The Wonder from Down Under
- olivia92356
- Apr 17
- 17 min read
Everything is so hot… the sun… the sand on my feet… the men. Just kidding, the male situation is overhyped here. I almost feel bad for Australian men, how could any of them possibly live up to the bare foot, built, sun-kissed, surfer stereotype? Reality check: finance bros are everywhere…
Anyway, I’ve already digressed.
Australia is the farthest place I could go from home (18,411 km away) but the sense of familiarity in every city I went to hit me in a surprising, comforting and inviting way. Each place I went to reminded me of somewhere I had already been.
The charm of the small towns just hours away from Perth made me feel nostalgic thinking about small town Ontario and all the places my mom loves to find and explore. The hustle and bustle of Sydney is a perfect match to Toronto’s liveliness. The gold coast – where cityscape meets beach was like walking through South Beach in Miami.
The one place that felt new to me personally was Cairns which is probably why it was my favourite place in Australia.
Now that I’m writing this, I do think I moved through Australia a bit fast, but I don’t regret it. I’m not chasing something familiar, I want the culture shock of Asia, I want the challenges that I won’t face in the Western world so looking back I know I made the right decision for how I moved through Australia.
It just means one day I’ll be back.
West Coast - Perth, Margaret River, Augusta
Perth
Let’s start with my first hostel experience ever, quite a humbling experience to say the least.
I landed in Perth at 5 AM after about 2.5 days of travel to get there from Kilimanjaro Airport, including an 8 hour layover in the Singapore Airport. Lucky me… I had top bunk, single bed of course, had to make my own bed in pitch black trying not to make a sound because someone was asleep in the bunk below. This bunk bed looked like it was 30 years old, it made noises every time I moved and there was no plug near me to charge any of my things, so my only option was to climb back down and plug in all my shit on the floor.
As far as hostels go, knowing what I know now, this wasn’t the worst, but it was damn close. The staff didn’t really give me the rundown on anything when I arrived, to be fair it was 5AM but they at least could have told me where breakfast is, how I get dishes, etc, etc. Honestly anything would have been helpful.
The most honest way I can describe this hostel was like walking into a party where everyone knows each other and you don’t know a single person.
Across most of Australia I ran into a lot of people who were staying for extended periods so most of the time the dorms were a mess, people were less social because they had made their friends already, had a routine they were sticking too and didn’t really go sightseeing… OR they were French and were unimpressed that me as a Canadian can’t speak French. I just found that I was on a different trip than most, I wanted to make the most of everyday because I wasn’t going to be there for 6 + months.
I must say it really surprised me how many people spent their whole day inside… everyday, but at the same time they were dressed up like they had somewhere to go. Then every night people partied and just looked for their next drunk hookup.
Safe to say I got comfortable doing things alone really fast, which is good cause this is what I signed up for!
So, what did I do with my time while in Perth??? Let’s chat about it.
The overall impression Perth left me with was a relaxed city atmosphere that was lively but not chaotic. I walked A LOT here, I took a really nice walk around the city, did some shopping because I lost another pair of sunglasses, then headed towards Kings Park and the Botanical Gardens.
What I loved was how many people were just outside, walking around, enjoying the view, picnicking in the park, it was such a lovely place to just sit and enjoy nature. Kings Park was great, the locals utilize the space so well, there was live music, movies in the park, outdoor restaurants and more, it makes me wonder why Toronto doesn’t utilize our parks like that!!! After a long day of walking I decided to catch a movie in the park and saw the Housemaid, I think I was the only person there who was alone.
I also explored around Elizabeth Quay, hit up a local brewery on the water and did one of my favourite solo travel activities… eavesdropping and people watching (I admittedly spend way too much time doing this). Anyway, I’m listening to this guy we will call Chad (I’m assuming his name is something like that) complain about this ex-girlfriend Chrissy, who sounded like a nightmare… but my God, so did he. I would have thought he was my age after hearing his stories, but when I turned around to finally get a look at this guy he was in his 50s which made me a good chuckle. This was one of those times where the familiar feeling hit me again, I was sitting here listening to conversations that I have heard at home, whether it was relationship drama, or political controversy or investing in local businesses.
Perth ended up being exactly what the doctor ordered after Africa, it was calm, outdoorsy and restorative. I spent time writing my blog post for Kenya and Tanzania and watched a beautiful sunset that felt like the perfect reset.
On a more personal note, my skin has decided to become public enemy number ONE, I didn’t care much in Africa because I was in the middle of no where, but being in a place surrounded by fashion, beautiful people and not a lot of traveller backpacking types, I suddenly cared a bit more here.
Sites & Activities
· Kings Park & Botanic Gardens
· Moonlight Cinema
· Hay Street Mall
· Elizabeth Quay
· Queen Elizabeth Quay Bridge
Accommodation
· Billabong Backpackers Resort
Restaurants (I’m the worst at collecting restaurant names)
· The Island
Margaret River & Augusta
Margaret River could have given Cairns a run for its money on my favourite destinations list in Aus. It was such a quaint, charming and incredibly beautiful.
Although you absolutely need a car if you want to see anything but the main strip so I’m very glad I rented one because I had the best two days here and only drove on the wrong side of the road once (woohoo!!).
It was fun, I felt alive and was genuinely enjoying my own company as I explored as much as I possibly could of what this region had to offer.
Let’s start with where I stayed – this isn’t a hostel town so I stayed in the cutest little guesthouse that I would recommend to anyone. It was the perfect location, about a 5-minute walk from the town strip, close to the bus stop, car rentals, restaurants, grocery stores, shops, the list goes on and on.
Something about the Margaret River region that amazed me was how many caves are there, from what I remember I think the tour guide said there’s over 100 in the region. So of course I had to explore at least one. I picked Lake Cave which was incredible because there’s a lake 65 m down at the bottom of the cave (hence the name)! After that I filled my time with other popular tourist attractions in the area. I drove through Boranup Forest and made my way down to Augusta, the most Southern point I can go and where the Southern and Indian Ocean meet and to see at the Cape Leeuwin Lighthouse.
Of course I made time to go to the beach, so I went to Hamelin Bay Beach and finished my first book of the year – Perks of Being a Wallflower – shout out Brooke and her love of this book. On my last morning, I stopped at the cutest bakery, grabbed a snack and headed to the airport to get to the east coast!
One thing I have reflected about is that feeling when you walk into a restaurant alone. Some people look; the hosts often look surprised when you say table for one. I get that at home all the time, so it wasn’t anything new here. But getting used to different customs takes time… a lot of places I went to in Aus you either order yourself online through a QR code or you have to place your order then find a table, I remember feeling awkward when I first walked into the Settlers Tavern, clearly looking confused with no one offering any support or pointing me in the right direction. Like all situations, you just figure it out, but I remember going home that night and laughing at how awkward I first felt when I walked in.
Sites & Activities
· Lake Cave
· Boranup Karri Forrest
· Augusta War Memorial
· Hamelin Bay Beach
· Cape Leeuwin Lighthouse – Augusta
Accommodation
· Bridgefield Guest House
Restaurants (I’m the worst at collecting restaurant names)
· Settlers Tavern
· Margaret River Bakery
· I picnicked a lot here so those are the only places I tried!
East Coast - Sydney, The Gold Coast, Brisbane, Cairns
The highlight of the East Coast was that I got to do most of it with my cousin Amelie. She and I got along so well, have very similar travel styles and really bonded through travel, she is such a vibrant and beautiful soul. Any chance to connect more with family is something I’ll never pass up, I feel very lucky to have been able to experience so many new things with someone I love deeply.
It was also really nice to see a friendly face, it was a much needed reset after starting off by myself, we were both a little bit nervous to jump into social situations at hostels, so it made those nerves so much easier to combat.
Sydney
If it wasn’t for the Opera House, I think I could have skipped the main city of Sydney all together. There wasn’t anything necessarily bad about it but there wasn’t anything that pulled me in either. I think my hostel probably contributed to my feelings on this because these were some of the worst sleeps I have gotten in my entire life. Between the lack of air conditioning, the level of cleanliness, and the noise it was hard for me to get any sleep.
When I landed and arrived at my hostel it was late, but public transit here was super easy to navigate the train takes you right from the airport to basically anywhere you need to go.
Anyway, I checked in at my hostel and went upstairs (this time I had sheets already on the bed, thank god) but I didn’t have a pillow. It must’ve been almost 2 am, the noise outside was unbearable, and I was so uncomfortable. I think I got 3 hours of sleep that night because the girls who were staying in my room decided to get up at 6 am and make so much noise and completely woke me up.
I decided to ask one of them if they got pillows, which I got the response – “oh yeah I did”, so I said “weird, they didn’t give me one”, and to that she replies, “oh I took yours”. To this day the strangest thing to happen to me at a hostel, she didn’t offer to give it back, so when she left the room, I hopped down and was going to steal it back, but it was sitting there where her feet would have been. So, she used my pillow for her feet.
To this day, it’s one of the strangest hostel experiences I’ve had and it always makes people laugh when I tell the story.
Despite the sleep struggle, Amelie and I met a lot of nice people at our hostel. They were a bit of a younger crowd, but we had lots of fun, went out for too many drinks and explored the sites in the city. Near the Opera House and the surrounding area truly felt like I was walking around downtown Toronto, the cityscape mixed with water scenery, the shopping malls, the corporate crowd, it felt oddly similar and I wonder if other people would agree.
Amelie and I wanted to get away from the touristy sites, so we opted out of going to Bondi beach and instead we went to Manly beach instead and had a lovely afternoon with a girl from our hostel. Manly was beautiful, a bit smaller and less busy but still full of life. They had a great market that we had to shop at and a great beach. We people watched all afternoon and swam in the waves until we couldn’t take it anymore, the waves really beat you up, all three of us regretted our bathing suit choice after that first wave hit… if you get me.
The highlight of Sydney for Amelie and I was the Blue Mountains Region; the views were breathtaking, Amelie and I thought about staying there a few nights because there’s hundreds of hikes to choose from. Due to some pre-booked travel, we didn’t end up staying but we did make the most out of our day. We rented a car to get there because the drive was over an hour. Our first stop was the Three Sisters Rock, it was less of a hike than we thought we were signing up for (its literally a 5-minute walk) so we asked the information desk to give us a good hike option, and he recommended the Grand Canyon Trail and we were so glad he did. It took us about 4 hours I think and we were in awe the entire time, we saw non-threatening wildlife (thank god), caves, cliffs, swam under waterfalls and saved the best for last, the Grand Canyon Lookout. The pictures speak for themselves, this day was one of my favourites in all of Australia.
Sites & Activities
· Sydney Opera House
· Sydney Harbour Bridge
· Manly Beach
· Kings Cross Square
· Grand Canyon Track – The Blue Mountains
· Three Sisters Rock – The Blue Mountains
Accommodation
· Mad Monkey Downtown
Surfers Paradise – Gold Coast
I think this is where I realized that I over planned, the people who know me reading this are shocked (I LOVE a good plan, I love feeling prepared).
Less than a month into my journey I’ve already modified my itinerary… the amount of people I said I wouldn’t do that too… good things no bets were placed.
The Gold Coast was the shift Amelie and I wanted because we were both tired of the city after Sydney. We also liked our hostel so much more than the one we stayed in in Sydney; we have officially decided to cancel Mad Monkey!!!!
We instantly met some great guys that we spent a couple of days with, we had another drunk night in Australia (shocker!) and we shutdown our first Karaoke bar on our trip. I sang Zombie by the Cranberries and Amelie sang Valerie by Amy Whinehouse, what came after that is unknown.
I also learned that I’m somehow awful at pickleball and that Kangaroos are on the list of animals that absolutely freak me out, they look like giant rats, and no one can change my mind on that.
The switch up in my travel plans was due to a wicked hangover so instead we went for a nice nature walk at Coombabah Lakes Conservation Area where we saw so many Kangaroos and the only wild Koala I saw in Australia! We wrapped up our short trip to the Gold Coast with an escape room and killed it!!
Overall, we enjoyed the vibe here for a short amount of time but wouldn’t have wanted to stay longer because it’s the same partying and drinking atmosphere there every night.
Sites & Activities
· Surfers Paradise Beach
· Coombabah Lakes Conversation Area
· Padlockd Escape Rooms & Bar
Accommodation
· Maze Backpackers
Brisbane
Sadly, this is where Amelie and I parted ways, she’s on her own very exciting journey! She has decided to uproot her life and move to Australia for the next 6 months (lets be honest it’ll probably be longer) so she’s trying to decide where she wants to live! But my friend (we will call him Samuel for privacy’s sake) who Amelie and I met in the Gold Coast was headed that way, so he came with me.
Because I extended in the Gold Coast to nurse my hangover, my time in Brisbane was cut short. I don’t necessarily think there’s that much to do there based on what I’ve heard so the only touristy thing I did was the Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary. I really enjoyed the sanctuary; this was one of the only times I saw Dingoes while in Australia and because they were rescues, we were able to go into the pen with them. I also got up close and personal with a Koala and fed some kangaroos.
This is where my rat theory was confirmed because they eat like rats and have rat teeth. There was one terrifying male who was straight out of a cartoon, he was jacked and was a bit of a pervert playing with his balls all the time (if you know me, you know my girls and I use the word pervert liberally so laugh about it). Maybe this is a hot take, but I think Koalas are ugly cute, they are so funny looking, but I absolutely love them.
Samuel and I also went to the movies so we could see the new Avatar Fire and Ash movie, we loved it and can’t wait to watch the next one… only 5 years away! Then we both went for a hair cut, and I chopped a lot of my hair off, honestly one of the best hair cuts I’ve gotten, that girl was so detail oriented. I wonder if this is the equivalent to a travel identity crisis as I’m finding myself and what not… kinda what this whole blog is about.
Samuel was a really nice guy who was well travelled, he and I talked a lot about Asia and he let me pick his brain with all the questions I had and gave me so many recommendations. We also talked about meeting up again if our travel paths aligned, he could have been a great friend. I really liked how casual he was about plans and travel. I think he helped me adjust my expectations away from how rigid my original plan was and allowed me to be open minded to the possibility of limited planning.
Saying goodbye to Samuel was a bit awkward, I could tell that he wanted something more than friendship even though I had been intentional about keeping things platonic. But what came next will be a story for another time.
Sites & Activities
· Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary
· Epic Hair Designs
Accommodation
· Bunk Brisbane
Cairns
So, this shocked some people, but Cairns was my favourite stop in Australia because the city felt like something new and different. Also considering my accommodation was another Mad Monkey (I know I said it was cancelled, and I promise I meant it but this was pre-booked) I was surprised I didn’t have a horror story.
I couldn’t get enough of the reef and the rainforest. Something not everyone knows about me is that I have a raging fear of the ocean and what’s under me in the water, but I couldn’t be near the Great Barrier Reef and not try scuba diving, so I put my big girl pants on and told myself I was going to conquer my fear.
I hit the ground running in Cairns, on my first night I went on a walk to explore the area around me and lock in where I needed to be for scuba diving the next morning. I saw a beautiful sunset, explored the Esplanade Boardwalk, was loving my new haircut and strolled through the night markets.
The next day was a day I’ll remember forever, not only did I see one of the natural wonders of the world, but this is also the day I starred fear down and won. I signed up for one dive and ended up signing up for another one because I enjoyed it so much. This experience was one of the coolest things I have ever done, immediately I knew I was hooked. The colours of the reef were as beautiful as a rainbow after a rainstorm. I saw the beauty of everything living under the water and started to feel my fear transform into curiosity. I was lucky enough to see a white tip reef shark, a giant clam the size of me, so many cool fish that I wish I knew the names of and some little Nemos (clown fish)!!!! I can’t believe I’m saying this as someone who has harboured this fear for YEARS, but I will definitely be getting my scuba certification when I’m in Indonesia.
I had to end Australia with a bang, so I rented my third car I think so get the absolute most of my last day. I met a wonderful girl we will call Holly (again for privacy’s sake), scuba diving and she was really kind, so I decided to put myself out there and invite her on my excursion the next day. Our itinerary was ambitious, but we had the best day.
Stop number one was Port Douglas, we got coffee, breakfast, checked out the shops, took in the amazing views on Four Mile Beach and had a morning swim, it was the perfect start to the day.
Next on the hit list was Mossman Gorge, this was such a cool place to visit! We did an easy hike to the swimming hole and had a great time swimming the rapids, the current there was so strong it almost carried us all the way down stream. After our swim we checked out the famous suspension bridge and took in the views of the water. I loved that this was fresh water (as someone who comes from the country that holds 60% of our fresh water I missed it). After the Gorge we hopped back in the car and went to our final destination of the day, the oldest Rainforest in the world… the Daintree Rainforest!!
Holly and I got so lucky, it had rained everyday for weeks except the day we decided to explore. Everything about the Daintree community wowed me, from the viewpoints to the sounds of the rainforest, I soaked up and enjoyed everything.
We started with the Daintree ferry to get across the river and then hit the Alexandra Lookout which might be equally as beautiful as the Grand Canyon viewpoint but so different, I also tried my first mangosteen and it’s officially my new favourite fruit.
We also discovered that the original Jurassic Park series was filmed here and the community really lean into it, Holly and I also discovered this series was a love we had in common! We did a Jurassic Walk before talking every single open walking trail available. We hit the Diwan, Jindalba, Marrdja, Dubuji and Kulki walking trails, which took us all the way up to Cape Tribulation.
In between all our hikes we stopped at the Daintree Icecream Co, they had a massive fruit farm that they harvested to make their homemade ice cream; the funky flavours we got were Jackfruit, coconut, wattleseed and yellow sapote. We also stopped at Masons Swimming hole and added to the rock structure collection. Masons is a freshwater swimming hole and the only place you are allowed to swim because of the crocs that are hiding everywhere.
The last stop on our journey was Cape Tribulation, the legendary spot where Reef meets Rainforest, this is the only place in the world where this happens, and I was lucky enough to get to stand on the beach between them.
We must have hit over 30 thousand steps that day, we were so happy we didn’t do a guided tour because we pulled off at so many random stops, got to talk to some locals who have lived in the Daintree Rainforest their entire lives and our lucky girl syndrome continued because we also spotted a Cassowary bird.
Before I wrap this up, I want to take a moment to share how deeply Holly’s story impacted me. Without knowing her she was someone who came across as this young 20-year-old fun party girl who was light spirited and carefree. The more we talked the more I learned and the more I came to appreciate and respect her strength and resilience. Holly is 20 years old, she lost her dad to cancer when she was very young and a year ago, she lost her mom to cancer as well.
Travelling was something Holly and her mom always talked about her doing and she knew she had to take the opportunity to make her mom proud. Her story touched me; and her spirit inspired me, she lives everyday with the kindness and curiosity her mom instilled in her. She reminded me that everyone carries struggles that are unseen.
Sites & Activities
· Cairns Night Market
· Esplanade Boardwalk
· Passions of Paradise Reef Tour
· Four Mile Beach - Port Douglas
· Mossman Gorge
· Alexandra Lookout – Daintree Rainforest
· Mason’s Swimming Hole - Daintree Rainforest
· Marrdja Botanical Walk - Daintree Rainforest
· Myall Beach - Daintree Rainforest
· Daintree Ice Cream Company - Daintree Rainforest
· Mount Alexandra Lookout - Daintree Rainforest
· Where Reef meet Rainforest (Cape Tribulation) - Daintree Rainforest
· Any I think every other walking trail available - Daintree Rainforest
Accommodation
· Mad Monkey Village
Restaurants
· Hecho En Mexico
· A sports bar on the strip that was really good (I’ll get better at remembering names)
Wrap Up
My time in Australia was short and sweet, I think in total it was 20 days. I don’t regret the pace I moved through Australia, but I will say one day I will be back to get a good look under the covers.
There’s so much more to see in this beautiful country but for the journey I’m on I want a more personally challenging environment where I’m forced to expand and change, I am grateful that I got to see the highlights and loved every moment I spent here.
With that being said I still dipped my toe into self expansion… I pushed myself outside my comfort zone with hostel living, social situations and putting myself out there. I made steps to conquer a lifelong fear of the ocean and loved every moment of scuba diving. I met people who made me reflect and made memories I will keep forever.
I know I’m supposed to talk about budget but there was no budget in Australia it’s so fucking expensive everywhere. I know that’s not helpful but it’s honest.
I’m nervous for what’s next, but I’m so excited.
Cheers Australia.
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