When back at Surfers Paradise, second
time during our 7 months in Australia, we took a hostel. Dan and Matt
left to Byron Bay to continue their drive back down to Adelaide from there on the afternoon
of 23rd of May.
We had absolutely no certainty of what to
do next, as finding a job at this point comes with complications.
It's off season as it is “winter”, yet it's still over-crowded
with backbackers who all have a solo-same mission – get a job. We
walked into the cheapest hostel we found online and asked for a room.
The Backbackers is pretty much in the city centre and has free wifi which is a bonus. They had two last beds left, and these
happened to be in a private room. As we would've been satisfied with
a place in a 10-people-dormroom, they gave the private room for us
for the price of the dorms. An actual bed !!! (first time in 2
months) and a little privacy in a backbackers.. sounds heavenly. We
booked it for 2 nights, found a deal – pay for 3 nights get a
fourth for free, and extended our stay for another 4 nights.
The morning after we said our farewell,
got a text from Matt and met them in a town 11 km away – Burleigh
Heads – to witness a surfing competition. Check! A lovely hot day
to lie on the grass and watch some of the best surfers in the area
compete for the title. Their cousins friend happens to be a pro
surfer and competed there too.
For traveling to and from Burleigh, we
used our good-old-favorite means of transport – hitchhiking. Has
been a while (been spoiled by having a car) – still like
clockwork. Got pretty much the first car. A father and daughter going
rock-climbing in Burleigh. Way back was bit more of a challenge.
First car was a hyper family – a mom with her skaterboy son and an
adorable little daughter. Second was a British-Australian guy who
usually resides in different parts of Asia and is especially obsessed
with Thailand, even owns a house there.
In another nearby town there was a free
music-festival “Blues on Broadbeach”. Spent our weekend-evenings
there. Caught “Mason Rack Band” and ”DIESEL” on saturday.
Both were enjoyable and so interesting to watch. Mason Rack Band put
on a proper drum show – playing on old metal barrels, but DIESEL is
simply amazing! Another recommendation from Clair and another
refreshing musical discovery.
Headed back on sunday morning and
watched “Col Finley” + co (as on the tiniest stage there was a
massive number of performers) and “Bluesville station”. Both
pretty old bands so half the crowd in The Envy Hotel was 50+. It was
a party. Lovely to watch them have the time of their lives. People go
out with their families, 3 generations together and everybody enjoys
themselves the same. In Australia age really doesn't matter, which is
a great thing. Some Europeans who think when they turn 25, they're
too old to go out and have a good time, and people who do that are
childish and immature, could take a note.
We are lazy with getting groceries,
aka, we know we need food for the morning and know we are too lazy to
go to a shop in the morning and after the concerts the shops are
closed, so, we do them in between. Never mind the 3km walk back, but we actually went to the gig in the Envy hotel with a raspberry jam in
my purse and a 2-litre bottle of milk in a bag.
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Using our beach-town-life until it lasts and go skating at the boardwalk next to the beach. Swimming in "winter" is not too bad either as the ocean is still warmer than water in Estonia most summers. |
This was one fine-cuisine-night. A tip, how not to die of hunger while backpacking in Australia. Go and buy food in Coles or Woolworth's an hour before closing time. Oh how many products with stickers aka discounted goods, aka paradise! We found this fine Jamie Oliver extra soft loaf of tomato-basil-bread discounted from 6 dollars to 2.
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Were thinking of working as
pedicab drivers. I had a job-interview for one company and could get
a job and actually totally would, if I wouldn't have to pay 300$
deposit and 400$ rent for the week. (A driver rents the cab for a
week at a time, and keeps all the cash from the passengers) Sadly I
don't have this 700$ to gamble with. Pedicab driving is always a
gamble, especially on off season, altho I actually believe it is
worth to do for some period of time, as drunk tourists tip well.
Keeping fit, collecting funny stories and actually making money all
at once doesn't sound heaps bad.
Turned down lingerie-promotion-work today. I'm not even sure
what that is, the gentleman who phoned me did not wanna specify much,
he was more interested if I have facetime or skype.
The thing is: Australia is not a
goldmine. There are so so many backbackers, all looking for a job, so
it is easy for employers to take advantage of them and farm-owners to
get free workforce and housemaids. A backbacker has to be smart. I would recommend not to come here to earn a fortune but to work (try
different jobs), and creatively-cheaply have a great time at the same
time, move on and travel until running out of savings and then work
again. That is what we do and we're having a blast.
Of course it would be lovely to earn thousands and go back to
Europe and be rich for the rest of my life, but this is not the case
here. For all the backpackers who are whining about life being hard
because of having no “great” work, and feeling disappointed in
coming to Australia... well we have managed and had hell of a great
time during these 7 previous months and come what may we are gonna
continue doing that. Australia has so much to offer, all the memories
I have already made are irreplaceable and so precious. I'm convinced coming here was one of the best ideas I've ever had.
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