Sydney, Byron Bay, Surfers, Noosa, Fraser Island, Agnes Water, Mackay

After Jervis Bay we went back to Sydney. From there we had a 14-hour bus ride to Byron Bay. There we definitely had the oldest roommate during our trip. A 60+ year old Canadian who travels to Australia every year for a few months to surf. We were a bit surprised why she chose a party hostel ;-) During our stay in Byron Bay, we also took a day trip to the town of Nimbin. A colorful bus with a funny older driver with a twirly beard took us there. The 450-person village is probably the most famous place in Australia where cannabis is clearly offered on the street. However, based on the stories of other backpackers, I expected it to be more intense. We were only approached by two people asking if we wanted to buy something. In Nimbin, many dropouts and people who practice alternative lifestyles live. Even some children wore dreadlocks.

After Byron Bay, we went to Surfers Paradise. Our double room in a hostel was very 'interesting'. It was more like a chamber located in a 12-bed dorm. We then went to Noosa for two more nights. It is located on the Sunshine Coast and is a popular vacation spot where many wealthy people live. There are many different hiking trails in Noosa through the national park and along the coast. Our next stop was Rainbow Beach. A small town from where most tours to Fraser Island start. Since the hostel was very busy, we were relocated for one night before our tour and had to walk through half the village with our luggage. However, we were positively surprised by the accommodation. It was a holiday home that we shared with four other people. The next day we had to go back to the hostel with all our stuff. From there, our tour started. In the morning, we had to watch a boring video about the safety precautions for Fraser Island. Then the time had finally come. We left our main luggage at the hostel and only equipped ourselves with a day backpack for the 3-day tour. With a total of four 4WD cars, we first went to the ferry in Rainbow Beach. We were really lucky with our driver. There were 9 other girls in the tour guide's car. The other three cars were driven by tour participants themselves. Although the drivers must be at least 21 years old and receive detailed instructions, there are probably some overconfident drivers among them. The paths on Fraser Island go through unpaved forest roads, along the beach, and through water, so you should definitely drive carefully and attentively.

After the 15-minute ferry ride, where dolphins swam right next to the ship, we arrived at Fraser Island. Since the weather forecast for the next few days was not good, our tour guide decided to first visit the fascinating bright blue lake 'Lake McKenzie'. As soon as we stepped on the snow-white sand, it started pouring rain. Shivering with cold, we quickly undressed, hoping that the lake would be a bit warmer. After a short downpour, the sun came out again and we were able to enjoy this beautiful lake even more. The water and the sand are so special that you can use them as a hair treatment. The second highlight for me was 'Lake Wabby', a green lake surrounded by huge sand dunes like an oasis. In the evening, we arrived at our camp. We settled into our two-person tents, had dinner, and Dani and I went back to the tent very early to go to sleep. For most of our group, the main focus was on drinking and playing drinking games, and we were definitely not here for that. It rained all night. There was a tarpaulin over our tents, so our tent didn't get wet. The second day on the island was annoying because it kept raining and it was too cold to go into the water without freezing. We didn't even go into the water at the Champagne Pools, which are located near rock formations by the sea. We all overcame our resistance and walked through the freshwater creek 'Eli Creek' despite the cold and rain, or some swam through it with inner tubes. On this day, we also went to Indian Head, a lookout point that can only be reached by climbing over rocks. From there, you can supposedly spot sharks with some luck, but all we saw was a stingray. Swimming in the sea on Fraser Island is very dangerous due to the strong currents and the sharks. Even on the last day, the sun didn't show itself very often. We only drove to a shipwreck and went to Eli Creek again to swim there without rain. But it was cloudy and quite cool, so most people didn't go into the water anyway. In short, we could have easily done the 3-day tour in just one day. But unfortunately, we didn't know that beforehand. However, we got to know the backpacker crowd from the Australian East Coast in more detail, maybe even a bit too much. In general, I think it can be said that backpackers consist of 45% Germans, 45% English, and 10% other nationalities. Among the Germans, there are mainly 18 to 20-year-olds who set off for the big wide world right after high school and are often still quite inexperienced. For most of them, it's just about drinking, smoking, and partying. The English are often already over 20, but I probably don't need to mention that the English are not averse to alcohol. Thanks to the consumption of alcohol, some lose all inhibitions and any decency. Affectionate exchanges were so loud on Fraser Island that half of the tour group was woken up at night, and a nightly rendezvous in the tour car (of all places, the one Dani and I were in) was part of it. Drinking and partying continued until the early morning hours. And in the morning, some already (or still) had a can of beer in their hand. I'm really glad that we didn't have these guys as drivers, where some of them were certainly not quite sober during the drive. Back in Rainbow Beach, we fled from this party-loving crowd in the evening. We actually had another night booked at the hostel. We let it go and took the bus directly to Agnes Water. We arrived there in the middle of nowhere at midnight. The 'bus stop' is in the middle of nowhere, no houses, no lights, just a small gravel parking lot. Therefore, we had to book a shuttle for $20 per person to take us from nowhere to civilization (i.e. to our hostel). The hostel was fantastic! The 'Backpackers@1770' is a chilled hostel with a Balinese touch. The owner is a young Australian and a typical $1 traveler, like his father. This means that when he travels himself, he doesn't spend more than $1 per day. Most guests and staff were dressed like typical dropouts, i.e. with dreadlocks and hippie clothing. We had a lot of bad luck with the weather on the first two days. Agnes Water is just a small town where there isn't much to do. We just wanted to relax and surf at the beach. We were finally able to do that from the third day on. We liked the hostel so much that we extended our stay and spent almost a week there. When we left, we had to wait for the shuttle bus until 11:30 p.m., which took us back to the bizarre bus station. Until then, we relaxed outside on a couch. We then just went around the corner to get our luggage. When we came back after a few minutes, my wool blanket had disappeared as if by magic. Fortunately, our bags and my tablet were still there, which were next to the blanket. For a moment, we doubted our sanity because we were sitting there alone and there were hardly any other hostel guests left. How the blanket disappeared remains a mystery to this day.

Overnight, we drove to Mackay, where we arrived at 7 a.m. As soon as we entered our room, we almost turned around and left again. It smelled so incredibly bad, it was almost unbearable. There was also no window, so we couldn't ventilate, although that probably wouldn't have helped much either. We tried to bear it inside, but it was impossible. After a short discussion with the owner, we were allowed to change rooms. We were only in Mackay for one night and unfortunately couldn't do much. It was Sunday, Mother's Day, and unbelievably, there were no buses running. So it was impossible to get to the beach or the botanical garden. We just relaxed at the lagoon (which are free outdoor swimming pools in the middle of the city).