking, It grabbed a piece of steak off some guys plate (don’t worry, he was done eating it anyway) and flew off into the trees! A girl told us that this bird was called a Kookaburra! For all of you who will admit to all those wicked years spent in Girl Guides – do remember that song?! :

‘Kookaburra sits in an old gum tree, eating all the gum drops he can see…Oooh Aahh Aahh!’

Ooh Aahh Ahh is even the sound they make! Crazy. I hope you found that as exciting as I did. What a bad ass, sly, bird. I would props him if I could.

Free Dinna

Although we had only expected to stay one night in Newcastle, we loved it so much we ended up extending out stay another three nights. The hostel we stayed in, called the Newcastle Beach YHA, is an old gentleman’s club and is one of the more historic buildings in Australia, so it was a really great place to stay. The hostel is only a two minute walk from the beach and a 5 minute walk from the town.

One of the best aspects about this hostel was that every Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, the restaurants in the area offered the backpackers free dinner (sub-par and minimal… But hey, it was free!) and trivia games! We ended up coming in second place in the music trivia and winning a bottle of wine. (If only you where there, SamSam, we would have rocked it fo sho!) The trivia games were really cool to be able to realise how much all of us backpackers had in common, even though we where from all over the world. After these free evenings we would head back to the hostel, soak up some goon and find some new, exciting adventures.

We ended making arrangements with the management at this hostel that, starting on Tuesday, we are going to work there for 2 hours a day: from 10 - 12 and stay for free. We have to stay for a minimum of 2 weeks. It should be really fun and relaxing to actually be settled somewhere for a fairly long time.

The Hunter Valley

After a rainy Sunday in Sydney, we decided to take advantage of the ugly weather and begin our adventure up the coast. It was a 3 hours train ride where we chatted with a really friendly Aussie woman and watched the gorgeous scenery and next thing we knew we reached our destination in Newcastle.

Newcastle is a cute, artsy town, about the size of Waterloo. It is the 6^th biggest city in Australia (I can only imagine how small the other towns must be!), originally an industrial town exporting coal, but has recently become more touristy due to its great surfing, gorgeous beaches and artsy feel. As you walk down Newcastle beach, you can always see at least 3 cargo ships on the horizon. It is gorgeous.

Yesterday, Mark and I joined a Hunter Valley Vineyard tour. We did this tour with ten others; a couple from whales, one from Scotland, one from Ireland, and a few more from other parts of Australia. The first Vineyard was the only one were we actually had a tour, and the other 3 where just wine tastings, where we got to taste the many different types of wines each Vineyard had to offer. We also went to a couple cheese and chocolate tastings.  Needless to say, it was an amazing day, and we kept up the party with our new friends until the early hours of the morning.

Doomed with Goon

It didn’t take long to realize the only down fall of this country so far…the high prices of EVERYTHING. Almost everything is priced about 1.5x more expensive then in Canada. You can hardly find a coffee for under $4.

And what could possibly be the most outrageously expensive product you ask? Only everyone’s absolute favourite vice; alcoholic beverages. These crazy prices may have driven me away from my favourite pass time… but don’t worry, there is a way around this disappointing news (…sorry Suzie); It is called GOON. This wondrous beverage is priced at about $13 for 4 litres of only the dirtiest, most painful wine ever made…painfully irresistible.

My tip: drink a ton of water throughout your evening, and expect to need some Tylenol in the morning. Wine glass not required. This stuff is best drunken as classlessly as possible. 

I’ll miss you vodka.

Sydney

My first couple days where spent in paradise, aka Coogee, with my cousin’s amazingly hospitable and awesome girlfriend Jackie who is doing an exchange here. We spent a ton of time on the beach, and she introduced me to a bunch of her friends here. Seeing how well adjusted, accepted and comfortable she is in her new home, in her neighbourhood and with a slew of new BFFs, it was getting me excited to also settle down here well enough to make it feel at home.

…Until then though, I am hostelling it up! Yesterday was the first day Mark and I spent in central Sydney. We visited the Circular Quay, which is where the Sydney Harbour Bridge and the Opera House is found. Although I am not one to care much about touristy things like that, there is no questioning the amazingness of the Sydney Opera House, where pictures just can’t do it justice. Apparently, the architect died before seeing the finished product in person. That seems to be a common story of a lot of cool building’s architect. Noted.

Finally, I spent my first night in a hostel last night where I met lots of fun people from all over the world, and of course, dance partied! Nothing like a bonding dance party. Woohoo!

Day One.

After two days, four airports, eleven episodes of Modern Family, and 26 Hours spent in a plane, I finally made it to Australia! So far, my experiences here have been nothing short of amazing. After walking off what seemed like a lifetime spent on the plane, in some unknown land across the world, it was amazing to realize how comfortable I was here; from the overly friendly people to the gorgeous weather and beautiful beaches, it was confirmed that I was going to have an amazing time! I am sooo excited!

I already had a fun adventure yesterday: Mark, Jackie, Jackie’s roommate and I went for a gorgeous walk down the beach. It was really cool to see the gorgeous water, cool looking rocks and crazy vegetation… But the coolest thing we stumbled upon was a KILLER WHALE splashing around in the water. We watched it for about 20 minutes while it was jumping around, and spitting air out its spout! It was really cute. Here are a couple pictures of it. (I couldn’t catch a great one, this was as good as I could get, sadly…)

Stay Tunes for Some KangerNews from my Adventures to the Land Down Under!