How I survived myself

I have many things on my “Things to do before I die” list, none of which I can recall without thinking hard about it. What I know for sure is that  swimming with dolphins has been on there since I can remember. So I decided to spend another pretty penny to test my luck a second time. I decided that if it didnt happen I wouldnt be dissapointed. And it didnt, and I wasnt. My second trip, despite not being able to swim, was even more thrilling than the first. I didnt take out my camera and I was able to do something called bow ride. Lying on my stomach at the front of the boat, my head a centimeter from, and occasionally in the water, I experienced bliss. We were told that the louder we are the more curios the dolphins are so I acted a complete fool, singing and making strange noises, and sure enough within moments there were dolphins inches from my face trying to check me out. They twirled around, weaved from side to side and swam on thier sides, one eye looking at me as if I were nuts! Paulo Coehlo writes that in those moments when we overcome with enthusiasm, we know that we are living our dream. Yesterday I enjoyed a few moments of my dream and I can close my eyes and feel it all over again whenever I want.

 As Tori, and a Californian we met today, and myself strolled along the beach today we talked about our childhood dreams, and the times in our lives where we have complete bliss. Tori felt it sky diving yesterday and when she rides or is on a surf board. (On a side note, on the video of her skydive they ask her how she won the dive and she says “karaoke” and they actually asked her to sing! She did not oblige, saying that she only sings when drinking.) I felt that bliss yesterday, and then I had to think about what else makes me feel weightless and content. The hard part about saying those things out loud, is that its as if in that instant, you promise yourself  and quiet possibly the universe that that is what you will do. Because when you know what makes you happy, how can you not pursue that happiness?

 I chose to try to swim with dolphins again. It wasnt an easy choice-it cost money I dont have to spend and I was afraid I would regret it if I didnt get to actually swim-but it turned out to be exactly as it was meant to be. 

  I’m a lucky fish who is learning to listen to the song in her heart.

We are nolonger stranded in auckland and have now been in a town called Paihia on the Northern coast for a few nights. New Zealand has proven to be absolutely the most stunning place I have ever seen. Yesterday Tori and I went on a dolphin encounter and I loved it so much I am going again tommorrow. (thank you mom!) We were unable to swim with them as there was a calf there, but seeing wild bottlenenoses has been a dream in itself. The company we went with even made arrangements so that we could spend the afternoon on a remote island kayaking and reading. it was splendid and on our way back to town we saw MORE dolphins!We were going to leave tommorow for Hokianga but I won a free sky dive in a karaoke competition last night so we are staying an extra day. I have no desire to throw myself out of a plane so i gave the free dive to Victoria so she can live out a dream of hers. She is the one that forced me to sing as I refused to compete. In retrospect I should have sold it as its worth a good 300 dollars but there is too much joy in giving! I think I might have to sing more as I also won a 2 for 1 sailing trip-I gave it to a couple from Ontario. So  tommorrow while Tori soars above I am going to try again to swim with dolphins as it is my last chance to do so on this trip. I am overwhelmed with blessings!

Love to you all!

We are officially stuck in Auckland. We expected the Thai consulate to open today but apparently they dont want us to come to thier country. There was definitely someone there but they hung up when Tori said we were Canadian. At least that seemed like what happened. Anyways we are now extending our stay at the most boring hostel ever. I suppose its a good thing we are in a quiet place since partying is not an option. We discovered today how much our travel in this country is going to cost-and the sum is on par with New Zealands gross domestic product. That plus the expense of having to purchase warm clothing for our trip south is a bit stiffling. I would buy a book to pass the time….but a girl needs to eat.

Yesterday we did manage to do a number of activities for FREE. After our run we went to the botanical gardens which were beautiful. It was very secret gardenesque. I took some prime photos of eggplants growing right on the stalks. Dont know if they compare to the farmers market egg plants…but they tried. A few steps away was the Auckland Museum which we attempted to explore. The museum puts The Glenbow to serious shame. It had everything…except contemporary art come to think of it. the Maori display was incredible and “The Scars on our Heart” exhibit of the first and second world wars brought me to tears. Walking through a replica trench was incredibly powerful and difficult to take in. One particular quote from thier holocaust memorial stood out for me, “Against every new outrage and every new horror we shall put up on more peice of love and goodness.” -Etty Hillesum. No matter how many times I learn about the atrocity I am still left speechless.

Later in the day Victoria and I walked down Queen street and sat at the wharf listening to a southern californian guy play guitar and be the quinessential American.

The highlight of my day today was Indian fast food. Freaking  Brilliant!

I am off now to ponder the universe because that is all there is to do here.

Hope you all had a wonderful Easter. (I was unable to find any bunny ears here and Tori and David refused to come to Church with me. )

All my love!

I forgot to mention that while waiting for Tori to pee in the Brisbane airport Ozzy and Sharon Osbourne walked through the doors. I could have reached out and licked them they were thisclose. They were also super tiny. It could have been an illusion due to thier giant bodygaurd, but they were both half my size. For real.

Anyways, I’m off for my morning run through the gardens across the street. Its actually 10 already but I had the worst sleep in history becuase it appears we requested the snoring room. Seriously, every single dude in our room sounds like a tractor hitting an elephant when they breathe.

I made it out of Australia alive! We were welcomed in Auckland today by sunshine and the friendliest customs officers in the world! Our hostel is in a quiet neighbourhood which is perfect for the beginning of our month of rest and gratitude. I can already tell that I am going to LOVE it here. Every street is beautiful, the people have been so helpful and kind and the weather is amazing. Also, not having to worry about snakes and spiders is a wonderful thing.

We still have no idea where we are going to go or how we are going to get there, but we will figure it out sometime! Unfortunately we wont be going anywhere until at least monday or tuesday when everything reopens foloowing the easter break. We still need to get to the Thai consulate here to get our visas or else we are stuck here for much longer.

On an unrelated note, on my very last day in Oz I ate kangaroo! The girls had a barbie in the park yesterday and made kangaroo especially for us. We were both overjoyed and disgusted. It was the first sunny day we had in Brisbane and the perfect farewell. I am thankful today for  friends with open arms and open doors.

Just woke up with a headache and am certain that I was being attacked by killer possums in my dreams last night. Must be the goon.

We are now in brisbane and staying with REAL LIVE AUSTRALIANS! A friend of mine from primary school who know lives in Oz kindly opened her door to us weary backpackers and her and her 3 flatmates have been showing us the Brizzy nightlife. I am slightly relieved that we leave for New Zealand (where we are cleansing for the month) tommorrow as my liver is crying out for sweet salvation!

Two nights ago they took us to the uni bar which was actually the nicest bar I have been in. (sorry Roadhouse) We conversed and laughed with the Bruces and Shielas and didnt return until 3 am. David left us to go play guitar with some college guys and didnt return until 7. Some highlights of the night included watching people slip n slide in a pile of vomit and pretending that we could see people peeing through the glass. The urinals at this bar are in front of a one way window and you can stand and pretend that you can actually see dudes while they pee. Endless jokes were made. Also, Bryony nearly got in a fistfight with two guys who called us “sepos”. He mistook us for Americans who are called sepos by the australians, which is short for “septic tank”, implying they are full of shit.

Last night was even more of an adventure as we ventured into ‘The Valley”. We took the train down and met a variety of interesting characters. I sat next to a man who was the spitting image of Jesus Christ and a homeless man. It turned out he is actually the lead singer in a popular band and happened to be in the paper I was reading. I actually dont think I was reading but somehow there was a newspaper with his picture in it in my hands. he also happened to be the god brother of one of the girls we were with. I also entertained the other passengers with some form of dance routine that really just consisted of farting noises and laughter. Mom and Dad you should be congratulated for bringing up such a winner! The rest of the night we hopped between bars and were home around midnight due to them all closing at 12 for Good Friday. Don’t worry though, they open again at midnight tonight. This place is full of oddities.

I should mention that I am not spending all my time intoxicated and acting like a crazy wombat. Our days have been spent wandering the Queen Street mall, much to David’s delight, and I picked up a book on meditiation and the chakras and am looking forward to my journey inward.

I am not sure if its the cookaburras or my anticipation for a new day but I cant seem to sleep in to save my life. As much as I want to be able to sleep longer  I seem to wake up at the crack of dawn ready to go go go regardless of what hour sleep found me. This is not the case for tori and David who would sleep for hours if not for my early morning singing. My constant flow of energy certainly has advantages, but I am beggining to exhuast myself. I am grateful though for so much to see and do and explore and think about. As Mitch Albolm (might not be his actual last name) writes, “when you’re in bed your dead” so I am surely living!

Once everyone gets up we are going to have a BBQ and play some cricket!

P.S. yes mom my flight to New Zealand was already booked. We had to get a flight from Townsville back to Brisbane though.

P.P.S. St. Patrick’s day was a gongshow. We met some guys from Fort Mac-one of whom is a cousin of my friend Ben McConkey, we drank a whole lot of guiness, wore ridiculous costumes and I jumped on stage to sing with the band. Ridiculous.

I am writing this from our most incredible hostel yet. I just finished eating breakfast with Victoria and a Londoner named Naomi on a porch that is literally two feet from the sea. Pure Heaven. We are heading back into Townsville shortly after two nights on sleepy Magnetic Island. We had booked a scuba/snorking trip on the great barrier reef for this morning but it was cancelled due to weather. It is plus 27 and not a cloud in sight so we are slightly confused and more than slighlty dissapointed. We have ended up having to go to Brisbane a day early because the only flights on Wednesday were over 300 dollars! I am so looking forward to seeing Bryony but not sure if I can handle not being near the ocean when the weather is so perfect for working on solidyfying a tan before we head to Kiwi land.

It is already St. Patricks day here and our hostel is right next to an Irish pub so tonight might get interesting. I also did not bring in green in my wardrobe so I forsee a lot of pinching. Pinches plus bed bug bites should make for a pleasant evening.

I hit a rough moment the other night when I was infested with bedbugs, discovered I’d lost my favourite shirt, couldnt find a pot to use to make spaghetti and then had our food stolen. I nearly lost it but fortunately a lovely American girl had made too much supper and gave us her leftovers, saving us from certain starvation! I keep having to use rules 1-4. With “Don’t take yourself so seriously! ” being the heavy hitter.

On another note, on the bus ride up to Townsville I had an epiphany. (That word always reminds me of the seventh grade). Dreams are worth fighting for. So it looks like I might have to do some Kicking ass and taking names when I return.

This was solidified when we nearly died on our ferrry ride to the island. It was not a small ferry and it very nearly capsized due to the erratic driving of a captain who I can only assume was trying to evade the police or just wanted us to crap ourselves.

There are so many things I miss about home, but I would not want to be anywhere other than where I am right now.

Eu amo a minha vida! Potugese for “I love my life” which I can now speak in over seven languages including gaelic! We have everyone we meet who speaks another language write it down for us. We also have another phrase that won’t repeat here!

Ciao for now!

I’m exaggerating about the storm, but there sure is a lot of rain here. I just returned from the Whitsunday Islands and I am finding it difficult to write as every time I look at the keyboard it appears to be swaying. Despite the neverending showers we had a fantastic time on our liitle ocean voyage. When we departed Airlie the weather was beautiful and we had a great sail to South Molle Island. Our group was split between two boats and ours was defintely the best! We had a really great group of people-a million Swedes, a Parisian, a sprinkle of brits and Swiss and three of the most hilarious Irishmen I have ever met. david made the mistake of calling me beano and the one Irish guy was relentless in poking fun at the fact I may have farted at some point in my life. He took it upon himself to tell EVERYONE to stand downwind from me and if they needed a lift up to the surface when we were snorkling that they could just hang on to my stinger suit and I’d fart my way to the top. I dont embarrass easily, but I wanted to die!

The Isand was really beautiful and I even let a wild parrot sit on my shoulder. The bar was practically on the beach and the dance party was super good times. I have about a million bruises from bailing so many times. I tried to teach this swedish guy to flip me and he didnt get the message that he needed to not drop me.

Yesterday we went on a short hike to white haven beach-gorgeous and freezing. Then today we went snorkling on a reef which was awesome. We saw some amazing fish and I got a wonderful mouthful of deasel fuel. Mmm.

Tommorow we are off to Magnetic island near Townsville and from there we go back to Brisbane for a couple nights and then we are off to Kiwi land. Its hard to believe we have so little time left here. A part of me doesnt want to leave, but I am excited for the splendor of New Zealand. Tori and I think we might even stay in one place for a while to really get a feel for the place instead of feeling so rushed. We have decided to follow they Eat,Pray, Love travel plan so New Zealand is our location of zen.

Also, I went on the most incredible run along the boardwalk here at sunset the other night.  I had to keep stopping just to take it all in. (Not because I am wicked  out of shape.)

hope everyone that reads this is finding the beauty all around you too!

Love you all!

In Airlie Beach. Boiling hot and wonderful. Our hostel is truly disgusting, but thats backpacking I guess. Going sailing tommorrow and get to wear a stinger suit. I will fill you all in in a few days as too how our boating adventure plays out. Lots of love!

 It is early afternoon here in Rainbow Beach and we have a few hours to kill until we take the overnight bus to Airlie beach where we are going sailing in the Whitsunday Islands. The weather today is rather gloomy, but I cant complain as it is no snow. Although if it makes everyone feel better this is the coldest, wettest summer the east coast has had in years and my tan is still not that impressive. There is so much to be grateful for though and I send up a prayer of thanks each and everyday that I am living such a blessed life.

 Fraser Island was amazing and beautiful. I didnt mention very much in my previous post but I can speak to it now. Ten of us crammed into a white four by four driving for miles over sandy beaches and through dense foliage. Every so often we would stop for a guana making its way across our path or the boys would get out and help other adventurers stuck in the sand. We were lucky to travel with a group of strong dudes-we got out of a lot of heavy lifting! I will brag a bit though and tell you that I did do my fair share of setting up tents and doing dishes.

On our second day, our backs aching from sleeping on nothing but hard sand, we went to a place called Eli creek. We walked up it and floated our way back to the place where it meets the sea. We then headed up to Indian Head to look for dolphins and sharks. It was so windy I thought I might blow off the cliff, and unfortunately the surf was so rough we didnt see any marine life except some birds. At the champagne pools Torbin and Gary did thier best to be dolphins but as hilarious as it was it didnt quite cut it! I fell asleep before everyone else that night and missed the dingo in our camp and the huge rain storm. I have never slept so soundly or hurt so much in the morning in my life!

On our last day we drove to Lake Wabbi. The view on our hike down was stunning. Forest meets lake meets sand dunes meets ocean. The boys rolled down the dunes right into the lake which was ridiculous. The lady’s daintily dove in to the mild waters onl;y to freeze our buts off when the sky began to pour. We hiked the 2 kilometeres back to our cars covered in sand and soaked to the bone and laughing about how lucky we were to get to be soaking wet and cold in “Sunny Australia”.

Upon returning to the mainland I ate the best Hawiian pizza ever and then crawled into my wonderful hostel bed for a good nights sleep!

Today we bid our new friends farewell as they headed south and now its just the three of us again.

I think the best part of this journey is learning that I am capable of more than I ever thought possible. I am jumping into things willingly and with such joy! Of course there have been moments that have been less than easy, and some lonliness that I cant explain but all in all I am smiling and surviving!