Darwin - Part 2, Litchfield National Park

02.05.12 – Litchfield National Park

Today I went on my tour to Litchfield National Park with APT. The guide was a very nice and smiley, and also very knowledgeable. She said that she only does the Litchfield tour and so that’s why she knows so much about that area. There were only 7 of us on the tour, which was nice as it gave us an opportunity to get to know each other. One girl was around the same age as me, and then there were two couples in their 50’s or 60’s and one lady in her 50’s or 60’s, it was a nice little group and we all got along.

Our first stop was in Batchelor, where a Polish gardener had built a castle.

 We then stopped at a café outside Batchelor to pick up our lunch; we had to pay for it ourselves, and we would be eating it later on the tour. Some people also got a drink at the café, which we also had to pay for ourselves. After we picked our food up we went to see the termite mounds. There are two kinds: Magnetic termite mounds and Cathedral ones. It was really amazing to see both kinds, but especially the cathedral ones, which was over 5meters tall!

Magnetic termite mounds

Cathedral termite mounds

 After the termite mounds we went to Tolmer Falls. Because of a rare bat that lives in a cave at the bottom of the falls you’re not allowed to go down or swim there, which is just as well, since it would take you a dangerous 2 hours to get down. It was beautiful just to see from the lookout, but I have to admit the water at the bottom looked quite tempting because it was so clear.

Tolmer Falls

 After Tolmer Falls we went to another waterfall where we couldn’t swim, Wangi Falls. You can normally swim in Wangi, but there was still too much water, and a risk of saltwater crocodiles, to swim there yet.

Wangi Falls

 We had a few choices of what we wanted to do at Wangi. We could stay at the base of the waterfall and just chill out there, or we could walk up to the top and around it. The guide, myself and two other ladies (all the lone travellers) chose to go around. When we had just gotten started there was a giant spider just above the boardwalk! I think it was a golden orb spider. I’m not good with spiders… I was tempted to turn around and walk back and wait at the base with the others. I probably spent a whole minute debating with myself whether or not I should keep going, the other 3 were talking about the spider and taking pictures in the meantime. In the end I decided to keep going. I out my head down, walked as far away from the spider as I could, mumbling to myself “it’s not there, it’s not there, it’s not there…”. I clutched my water bottle close to me like a security blanket, nervously glancing from side to side, until we got to the top. Luckily I didn’t see anymore. I was thinking that if I did I would go back, but then I realized I would still have to get past the first one, so I’m very glad I didn’t see anymore.

Top of Wangi Falls

 I think the walk around the waterfall took us about 40 minutes. It is quite steep and we all got sweaty and out of breath, it would have been nice if the waterfall was open so that we could have jumped straight in when we got back down. It was a nice walk, but I didn’t think it was super impressive, keep in mind that I might not have enjoyed it so much because of the spiders.

When the group met up again after our walk we got our sandwiches from the café and sat down for lunch. I had a cheese and salad sandwich and it was absolutely gorgeous! I wanted another one as soon as I finished it!

After lunch we headed to Florence Falls, where we could swim. There was an option again about what we wanted to do. The guide and the couples went to the creek at the top of the waterfall while the 3 single ladies, myself included, went down the steps to the bottom. It was an absolutely beautiful waterfall, but it was so busy that I didn’t feel like swimming. Some people made their way up a cliff and dived in, I was really nervous watching them as I could see that it was deep where they dived, but right next to it there were some rocks under water… Just a little bit wrong and… Luckily nobody got hurt while I was there though. I don’t know what I would have done if they were, I had no signal on my phone and I doubt anybody else did except for the guides with their satellite phones.

Florence Falls

 The last stop was Buley Rockhole. It’s actually not just one Rockhole, but 7. It was quite cool, it was like loads of little pools. Us 3 single ladies went down to the bottom one; there was nobody else there when we got there. The water was slightly cold to get into, but really nice and refreshing after a few seconds. Unfortunately, after we’d been in the water for about 5 minutes a group of about 20 kids came along and were jumping off a rock so water was splashing everywhere. Apparently there is a camp nearby where they were staying. Of course I don’t mind kids swimming and stuff, but I didn’t like that water was splashing everywhere, and I got out of the water soon after they got in.

Buley Rockhole

 The girl that was about the same age as me is from Australia. After the tour we went back to our hostels to shower and change and then we met up for dinner. I think the place we went to is called Kitty’s, the food was really nice, but the portions are so big I didn’t manage to finish my pasta, which might have something to do with the fact that I ordered garlic bread on the side as well. I didn’t manage to finish either.

When I was going back to my hostel it suddenly started raining! And I mean suddenly! It wasn’t a drizzle that gradually got heavier, but heavy rain straight away, as well as lightning! Although I love that kind of weather I ran the rest of the way back to the hostel since I didn’t feel like getting drenched, it only took me one minute to run there, and I still got drenched! Once I got inside it was really lovely though, listening to the rain and thunder while reading a book and later going to sleep, it was great.

Melbourne - Day 1 and 2

Since I'm in Melbourne for a week it will be a very, VERY long post if I only write one, and no one will bother reading all of it, so instead I'll divide it into parts so that you might actually read it.

Day 1

I really wish I had just taken a coach during the day instead of the night one. It was packed, and as usual I couldn’t sleep on the coach. But never mind. I arrived in Melbourne at 8am. It was really cold (and just remember; I’m Norwegian!), so I was glad I was wearing my jeans and cardigan. I went to the hostel, Elephant Backpackers, but I wasn’t allowed to check in until after 1pm. So I stored my suitcase in one of their lockers, $7 for 12 hours, and went outside.

 First of all I walked up to where I am getting my new tattoo done in the morning, just to see how long it would take me to get there. After I had done that I was starving as I hadn't had any breakfast, except for an egg and lettuce sandwich at 3am. So breakfast it was.

 After this I got on the free (my favourite word) tourist shuttle which leaves every half hour and just took that around town getting off at a couple of the stops. I didn't really worry too much about where I got off and what I got to see as I have a whole week here. I did get off at the Melbourne Museum, I didn't go inside it. I did go inside the Royal Exhibition building, but I got chased back out again as the public is only allowed in when they do tours at 2pm.

 I got off at Lygon Street, which looked cute with all its cafes and little shops. The bus driver said something about a street with loads of vegetarian shops a 15 minute walk from Lygon Street, but I forgot what it was called. I should find that out again, see if it’s any good. I walked from Lygon street to the bus’ next stop at the University of Melbourne, where I saw this funny connection of old and new.

 The last place I got off the bus today was at the Shrine of Remembrance, which was a recommendation from The Paramedic. It’s a nice building, it's pretty, and it's nice that people that lost loved ones in the war has somewhere to go to mourn them if they can't go where they're buried

 When the clock had passed 1 I checked in at the hostel, I would like to take the free tourist shuttle again one day while I’m here and check out some of the other stops. I noticed that I had to charge my phone. I had been listening to music on it all night and I only had 1% of battery left! There was no power outlet (or whatever it’s called) in the dorm so I had to sit out in the hallway. While I was sitting there I made plans to meet Kevin, Luna and Antonio on Saturday, and Mai in half an hour.

My phone got up to 20% when I had to unplug it to go and meet Mai. I do not like that there is no possibility to charge the phone in my room. I could leave it in reception to get charged, but I can’t leave it overnight as it’s the only clock I’ve got and I just feel lost without it anyway. After I had booked a day trip for Monday to see the Great Ocean Road and go to the top of the Eureka tower at the tourist information centre, Mai and I walked up to Queen Victoria Market. As it’s Wednesday the market was closed during the day, but they had an evening one on that was supposed to sell cheap food, and also have some stalls with clothes and jewellery and stuff.

We got there and they did have some interesting things there, but I wouldn’t really say that the food was cheap. It was pretty much normal prices. But I enjoyed going, and I would like to go again to the day one, possibly tomorrow, after my tattoo, or on Friday.

 So now I am sitting outside in the hallway with my laptop and charging my phone. I’m really tired so I think I’ll only charge it so that it’ll survive until tomorrow morning and then I’ll charge it some more before I go to get my tattoo. If only it would charge quicker so that I could go to bed!

Day 2 – Tattoo

There are only shower curtains in the showers, not doors. And there isn’t much room in the showers so things can easily get wet. But I managed. There are hangers and benches outside the showers, but I don’t like getting undressed in front of other people.

I went and got my tattoo today. The tattoo artist made a small mistake, but I’ll tell you all about that in a separate post, I’ll just say it was a very minor one and I can live with it. Because the tattoo is on my hip I have to be careful with what I wear for a bit so that nothing is rubbing on it or anything.

In the early evening Mai and I went to St Kilda. We had a look at Luna Park, we didn’t go on any of the rides. It was almost $10 for one ride and over $40 for an all access pass. I think that seems quite expensive for such a small amusement park, but I guess if you go on every single ride it’s worth it.

This is the kind of spider I can deal with!

 We then walked to St Kilda pier as there are supposed to be wild penguins there in the evening. We saw some hiding in the rocks, and after it got dark some of them came and walked on the path. They didn’t seem too bothered about the people, and they were SO cute! They’re only tiny ones, maybe 30-35cm or somewhere around there.

 It was starting to get cold so we went back to Luna Park, because I wanted some pictures of it with the lights on and we planned to get on the tram back in to town afterwards. But when we got to Luna Park we noticed a market right next to it!

 It seemed to be lots of “artsy” people there, not strange since St Kilda is the art district, and there were people performing with fire and dance and stuff, it was really cool! There were some cool stalls there with clothes and jewellery and knick-knacks and also some food stalls. Some of the food stalls were even fully vegetarian! Shame I wasn’t very hungry.

To be continued...

The Madness Meme, Part 1

I found another meme over at Sunday Stealing today that I thought looked fun, so here goes!

1. Have you ever licked the back of a CD to try to get it to work? Can't say I have, no. Do people actually do that?
2. What's the larges age difference between you and someone you've dated? I went on a date once with a guy that was 19 years older than me! Nice guy, I just couldn't get past the age difference...
3. Ever been in a car wreck? No
4. Were you popular in high school? No and I wish I could go back in time and go again with the knowledge I have now as then I wouldn't be so self conscious.
5 Have you ever been on a blind date? No, could be interesting to try though...
6. Are looks important? I'd like to say no, but looks are the first thing you notice in a person, unless you're blind or the first time you talk to them is on the phone. But how you perceive their looks can change after you get to know a person. So yes when it comes to first-impressions, and when you get to know them then it can be yes or no depending on their personality and how you get along with them....
7. Do you have any friends that you've known for 10 years or more? Yes
8. By what age would you like to be married? I'm not really that bothered about marriage, I don't need a ring or a document to prove that I love someone.
9. Does the number of people a person's slept with affect your view of them? I hope not.... Don't think so... I don't really ask people how many people they've slept with though.
10. Have you ever made a mistake? Just like everyone else I've made loads of mistakes. That's how you learn though and part of what makes you you.
11. Are you a good tipper? Depends on the service, I don't get it when people leave a large tip after they've gotten horrible service.
12. What's the most you have spent for a haircut? I don't know, I usually go to cheap places or get someone to do it for free, after all, it's just hair, it'll grow back out again.
13. Have you ever had a crush on a teacher? I think most people do at some stage of their life, so yes.
14. Have you ever peed in public? I've used public toilets, and peed in the forest, does that count?
15. What song do you want played at your funeral? Not really given it much though, don't know.
16. Would you tell your parents if you were gay? I don't know. I'd probably just introduce them to a girlfriend or something....
17. What would your last meal be before getting executed? Probably something boring like Spaghetti Bolognese (Yummy).
18. Beatles or Stones? Both.
19. If you had to pick one person on earth to die, who would it be? I'm not going to tell you, because I don't want to explain it.
20. Beer, wine or hard liquor? Wine, white or rose, sweet.
21. Do you have any phobias? I'm terrified of spiders!!!
22. What are your plans for the future? I hate this question, unfortunately they ask it at most job interviews so I should really have an answer ready. I pretty much just go with the flow. I'd like to travel some more, find out what I want to work with, study, and find a guy!

There are monsters in the house!

As The Mother and I was talking together tonight, she suddenly told me to into the other room. Because of the way she acted I guessed she had probably just seen a spider.

I was right.

She managed to kill it. Huntsman, eurgh! I know they're not poisonous, that doesn't matter!

I'm glad she didn't tell me what it was at first as I would have probably had a small freak-out, especially as she was looking directly behind me as she was telling me to get out. I'm also very happy that she isn't as scared of spiders as me and that she respects and understand how scared of them I am.

Not one hour later she told me to get out of the room again. Another huntsman!! That one got closer. It runs so quickly!! And The Mother even said that one was slow!!! I don't like the sound of that! After she killed that one I went into my room and checked it for spiders, also my bathroom. None, phew!

Most of my life people have just been telling me to deal with it, or saying that there's no need to be scared of spiders, it's just a small one, etc, etc.

Phobia, definition: A persistent, abnormal and irrational fear of a specific thing or situation that compels one to avoid it, despite the awareness and reassurance that it is not dangerous.

I think it seems silly when someone is scared of clowns or sand or whatever, but I try to respect it. IRRATIONAL FEAR!!! It's not like they can do anything about it. And I know a lot of people think I'm being silly for being as scared of spiders that I am, and although I can usually laugh about it later, I'm just as scared the next time I see one!

I've always been scared of spiders. For as long as I can remember anyway. My aunt's husband told me before I came to Australia: "At least in Australia you're allowed to be scared of them!" Very true I think, as poisonous ones does actually exist here.

I'm just glad I haven't seen a redback or anything yet, as since that is dangerous I would probably freak out even more than normal!

Cairns day 2 - Kuranda

The bus that picked me up from my hostel, Calypso, was a little bit late on Saturday so I was getting a bit worried. Just as I was about to call and enquirer about it, it arrived. And I was the first one on it! After I had been picked up the bus met up with another one and picked up a HUGE group of Americans (and some Canadians), all over 50... I was literally the only under 50 on the bus.

We then drove to the train station to get on the train to Kuranda. We still had to wait a while for the train, so I needn't have worried about the buss driver being late. There was also a small museum at the train station about the Kuranda track and a little cafe where we could get some food. Some more people also came to get on the train, so I was no longer the youngest as there were kids.

The train ride was really nice. Beautiful scenery (which I guess is why they call it the scenic route), and the train carriages were old as well. Apparently some of them were as old as 100 years or something! The train was fairly slow so that people could take pictures, and it slowed down even more when there was something special to take pictures of. I had started talking to one of the American couples in my group on the train station, and we also talked together for most of the train ride, they were from Austin, Texas. They were very nice, and we kept bumping into each other throughout the day.

Kuranda was a very nice little village. Kind of "hippey-y", but nice.

While I was there I went to the Butterfly Sanctuary. So many pretty butterflies! None of them landed on me though, but it was amazing to see them so close, and they didn't fly away as soon as I got my camera out, like normal wild ones do.

They also had a venomous animals zoo, but I was a bit too scared of the spiders to go in there. I kind of wish I had though, as I would have learned a lot about the many venomous animals here. But I probably would't have learned anything anyway as I would have been freaking out about the spiders! Would have been cool to have seen the snakes though...

When I left Kuranda I got to take the Skyrail. It had two stops: Barron Falls and Red Peak, and I disembarked (hihi, I know a big word!) on both of them. At Barron Falls I just wandered around on my own and looked at the pretty view and trees.

View from the Skyrail

Do you remember my ReadItSwapIt post? I left one of the books on the Skyrail between Barron Falls and Red Peak, I hid it a little bit so that the staff wouldn't tell me I forgot something as I stepped out. I think the Wood Angel book had a suitable title to be left in the Rainforest. I hope someone found it...

At Red Peak I took a guided tour, just to actually learn something. It only lasted about 15 minutes, but I did learn quite a bit, a lot more than if I had just wandered around on my own. It was free and the guide was really interesting.

One tree is being "strangled" by another.

When I arrived at the end station of the Skyrail I went to Tjapukai, which is an Aboriginal Cultural Park. I bumped into the American couple again there, and I also learned a lot about Aboriginees. I kind of wish I had come down from Kuranda earlier just so that I could have spent a bit more time at Tjapukai.

I got to throw a boomerang at Tjapukai, and I managed to throw it just as well as the Aboriginee that showed us how to do it! It didn't come back to me though, so I didn't manage to catch it.

I'm glad I didn't stay in Kuranda longer as when we were getting on the bus back to Cairns there was an evacuation situation at Kuranda. It was because of the thunderstorm coming. When there's electricity in the air they stop the Skyrail. Which is good of course so no one gets hurt or stuck. Although it wouldn't be all to bad having to look at that scenery for a bit longer.

I told the American couple I met that I want to go to America at some point, and as we were waiting or the bus back to Cairns the lady gave me their address back in Austin and told me if I was ever there to give them a call, and that they had a spare room I could borrow! Which I though was really nice. I might try and keep in touch with them. Write them a letter occasionally... They went to Darwin Saturday night. I hope they have a nice time up there. At least since they're from Texas they're fairly used to the heat and humidity!

When I got back to the hostel it was even worse than it was on Thursday! Seriously. Is it that hard to keep a room that you share fairly tidy? I mean, I can be messy in my own bedroom, but that's because I don't share it, every room that I know other people will see I always keep tidy! No, there were no lockers or anything to put your stuff in in the room, but I managed to keep my things away from the floor.... Oh well... I guess I'll see plenty more of those messy rooms when I start staying at hostels more often.

Australia Zoo!

I went to Australia Zoo with my host family on Sunday, it was great!

I got to hold a koala, a snake and a baby alligator! ...or was it crocodile? Anyway. The snake felt fake! It felt like it was made of plastic or rubber or something! And it was REALLY heavy! The koala didn't smell very nice, I actually changed my top after holding it, but it was really soft ad I wanted to take it home with me.

And they didn't have any live spiders! Which was very nice as I don't think I could have handled more after the one I met the same morning!

 The bird below looks absolutely prehistoric!

 It's hard to believe that dingoes are actually fairly dangerous animals, they're just so cute!

I also got to fed and pet some kangaroos, they were really soft, I just wanted to grab it and cuddle it! I don't think it would be a good idea to actually do it though!

 I thought the lizard below was a snake at first as I didn't see it's legs. It wasn't in a cage or anything just by the path we were walking, and I just said "Oh hey, another snake!" very calmly but at the same time excited about seeing a snake, and the person next to me nearly freaked out. Then I noticed it's legs and said so and they calmed down. It wasn't until this point I realized I probably shouldn't be so calm about seeing something I thought was a snake that wasn't in a cage.

Poser!

If you're a resident Queenslander you can buy a ticket for the zoo before 31st of August (I think it was...) and it gives you free re-entrance until Christmas! Great deal as it costs the same as a single day pass!