The Tour: Sydney to Byron Bay

So the tour kicked off early Wednesday morning in Sydney. I checked out of my lonely hotel at 7:30 am and hauled my bags 5 blocks down the street to meet the tour group.

Trepidation was high.

What were the people going to be like? What were the accomodations going to be like? And what about the food?

But today, as I type this in my wet swimsuit, having just finished my FIRST EVER SURFING LESSON in Byron Bay (stood up for about .05 seconds, but it was SO FUN) and getting ready to lay out in the sun to keep topping up the tan after I am done here...well, I'm glad I booked it.

Accomodations = Good!
Food = Totally Acceptable.
People = Non-stop entertainment. OMG.

There are 14 of us travelling north on the East Coast of Australia. Three boys, 11 girls, everyone is a single traveller, and we are from all over. I am the only American. Couple of folks from different parts of the UK (Ireland, Wales, England), a few folks from Europe (Denmark, Sweden, Switzerland), and 4 girls from Korea (who hardly speak ANY English - good on them!).

Everyone is travelling for a decent amount of time. A month seems to be the minimum. Quite a few folks have been travelling for a few months already. One girl did a month volunteering in an orphanage in Cambodia and has since been travelling around Asia.

And, praise be, I am not the oldest! However, I have also learned that age is definitely nothing but a number. First off, I can't tell the ages of any of them. Almost all of my guesses have been wrong. Second, the oldest ones seem to be the wildest...they definitely have the biggest hangovers the next day - and not for just their age. That's for sure.

There is non-stop entertainment from the lot of them. Stories coming later.

So we are in Byron Bay for 2 nights (last night and tonight) and tomorrow we take off for the Gold Coast and Surfer's Paradise. I must go lay on a beach now and do nothing.

Australia is hard work.