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The Hulk


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Trips:

The Hulk goes Down Under!

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http://blogabond.com/mjpawlett




One night in Brisvegas!!

Brisbane, Australia


The drive up from Byron took us north from New South Wales into Queensland. Queensland is the home of the Sunshine Coast, Gold Coast and a number of other nice sounding coasts.. Before we got to Brisbane, our next destination, we had to drop off a few of our fellow travellers in Surfer's Paradise. After Surfers much to our suprise, we got the chance to do some Zorbing!!!
Those who dont know its a "sport" invented by the kiwis where you climb into a massive inflatable ball with a bit of water in then you get pushed down a big hill.. It was a very good laugh until you have to get out at the end through the really small gap you got into at the start. This can only be done by someone tipping the ball and letting you drop out. The appearance is not unlike child birth!! Once we had all been born again it was off to Brisbane.
One night was enough for me as I felt it was just another city so I wanted a bit more country air.. Oh and my bunk bed was 6000ft high and as sturdy as England's tail end!!
From Brisbane we headed further north through Steve Irwin territory and the Glasshouse Mountains(see below) up to Noosa.


permalink written by  The Hulk on December 4, 2006 from Brisbane, Australia
from the travel blog: The Hulk goes Down Under!
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Time to unpack the bags

Byron Bay, Australia


We arrived in Byron in the early afternoon and it was a chance to unpack my bags and relax as we were going to be here for 5nights. Byron Bay is the most easterly point of Australia and a bit of a party town. Luckily or unluckily for us we arrived right in the middle of Schoolies (Schoolies is when all the 17/18yr olds break up from school and just go to places like Byron and Surfers Paradise to just generally get pissed and act like tools, not unlike spring break in the states). I spent most of these few days just chilling out on the beach and watching the cricket during the day then going out drinking at night in the many clubs and bars that Byron has to offer. The most famous of these is the delightful Cheeky Monkeys which luckily was situated across the road from where we were staying!Me, 'Vinnie and Farmer Phil ate in here nearly every night as we got a deal from our hostel where we got $5 meals and cheap 3 pint pitchers of beer. Every night they would have prizes to give away and interesting competitions to win them in.. On our first night Phil managed to pip Vinnie and a number of other hopefuls in a sexual position game up on stage and managed to win himself some free surf lessons!! The highlight of their weeks activites though was the wednesday night wet t-shirt contest. Views were at a premium as the place was full of hundreds of schoolies. Me and Phil stayed for a while but it was far too busy and we couldnt see much of the stage so we left. We were however later informed that it was very entertaining by Vinnie who had spent the entire contest hanging from the roof with prime view of all the action!!


permalink written by  The Hulk on November 29, 2006 from Byron Bay, Australia
from the travel blog: The Hulk goes Down Under!
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Arrawarra Surf Camp

Coffs Harbour, Australia


After minimal sleep due to the emmense snoring capabilites of the legendary Irish Vinnie it was another early start which I was gonna have to get used to. The weather had changed from the cloudy drizzle and thunderstorms we had yesterday to beautiful warm sunshine and no clouds to be seen, time to baste up!! We were heading back to the coast for surf camp....
Just call me Kelly Slater or Laird Hamilton.. This was seriously good fun but really hard work.. As you can see from the piccies I am a natural (It may have something to do with the fact I had a surf board the size of Wales!!).
After my attempts at skateboarding when I was younger I thought it was going to be a nightmare but a little bit of effort and the fact water doesnt hurt as much as concrete and your away!!!

The weather was a bit erratic, as it was beautiful and warm when we got there, but just as we sat down for dinner one of the biggest electrical storms ive ever seen came in.. Once we'd finished eating and had about 3 power cuts we headed down to the beach to watch the storm over the sea. It was a awesome sight seeing hundreds of bolts of lightening all around..
7am start again as we were out on the water again for 8 to catch a few more waves before we headed off to the famous Byron Bay..


permalink written by  The Hulk on November 28, 2006 from Coffs Harbour, Australia
from the travel blog: The Hulk goes Down Under!
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Night Kayaking!!

Barrington, Australia


This is where my travels begin!!
After lazing around in Sydney for a month and a bit, it was about time I got out and saw some the country. Having not got up much before 11 o'clock previously while being in Oz the 5.30am start was a little harsh. Especially since i hadnt finished packing my bag until 12 the previous night.
As I'd not done anything like this on my own before i was a little apprehensive (bricking it!!), but a quick call from my bro on the train into Sydney city centre and I was now ready for a seroius road trip!! I got to the Oz Experience office nice and early (for once!!) and met up with all the people i was gonna spend the next month with..
We left Sydney behind and headed for Barrington Tops National Park ably driven by the legend Frat. Frat was not only really knowledgable about all things Australian he was a absolutely top bloke!!
On the way to Barrington we stopped off for a bit of a trek through the rainforest to break the journey up at bit. Whilst there, Frat helpfully informed us that it wasnt just the spiders, snakes, crocs, sharks, stingrays, jellyfish, cassowaries and tics that can kill you in Australia there are a certain type of tree that is lethal too!! GREAT!! These particular trees not only have the potential to kill you, they have a brilliant name too, the Gympie Gympie tree or otherwise known as the stinging tree. Their small hairs on their leaves penetrate the skin just by brushing against them and are almost impossible to get out!!! These hairs contain a very similar neurotoxin that is contained in Box Jellyfish stings. With that well in mind everyone stuck of the middle of the path for the rest of the walk...

We arrived at Barrington Tops National Park in the late afternoon and unloaded our previously aquired beer into the fridges provided. Then got down to some all you can eat pizza accompanied by a few beers for a bit of dutch courage before we started the night kayaking.
Once kitted out with our kayaks, paddles, helmets, helmet lights and buoyancy aids we headed via minibus to a spot upstream. After an interesting little walk carrying the kayaks we reached the river. When we arrived at the bank Dave the leader said that because of the thunder storms around us and the fact that there was no moonlight this was the darkest he's ever been out in. I can vouch for that as it was pitch black and all you can see was the red light on the back of his helmet!! Having done some canoeing back home I was looking forward to doing some grade 3 rapids in total darkness.. As mentioned earlier we were equipped with head mounted torches but you soon learn that its not that handy. Once the light is on every moth, mosquito, beetle and flying bug zooms straight for your face and if your lucky right into your mouth. Having had ample amounts of pizza and a few beers before we came out I was full so decided it was best without the light!! I managed to make my way down the rapids with only a couple of near misses and didn't capsize, the same couldnt be said for several of the group who went for an early bath.
After an just over an hour of kayaking we reached base camp, unloaded all our stuff in the store room, grabbed a few beers and headed for the hot tub to round off a great first day of my trip!!!


permalink written by  The Hulk on November 27, 2006 from Barrington, Australia
from the travel blog: The Hulk goes Down Under!
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Let the adventures begin!

Sydney, Australia


Sydney, October 2006.. I actually made it. I got off my fat bum and did something rather than just talking about it!!!
I spent the first month just finding my feet and exploring the city and seeing all the famous bits like the Opera House, caught the ferry over to Manly, swam at Bondi, Coogie and a couple of the northern beaches. I got to see U2 and Kanye West play at Telstra Stadium which was really good. I was also subjected to watching an A-League game between Sydney FC and Perth Glory. Oh dear, I can only assume that the A stands for arse because it was terrible, and being a saints fan that is saying something!! Just before the Ashes started I also got to meet David Boon aka Boony, the legendary aussie cricketer.

The highlight of my first few weeks out here though has to be the Habour Bridge Walk which I did with Dave, a friend from my swimming days, and his wife Jess who were luckily passing through Sydney on his way from New Zealand to India. Both me and Dave were absolutely petrified of heights but we managed to do it without messing ourselves (Judging by the photos it was probably a close call with me though!!).


permalink written by  The Hulk on October 10, 2006 from Sydney, Australia
from the travel blog: The Hulk goes Down Under!
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