Good BYron :(

Well kids, the time has come to bid Byron farewell. I left this morning bright and way too early on a bus headed up north to begin my east coast month of madness. I have mixed emotions about leaving the place that has been my home for the past month and a half. It wasn’t always comfortable living in a room with 10 people. I was always waiting to use the bathroom, and never really slept through the night. I had very little privacy and getting everyone to clean up after themselves was a losing battle. My friend and I cleaned so much that we earned the nicknames Agee and Kim after the two meddling old ladies in “How Clean is your House?” If I’m the neatest one of the bunch, something is definitely awry in the universe. But living in such close proximity to other people also has its upsides. I’ve made such amazing friends with whom I share a comfort level that could not have been achieved had we not been sharing the same space. It’s hard to make good girlfriends and I count myself so lucky that the girls in my room were so open and funny and caring.


Every night was a slumber party–much to the chagrin of the one or two boys that had to live in the room as well (but they dealt with the overload of estrogen pretty well). Working in the bar was a blast. I only had to work about an hour a night and it was a fun, easy job with the added bonus of being able to drink for free (but also rather annoying on the night’s I didn’t want to drink).


One night last week, in honor of the other bartender’s last night, the managers grabbed her and threw her into the pool. I was too busy hysterically laughing at a drenched Martine to notice that I was going to be the next victim. Luckily, I got my shoes off in time. After we got out of the pool, sopping wet and freezing, Martine grabbed a hose and sprayed everyone in the bar. It was absolute madness, but just a typical Tuesday in Byron Bay.

I cried my eyes out on the street last night out thinking about my impending departure, which shocked those of my friends who aren’t used to seeing such wanton displays of emotion on my part. (The only thing they’ve seen me get gushy about was our friend’s huge cuddly dog that is happiest when he has managed to fit his entire body onto your lap).

Thing I’ll miss most:
• Staff movie night (basically one big candy fest)
• Impromptu beach bonfires
• Quality girl time
• Delicious pies from the 23-hour bakery…the stuff of dreams

Things I won’t miss:
• Annette jumping into my twin bed in the middle on the night because she’d claimed she’d seen a rat. I didn’t believe her, but the next night she provided photographic evidence. (Well, I won’t miss the rats, but I will miss Annette)
• Cheeky Monkeys, a club which might just double as Satan’s bathroom… the average age in there is about 19 and someone called me a MILF

Despite my old and aching bones, I had a really wonderful last week, which included seeing a great band play, hanging out at a really cool bonfire on the beach, and surfing some perfect, gentle waves (I’m now a surfing addict).



It’s a shame to have to leave now as I’ve been meeting enough locals to have job opportunities abounding, but the weather is changing and in a few more weeks, it will feel like winter in Byron. I, on the other hand, will be chasing the summer all the way up the coast. There haven’t been that many blog-worthy adventures as of late because my days have been rather chilled out, but all that is about to change starting now.

I just arrived in Noosa, which is a lot like Byron Bay, only a bit bigger and more expensive. In the span of one hour, I ran into two people I know. I had met a cool girl surfing in Byron a few weeks ago and she turned out to be in the same room as me here. So funny, but I have a feeling I’ll be running into people I know all the way up the coast. It’s wild. So my plan is as follows: I’ll spend 3 nights in Noosa, then head up to Fraser Island for a beach camping trip. You are placed with a group of people and you drive around this amazing and unique island in a Jeep and camp out under the stars. After Fraser, I’ll check out a surfing town for a few days and possibly stop in a random town along the coast to stay with some friends of friends. I’ve never met them, but people are super friendly around here and are always offering up their relatives and friend’s places for me to stay in. Why not give it a go? After that, I’ll take a tour of the Whitsunday Islands (which are part of the Barrier Reef). It’s a 3-day sailing/snorkeling adventure and I can’t WAIT (everyone who’s gone has said it’s the best experience they’ve ever had. After the Whitsundays, I’ll do a white water rafting trip, and end up on Magnetic Island for the Full Moon Party (an annual all-night party) and a 4-day scuba-diving course. Where better to get certified than at the Great Barrier Reef? At the end of the month, my friend who is a pilot is going to pick me up near Magnetic Island and fly me to Darwin, the wild west of Australia (it’s reputed to be somewhat of a cowboy town with a pretty interesting cast of characters). Door to door service… gotta love it. Darwin is not that easy to get to and is a bit off the beaten path, so it attracts a different kind of traveler then the 18-year olds you’ll find heading up and down the east Coast of Australia. It’s also home to Kakadu National Park, which is purported to be the best national park in the country. I plan on hanging out there for a while and getting a J-O-B. Apparently there’s tons of work up there, so I think I’ll be ok money-wise once I start working. After this east coast trip I will be pretty much flat broke. But it will all have been worth it.

Ok, that was a mouthful, but I’ll be updating as frequently as I can to avoid these long-winded posts. I’m SO EXCITED!!! (And also very, very tired). Goodnight!