"The Nipple of Australia"

Strange title, yes?! A quote from my boss from our work bbq the other night! He was talking about Uluru.  Wow, there’s so much to say since I last updated. I finished my training for work and have had 3 days in the field, with 2 sales. It’s not too bad, but those figures need to be going up.

The work crew are completely barmy. We have Frenchie, Shayd, Pirate, Shermy, BFG, Andy, Tom, Natalie, Scott and Steve. You get given a nickname once you make a sale (hence the fact that the first 5 names are strange!) I’ve been nicknamed Harmony, which sounds like Hermione which is apparently who I sound like from Harry Potter!!

On Saturday night, after a day working in the pouring rain (you think England has bad rain, you should see it out here when it decides to piss it down) we get given a BBQ from the bosses, back at their apartment. Burgers, sausages, chicken, onions and everything else just YUM! And it was even better because it was free!

Sunday I ended up going to Andy’s house (guy from work) and he cooked me cheesy scrambled eggs on toast with Worcestershire sauce. SO good! From there, I had to go to the doctors surgery as I have all these cuts and bites all over my legs that have got infected. I won’t go into detail because they look and sound disgusting. Needless to say, doctors cost a flat rate of $60 to see out here, plus any extra for medication. The doc said I had impetigo and has given me a course of antibiotics and some random brown antiseptic stuff to put on. It’s a pain, but less painful than leaving them be!

Sunday evening, I went out to this tavern called the Duporth Tavern with some of the hostel guys. It was me, Dan, Dan’s cousin Avril, her roommate and the German Florian (he’s a boy!). They were doing $2 steaks which were so tasty, whilst holding the Australian Bikini Supermodel contest. About 8 girls, parading up and down a stage outside, wearing pretty much no clothes. It was an excuse for the boys to perve, and the girls to bitch!! We stayed out for a while, Thomas walked me back to the hostel/piggybacked me back because I couldn’t really walk and we just watched some tv back here instead of going out clubbing to 240V (the club in Maloolaba which is interesting to say the least).

Today, I’ve slept! The hostel manager, Justin, is worried that I could have caused an outbreak of Impetigo in the hostel so he’s trying to see whether I need  to be isolated. It all seems to be a lot of hassle! 

Til laters. Peace xx

A short catch up

Hey guys,
Just a quickie to update you what's been happening since Noosa.
I'm back in Maroochydore now - love this place to pieces. I'm in a 4 bed dorm, which is nice, with lockable draws and stuff so I actually unpacked slightly! Not living out of a backpack (for the minute!). There's a bus stop not too far from the hostel so walk to there, and catch the bus to the cable. Cable is siiick :) So many obstacles, and decent lines and did I mention that it's warm?? The other thing about the cable is that the water is saltwater, so if you buttcheck anything and get a faceful of water, you're riding blind for ages!
At the cable, there's a sick crew of people. Thanks to Liam, everyone's being super nice to me but asking for me not to buy them tequila shots...there's a bit of a reputation there Mr Liam Walsh!! So yeah, kinda really good friends with Bel, (annabelle) and we meet up for lunch and stuff. She invited me over to hers for Xmas day, so I might get fed decently after all!!
I've got to start work in 3 hours, which doesn't sound that bad, except we went for a walk at about 1am this morning and didn't get a very good night's sleep so yeahh...someone pass the caffine!
I got a job within 3 days of arriving at the hostel. This time it's not nannying but I'm a sales rep for an energy company out here. Yes, that's right, I'm going to be one of those annoying people who knocks at your door and trys to sell you stuff. It's got a good support system, so I'm not worried. The people in my team all seem pretty sound and it's good pay too. If we reach our targets, we're going to whitsunday islands for xmas :)
Sounds good to me!
Right, I best actually go do something productive.
Peace xx

Noosa

Noosa is a very pretty seaside town, reminiscent of Newquay or Rock back in the UK. It's where a lot of Australia's rich and famous go to holiday. The main street is filled with shops and restaurants such as Hugo Boss and Jack's Australian SteakHouse. Hastings Street (the main one) runs parrallel to Main Beach, where the surf is good, and the rainforest-type trees come straight down to the ocean. There's also the river which joins the ocean here, which is a pretty awesome sight.
The hostel was an old Queenslander building - wooden frames and looked a little bit like the lodges! It had its own bar and restaurant, meaning that the self-cook kitchen was tiny. At peak times you were waiting a good hour just to get a saucepan. I slept in a cosy 5 bed dorm, with varying amounts of german and english girls. At one point, I was the only English girl in there!
The people were really friendly; I met two boys travelling together called Ben and Jordan. They'd met each other in Sydney and decided to travel together. Jordan was especially funny as he was French, and determined to improve his English. He spoke it very well, and could hold a conversation, but sometimes would come out with some gems such as "my shit! my shit! my shit don't fit my bed" and we'd have to tell him that it is pronounced sheet!!
I also met a lovely girl from Banbury and we got on really well. A few Aussies were staying there too - Jimmy was from Brisbane and up for a week for a holiday. We met whilst people-watching on the beach!! It's a hard life!
The family I was nannying for were a really lovely couple, and the children were well behaved. It made my job a lot easier! We spent most days swimming in the pool (aka sunbathing and making sure they didn't drown) and the evenings were spent with bedtime stories and some tv catch up time. I've had the pleasure of Glee and Harry Potter 4!! Litsa and Mitchell were really generous to me, and gave me half the contents of their fridge when I left so that I could feed myself for a week!!!!
Whilst looking after Zoe and Jay in the pool, another family was there with one of their children. They asked if I could babysit for them that night too, so I got double the work! People are so friendly and generous out here, it starts to make you think about how stuck up the British are as a nation.
We had a night out on the town last night, ended up leaving the club about 4am. Me and Jimmy and Oliver (a swiss banker!) thought that lying on the beach, looking at the stars would be a sensible idea. Alas, we were awoken at 6 this morning by the man cleaning the beach! All part of the experience :)
Back in Maroochy now, planning on a night out in Maloolaba or somewhere like that. Should be fun as it's not often you get to see the german guys let their hair down! Until later
Peace xxx

The engines on the plane go bang, bang, bang!

My last scheduled day in Singapore was relatively uneventful. However, I did have a chance encounter with a U.S. Marine who happens to wakeboard behind a boat in Seattle and was staying in my dorm. On a spur of the moment we grabbed some boardies and a bit of cash and jumped on the MRT.
After a while of wandering the streets of Bedok to find the right bus we got on the rattely old thing straight to Ski360. The people there were friendly and it was so cheap to ride. I couldn’t believe it - £10 for an hours riding at night with a hire board and life jacket. The best part was that you could hit all the obstacles on the hire boards which was good fun J It did make me laugh that an adult man-size board was a 134!! It was my first night ride which I really enjoyed – made better by a lack of wetsuits – and the cable is in a sea lagoon. It’s a nice set up there so if you get the opportunity to go, I say do it!!

Back to Changi airport on Thursday morning after a 5am wake up. Nothing much to say about that, so we got on the plane and took off smoothly. About 20 minutes into the flight, a fecking huge bang caused the plane to wobble a bit. Peering out the window, we can see that 3 holes have been ripped into the wing of the plane – about 3m from where I was sitting! Incredibly, no-one panics and within seconds the Captain is speaking to the plane letting us know that they are assessing the situation.

We are then told that the engine had failed but we had too much fuel to land the plane immediately. Sitting for 1hr30 on a plane that’s only got 3 engines, and a huge hole in the wing, while we circle Indonesia and Singapore is not a pleasant experience. I have to say that the crew and everyone on board acted very calmly, people accepted there was nothing we could do so many slept or read. Unfortunately, the entertainment system had failed earlier on in the flight so no films to take our mind off the situation.

After circling for long enough to lose enough fuel to land, we start our descent. The holes in the wing mean that the wing flaps couldn’t come up to help slow the landing. It was a very fast approach to the runway and the brakes were put on sharply in order for us to stop right at the end of the runway. We sat here for another half an hour while they tried to stop the fuel leak and stop engine 1 from running. The fire engines and police were there and all electrical systems had to be turned off to minimise the risk of a spark. Any spark would have set us up in flames as we were doused in fuel!

Eventually we got evacuated off, having to leave all hand luggage on the plane. We could take passports, and boarding passes, and a little bit of money but nothing else.  The entire flight was held in a room in the terminal, fed food and water. A Zara Phillips was on the flight as well as the Sri Lankan Basketball team! The news then came on and we saw that the flight was a headline story. Apparently the first reports were that we had crash landed in the sea in Indonesia, as that was where the engine cover was found. Thankfully this was not the case, but we were shocked to see the extent of the damage to the plane as we had obviously been shielded from the worst sights.

In the airport, I got talking to two girls called Karen who are both travelling on their own and we have kept each other company throughout!! Quantas organised hotels for us to stay in last night – it was very smart and all free J I’m currently back in the airport waiting for the gate to open for boarding.

Let’s hope this flight goes better!!

Peace xx

Maroochy 1

Currently in Maroochydore, until about 10.30 and then I'll be heading up to Noosa (about 20mins north). Catching the local bus, which is really simple to do and goes direct from the hostel up to the other one!
On the flight out to Maroochy, I met a family who were really sweet. They have 2 children, Jay (aged 5) and Zoe (aged 3) and have come up to Noosa on holiday. The mum asked if I wanted to earn some money being a nanny to them when the parents wanted adult time so it would be a few hours each day + evening times.
It sounded good to me at $20 an hour and all expenses paid. We exchanged details and I'll let them know when I arrive.
Maroochy hostel is nice, a bit less modern than most I've stayed in so far but I met 2 cool people. Dan is from Ireland and is working as an electrician out here; and Jeff who is a little alternative but also working as an electrical wholesaler. There's plenty of work about which is encouraging. We were talking about possibly getting a flat or something as they work out about $130 a week, including bills, which is way cheaper than the hostel.
Need a solid job first tho i reckon.
Maroochy itself is pretty much dead, but it's very pretty with the river running through it. People paddle board, sail, jetski and wakeboard up and down the river so it's always active!
I have an Aussie Sim but having issues with it in my phone so will try and get that sorted in Noosa today. For those of you who are interested, the tan is coming along nicely and I've also picked up an Irish/Aussie accent which is sounding quite odd :)
Visited the cable yesterday, all the decent riders were up in Cairns for a tour stop but when I get back from noosa it should be a bit better. Will try and grab some work there hopefully - need to talk to Kirk (Their Will Gibney!!) Bli Bli is about 8km from the hostel and it's quite a long walk back when you miss the bus as I found out yesterday. Thankfully the hostel has free bikes to hire so guess I'll be cycling there and back a lot - there is a footpath the entire way.
That's it for now, will try and sort myself out to settle when I get back from noosa!!
Enjoy England people.
Peace xx

Aussie, Aussie, Aussie

When I finally get my netbook connected to the internet I'll upload the blog I wrote about the second day in Singapore and the flight(s)! It makes for interesting reading.
Since leaving Singapore, Karen and I have both been approached by reporters and film crews and I've heard that I'm in the Sun today as well!!! Mental!!
Sydney is ridiculously expensive - Karen, Bjorn and I went out for a beer at Darling Harbour last night and it cost $24 for 3 drinks. Not fun. Karen and Bjorn were leaving at 6 this morning so we did a whistle-stop tour of the sights at about midnight. We spent a while at darling harbour (nothing to do with the fact that if we stepped outside the bar we would have been drenched within seconds!), before catching a cab to the Rocks to see good old Harbour Bridge and the Opera House. We actually went into the grounds of the Opera House, which you're not meant to do but we played up about the "doomed flight" and the security guard felt sorry for us :)
After our jaunt around Sydney we came back to the hostel and went clubbing downstairs until 3. Good fun, but tiring after a long day of travelling.
I booked my flight up to Maroochydore today, going to stay in a hostel that is 5miles(ish) from the cable! Hopefully it will be warmer and dryer than here. Still waiting confirmation of compensation from Qantas...fingers crossed for a 4 figure sum!!! (I wish!)
Just a short one as internet time is running out.
Peace xx

Singapore - day 1

Hey all :)

Guess who’s in Singapore?! This city is mental – the roads are like a mix between New York and India and the the architecture is so haphazard! It is a lovely city tho, the people are very friendly and helpful and willing to get an extra doller out of you. Well some are, most are just happy to help!

It all started early Monday morning with a tearful goodbye and a very, very long flight. Unfortunately the flight was made longer by a screaming infant sat next to me – all I can say is thank god for noise-cancelling headphones. They made sure my eardrums stayed intact! The flight was pretty uneventful, with hardly any turbulence, which I’m grateful for.

Trying to find my transfer from the airport was another matter altogether. They said to meet on B1 so down I go with my rucksacks and camera bag and the beesy bus is nowhere to be found. Unknowingly B1 is infact hidden on the way down to B2. However, a few phonecalls to the company later and we’re all sorted on the way to the hostel.

The hostel is cosy but very clean and quite up to date. The only thing it’s missing is aircon – an essential in the sauna that is Singapore. As soon as I entered the reception/kitchen/dining/living/crashing area I was asked to show the receptionist my passport and chuck my bags somewhere safe. Sitting down to log on to the internet to let family members know I’m here safe I get chatting to this guy, Stu. He had spotted my Alliance Wake Mag and said he rode when he lived in Scotland and told me I should check out Cairns.

Stu then says that he’s going on a tour of Singapore and did I want to come? Being that I couldn’t check into my room for another 3 hours I said yes and armed with camera, purse and mint polos we left with Justin and Sam (a really nice couple from Ottowa).

Walking around Little India was definitely an experience – the Tekka market and durian red conchil drinks a particular onslaught to my senses. Whatever you do, do not touch durian fruit – it’s horrible and leaves an after-taste for a good 4 hours after!! We then caught the MRT (Singapore’s answer to the underground) to Orchard Road – have a look round the very nice posh shops! The sales people are very persuasive but polite decline seems to work well.

Walked a lot around Orchard Road before hopping on the MRT to Marina Bay and Raffle’s Place. We walked right around the coat – saw some stunning architecture from the colonial era as well as cutting through the upmarket Fairmont Hotel. Saw a starbucks, decided a drink was in order and sat with  view over the bay out to Marina Sands Hotel and the grandstand for the Grand Prix circuit. Definitely not in England anymore.

Walking around the bay, we reached Swissotel where you can go to the 70^th floor for free and get fabulous panoramic views of Singapore. Definitely worth a look if you visit. Exiting the hotel we see Raffles right ahead of us so of course the Singapore Sling is calling. Traditional Singapore slings and nut shells on the floor of the Long Bar topped it off quite nicely before wandering around a bit more and deciding it was time for lunch.

Lunch means Chinatown which is thoroughly decorated with proper chinese lanterns, and a million stalls selling complete and utter kak to unsuspecting tourists. After wandering around Chinatown for a good hour and a half Stu and me decided Chinese food wasn’t on the menu for us today so back on the MRT to Little India for an Indian dinner. This involved rice, fried chicken in sauces with a masala sauce and poppadoms with a coke to drink.  Yum! All that for £2!!! Crazy. On the topic of MRT – I can officially say that Dhoby Gauht station is the central hub – passed through it about 4 times today. The Singapore people use an EZ-link card which is basically an oyster card to travel and it’s so easy to use. You just have to remember to reclaim the $1 deposit that is issued with the card.

Tomorrow I think Sentosa is on the cards – a day lying on the beach trying to recover from jet lag sounds amazing right now as it’s been all go since 5.30am on Monday – no sleep since then!! So for now, it’s some socialising and some sleep!! Laters peeps xx