Kylie | See It Do It Live It

Stradbroke Island

North Stradbroke island is the second largest sand island in the world, and is located just off the coast of Brisbane. Thankfully it is quite easy to get there on public transport: a local bus to the ferry terminal, followed by a half hour ferry crossing and then another bus journey once you reach the island to take you to Point Lookout. When I got on the ferry the sun was shining, but about half way across a torrential downpour started. By the time I reached the other side, the…read more

The Glasshouse Mountains and the Hinterland

Just a few miles inland from the Sunshine Coast are a range of volcanic plugs called the Glasshouse Mountains. These are surrounded by forest, plantations, scrub and swamp. There is a scenic forest drive running through the park, with lookout points along the way. After exploring the scenery we then stopped for lunch at a restaurant with an incredible panoramic view.

A Tropical Christmas

Every year, houses all over Brisbane compete to put on the best Christmas lights display. A few days before Christmas, Jimmy and I decided to check out some of the winners. This competition is taken pretty seriously, and there are even guided tours to take you to the best spots. The houses we saw were very….festive…. and quite interesting! I will let you judge for yourself from the photos below! Some people had gone all out, and were projecting films on the outside of their house. Some were playing music…read more

When in Rome…..

….hug a koala! Laura, Carl and I spent the afternoon at the lone pine koala sanctuary where I got to hug a furry marsupial. Audrey was a beautiful 7 year old female, with very soft fur and very sharp nails. She was very alert and happily posed for the camera, with a bit of eucalyptus to encourage her. They seem to regularly rotate the koalas – apparently its hard work posing for photographs! The sanctuary is also home to a range of Australian wildlife, including crocodiles, dingos and wallabies. There…read more

Adventure may hurt, but monotony kills

Travel is said to broaden your horizons, it introduces you to new cultures and gives you the opportunity to taste new fods, smell new smells and see amazing sights. It also brings you into contact with a horrifying array of bugs and tropical diseases. Before setting off I got every vaccination available, and while on the road I was careful to take malaria medication every day and sleep under mosquito nets where possible. Earlier on this week I started to feel a bit unwell. I didn’t think much of it…read more

An Australian Graduation

‘Education is the most powerful weapon we can use to change the world.’ Nelson Mandela The week Laura graduated from the honours year of her degree in Psychology. I was so proud to be able to go and watch her collect her certificate, along with Carl and her friend Katherine. It was great to be in a room with so many people who have achieved so much, through their own hard work and determination. On top of all of this, Laura has had health problems to battle, making her achievement…read more

Byron Bay

Laura, Carl and I hopped into the car and headed down the coast to Byron Bay for the day. Byron is a beautiful seaside town, which used to be very popular with the hippy population. While we were there it was Schoolies though so was jam packed with hungover 18 year olds! We explored the centre of town and had lunch on the beach before heading to the lighthouse. The lighthouse is at the most Easterly point of the Australian mainland. Laura sat at the top and enjoyed reading a book…read more

Brisbane

I have been in Brisbane for a few weeks now, where I am living with my cousin Laura, her husband Carl and their dog Kenny. After six months on the road, and too many dorm rooms to count, it is so nice to be settled in one place and to be with family again. I currently have a waitressing job here. Although it isn’t mentally taxing, it is physically quite demanding and I walk in circles for several miles every day! I also joined the gym in the shopping centre…read more

We Live in a Land Down Under

We were pretty excited about arriving in Australia. Asia and Africa were incredible, but it’s nice to be in a country where some people understand me! I was particularly looking forward to hot showers, toilets with proper plumbing systems, food that is either sweet or savoury and not a weird mixture of both, cheese, having a bed which isn’t in a dorm room, being able to cook. Oh and wine. We must have looked like we missed wine, as our Qantas cabin steward gave us several mini bottles at once!…read more

Where the Wild Things Are

Posted by Kylie in Asia, Indonesia, Trip

With only a few days left of our Asian adventure, we had the option of staying in Jakarta for several days or blowing the budget and travelling to Kalimantan (Indonesian Borneo) to search for wild orangutans. It was a pretty easy decision to make! Its quite tricky to buy flight tickets for Indonesian airlines – they either don’t have a website or they require an Indonesian credit card. Perseverance paid off though, and armed with two tickets we headed to Jakarta airport very early on Monday morning. This particular budget…read more