Fraser Isand....sports bra required!

Hello there!

Right...up at silly o'clock and I was not ready for this. As you can imagine the packing was somewhat haphazard the night before and I'm not sure I've packed all I need. Oh well...

We meet up for more safety stuff, a look around the controls of the vehicle and it seems I'm the only lady that wants/is old enough to drive. We pack up the vans, no mean feet when everyone is totally nackered and doesn't know eachother. The girls go off to get some breakie for everyone and we nearly miss the ferry...Benny Hill style race to the port with the older German, Maurice driving  who won't put his bloody foot down. Everyone shouts at him and this starts off the bossing of boys for the trip. He...he.

So the morning is pleasant as we all get to know eachother...2 girls from Leeds, 2 Irish (no way!), the 2 Germans who are traveling separately and the Japanese guy. Maurice is going to be 30 the following day so we're all in high spirits and want to make a fuss of him cos it's a long way from home to have you're 30th on you're own. Maurice continues to drive through the sandy tracks of this amazing forest and I notice he doesn't come out of second gear. The engine is squealing and the guys in the back are getting thrown around like peas in a drum. I now know what I failed to bring...the sports bra. There is a certain amount of pain.

We go for a walk through the woods...we come to a lake and I'm the only one brave enough to go for a swim. Crystal clear fresh water surrounded by forest and sand dunes...how could you not! Then the girls say someone else should have a go at driving and I pipe up straight away. I take the wheel.....and find 3rd gear.... Whhhooooo oooohooooooooooooo!!! And the girls are loving it! They 're laughing their heads off as they're bouncin around, but the difference is I tell them if there's a really big bump coming up. Maurice is not happy and I find this quite amusing. I get everyone singing silly camp songs and this really pisses him off cos people are enjoying my driving far more. He...he. Tough.

The next thing we know we've come on to the beach and it's time to let rip. No, I did not exceed the speed limits...although there was a certain amount of camping gear flying around the van. We come to a washed up ship wreck and stop with the other teams (of which there are 2) to take photos. Enter the ITALIANS. These guys were desperate to be in our group right from the beginning and if you've ever met a group of young Italian men you'll know why. They'd been buggin us all day. Had actually chased us down the beach and the girls were having none of it. It's fairly alarming to nice English girls when a rowdy load of Italians are trying to flirt in their particular way. I on the other hand thought they looked like a bit of fun!!

So I went round the back to get a good pic of the shadows this thing made on the sand...and round the corner charge 3 Italians with a camera asking me to take their photo...instead of this they pick me up, kiss me on the cheek, take a pic of me in their arms and introduce themselves!!!Like a flustered and rather flattered bashful English rose (yeah right) I giggle school girl fashion in fits and go tell my mates who are getting similar treatment two seconds later. FABULOUS!!! The lads in our group are none too pleased.

We make camp with the other teams and cook some slightly dodgy bbq food. The lads are rubbish at the camping thing and so the ladies seem to be doing everything. I try to get the young German lad Andreas, and the Japanese lad, Cosy chatting but there are language issues and none of these guys seem to laugh at my jokes. I spend the evening chatting to the very amusing Italians who do laugh at my jokes and manage to irritate Maurice some more. He...he.

Sun 22nd Oct

No way! It's raining....looks like I don't take the good weather with me and right when I'm bloody camping too! Bother!! Everyone is feeling a little dehydrated today and the Italians look miserable. They follow us down the beach again and still the girls in my team are a little frosty even though I say they're absolutely lovely and no harm at all. 

Andreas drives...bless him he's only about 21 and we get stuck in the sand. And there's a lot of eyeball rolling from the girls. Unfortunately the wind is seriously sandblasting us as we dig ourselves out and ....I'm off to cook dinner...sorry! More when I get to Cairns xxx

In Cairns now and back on the blog, sorry for the interruption to your program.

Oh yes....so we were getting sandblasted and this is not that much fun. There is a certain amount of camaraderie...but it doesn't make up for the crappy weather. We finally get out and begin to move off just as we see a family in a 4x4 get stuck in the same place. Of course...we groan and get out to help. All of us except...yep you've guessed it...Maurice. Now that's no way to endear yourself to the ladies mate.

He actually sat in the front of the van whilst everyone else got out to help this family. Birthday or no birthday...this guy is a bit of a T**T. The Irish girls are showing the extent of their colorful language when mentioning him and this is making me laugh a lot. I tell Maurice that the family say thanks for his help. This goes straight over his head perhaps because he's German and has no sense of humor but mostly I think because he's a T**T.

The next debarcle comes in the form of camping position wars. The all Ireland team seems to have taken all the space in the camping area for that night so we have to find another place before the tide comes in and we get swept away. This debate goes on for about an hour with the girls going belistic at the boys and finally taking the keys off Andreas and saying "Shelley! You drive!" I'm only too pleased as it's a painful language barrier with this lot.

We find a great place up the beach, raz back to tell the Italians where it's nearly coming to fisticuffs with the Irish and try to explain the plan.

"Luigi...tell Memo and Ricado to come up the beach to the next site. There's a small green sign, turn into the dunes there.", "Eh?" says Luigi. I repeat more slowly. Luigi hangs his arms in the window and gives me what he thinks is a very sexy smile. "Eh?" .Meanwhile the tide threatens to trap us all in the now very volatile and testosterone filled first camp or sweep us out to sea. There now ensues a lengthly dicussion along the same lines as before and I make a mental note never to bother to get an Italian to do anything quickly and without flirting.

Eventually we get a fantastic camp set up and it seems we've got the best people with us too. I become extremely bossy (no, not you surely!)  cos I'm fed up with all the chit chat and and the tents are even placed in a nice neat semicircle. ( Lib..you'll appreciate the importance of such things. And you Rachel!). I'm a happy lady and feeling very smug that we have the best camp.

And now starts a long and very happy night of drinking and party games. I make everyone get up and do the holding hands and turning inside out game. The Italians love this cos they get to touch people. And this ends in a massive bundle and silly picture taking. Sometime later the Italians do a strip tease with cowboy hats and the games end with everyone in a line doing head massages. I dodge the advances of a Swiss guy who I thought was gay, Shelley (another one) doges the advances of Maurice and we all dodge the advances of the Italians. Twas perhaps the best night I've had in Aus and I will remember it, well most of it, for many many years!

Mon 23rd Oct

Got up feeling strangely fine considering...forgot to mention we saw a dingo the night before and I kept thinking all it'd nicked my flipflops whilst I was asleep. Thank god...it was brilliant sunshine. Spent the morning sunbathing whilst we waited for the tide to recede enough to drive on the beach.

The Italians are traveling with a lovely girl called Illaria and she hates going to the loo alone for fear of dingoes. I notice the Italians take her each time and stand guard. These guys must make their mamas so proud..they are such sweet lads despite the constant flirting. I make a mental note not to judge Europeans by their reputations (well, maybe just the Germans!)

We go to another lake and swim. Maurice is in a right mood after Shelley didn't want to look at the stars with him last night. As if! And all too soon it's time to get on the ferry back to Hervey bay. I take over the driving as we're late and Maurice makes a big fuss and demands to be in the front. He holds on to the bar next to me in proper meladramatic fashion and everyone rolls their eyes at h8im.

Back at the hostel we have a big round of hugs and kisses with the Italians and they promise to email that picture of us at the shipwreck. It's so sad to see them go, they really were much fun. There's not so much hugging and kissing with our boys and I hope they didn't see the Irish girls turning up their noses. I spend the evening with the girls after possibly the best shower in the world, the removal of sand from places you don't imagine it can go and collapse contented into deepest sleep.