Finally Byron Bay Is In The Past

"Cape Byron Lighthouse"

So now, after what I thought was going to be a short little stop in Byron Bay, I have finally manage to escape the Arts Factory that quickly became my home for a couple weeks. When I first arrived in Byron I know I was going to love it and end up spending much longer than I thought. With all the live music, games on the beach, surfing, relaxing, and all of the amazing people I met there its not hard to understand why.

In my last few days at Byron I started to feel like I had to do somethings other than just sleep and lay in my ham,mock so on Friday I decided to move my reading area to the beach and spend the day lazing in the sun when I found out that there was a big beach volleyball tournament being held. Since I am only by myself I shyly walked up to where you sign up when I was immediately grabbed by two Americans and a Swedish bloke that needed a fourth. I gladly joined there team and was relieved that I didn't have to find my own cause we all know how brave I am talk to random people I have never met.

The tournament took about 3 hours in total and consisted of 15 teams of four and to make it to the final we had to win around 12 games but after an exhausting day we won the tournament after a 19 to 21 win on the third game of the best of three final. The tournament unfortunately was just for fun but I met some good people and won a free barbecue and a wicked sunburn!

That night after the tournament I walked up to the lighthouse at Cape Byron, which is the most easterly piece of land in Australia, and watched the sunset. After it was dark I fumbled down the path back trying to make my way through the bush and back down the beach, with just a lighter cause the genius that I am didn't seem to remember it gets dark soon after the sunsets. . . . . good times. I finally reached my tent and hit the sheets early, boy what an exhausting day!

The next day I book a day tour out to a small town called Nimbin which is unlike any town I have ever seen in my life.

Nimbin is just a tiny little town about an hour and a half inland from Byron. The entire town is just full of hippies, basically, that are all fighting prohibition and fighting marijuana laws so the whole town is people with strange shops (which you will see in my picture), cafes, and rivers of alcohol and the air thick with the smell of marijuana. Even though it isn't really my thing I figured I had to go and see it just because it is truly a unique town. As entertaining as the town was for the two hours I was there it is quite sad because addiction is a very huge problem in Nimbin and its also sad to see as your walking down the streets a different 13 year old kid asking you if you want to buy some weed every 20 seconds, and I know that sounds like an exaggeration but it truly isn't. Another strange thing is that as much as the people in Nimbin don't listen or respect the laws it is still illegal and there is even a police station in town, I sure wonder what they do all day.

After my two hour experience in Nimbin I was happy to jump back on the happy bus and drive back to my little tent that I called home.

My final day in Byron was Sunday which there was suppose to be a peace festival, which was the reason I extended my stay a few days earlier, in hope that I could find a treasure of some kind and hear some more live bands. But once we arrived at the festival our hopes were ruined. It was not at all like I had pictured in my mind, so after five minutes we hitched back to town and sat around and visited with all my new friends in the campsite for my final day in Byron Bay.

The next day after packing up all my stuff and saying some quick good byes I walked out to main road to give hitching hiking in Australia a try, seeing as I had all day to get to Surfers Paradise and it was only about an hour and half day away. My first lift I only had to wait for around ten minutes then it took me a total of three different lifts and two hours to make it to the outskirts of town and jump on a local bus to bring me to my hostel.

I spent two days in Surfers Paradise (ya that's its actual name, strange hey?) but do not have to much exciting to report. Surfers Paradise is a city of around 15 000 people but it is basically a resort town. If your not into expensive clubs, Louis Vuitton, and huge skyscrapers this is not the place for you. It has more high rise accommodation than the rest of the entire continent of Australia. It is also famous and has earned itself a spot on the map because of the "Meter Maids". The Meter Maids are basically girls that are aspiring to be models or actors that wear gold bikinis and walk around down town feeding parking meters that have expire from time. Strange I know, and the way they are funded and get money to put in the meters is by taking pictures with people and selling, "The Meter Maids", merchandise. I sure wish all city's world wide had the Meter Maids to make every ones life a little easier. What a strange town Surfers Paradise is indead.

Needless to say, seeing as I dont have money to shop nor to eat at expensive cafes, I spent my days on the beach or by the pool at the hostel(seeing as that's free), and my night were filled with little events that the hostel put on whether it was a pool party or a pub crawl, to see some of the city's hot spots.

And that officially brings us up to date. After my two days, even though I did have fun, I was happy to get out of the concrete jungle of Surfers Paradise and headed further up the coast to Brisbane, the capital city of Queensland. Seeing as this is also and big city, with a population of over a million, I don't suspect I am going to stay hear long before I head out and try to find some more small towns, beautiful beaches,amazing scenery's, and laid back atmospheres that makes Australia a truly amazing country.

"My Day Of Beach Volleyball"

"Sunset Over Sleepy Byron Bay"

"Cape Byron At Sunset"

"The Strip In Nimbin And The Bringabong Store . . . Get it!"

"Surfers Paradise Beach And Skyline"

"Protected River Running Through Surfers"

"The Beautiful Meter Maids"

Hey Everyone sorry about only getting one video onto this here blog but yesterday I was trying to upload a couple more videos when the card reader messed up my card so I lost the videos and a few pictures. I am still in Byron Bay but planning on leaving tomorrow but I wanted to stick around because Anthony (the guy in that video) is doing a full set at a little pub tonight and I figure it would be a shame to miss it. Last night I went to a one man band named Cockatoo Paul which was really good. He plays all his own original Aussie music with a guitar, shakers, seven piece drum set, and rocks on the diduridoo. Anyway thats about all I have new to report but I will write a better entry next time. Cheer!

Talent Show At "The Arts Factory"

Last Night Arts Factory, that is where I am camping, had a talent show. Everyone in it is just people who happen to be staying here and want to do a little something. The reason I am putting a few video on here to show is because I was completely blown away with how much talent is around one place with normal people that are just traveling.

The first video is the main guy his name is Anthony George and hes just travelling around Australia doing small gigs to fund his trip but the other people were just singing and and playing for fun last night. In his video hes playing a 12 string, get ready to be amazed.(Sorry its not the greatest quality but that's the best I can do to keep the file small enough to put on here)

Byron Bay

"Home Sweet Home"

I have now made my way out of Sydney and up the east coast a little ways to Byron Bay. For my last few days in Sydney I moved down to Bondi Beach to just laze around on the beach and relax before heading on the road again. Unfortunately the three days I spent at Bondi were windy, cold and rainy, so much for my laying on the beach weather. But I still managed to keep my self occupied just wondering the streets and shopping, well not really but I did some serious looking at things I cant afford. The hostel I stayed at was really cool and had an amazing location. It was about ten steps from the beach and had the roof open with picnic tables and chairs so you could hang outside in the sun, if it was nice out that is, and laze about and watch all the craziness that they call Bondi Beach.
After my week in Sydney getting my bearings and figuring out a plan of what to do in the future, well not exactly more figuring out a direction to head, I jumped on a 14 hour overnight bus up the east coast with my first stop being the surf mecca of Byron Bay. Byron is quite a small town but is quite popular with backpackers and local surfers alike. It is the equivalent of something like Jasper but surfboards, wet suits, and swimmers instead of snowboards and bulky jackets. At any given time in the daylight you can spot at least a couple people geared up carry there surfboards to the beach through downtown.
If the town and atmosphere of the town isn't enough to make a person fall in love with Byron Bay where I am staying to the cherry on top. I am camping right now in a place called the, "Arts Factory" and this is one place that I have learned is a truly one of a kind sort of place. The easiest way to explain The Arts Factory is its like Australians version of Thailand. The area of land that its sits on is about 10 acres and the whole place is broken up into different communities sort of. They have the dorm section, private bungalows, then big teepee's you can rent, and finally the campsite where I am staying and has completely sucked me in and I am going to have a hard time leaving anytime soon.
The campsite it self is just a big opening that you throw your tent anywhere you want really but then we our own kitchen, showers, and the Shack. The Shack is just a big gazebo that serves as the main hangout all throw the day and into the wee hours of the morning. The real thing that makes the Arts Factory truly amazing is the people and just the down to earth chilled out atmosphere. In the day there is constantly a musical instrument being play weather its a guitar, bongos, didgeridoo, or something I have never even seen. Then in the evenings it breaks out into a 30, or so, person jam with all instruments and singing until wee hours of the morning.
So as you can see this is my kind of a place, the mornings of sitting around with a guitar and coffee, afternoons of surfing, volleyball, or just relaxing, then the night of jamming and meeting people from all over the world. Its going to be hard to find the ambition to pack up and jump on a bus anytime soon.

Sydney Opera House

Sydney Harbor Bridge

Bondi Beach From The Roof Of My Hostel


Just Weird seeing These In The Wild

Sydney, Australia

"The Sydney Opera House"

I have now been in Sydney for around four days just touring the city and trying to figure out a plan so I can see as much of this incredible big country as I can in just under two months. So far I have been staying in an area of the city called Kings Cross, which is actually kind of the, "Wrong side of the tracks" as far as Sydney is concerned, but all is well and I have been kicking around the hostel in the evenings and out to seeing different parts of the city during the day.
When I first arrived to Australia I had no idea what to expect especially with the weather. Its just turning to spring here like New Zealand but the weather is dramatically better. Since Ive arrived its been around 25 and pretty much solid sunshine everyday, which is much better than the 10 and raining I was in before.
I don't really have a lot to report right now though. Ive seen the city and its major sights like the harbor bridge and the, "Sidney Opera House." I also spent a day hanging out with Mason, who is a Aussie guy I met and traveled with for a while in Laos, and his girlfriend. They took me out to Bondi Beach and had breakfast, then sat on a patio looking over the beach and watched the surfers and beach bums for the day while sampling some Australian beverages.
Today I am going to pack up and move down to a hostel at Bondi for a couple days and just relax before making my way up the east coast.
Bondi beach is one of those places that gives you a straight out of the movies feel. The beach is right in the city with a skyscraper skyline, and has roughly 20 000 people on it in the summer surfing or just laying around and soaking up the sun. Then the Ocean front row is lined with shops and cafes that house some of Australia's best shopping and also some of the highest prices for just about anything, great place for a backpacker hey?
Hopefully in the next couple days I can find someone heading up the coast and catch a lift with them instead of taking a bus, but only time will tell. Hopefully next time I have some more exciting stories for ya but thats all for now. This week is my lay back and relax week.

"Again The Opera House (With a Strange Angle)"

"Bondi Beach"

"And Again The Famous Bondi"

"Downtown Sydney's Skyline"

Last Night in New Zealand

"Cape Reinga"

Here I am back in Auckland for my last night in New Zealand. Tomorrow I jump on yet another airplane and set off to Sydney to explore Austrailia. After taking a short flight from Christchurch a few days ago I decided that instead of staying in the city bumming around for my last few days here I would rent a car and go and explore the Northlands seeing as it was one of the places that I had not seen yet.

So after sitting around and trying to get up enough courage to drive out of a city that has more than a million people on the left hand side of the road I decided it was time to go and I went and picked up my car and was on my way. Its funny the things that seem scary sometimes, for example I was much more at ease getting thrown out of an airplane than I was trying to weave my way through a big and unfamiliar city on the wrong side of the road.

The first day of my trip consisted of about a 4 hour dive up the east coast to a little town called Paihia. The first half an hour or so was a little stressful but once I was outside the city I started to relax and really enjoy the drive. After I was around a hour outside the city I drove passed two hitchhikers and considering I did that for three months I thought it was my duty to pick them up. It was weird cause the whole time I was hitching I only got picked up by locals and it turned out the people I picked up were Kiwis. They were also headed north so I decided I would bring them as far as I was going which was a pretty decent hitch. They turned out to be super cool and it was actually super nice having other people to visit with so when I got to Paihia I didnt have the heart to make them go and stand on the road in the pouring rain so I ended up driving over a hour more, dropping them off, turning around, and heading back to my bed for the night, needless to say they were quite grateful hitch hikers.

The next day I decided to drive up to Cape Reinga, which is the northern most point in New Zealand and its also the The Pacific and the Tasmen Ocean meet. The Maori people believe the the cape is where the spirits of people who pass away leave New Zealand.

When I left Paihia in the morning the sun was shining and it was quite an amazing day but as I drove it got worse and worse until I finally got the Cape Reinga and seen nothing but fog and rain. I was quite disappointed but I guess it was cool looking in a different kind of way. The drive back I took my time and stopped at Ninety mile beach which may be one of the coolest things I have even seen if you have a truck. The beach itself doubles as a highway during low tide and the speed limit is even 100Kmh, now I understand why I had to sign a contract saying I wasn't aloud to drive on beaches with my car.

I spent the next two nights in Paihia again and just did little day trip but unfortunately the weather was lousy so I didn't get to see everything in perfect conditions, when the Northlands are suppose to be amazing, but I guess Ill have to leave that for another trip if I ever end up back here again.

Today I made my way back to Auckland, dropped off my car, and am going to just relax and get a good night sleep. Tomorrow is only about a three hour flight but with all the buses to airports, checking in, customs, and such it will be another full day of transportation before I am relaxing in Sydney tomorrow night. Good Times I sure love airports!

"My Nissan For Four Days"

"Haruru Falls in Paihia"

"Coolest Highway Ever At Ninety Mile Beach"

"Ninety Mile Beach And My Jandals"

"Biggest Kauri Tree In New Zealand"

The Trunk Base Is Over 17m Around!!

Back To Paradise

"Over the Endless Pacific"

"My Night In Honolulu"

Well after my holiday away from my holiday, I am finally back to Christchurch, New Zealand for the last time. I flew home for my brother Justin's Wedding about two months ago and now I am back to the backpacking life. As with everything in this trip, it seems that nothing can go completely smooth and easy, but I guess that's where the story's Ill be able to tell forever come from. How much fun would it be saying I got on a plane, made all my flights, and got home without one problem.

It all started when I first got on my plane in Christchurch to fly home in June. I was so scared to sleep in and miss my flight I slept on the floor, well I rested on the floor, of the airport for the night. The morning went smooth, I woke up, checked in, and was boarding the plane on time. The first flight to Sydney was good, its a little three hour flight, pretty much a warm up for the torturous flight from Sydney to home. Once we landed in Sydney my trip went from smooth to as bumpy as it can get.

As we were taxiing towards the gate at the Sydney airport the flight attendants informed us that all the loading gates were being used so there would be a short delay before we could get off the plane which if a person was staying in Sydney its not a big deal but as for me and a couple of the others who were trying to catch an already tight connection, BIG DEAL!!

After we were finally able to get into the airport, not to mention me sprinting though the airport like in the movies, I finally got to my connection in time to watch it take off. So there I was in Sydney with my flight on its way to Canada. After sitting down and thinking about my situation for a minute I got up and set off to talk to someone from Quantas to see what they were going to do for me. After about an hour of them telling me I should have had enough time to make my connection I finally convinced them, or they just got sick of me talking to me, to fly me home on another flight free of charge. Three hours later I was in the air and on my way home with connections in San Fransisco and Vancouver.

My San Fransisco connection went well but once again in Vancouver things got a little bumpy again.

To truly understand what I was going through a person has to understand how good of a mood I was in by the time I landed in Vancouver. My day started in Christchurch where they wouldn't let me board cause I didn't have a Auzzie Visa, then I missed my flights and had to argue for hours before they would pay for it, and to top it all off I hadn't been able to smoke in about thirty hours. So there I was, in the land of the maple leaf, home sweet home. I walked into the airport thinking this stop was going to be a breeze all I had to do was go though immigration, pick up my bags, and finally get to have a smoke, easy right? WRONG! Not only is Canada the only country that doesn't have a separate line at customs for residents (I was in line for about an hour) but once it was finally my turn they interrogated me and I am sure it took me longer to clear than anyone else in the building. Oh well with that out of the way all I had to do was pick my backpack up and go outside, once again easy right?WRONG!

So there I am standing at the carousel watching all the luggage go by and watching the luggage slowly disappearing until the carousel is empty and I am the only one standing there wondering where exactly mine is. Once again I off to talk to the Quantas representatives, that I love so much, but by this time I was past the point of caring and I pretty much just said my luggage was missing, signed a paper and was headed outside within 30 seconds to lower my stress level with my friends Tim Horton and Players Light.

From there on the trip was smooth, I flew home spent the night in Edmonton and was back in Pierceland the next day. I was very lucky that I was flying home because I didn't get my bags for over a week and if I would have not had enough stuff to get by at home I am not too sure what I would have done.

The two months I spent at home was great but very rushed. A few days after arriving in Pierceland I went to work for a month, then to a family reunion, then my brothers wedding, and finally back on a plane to return to my trip. Its was pretty much a blur.

And now that brings you pretty much up to date with my travels, I arrived here in Christchurch last night with an almost flawless trip besides the three hours I spent getting searched in the Christchurch airport. Apparently it was a random search but it was funny cause if you looked around the room they shoved us in, it was all 23 years old guys with piercings and whatnot. If it was so random where were the 60 year old couples, but oh well. Now, today, I am flying up to Auckland to amuse my last few days in New Zealand touring the Northland. My flight to Sydney is on August 30th so I am kinda playing with time and have lots more to see in the next 5 days, hence the reason I chose to fly to Auckland even though it costed me an arm and a leg.

Well now that I am back to my adventure I will try and update this blog and let you all know what I am up to as often as I can so stay tuned!!

"Justins Wedding Party"

"Me And Jonah's Tony Hawks!!"