Shout out #5
Trip Start
Jun 05, 2006
1
6
41
Trip End
Ongoing
Brisbane,
Australia
Friday, July 21, 2006
after byron bay i went to surfer's paradise. byron is a small beach town without chain stores or malls, surfer's is a bigger beach town comprised of chain stores, tall buildings, and malls. it's not bad, but it's not as unique as byron. to briefly touch on things leading up to my current location- airly beach (pronounced "alely" for the ladies), i fell in with a japanese guy named shou and 2 kiwi girls (anna and celia). i spent my time in surfer's on the beach, sorting through some thoughts, and hanging out with them. after a couple days i went to brisbane.
on the bus to brisbane i met an english girl named liselle who happened to be staying in the same spot. after enjoying two beach towns, brisbane wasn't a place i decided to spend much time discovering. it's not an overly striking or unique city but i was able to meet some cool people. jasper (my dutch friend from byron) was already checked in and i instantly came across him.
that night was my last foray into a hostel bar. we rounded up a crew that steadily expanded as the night progressed and i opted for a change of scene. hostel bars are all the same- drinking activities, sloppy travelers, and awful dance/pop music (always the same songs too). i rallied a select few (jasper, liselle, and a scottish guy) and we split for the valley, an area known for cafes and clubs. it was a good change of pace but i ultimately went off on my own. liselle and jasper had hit it off and the scot opted for an irish pub- i'd seen enough drunken irishmen for the night. i decided to wander.
i've always loved cities at night. the night brings a fully different pulse to each place. while i was in europe long ago, one of my favorite activities was roaming aimlessly with my camera, getting lost at night, and finding a way back. i always came across something interesting and oftentimes rougher than the daylight setting. brisbane isn't an overly rough city, but i still managed to get lost on the wrong side of the river dissecting it. i had a much later night than expected.
fortunately i slept in for a late breakfast. in the kitchen i struck up conversation with a lovely english lass taking a year for herself in australia. her name is katie. we talked of meeting later in the day though nothing was planned.
my days in brisbane mostly involved roaming, writing, and pondering the random dialogues i had been having in my mind as i fell asleep at night. falling asleep was often the best part of the day. i would put on my music and drift off as abstract images and words appeared. i've gained some cool perspective on much of my life from those fleeting moments.
as i hoped, katie and i bumped into one another early evening and decided to meet up a few hours later. we bounced between cafes and spent the night talking quietly away from the hostel crowd. it was an idyllic way to enjoy the night with another traveller. we have been travelling together since then.
our next stop was the beautiful upscale beach town of noosa. jasper and i took the greyhound and katie took her tour bus. she arrived before me and had reserved our spot in a room. when i knocked on the door liselle opened it. i couldn't believe it. katie and liselle had the same room and jasper walked in 2 minutes later. aside from katie and me, we all had randomly been put in the same spot.
noosa was mostly rainy and i spent much time hiking with jasper. we never got to see the koala bears, but we got some good conversation in. we're really similar and really different beings and i enjoyed hearing his dutch perspective on things. when katie and i left for hervey bay he stayed behind. i doubt i'll catch up with him again on this stretch of coast.
hervey bay is best described as a backwoods town with a beach front. it's also the main departure point for fraser island, an almost entirely sand island. it's full of lakes, streams, beaches, and a variety of ecosystems including rainforest. we were going on a three day self-driven 4 wheel drive camping trip with six other travellers- 3 german girls, a german guy, and a young welsh couple- none of which particularly enjoyed camping and none of which enjoyed camping in the rain.
many europeans don't drive or own cars and many more have never come close to driving a massive toyota truck designed to carry 12 people. fortunately, i love it. i was quickly deemed the designated driver in all senses of the term. after our lengthy rental process (don't feed the dingos and don't drive the way i intended to drive) we were released into the wild. the moment the ferry gate dropped i threw it into four-wheel high and the welsh couple opened the goon (australian wine-in-a-box). various quantities were consumed/spilled along the bumpy drive to our first destination. daniel and angela (the welshies) were particularly well on their way.
at stop #1 we had a 2.5 km hike to a gorgeous lake nestled against steep sand dunes. katie and the germans weren't overly thrilled by the hike in the drizzly weather, i loved it. at the lake, daniel and i sprinted down the sand and hopped in the water with flailing grace. i won't say the water was cold but it certainly wasn't warm. angela joined us excitedly as we made several sprints into the lake. nobody else came close to touching the water.
the rest of the days went similarly. the 3 of us jumping in almost all the water we could find (even when other groups called us mad) and the rest of our team playing the spectator role.
being the driver and the sole outdoorsy person brought some perks and drawbacks. all the decisions, dilemmas, or requests for assistance came to me. it varied from the sights we saw, showing oliver the german guy how to unzip his sleeping bag (from the top), packing and unpacking the roof rack, making sure all the doors and windows were locked, and notifying daniel that his girlfriend had puked on her (my) tent.
although the germans weer out of their element and didn't get into many of the activities, i liked them all. i don't know that they had fun, but they still managed to be fun. especially oliver, "i love zee hard techno. hard techno for life (lie-ff)!!" daniel and angela on the other hand had a blast, though their blast was oftentimes my headache. they're both 21 going on 16...especially when it comes to alcohol. my appreciation for their antics steadily dwindled as the days progressed. during the day and early in the night they were mostly hilarious. they played even harder than i did. after dinner they would put up their welsh flag and commence with extensive consumption of alcohol. before the line was crossed their wit was endless. dan's best performance came when he donned his bright red, frilly austen powers shirt, his sunglasses (worn day and night) and did his interpretation of a common american. "do you have any root be-er? excuse me, do you have any root be-er here? in this place". he went on for several minutes like that but the humor's hard to describe. in his voice and with his demeaner it was hysterical, especially considering that i was the only one who knew what root beer is. they don't have it in europe.
once they crossed that invisible line, the scene was much different though. it became walking to the tent for bed and discovering one of them had puked on the front of it. then waking to discover that the other one followed suit in the middle of the night. i was in the situation of trying to get past the sand pit they had created with their sleeping bags and make it through the opening puke-free. it wasn't a pleasant rise and shine.
by the third day i was ready to be done with them. fortunately it was our first sunny day and the spirits were much higher. we went about the day, had lunch, and got ready for our last stop, the splendor of lake mackenzie. i put our food on the roof, zipped up the rack, and jumped in the driver's seat. it was a bumpy 10 km drive to the lake so i took it slow(er than usual). in the middle of the drive i heard oliver holler about dropping some $2 dollar coins and scramble to pick them up. the moment we pulled up to the lake everyone piled out and took off. i couldn't find my camera and got frantic. i'm normally good about keeping things in place... when somethings off, it's usually bad. it wasn't in the cab and i began cussing. i looked on the roof and couldn't find it. i kept cussing...loudly. oliver turned to see what was wrong so katie asked if he had seen my camera.
"oh yeah. when i zaid my $2 dollar coinz i zaw somezink fall of zee rooff. i didn't zay zomezink becausse i din't sink it came from zee car."
"how far back was it."
"it wass lez zan fife minutz ago."
i ran off without saying another word. i was certain it had been runover by now and wanted to blame him for everything. as i ran i imagined all the cars grinding it into the packed sand. it didn't take long to find it sitting in the middle of the tracks and it appeared to be unstomped. i opened the case, the screen was damaged. i looked on the front and the lens shield had a dent poking outward. i slid the lens shield down to turn it on and heard the motor pout and die. it was a sad death for me. the fall from the roof of the truck was easily 2 meters and i was stupid for leaving it up there. it was a miracle it didn't fall earlier. fortunately i recovered the case and the memory stick, although i've yet to check if the pictures are intact.
i walked back and stopped blaming anyone else for my own mistake. i also realized i had become more of a ruler than a leader. rather than helping them to learn about things, i just did it. i lost my own focus in being the ruler and misplaced my camera. katie, oliver, and i walked to the lake which was indeed beautiful. there was a white silica sand beach that dropped off steeply into the the clear water. it created a distinct line between the white and deep blue all the way around the lake. i looked at katie and said "wow. i wish i had my camera". she started cracking up and i began to get over it. one last swim in the cool water mellowed me out even more.
we left, checked in the truck, and hurried to the hostel. katie and i got our key and searched for our room, #25. as we looked around i mentioned how i may have to hang myself if we end up sharing a room with daniel and angela. right as we spotted the room, angela walked up and asked "where's room #25?" shi$@!!!! they weren't out of my life yet.
showers, food, and clean clothes beckoned us all. it didn't matter which order we got them in. katie and i started with food and looked to do laundry next. there were limited machines but we scored the last one. the big issue was the one working dryer serving the four washers. we got it after the german girls were finished, but had to battle some irish girls lurking in the shadows. the biggest concern was that my sleeping bag has steadily aquired a stench i can best describe as being legendary. it was the second item exiled from shawn's home in sydney and it got worse after being on the island. katie's first comment after i had unfurled it was "what smells like rotten feet", that was from 10 feet away. with no means for drying it, i couldn't wash it until the next day. damn!
we went to bed early and i came to terms with sharing a room with the duo. they were leaving on an early morning bus and would be gone soon enough. i awoke at 6:15 to katie asking them why they hadn't left yet. they slept through their departure and were in a large predicament which slowly came out as angela kept me awake with her frantic rants. they have a remaining budget of $4 a day until they fly out of sydney in 2 weeks. how they eat and get to sydney is yet to be decided. i'm just glad to be out of hervey, in airly beach, and two days away from a sailing excursion. i can tolerate a broken camera in comparison to backing myself into the same corner.
a random word of advice for the men: when using an australian trough urinal, stand on the step or the locals will look at you wierd
