So, I left Australia with one more city to visit before heading back to London...
Hong Kong was only ever meant to be a quick stopover on my way back to London to break up the long flight...but turned into an absolutly incredibly awesome and perfect week care of an old friend, Emma. Haven't seen her for over 3 years, but she very kindly took me in, game me a bed, showed me the sights and a generally good time. Admidst the Xmas shopping (credit crunch my arse - have never seen so many shoppers in my life!!!) I tried to cram as much of the touristy stuff as I could in 4 1/2 days. Luckily Emma was the perfect guide (including a detailed 5 hour explanation of the Japaneese invasion in WW2....).
Hong Kong is an absolute feat of modern architecture, the skyline is crazily impressive - even more so at night. I think I saw it from all angles; from the sea on a star ferry - by night and day, from the peak, and finally driving through the centre of it....at night....in a convertible.....this was a definate highlight of my trip....!
In only a few days I've experienced some truly wonderful meals...I am a seafood whore at best - but this was something else! Amazing! And I can now officially eat with chopsticks!
Emma also showed me a great, and very classy night or two out sampling the Hong Kong nightlife...
*********************************
So here I am.....back in my room with my laptop....
My flight arrived in to Terminal 5 at about 4.45 this morning. I'm very tired, and still trying to take it all in. Xmas eve was the perfect day to arrive home, and I am so happy to see my Mum and sisters.
The last 6 months have been immense, just looking through my photos I'm finding it hard to belive its possible to cram so much in, meet so many brilliant people, and have quite that much fun. I left for Edinburgh mid-July on this insane 6 month journey away from London.....and can't quite belive I've actually done it.....
Thanks for staying with me, for reading, keeping in touch, and I hope to catch up with you all very soon...
Happy Christmas!
Rich
xxxx
Wednesday, December 24, 2008
Wednesday, December 17, 2008
Cape Tribulation And The Great Barrier Reef
At the weekend, I finally made my way to the top of the East coast, and my final destination in Australia - Cairns.
Was nice to be back in a town again after spending so long in tiny little seaside villages. The heat was however absolutly unbearable - its not so much the temperature, it gets up to the mid 30's in the Mediterranean in the Summer - its the humidity - at 85% it just makes everything you do seem like such an effort!
As again, you cannot swim in the sea in Cairns, there is a really lovely offshore lagoon. On Sunday lunchtime I spent a little time there, before I got fed up with the heat and went to find the nearest cinema....God bless Nicole and Hugh! Had wanted to see Austrlai for ages, wanted to fit it in while I was over here, and escpaing to the air con of the cinema seemed like the perfect idea. I really loved the film, its absolutly stunningly shot, and really shows off Australia. I love Lurhman and his style anyways, but I think youd be hard pressed not to find something in the film to enjoy. Kidman is stunning as ever - and looks absolutly beautiful throughout. I laughed, I cried - and the performance by the little boiy should definately win him an oscar!
Monday I headed up on an overnight trip to Cape Tribulation (so called by Cook as their ship was starmnded there and they disnt have a very nice time!!) a few hours north of Cairns. We made a few stops of the way up,including a cruis on the Diantree river. We didn't see any crockodiles tho - much to my dissapointment! The afternoon was spent on a very long walk through the rainforest and along the beach. It really is a totally stunning part of the world.
On Tuesday we made several stops on the way back down to Cairns, we swam in the river in Mossman Gorge, and spent the afternoon in Port Douglas. A really very very beautiful, relaxed little village. I wish I could ahve stayed there longer. We tried to catch some wallabies on the way back, but they didnt seem to want to be seen (this seemed to be a recurring theme of the trip..) But we did pick some Mangoes...
Wedneday was another early start, and I spent the day out diving and snokelling on the reef. As an novice diver, I just did a short 10 minute introductory dive - which really was enough to get the feel of it. Th reef is stunning - swimming with fish that size, them seemingly completly oblivious to you is really something quite unique. My photography skills were put to the test with an underwater camera - I'm sure these worse than average pictures will end up on facebook soon...
So now its on to Hong Kong for a quick few days beofre finally heading home.....
Rich
xxx
Was nice to be back in a town again after spending so long in tiny little seaside villages. The heat was however absolutly unbearable - its not so much the temperature, it gets up to the mid 30's in the Mediterranean in the Summer - its the humidity - at 85% it just makes everything you do seem like such an effort!
As again, you cannot swim in the sea in Cairns, there is a really lovely offshore lagoon. On Sunday lunchtime I spent a little time there, before I got fed up with the heat and went to find the nearest cinema....God bless Nicole and Hugh! Had wanted to see Austrlai for ages, wanted to fit it in while I was over here, and escpaing to the air con of the cinema seemed like the perfect idea. I really loved the film, its absolutly stunningly shot, and really shows off Australia. I love Lurhman and his style anyways, but I think youd be hard pressed not to find something in the film to enjoy. Kidman is stunning as ever - and looks absolutly beautiful throughout. I laughed, I cried - and the performance by the little boiy should definately win him an oscar!
Monday I headed up on an overnight trip to Cape Tribulation (so called by Cook as their ship was starmnded there and they disnt have a very nice time!!) a few hours north of Cairns. We made a few stops of the way up,including a cruis on the Diantree river. We didn't see any crockodiles tho - much to my dissapointment! The afternoon was spent on a very long walk through the rainforest and along the beach. It really is a totally stunning part of the world.
On Tuesday we made several stops on the way back down to Cairns, we swam in the river in Mossman Gorge, and spent the afternoon in Port Douglas. A really very very beautiful, relaxed little village. I wish I could ahve stayed there longer. We tried to catch some wallabies on the way back, but they didnt seem to want to be seen (this seemed to be a recurring theme of the trip..) But we did pick some Mangoes...
Wedneday was another early start, and I spent the day out diving and snokelling on the reef. As an novice diver, I just did a short 10 minute introductory dive - which really was enough to get the feel of it. Th reef is stunning - swimming with fish that size, them seemingly completly oblivious to you is really something quite unique. My photography skills were put to the test with an underwater camera - I'm sure these worse than average pictures will end up on facebook soon...
So now its on to Hong Kong for a quick few days beofre finally heading home.....
Rich
xxx
Saturday, December 13, 2008
A Tropical Island And A Full Moon Party...
So I met up with Mark and Simon one last time. I made the jounrey from Airlie Beach to Townsville and then onward ot Magnetic Island. I'm really gald I did go, as despite the unbearable heat (its one of the sunniest places in Oz - an average of 340 days of pure sunshine each year!) it is a really beautiful part of the world...
I only really had one day there, and had planned to rent a mountain bike and explore the island. As is always the case with these things, they never quite go to plan, and due to tempertaures in the mid 30's....sitting by the pool seemed a much more appealing option. I did go for a little walk (mostly to escape the very scary German diving instructor who had commandered the pool and theretend to kick Mark in the gut if he got in her way...).
The eveing was a full moon party - something Magnetic Island is famous for - and the way Mark chose to celebrate his 23rd birthday! So far removed from anyway I would initially choose to spend an evening - but am really glad I did as turned out to be a lot of fun, and a great way to spend a final night with Mark and Simon in Oz.
So I made it to my final stop in Oz - Cairns. It feels kinda odd to be in a big town again after spending so long in small seaside towns. The heat here is truly unbearable - have never really experienced anything like it before, but luckily theres a big public lagoon by the sea (you cant swim in the sea as there are too many things in it that might kill you!) that is the perfect place to cool down from the 85% humidity and 35 degree heat....
Off into the rainforest tomorrow for a couple of days which should be a lot of fun!
Rich
xxx
I only really had one day there, and had planned to rent a mountain bike and explore the island. As is always the case with these things, they never quite go to plan, and due to tempertaures in the mid 30's....sitting by the pool seemed a much more appealing option. I did go for a little walk (mostly to escape the very scary German diving instructor who had commandered the pool and theretend to kick Mark in the gut if he got in her way...).
The eveing was a full moon party - something Magnetic Island is famous for - and the way Mark chose to celebrate his 23rd birthday! So far removed from anyway I would initially choose to spend an evening - but am really glad I did as turned out to be a lot of fun, and a great way to spend a final night with Mark and Simon in Oz.
So I made it to my final stop in Oz - Cairns. It feels kinda odd to be in a big town again after spending so long in small seaside towns. The heat here is truly unbearable - have never really experienced anything like it before, but luckily theres a big public lagoon by the sea (you cant swim in the sea as there are too many things in it that might kill you!) that is the perfect place to cool down from the 85% humidity and 35 degree heat....
Off into the rainforest tomorrow for a couple of days which should be a lot of fun!
Rich
xxx
Wednesday, December 10, 2008
Sailing The Whitsundays
So I've travelled by plane, car, bus, train....and now by boat!
This week has seen me on a boating trip around the Whitsundays (a collection of 74 islands off the coast of Queensland).
There were 25 of us on the boat, and it did indeed get a little cramped at times (never enough room to sunbathe!). Despite the early starts - I once again had a really wonderful time. A great collection of people from all over the world made for a really great atmosphere, the wine was flowing, and the food was marvelous.
A great deal of time was spent cruising around the many islands taking in the really quite fabulous scenery - the islands are so sparsely populated, and the boats so seperated - we went for hours at a time with barely seeing another boat in sight - which is always a real treat.
Very early Tuesday morning was a visit to Whitehaven beach - voted one of the top three in the world. Mostly due to the white, extremely fine sand which is totally unique to this part of the world (something to do with a volcano being there before the ica age - I really should pay more attention...) Unfortuanetly the sun wasn't shining quite as bright as it could have been, so the place lacked a little of its magic, but I can really see why its so beautiful (although I still think you can't beat Rhosilli...).
We also spent a great deal of time snokelling which again - was a real highlight. The reef itself is just stunning, but then populated by about a hundred different fish is even greater! Didint see any sharks myself (although some were spotted..) but we did have an amazing encounter with a turtle, who let us swim along with him for quite some time - which was really quite special.
We encounetred a little bit of rain, which didnt quite turn into a thunderstorm - even though the sky certainly threatened it! (Thank goodness!!). Both nights, after a glass or two of terrible Australian wine slept on top deack under the stars; which are so incredibly bright and impressive here - feeling about a million miles away from London, assistant directing, teaching musical theatre students, the bookshop et al - missing home a lot - yet incredibly content at this incredibley cliched travelling moment under the stars!
Rich
xxx
This week has seen me on a boating trip around the Whitsundays (a collection of 74 islands off the coast of Queensland).
There were 25 of us on the boat, and it did indeed get a little cramped at times (never enough room to sunbathe!). Despite the early starts - I once again had a really wonderful time. A great collection of people from all over the world made for a really great atmosphere, the wine was flowing, and the food was marvelous.
A great deal of time was spent cruising around the many islands taking in the really quite fabulous scenery - the islands are so sparsely populated, and the boats so seperated - we went for hours at a time with barely seeing another boat in sight - which is always a real treat.
Very early Tuesday morning was a visit to Whitehaven beach - voted one of the top three in the world. Mostly due to the white, extremely fine sand which is totally unique to this part of the world (something to do with a volcano being there before the ica age - I really should pay more attention...) Unfortuanetly the sun wasn't shining quite as bright as it could have been, so the place lacked a little of its magic, but I can really see why its so beautiful (although I still think you can't beat Rhosilli...).
We also spent a great deal of time snokelling which again - was a real highlight. The reef itself is just stunning, but then populated by about a hundred different fish is even greater! Didint see any sharks myself (although some were spotted..) but we did have an amazing encounter with a turtle, who let us swim along with him for quite some time - which was really quite special.
We encounetred a little bit of rain, which didnt quite turn into a thunderstorm - even though the sky certainly threatened it! (Thank goodness!!). Both nights, after a glass or two of terrible Australian wine slept on top deack under the stars; which are so incredibly bright and impressive here - feeling about a million miles away from London, assistant directing, teaching musical theatre students, the bookshop et al - missing home a lot - yet incredibly content at this incredibley cliched travelling moment under the stars!
Rich
xxx
Thursday, December 4, 2008
Sand In Places I Never Knew Existed...
So what happens when you put 11 strangers from around the world (4 Brits, 2 Dutch, 2 Italians, 1 German, 1 Swiss, 1 Japanese) give them 4 tents, 3 days worth of food, wine and beer, in a 4 wheel drive - and send them off to the worlds largest sand island for 3 days....
Not sure I even know where to begin! Have just had the most immense 3 days (my best three since being in Oz). So Monday met the other guys I was going to be travelling with - all of whom seemed very cool - we all immediately clicked and got on well, and spent the afternoon chilling and getting to know one another. Very early Tuesday morning we set out to Fraser Island. It's the largest sand island in the world - no roads, just the beach and a series of sand tracks. Made for some very bumpy and interesting driving ! (the Italians proving all stereotyoes about Italian driers to be entirely ture!) Was great fun crtuising along the solitary beach in a 4wd in the glorious sunshine. Our first stop was Lake Mackenzie - an absolutly stunning fresh water lake, white sand and crystal blue water. Had a swim and a lay in the sun, before heading to our campsite for the evening - a shipwreck further up the island. A stunning place to watch the sunset from, and a perfect place to set up camp for the night......even if it was an illegal camping ground and we got caught by the rangers at midnight - it was certainly worth it! (have so far managed to dodge the fine!)
On Wednesday we were up at the crack of dawn with the sunrise - about 5am, where we carried on our drive up the island to Indian head and the Champagne pools - where I tried in vain to de-sand.... Ridiculously gorgeous weather, but by mid morning the sun was so hot, it was certainly important to find some shade! Lunchtime sawa short drive in land - well we had planned it to be a short drive, but got stuck behind some Ozzie guys and the boat lodged in the sand track! After about half an hour they were dug out - pushed from the sun - and we were all on our way! Once the tide had started to go out and it was safe to drive back on the beach again, and we drove back to Indian head and climbed to the top - a great place to catch some wildlife and see the turtles, assorted fish, and indeed some sharks!
The late afternoon took us back down the beach to the creek, and our second (and this time legitimate!) camping spot. Another wild night on the beach was great fun - 3 other groups met up to camp so with nearly 35 of us there, it was a great atmosphere - and the goon was flowing!
Thursday saw another early rise with sun, and a short drive, then a trek through the forest to Lake Wabby, another extrremly impressive fresh water lake and some awesome sand dunes to roll down!
By late afternoon it was time to return to the main land - and get a hot shower, and dislodge sand from places that I didn't even know existed!
Rich
xxx
p.s
After camera-gate last week - I did not dare risk my camera on a sand island - but there were plently of photos taken which I plan to steal from facebook soon!
Not sure I even know where to begin! Have just had the most immense 3 days (my best three since being in Oz). So Monday met the other guys I was going to be travelling with - all of whom seemed very cool - we all immediately clicked and got on well, and spent the afternoon chilling and getting to know one another. Very early Tuesday morning we set out to Fraser Island. It's the largest sand island in the world - no roads, just the beach and a series of sand tracks. Made for some very bumpy and interesting driving ! (the Italians proving all stereotyoes about Italian driers to be entirely ture!) Was great fun crtuising along the solitary beach in a 4wd in the glorious sunshine. Our first stop was Lake Mackenzie - an absolutly stunning fresh water lake, white sand and crystal blue water. Had a swim and a lay in the sun, before heading to our campsite for the evening - a shipwreck further up the island. A stunning place to watch the sunset from, and a perfect place to set up camp for the night......even if it was an illegal camping ground and we got caught by the rangers at midnight - it was certainly worth it! (have so far managed to dodge the fine!)
On Wednesday we were up at the crack of dawn with the sunrise - about 5am, where we carried on our drive up the island to Indian head and the Champagne pools - where I tried in vain to de-sand.... Ridiculously gorgeous weather, but by mid morning the sun was so hot, it was certainly important to find some shade! Lunchtime sawa short drive in land - well we had planned it to be a short drive, but got stuck behind some Ozzie guys and the boat lodged in the sand track! After about half an hour they were dug out - pushed from the sun - and we were all on our way! Once the tide had started to go out and it was safe to drive back on the beach again, and we drove back to Indian head and climbed to the top - a great place to catch some wildlife and see the turtles, assorted fish, and indeed some sharks!
The late afternoon took us back down the beach to the creek, and our second (and this time legitimate!) camping spot. Another wild night on the beach was great fun - 3 other groups met up to camp so with nearly 35 of us there, it was a great atmosphere - and the goon was flowing!
Thursday saw another early rise with sun, and a short drive, then a trek through the forest to Lake Wabby, another extrremly impressive fresh water lake and some awesome sand dunes to roll down!
By late afternoon it was time to return to the main land - and get a hot shower, and dislodge sand from places that I didn't even know existed!
Rich
xxx
p.s
After camera-gate last week - I did not dare risk my camera on a sand island - but there were plently of photos taken which I plan to steal from facebook soon!
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