Wow, so it’s been a busy past couple of weeks. Last weekend a few girls and I went to Byron Bay and the Gold Coast and it was GREAT to get out of the big city (even though Gold Coast is a pretty big city too, but we spent a total of 8 hours there so it doesn’t really count). If you’re thinking about going to Australia at all, then I would definitely recommend staying at Byron Bay for a few days. The vibe is very relaxed and kind of hippy-ish, but it’s amazing. We stayed at Nomad’s Hostel and it was packed with people around our age, mostly from Europe. They had tons of organized events like flip cup tournaments and the hallways were always busy with people. The beach was absolutely BEAUTIFUL and we even went kayaking for most of Saturday afternoon. It was just a very beautiful and relaxing few days. The night before we left we drove back to the Gold Coast/Surfer’s Paradise put our stuff down in the hostel, and literally went straight out until 4 in the morning, a necessary evil considering our flight was at 6 am (since it was by far the cheapest). We figured it would just be easier to stay out and go straight to the airport. Well, the bar we went to was huge and had 3 big rooms that each played a different genre of music. That’s where the cool part ended; the patrons of the club, I swear, came STRAIGHT from the Jersey Shore. I felt like I was home and it was BIZARRE. If you’re going to the Gold Coast, maybe try to stay for longer than I did and check it out a little more because that’s the only impression I got from it.
beach at byron ^^
THIS WEEKEND was an entirely different change of pace. For our CLASS Outdoor Education, we went on a 3 day hiking trip to the Blue Mountains. The whole weekend I couldn’t believe that I was there for a class, it was absolutely amazing. Before we got there we had a little hike around the tourist-y area, which a bunch of us have already done with IES. However, this time at the end we climbed up the “infamous 1,000 steps.” IT WAS EXTREMELY DIFFICULT but we pulled through and were rewarded with an amazing view of the whole canyon at the top. That night we sat around a campfire and went around and said what we learned from the treacherous steps or how we felt about the day and the weekend, and it was great to get to know everyone a little better, not to mention the view of the stars was absolutely amazing. I’ve NEVER in my life seen so many. There was actual milky way galaxy and the whole sky seemed to be illuminated with millions of diamonds. I’ve never seen anything that amazing!
The next day we started out the hike at the very top of the canyon and worked our way down a very steep slope. It took in all about an hour. Then we walked along the valley for about an hour and a half and had lunch in the middle of a river and a water fall, again it was absolutely amazing. THEN it was the absolute most hardest journey ever. We pretty much went straight uphill for 3000 feet and 10 km!!! Literally we were scaling cliff edges and climbing up ladders. There were so many waterfalls that we walked under along the way and the views were absolutely incredible and made the whole thing so worth it. It really taught me that you may have a destination in mind, but sometimes the journey is just as important, and you should always remember to stop and have a look around along the way. Also, the feeling at the top of that mountain was the greatest sense of accomplishment I’ve ever felt.
Today we did a shorter hike, but it also involved climbing all the way down the mountain, having lunch at a magnificent waterfall, and then climbing all the way back up. The stairs were much steeper than the first day, but after completing the mega hike the night before, it didn’t seem so bad. The view was just as spectacular, as well.
This weekend was actually amazing. It was so nice being isolated from my phone and the internet and just experiencing the great outdoors. I can now check off “climb a mountain” off my bucket list, and surely it won’t be my last time. I’ll finish this post off with a few pictures from this weekend =)
Halfway up the 1,000 steps on the first day
Some friends at the waterfall, bottom of the valley, right before the ascent.
Boy band poses at the top – pure bliss. Also the woman on the very left in the blue is our professor for this “class.”
Our hike today included scaling this rock cliff and we also crossed over this waterfall a few times. Again, absolutely breathtaking. It concluded at the top of the waterfall.
Location: Byron Bay, Blue Mountains
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I’m headed to Byron Bay in two weeks! Sounds like you had a fantastic time, I’m so excited now!