Adventures in Western Australia

Well, I started my 4 day tour up the coast of Western Australia, and we barely made it to our first night's destination. We had to push the bus to get it started at one of the stops we made and had to drive with a flashlight for most of the way because the headlights were out. They originally thought it was the battery so they said they were just going to get a new battery and we'd have a slightly later start the next day. However, it wasn't the battery it was the alternator. So we were stuck in a place called Kalbarri for another night. This wasn't all bad as there were things to do (I went hiking, swimming, and abseiling), but it meant our tour was interrupted and potentially going to be cut short. They didn't offer a refund, but they offered to extend the trip by one day. The people who couldn't make that would have to leave early. So, thankfully, this morning our bus was finally fixed and we headed off to Monkey Mia. Along the way we went to a really cool beach called Shell Beach. It's named so because the entire beach is made up of shells. Tomorrow we have a bit of an early start, but we get to feed the dolphins. The people who couldn't stay on will get on a bus tomorrow afternoon and go back to Perth, and the rest of us will continue the itinerary and add a day to the tour. Ironically, I was actually originally assigned to a different bus that left the same day, but there was a person that got separated from their friend so I switched. Even with all the troubles, I would not have traded circumstances. The people on this tour have been really nice, and it was great to have a relaxed stay in Kalbarri, not to mention that it makes a good story. :-)

Whirlwind in Perth

So, I'm currently in Perth, and wow, it is really nice here. It's very laid back and there's even a street dedicated to old London. There's also a restaurant here that I ate at in Spain that had the best falafels I've ever had. I didn't even know they had locations in other countries (I guess there's only like 5 in the world). Then add the fact that it's only a short trip to the nearest beach, and I'm wondering why I didn't come here to work for a while. I went on a day tour yesterday to Margaret River (a wine region), and I couldn't help buying another bottle of wine. My suitcase is going to be really heavy :-(. I might have to start throwing things away if I want to take all of this home. Then, just to add an interesting twist, something got messed up at the bank or my former employer and I still haven't gotten one of my checks...So the past couple of days I've been living off of credit. It's been sort of interesting finding myself without money. This trip has definitely been full of twists. Now I'm headed off up the coast. I can't believe I'm going to be going home soon!