My Experience
At the Australian National University, students are given a two week break in April for Easter holidays. During this time, I decided that I wanted to a solo-trip and tackle some of the East Coast, starting with Airlie Beach and Whitsundays.
I took a bus to Sydney, and from there I flew into Brisbane, and then into Proserpine, which is just about the smallest airport ever. From there I took a shuttle bus for about an hour and a half to Airlie Beach, and arrived at Base Airlie Beach Resort, i.e. the first hostel I would ever stay at. On the one hand, the thought of sharing a room with four or five strangers terrified me, especially since I was on my own, and tended to be a bit shy. But, on the other hand, I had to remind myself that that's what this solo trip was all about: testing my limits, stepping outside of my comfort zone, and meeting other people who, like me, were on their own adventures, exploring all that Australia had to offer.
When I walked into the room, I was greeted by two girls from England, and two guys, one from Germany and one from Austria. I took the last available bunk and settled in. At first, I was way too shy to stay in the room, so I excused myself and headed out to explore the little town of Airlie Beach. As you might have guessed from its name, Airlie Beach gave the impression of a small beachy-surfer town, with a lot of character. The side walks were mostly lined with hostels, bars and restaurants, and a few clothing stores. Something about Airlie Beach was familiar to me; I hadn't heard the sound of the ocean or smelled the sea-salt in so long that it was almost like coming home.
I made my way back to the hostel and settled in for the night. Over the course of the next two days, I had plans to snorkel at The Great Barrier Reef, and visit some of the Whitsunday Islands.
I took a bus to Sydney, and from there I flew into Brisbane, and then into Proserpine, which is just about the smallest airport ever. From there I took a shuttle bus for about an hour and a half to Airlie Beach, and arrived at Base Airlie Beach Resort, i.e. the first hostel I would ever stay at. On the one hand, the thought of sharing a room with four or five strangers terrified me, especially since I was on my own, and tended to be a bit shy. But, on the other hand, I had to remind myself that that's what this solo trip was all about: testing my limits, stepping outside of my comfort zone, and meeting other people who, like me, were on their own adventures, exploring all that Australia had to offer.
When I walked into the room, I was greeted by two girls from England, and two guys, one from Germany and one from Austria. I took the last available bunk and settled in. At first, I was way too shy to stay in the room, so I excused myself and headed out to explore the little town of Airlie Beach. As you might have guessed from its name, Airlie Beach gave the impression of a small beachy-surfer town, with a lot of character. The side walks were mostly lined with hostels, bars and restaurants, and a few clothing stores. Something about Airlie Beach was familiar to me; I hadn't heard the sound of the ocean or smelled the sea-salt in so long that it was almost like coming home.
I made my way back to the hostel and settled in for the night. Over the course of the next two days, I had plans to snorkel at The Great Barrier Reef, and visit some of the Whitsunday Islands.
My first stop was a tour of The Great Barrier Reef. I hopped on a ferry that took me out to the Reefworld Pontoon. Once we were anchored, I was in a stinger suit and in the ocean with my GoPro. Now, keep in mind, I come from an island, so it's not like I had never seen a reef before. But I had never seen one like this. The Great Barrier Reef is home to some of the most beautiful and vividly coloured aquatic life that I have ever seen (I couldn't even identify any of the fish that I was seeing). For the first time since being in Australia, I felt completely grounded; I did not have to step out of my comfort zone here. Two months in, and I had crossed yet another major "must-see" off of my bucket list. That night, I headed back to the hostel and bonded with my bunk-mates. The girls and I split a pizza, and we talked, along with with the boys, about our backgrounds, what we were doing in Australia, where we had seen and where we still wanted to go. We shared details about our lives back home and the realities we would all have to face once we left. It was nights like these that I loved the most. When you're on exchange, or just traveling in general, you will come across people like this - who share the same thirst for adventure and travel - that you can instantly bond with because you already have some so huge in common that everything else - all the nerves and shyness - become irrelevant, because they're just as interested in you as you are in them.
The next morning, I hopped aboard another ferry and made my way to Whitehaven Beach, one of the most, if not the most, beautiful Whitsunday islands out there. The island where I come from is known for its white sand beaches, but I think if any other Antiguan visited Whitehaven, they would be extremely disappointed in what we call 'white sand'. I have never felt sand as soft, or seen sand as white, as I did on this day. I shrugged into a stinger suit and spent the next two hours in the ocean, revelling in the goodness of the sun and the salt. The ferry came back and took us over to Hamilton Island, which is one of the Whitsunday Islands that houses a resort. I spent the rest of the day exploring the island, and lounging between the beach and the pool. But, the most memorable moment for me from Hamilton Island isn't how beautiful or luxurious it was. My most memorable moment from Hamilton Island occurred when I was half way through my lunch...and a cockatoo stole half of my burger! *Cue the laughter*
The next morning, I hopped aboard another ferry and made my way to Whitehaven Beach, one of the most, if not the most, beautiful Whitsunday islands out there. The island where I come from is known for its white sand beaches, but I think if any other Antiguan visited Whitehaven, they would be extremely disappointed in what we call 'white sand'. I have never felt sand as soft, or seen sand as white, as I did on this day. I shrugged into a stinger suit and spent the next two hours in the ocean, revelling in the goodness of the sun and the salt. The ferry came back and took us over to Hamilton Island, which is one of the Whitsunday Islands that houses a resort. I spent the rest of the day exploring the island, and lounging between the beach and the pool. But, the most memorable moment for me from Hamilton Island isn't how beautiful or luxurious it was. My most memorable moment from Hamilton Island occurred when I was half way through my lunch...and a cockatoo stole half of my burger! *Cue the laughter*