From the Golden State to the Gold Coast

Illaroo Sunrise | Sunday, April 8

This past week was quite an experience. I set out on an adventure with two lads I met here in Australia - one is from New Jersey, the other is from England. We covered nearly 1,000 kilometers [about 620 miles] of eastern Australia and weaved between the ever-changing coastline and breathtaking national parks. The journey commenced in Manly, New South Wales and concluded at the Gold Coast, Queensland. Some of the notable stops along the way include Nelson Bay, Seal Rocks, Port Macquarie, Coffs Harbour and Byron Bay.

Our mornings were spent packing up our camp, having a quick bite, then setting out on an adventure. Most days were spent on the beach, walking along the shore, swimming and rock climbing. Some days the adventure was just getting to our next destination. We did not know where we were going until we got there, which made for some interesting situations, but we made the best of it! The afternoons were spent figuring out our next move, and once we settled on and arrived at our next location, we set up camp. We settled on makeshift meals over the campfire with whatever ingredients we had left, then we would sit around a rickety table and play cards and gaze at the brilliant stars above.

Our two-story van was a champ and she went by the name of Leela. There were a couple hiccups along the way, but nothing we couldn't handle - and by "we," I mean the boys. There was a point in time we were all thinking she may be at the end of her road, but as luck would have it, the incessant shaking was from a bad tire... a tire that eventually blew [at about 10 mph, luckily]! The guys were legends when it came to getting us up and running again - I made sure to let them know, should I ever drive Nascar, they would be part of my pit crew :D.

All-in-all, we had a really great time! I can't say that I would be able to live out of a car for a long period of time, but short-term, it is quite liberating, and what an experience it was! I can say one thing for certain, it made me appreciate the heck out of the little luxuries, i.e. taking a shower indoors.

Cheers and ciao for now!

xo,

Em