We're ALIVE!!!

So to quickly fill everyone in on what we have been up to recently there have been some long kept secrets that are finally revealed in this blog entry. First off our stay here in Cairns has been quite eventful already. We took a free bus trip out to the rainforest and went swimming in the river. The exciting part though was climbing up the path until you reached the point where you were able to jump off the cliff into the river. The cliff itself was about 8 meters above the flowing waters and Amanda carefully sized up the feat before committing. For those of you who don't know I am practically blind without my glasses and since I have already lost a pair of glasses to diving into water, I had to do this jump partially blind. We stepped up to the edge, memorized where all the jagged rocks were below us, and started the prejump prayers. Being to polite Canadians that we are we allowed another jumper to go first. Now you may be thinking that this is pretty crazy, but you are able to rationalize that the only way you will die is if you slip... because that way you won't have the force to clear the rocks. So a little more comfortable with the idea we watched the last jumper go and what do you suppose should happen?... He slipped at the last second... but he managed to regain his footing and prevent himself from falling. At this point you just have to accept that there is a level of lunacy that comes with being a backpacker... and you throw yourself over the edge. It was quite an adrenaline rush... and as Terry recommended really made you feel like you were living each moment and just giving it! (be aware that my mom won't be to happy with you now Terry... haha) But this is only the beginning of this crazy blog entry... so get comfortable.
Okay so this is where the secret is let out... since I decided that I was joining Amanda on this trip we had been planning a few activities that were must do's while over here. And for those of you who were already informed... yesterday (our Christmas Eve) we willingly jumped out of an airplane at 14,000 ft! The reason I kept it a secret was for sanity sake. You have seen the amount of posts our parents (especially my mom) post on here, so I decided that rather than stress my family out with the worry I would wait until I landed to tell them. Good news... I landed. The experience in itself was unbelieveable and definitely something I recommend you do. It is a bit expensive and definitely but a dent in the wallet, but make sure that you ask to see our videos when we get back to Canada, they sum up the experience fairly well!
Aside from the adrenaline Amanda and I have tried to make this Christmas away from home as normal as we possible can given the conditions. Last night we hung up our ankle sock stockings and thankfully Santa was able to find us even in the hostel... so we are both convinced that we must have been pretty good this year. First thing this morning we opened our stockings and then we exchanged the gifts that we had got one another... all of which had to be useful and packable... and under the thrifty $10 budget... whoever said Christmas needs to be about the money and gifts haven't experienced a backpacker Christmas.
For lunch today we signed up for the hostel lunch which had chicken and stuffing, salad and ... the crackers that you pull and pop to get the little toy and colourful crown. And tonight we are serving up some lazy man's cabbage rolls (found some sour kraut)... and Amanda's immitation Pistacchio salad? I'll let you know how that works out.

Anyways Take care everyone and I hope you all enjoy you Christmas!
Ryan and Amanda

Whitsundays/Cairns

Alright so here is another of our much anticipated blog entries. So the last time we wrote we were in Rainbow Beach working at the surf school. Since that time we have ridden a couple of buses that I will discuss briefly in a short while. First on the 15th we hopped on a bus at 7pm and were headed to Airlie Beach, which for those of you who have consulted your maps is about a 14 hour bus ride. Luckily it was a night trek so we did our best to sleep on the journey... although we highly recommend that you pack a sleeping bag on board like Amanda did so that you don't freeze your butt like I did (although me trying to keep warm in the fast drying towel that Michelle bought me was quite a site in itself).
We arrived in Airlie Beach and immediately stopped in at the local Chemist (Pharmacy) and purchased some heavy duty bug spray because Justin had been warning us about all of the bed bug sightings in Airlie. We checked into our Deluxe Cabins (not sure why we got the upgrade - although I claim it's my superior interpersonal skills) with a fridge and a bathroom!! The next morning we got up early to make sure that we had everything in order for our sailing trip (ie. had to make sure we purchased our matching captain hats for those who have already looked at the photos of the trip). We boarded the boat and we were off 'sailing' via motor.
The first day of our Whitsunday sailing trip was fairly uneventful as it constituted getting to our anchor point so that we could set up for the night. They served us fish and potatoes (really good food... even Amanda ate the seafood centered meal). The next morning we woke up and headed over to Whitehaven beach. The pictures of this beach do not do it justice. It is absolutely beautiful with some of the whitest sand I have ever seen (90%+ silica content we were told - some of this sand went into the creation of some high power telescopes used by NASA if I am not mistaken). We then got on board so that we could go around the corner and check out the view from a look out (this is where most of our pictures are from). Oh and the wetsuits we are wearing in some of the pictures are there to protect us from the 'stingers' - the waters are ladden with jelly fish... not that we saw too many though. The lookout also provided beautiful scenery as we could see several beaches and islands, while having a chance to see mantarays and stingrays below... very cool.
After the lookout we geared up in the wetsuits again so that we could go and do some snorkeling (first time for me). I thought that without my glasses I would not get to enjoy it as much as others, but the fish swim right up to you uninhibited (I like to believe that they knew I was practically blind). We saw so many different shapes, sizes, and colours of fish and coral... very beautiful again. And on the plus side Amanda had a chance to save my life. There was a tiny jelly fish swimming near us and she instinctively pushed me out of the way (though she won't fully admit it yet) of danger (since I was practically she didn't think I would be able to see the danger - but I could see it... which makes it even funnier).
Following the snorkeling it was an early night as we were starting to feel the effects of a few days at sea... and the physical exersion of snorkeling as well. The next morning we woke up early because we had the option of going snorkeling again... an opportunity we both took. This time we managed to see a sea turtle in it's natural habitat (which has been Amanda's agenda since I have arrived here in Australia). We also saw a clam, more fish and coral (which was much more unique that the previous days). To our surprise when we got back on the boat and were talking to other snorkelers we found out that about 20 meters from us was a real life shark... not a considerably deadly one, but a shark all the same (daredevils... living life on the edge... as much as our mothers hate it... ha ha). The rest of that day was spent cruising back to port and then we said our goodbyes to the friends we had made... specifically Jackie our Scottish cop friend.
The next morning we boarded our bus (which we save $100 on) only to find out that as of that point we would be making the 10hour trip without air conditioning. So while you were all suffering in -40 degree weather we were suffering in +40 degree weather. After about three hours of this our new driver said enough is enough and forced the company to call in a replacement bus... be sure to ask Amanda and I about some of the new characters we met on this bus trip... very interesting people.
Anyways we arrived in Cairns after 11 hours on the bus and we checked into our dorm room to find out that there were six bed in a very spacious room... but none were occupied... the room was spotless and we had our own fridge! We also have control of the air conditioner and the ceiling fan!!! As of today we have had the room to ourselves for the past two nights and it has been glorious... we hope that it will stay like this at least until Christmas, which we will be spending here (no cabbage rolls this year though since they don't seem to know of sourkraut or sour cabbage - but we will make adjustments to the menu all the same).
So in the event that we don't post any time soon... Merry Christmas to all of you and a Happy New Year from your family/friends abroad. Don't stop thinking of us for a minute! Seriously Santa could be watching. Take care... and yes we do miss you all.

Quick update

Alright a quick update for our faithful readers... we honestly can't say how amazed we are to hear how often some people check our blog... very flattered. Anyways for the past week we have been hanging around in Rainbow Beach - only at a new location. We have been working a few hours each day in exchange for free accommodations at a local surf school. We get free breakfast, laundry, internet and use of surfboards/bodyboards. Which brings me to the main reason for this blog entry. Yesterday Amanda and I went out with some surfboards (soft ones - better for beginners). And much to our delight we had no problem riding the waves... but the major highlight was the fact that we both got up and rode at least one wave until the very end!!! So we are just writing to let you all know that we will be joining the Australia surf tour in the new year... haha... take care and keep warm in you -40 weather... not to brag but +36 today.

Ryan and Amanda

Update

Ok all so it is time for us to update you on all that we have been up to this past while. First off we put up some new pictures and likely more will follow soon once we get more internet time. (but if you don't mind leave a comment under one of the pictures to help make Amanda's day... right now the one about the flashlight from a random stranger has left us a little confused) Anyways back to our trip. So the last post we had done the whole dolphin thing and after our busy start to our time in Rainbow Beach we decided to take a few days and just relax before we went on our 3 day excursion to Fraser Island. So on the 5th we were put into our travelling group of 11 people and thrown into the back of a landcruiser (fairly roomy) and set off on journey. If you take a look at the picutres you'll notice all the pictures of the beach and a big white truck on it... those were the driving conditions and that was our vehicle. The scariest thing is that it is a beast of a machine to start off with, it's a standard (but all the gears are on the left side) and you need to drive it on the left hand side of the road (or beach) and they let both Amanda and I drive the thing. In our defense we did not stall or get stuck in the thick sand! It was loads of fun.
So now for the trip. Essentially you just catch a ferry over to the sand island and you spend three full days travelling seeing the sights (ie. Lake Mackenzie - beautiful white beach with crystal clear water; Champagne Pools - a grouping of rocks that have the waves crash over them essentially creating paddling pools; Shipwreck - a giant ship that had just crashed on the island and has been left there to rust and for the photo ops.; the Pinnacles - a large hill that demonstrates some of the many colours of sand that we have been experiencing in our time here), Lake Wabby - after you walk for a half hour through what we dubbed the Sahara you stumble upon a fresh water lake that has you thinking it's a bit of a mirage). Aside from all of the traveling to all of these amazing sights you also get to cook your own food over a gas stove and set up camp (tents) in the middle of the beach, often just behind a slight dune that offers protection from the wind.
However, by far the best part of this trip was our group. When you spend that much time in a truck you hope that you end up with a good group and luckily we did. There were four girls from Scotland (easily some of the funniest people that we have met on this trip and in general). Three people from Ireland (best drivers and scariest cooks - almost set camp on fire! haha). A girl from England (one of the most organized). And a guy from Italy (one of the most interested people - absorbs everything around him).
Other than that there isn't much more to add. We are planning on working here in Rainbow Beach for a week starting on Wednesday. As for our plans after that we plan on making many of those decisions today so check back soon Yah hear!

Rainbow Beach

Alright so we figured that since we have changed locations that it might be time that we updated our blog. We are now officially in Rainbow Beach. The town is great and it is the closest that we have felt to being back home since we've been here. It is a small community where everyone knows everyone and the internet at the local library is free. We settled in here on Friday night with the intention of staying a few nights. The hostel is relatively clean and if you get up at ridiculously early hours like myself you get free PANCAKES which are surprisingly a luxury at this point. On Saturday one of our new friends Niki from England convinced us to go on a Camel walk on the beach with her. I will admit that my opinion of the creatures has changed a bit since the zoo experience. In the event that I didn't post that experience the camel at the zoo was giving me shifty eyes and foaming from the mouth... not exactly the kind of animal that you want to take home with you... but the camel ride itself was amazing we got to ride on Aulley (the biggest camel weighing in at 980kg - we assumed that we were given the strongest camel because I was riding it with Amanda - don't tell her but I've got her on a strict no carb diet... lol) After the camel nearly through me off the front we were off at a blistering pace. We have a bunch of pictures and it is definitely something you can't do everyday (which has been our motto thus far). The following day (Sunday) we went sea kayaking which is essentially kayaking out into the middle of the ocean and checking out the marine life... we saw a school of fish and just as the group had lost hope of seeing other life the dolphins appeared and gave us a bit of a show. We paddled back in record time (not that anyone else knew that we were racing them - it's a great workout Justing -- at least that's what I kept trying to convince myself of). For the rest of the day we just chilled out and read... that's right we have both picked up reading since being thrown into this unfortunate isolation. Having already finished a book each we are both engrossed in a second one. It's quite amazing the things you can find to entertain yourself when not surrounded by computers/tvs/cellphones and the lot. Today for those of you who have forgotten (*hint hint) is my birthday (in Australia time so you still have time to send wishes if you are in Canada -- j/j) so I got to choose the activity so we went over to Tin Can Bay and fed the Dolphins (so cool). Which means trying to top this birthday next year might be a bit difficult. A family of three dolphins turn up every morning to be fed... it all started many years ago when the community nursed an injured dolphin back to health and ever since then it's descendants have been turning up for fish. We got to feed two of the three (Patch the mom (who nibbled my hand when she took the fish) and Harmony (the baby), we didn't get to feed the male (Mystique)) which was so amazing to be up close and personal with wild dolphins. I think that is all for now as we are off to continue celebrate today. Hope to get in touch with some of you very soon as we have made some potential plans to stay around Rainbow beach for a while. We talked to the owner of the sea kayaking company and it appears that he hires backpackers to do a few hours of labour at his farm in exchange for accommodations. So we will be living virtually free for the next two weeks, after we return from our 3day/2night safari to Fraser Island (the largest sand island in the world). Until next time, Ryan and Amanda.

Australia Zoo

Well I had the opportunity to head over to the Steve Irwin Zoo the other day. It was insane eventually I will try to get the pictures up on the blog soon... until then you can check them out on my facebook account. To be brief I got to feed an elephant, pet a kangaroo and a koala, watch a tiger paint, see elephants walking in a line holding tails like they do in the Jungle book, and soooo much more. If you ever make it to Australia you need to go to this zoo it is amazing. Aside from that excitement we have just been keeping busy swimming and seeing more of the community. Today we are talking about going kayaking in the ocean... and on Friday we have booked a bus to Rainbow Beach which is where we will call home for the next bit. It gets its name from the colourful cliffs located there... apparently 72 different shades. Other than that not a whole lot of news for us to share. Take care and talk to you all soon.

Ryan and Amanda

Mooloolaba

So we are still here and enjoying ourselves. We have booked in for another week here at the hostel and it is working out good. They will take you surfing if you want, they plan activities and most nights they serve us supper for a reduced price. We have gone surfing the last two mornings... and on the second day I managed to stand up a few times for brief moments. Last night there was an activity called Goon Pong which we participated in... a lot of fun and not to toot my own horn but The Comeback Kids (my team) defeated team Jamanda (Amanda's team) in the final. Today has been a pretty relaxed day just seeing more of the city that we are staying in.