Maggie Island - Part Two

That little pack he's carrying, that's how he travels around the world... HOW?

Meet Gabe, backpacker extraordinaire

Right: Lorikeets come out like crazy during sunset.  Pretty amazing to see hundreds of these beautiful birds in a tree every day.

So the universe and I, we chatted and when we were done with our bottle, I headed back after dark for some actual dinner (pizza), where I met this gal in my dorm room who was a tad crazy and wanted to find some weed and go out belly dancing.  Hm, not exactly what I had in mind.  So any way, I somehow manage to escape her for a short period of time, at least to get out of the belly dancing, was hanging out in the outdoor bar area where saw this guy with some rather large books and notebooks in front him… like he was working.  Who studies while traveling?!  But he looks similar to Bradley Cooper underneath his beard and has a very independent and free spirit – us free spirits can usually sniff each other out.  At some point, crazy and her friends were done with belly dancing where they recruited this guy to have a beer and listen to some music with them, then eventually spotted me and reeled me in.  Luckily we all start to talk about our various travels and what prompted it all (typical conversation amongst long-term travelers) and I come to find that this guy, Gabe, has some really interesting ways and reasons for his traveling.  At the hostel, he’s actually camping and he hitchhikes his way around Australia doing things on the super cheap – a real backpacker, not like the rest of us flashpackers.  He doesn’t even have a Facebook account!  Can you imagine?!  Gabe works this company where they take a small group of people into the wilderness and are out there for up to three weeks where they learn survival skills right off the bat, and it’s not the posh version of it all – it all gets rather hard-core immediately.  Essentially they go into survival mode during this vision quest and the participants keep a daily journal of how they feel, document what they did, and such.  Apparently, when you go into survival mode, your brain actually starts to operate differently and more clearly, so this becomes a spiritual journey in connecting with nature and yourself.  I gotta admit, it sounds amazing and challenging.  Transcending the mindset of the daily grind to obtain a higher consciousness of the real world around you free of ego.  Pretty awesome stuff.  I really think I should do this trek one day…  

So that night, we hang out and watch the wallabies and possums come into the campground looking for food in the grass.  I never imagined in my life that would be sitting at night watching wallabies.  It’s just not a reality for an American.  And those possums, they really are much cuter than American possums.  There was this one point in the night where there was a standoff between a possum, one of the big, local crazy looking birds, and the humans where we’re all eyeballing each other to see if any of us are going for this one bit of food on the ground.  These are the moments that make me laugh at where I am in life and in this world.

Any way, Gabe and I decide to go hiking around the island the next day so we head out in the morning after some breakfast, and one of the first places we come across is what seemed to be a clothing optional beach.  Huh.  This is not what I had expected.  But we decide to hang there any way; it was a very secluded beach with very few people there all quite dispersed over the beach, plus it was a hot day, we were already sweating a great deal so we stayed for a swim… and yes, exercised the clothing option.  Frankly, that was the first time I ever decided to go nude on a beach in broad daylight and in public, and I have to say, it was pretty liberating though I wouldn’t exercise optional clothing that often.  We’re there for about an hour sunning ourselves and swimming, all my girl bits getting a lot more sun than they use to seeing (which is none at all) and whoa!  It feels kinda good on all those bits – luckily for me I didn’t not get burnt there!  That would suck.

So we continue on with our hiking always being on the look out for koalas too because we heard that they live there in the wild.  Unfortunately, we never saw any.  We end up at another beach (clothing required), and needed to eat lunch where we decide to do something different, we ate up in a tree.  We found a nice perch with views of the ocean, got comfortable and ate lunch.  It was kinda fun!

After lunch, we continue to head to this area where there are a bunch of different look outs that the military had there for the war which is now unfortunately a but crumbly in parts but we went up in the different looks, saw some of the old cannon/big gun things, and just had a grand old time exploring the ruins. 

The following day, we both had to leave but first, I went to a koala sanctuary where they also cared for other creatures of Australia.  First up, a baby croc!  I got to hold one!  Yes, it’s mouth was tied close.  After that, I got to hold a macaw that are often seen wild throughout Australia and those are some pretty beautiful birds!  I took a chance where we were told we could feed the macaw by holding a sunflower seed between our lips – so I did.  It picked the sunflower seed from my mouth while not taking off half of my face.   Yay!!  Then I got to hold a boa constrictor, which was pretty big for me.  I am TERRIFIED of snakes, even the not dangerous ones.  Even dead ones!  I am scared of dead snakes, you read that right.  So I finally have my opportunity to hold this snake and it wasn’t so bad.  Don’t get me wrong, I was still jumping out of my skin but maintained.  I figured doing something like this was helping my snake karma and to make peace with them.  I leave them alone and they leave me alone.  No harm, no foul, right?  Then finally, I got to hold a koala!!  My childhood dream come true!!  Yeah, yeah, I know they look all cute and cuddly but are actually crazy, savage creatures who want to be left alone, but here, I got a nice sleepy one that was relatively tame.  Thing is, I couldn’t hold it and stroke it’s fur at the same time.  For holding it, I had to pretend that I was a tree, holding one position while I had my picture taken.  And then to pet it, I had to wait until the trainer was holding it.  Not exactly a super soft creature, but dry and fluffy is more like it.  I also got to hold a bunch of different lizards including one that resembled something like having pinecone skin.  Pretty cool.

Now on the pictures of the trainer, you’ll notice two scratches on her face.  Those come from the beauty that she’s holding which apparently scratched her the day before.  It’s one of those kinds that has that big fan thing around its neck that opens up when provoked and such.  Kinda scary looking to me.  Definitely not ever going to hold one of those.  I did hold the one lizard that's on the right though, the one that looks like a lizard mated with a pinecone and a rock, yeah, that one.

Soon after, it was time to take off for the ferry where I met up with Gabe and we headed to the bus to first go see about feeding rock wallabies.  We find out where and head out there during sunset with food in hand and those are some super cute, little things!  They’re like tiny kangaroos but they live in the big boulders there, thus rock wallabies.  We take out our food and have small handfuls to give them, at first throwing it in front of us until we realized we could feed them from our hands.  Super cute and harmless little things who are a tad skittish around humans.  After that, off to our ferry and back to the mainland where we parted ways, him hitchhiking and I stayed in town to head south. 

It’s people like Gabe that make traveling worth it all.  Under normal circumstances I likely would never have met him and I’m so glad that I did.  He is one of the truly unique characters in the world that is making his own way in the world and has such a different perception of the world and nature.  I'd love for him to meet some friends of mine that are on similar wavelengths and to just be a fly on the wall to listen to all the things they discuss!  Perhaps one day...  the universe does have a funny way of working.  That I truly believe.

Recommend:

Here’s one of the companies that Gabe works for… riteofpassagejourneys.org

Magnetic Island - Part One

No, that's not me.  I have no idea who these people are.  

I found a post I initially started while in Australia, so this is what I originally wrote:

While I got a late start to traveling in Australia, I soon headed to Maggie Island and was not super excited even though I heard it was great.  One can do a lot of hiking, see koalas in their natural habitat, feed wallabies, go to a koala sanctuary where you can hold a koala along with a croc (though not at the same time), snorkeling, etc., etc.  But I was feeling a bit like I was just going through all these expensive tours and just needed a break from it all (even though me going to Maggie was a tour package thing, so…..).  Blame it on the fact that I’m tired of traveling, want a down day, and am feeling a bit jaded.  So far, a lot of the places that people say are amazing and beautiful, I’ve felt I’ve seen better.  Yeah, like I said, I’m feeling a bit jaded and I KNOW that I should be feeling grateful to be in such a beautiful place.  So, I arrive via ferry and suddenly, I AM excited.  It’s a larger island filled with so many different coves/bays, trails, snorkel sights, 4-wheel driving, etc.  I arrive at my hostel, the Horseshoe Bay YHA Backpackers Hostel, and find it to be quite nice.  Lots of outdoor spaces, a large kitchen, a good menu, clean, cool little bungalows for a dorm.

I checked in and then immediately saw signs that we could not bring outside alcohol there which kinda sucks as alcohol is quite expensive in Australia and I had brought two bottles of wine that I could enjoy there and I sure as hell was not going to be lugging them back with me to the mainland.  Instead I decide to take my bottle over to the bay and watch the sunset, eat cheese, hummus, and read book 2 from the Game of Thrones series.  I realize that sitting there was the first time that I truly felt calm and relaxed in a while since leaving Asia.  Don’t’ get me wrong, I loved New Zealand, but I didn’t find the inner peace that I was looking for, possibly because I was always on the move and on such a short schedule there.  And then here, sitting on the beach and just watching the sunset, I was.  And it’s not just any beach that I feel that way on, because I’ve been to a lot of beaches, and they’re not all the same, but something about this place drew me in. 

I literally sat there from 5pm-8pm just looking at the water and reflecting on life.  My life.  What I am doing here.  What I want in this life and from my travels.  What I desire for the future.  And really, just being present, having a straight-forward conversation with the universe hoping it’s listening (perhaps I've gotten a little crazier while out on the road).  It was also one of those times that I realized, I am alone.  Not like, “oh, I’m so lonely.  I have no one!”.  No, not one of those.  I certainly don’t feel sorry for myself or “alone”.  But I am traveling through the world and really, not one person knows where I’m at at any given time.  I have no one to report to and no one expecting me.   There are a few times in my life where I have really felt the weight of what that really means.  The first time was when I decided to do summer school at university.  I was walking to the grocery store through some alley, and no one was around and I was a tad bit scared.  That’s when I realized that if something were to happen to me, no one would know for at least several days, assuming my boyfriend at the time would think something was wrong when I didn’t call him for a few days.  Other than that, it would probably be a few more weeks for someone to notice.  Another time was when I was walking through some rainforests in Washington while on a solo road trip and I was several miles away from a main road in the middle of no where let alone from another human being... and it was snowing so no one's going out driving.  While there have been a few other times, it’s always a moment of clarity in my life.  I honestly feel like my soul is bared to the universe somehow and feel at my most real and raw self. Perhaps that’s when I feel more at one with nature and the universe.  And today, I honestly just sat there watching the palm trees swaying and being present and REALLY watching them, felt like I was witnessing something great.  While many of you may think, “Great, April’s gone loco and is watching wind passing through palm trees.   Is that all she’s doing out there??”  Well, yes.  And no.  I’m witnessing life.  And truly appreciating its essence.  I’m tellin’ ya, it’s often those times when I’m really alone and all of my typical stimulations/stresses are far away that I have more moments of clarity of what I really want in this life…. sometimes, it’s just the wine talking, but I swear I was having a moment with the universe – we like to chat every now and then… and yes, often times over drinks.  I know the universe is listening or I wouldn't be sitting here out in the world typing this.

 After having a lovely chit-chat with the universe (you know, no big deal), an older gentleman approaches me, sits down on the bench with me, and we start chatting.  He tells me he’s from what is formerly known as Carthage.  WHO is from Carthage?  I just remember it to be some place that fought during the Roman empire (and of course I only know that from the movie “Gladiator”).  And to show my true stupidity, I have no idea what country he's still from because I have no idea where Carthage formerly was.  Sounds like a jeopardy question to me.  Any way... We mostly talk about travels, the economy, civilizations collapsing throughout history, and so on.  Really interesting stuff!  At some point he asks me what ethnicity I am and if I meditate.  My reply to him is, “uh, no, not yet”.  He says he can teach me how, but then I mention to him that I’ve been drinking which I knew you are not supposed to meditate while under the influence of stimulants and such…  though would have been interesting to have him teach me meditation… but even more interesting that he doesn't realize a lot of women don't wander off with strangers to their home to "meditate" after a fairly brief conversation.  Then again, I have taken far worse leaps of faith with people I've known in shorter time, nor their name, so I guess it's not that weird.  Any way, he’s been living here on the island and throughout Australia since the 70’s and was reminiscing when there were only two houses in Horseshoe Bay and about the old days on the island, smoking grass, and drinking.  Sounds like a good time back then!  Such a lovely gentleman really.  My kind of people.   I think I just could be in the right place.

Technicolor Dreams

Corona never tasted so good as after being submersed in ocean water all day 

Out of Cairns, I had signed up to go out on this huge catamaran and do intro scuba diving along with some snorkeling.  Now, I don’t exactly go sharing this with that many people, but I have a bit of (HUGE!) fear of swimming in the ocean.  It’s not like I’m not a strong swimmer because in general, I am a strong swimmer.  It’s what’s IN the ocean that scares me, especially in a place like Australia - sharks (including great whites), stingers, sting and manta rays, coral, big fish that look like they could eat me for lunch, the abyss, etc.  All I can envision is being down in the water admiring the colorful coral and fish and seeing a massive shark come over the coral from the big drop down into the big, deep, blue ocean and me freaking out and it eating me in several bites while I’m fully conscious.  Yes, this is what goes through my head.  I’m a disaster.

But first thing’s first, I had to be able to learn how to even breathe underwater!  After some instruction and all our gear is on, we jump in and hold on to this rope underwater that goes across the back of the boat to practice breathing, then practice popping our ears.  One thing is certain; the brain has trouble at first reconciling that you can even breathe underwater, so I had quite a bit of anxiety once I was in the water.  Eventually, I learn to breathe normally (if that’s what one can even call it), calm down, and then we decided to start exploring... while the guide literally holds my hand.  Yes, he held my hand.  And then had to put more weights on me because apparently, I'm quite buoyant.  Go figure.  Me and my big American ass.  Buoyant.  Yep.  Sounds about right.

Can I tell you?  Diving is truly one of the most incredible things I’ve ever experienced.  It was like learning to swim all over again but in a massive and surreal aquarium.  I’ll never forget when I really learned how to swim as a child, it was in my Italian neighbor’s pool and I was finally by myself in there after many swim lessons that I hated.  I remember holding my breath underwater and then I opened my eyes - it was if there was a whole other world down there.  I began to move my arms and legs and next thing I knew, I was swimming.  After that, no one could ever get me out of the pool.  So diving was like that, but in the worlds most beautiful aquarium where schools of the most exotic, colorful fish would swim up and around me, the most colorful coral created it’s own world in the water, the anemones and tiny coral and such were like plant like – it truly is like being in another universe like in ‘The Wizard of Oz’ where Dorothy lives in a black and white world, then when she wakes up Oz (or in my case, Aus), and everything is in Technicolor.  

Yes, this is the one and only picture I have from my first diving experience.  I didn't want to rent a camera for $40 for the day so this is one my old, crappy iPhone could stitch together.  Sorry!