Fiji

Fiji was the next and last country on our list and it was beautiful! Unfortunately we didn't really have the true Fijian experience that most travellers get, being a bit too skint to island hop, but still we did have a lovely time. We stayed on the main island Viti Levu and tried out two different hostels. The first called The Beachouse was beautiful, and actually where Celebrity Love Island was filmed - if you remember that awful reality TV show?! The resort had its own beach and a swimming pool and had the most friendly Fijians working there. Especially Rosa the chef who asked how we were every morning. The Beachouse also put on daily activities including jungle treks, coconut jewellery making and leaf weaving using palm tree leaves. We had such a lovely week chilling out here on the beach and reading in the hammocks - I would love to go back. Our last few days were at a resort near the airport which was also lovely and well kept, the only problem was the incredibly unfriendly receptionist who seemed to go out of her way to ensure we had a bad stay. Well she didn't win thankfully, as I rather enjoyed our time here. We took a day trip into Fiji's capital Suva which was pretty cool and we got a much clearer idea of the true Fiji. With Fiji being comprised of over 300 islands, some only have one resort on them so you don't often get to see much of the actual country. In Suva we saw all the residents and tried some authentic Fijian food, which was great because staying in one place for a week and not leaving gives you a strong sense of cabin fever you know?

Melbourne

Last on our Australian adventure was Melbourne with a kudos for quirky residents, live music, vintage shops and cute cafes- and it certainly did not disappoint! We had almost a week in Melbourne, but the weather wasn't great and we really had only packed for summer (note to self, Australia can get cold!!), so we were limited a little as to what we could do in the city - lets just say, the idea of a picnic in the park was really not appealing when it was 9 degrees outside and raining. Instead, we spent a lot of our time wandering around on Brunswick Street - home to a number of vintage boutiques, as well as checking out the many restaurants on the city's buzzing Lonsdale Street. One of the streets off Brunswick Street was lined with 'picture-perfect' town houses and lets just say I fell in love, THIS is the street I want to live on. We also went to the Queen Victoria Market and became fascinated with all the cheese, chorizo and olives on offer in the Deli section. We had drinks with a Melburnian we met in Goa, who showed us a cool bar and told us of the best places to visit in the city, but the highlight by far was our day trip to Phillip Island. During this trip we visited a chocolate factory and took part in a little wine and cheese tasting, as well as the iconic Penguin Parade in which we watched hundreds of penguins emerge from the sea and make their way to their nesting burrows along the grass banks. What an incredible experience this was. Usually its in a controlled environment, like the zoo, that you get so close to animals, but to have the opportunity to witness wild animals this close was something else!

Autumn Leaves in Canberra

  So whilst in Australia we stopped at Canberra for one night. To be honest, whenever anyone heard of our plans to visit the capital they asked why on earth we would want to visit there. Pretty strange considering Canberra is Australia's capital, but we had our reasons- Phoebe wanted to visit an old school friend who lives there, and I just thought 'why not see it if I'm in the area'. Anyway the place is pretty boring compared to everywhere else in Australia, but the lake was very pretty and I saw a black swan for the first time!! One thing I noticed was how red the leaves on the trees were. This isn't strange I guess considering it was Autumn in Canberra, but for me it felt as though it should be summer, as back home spring was ending and summer beginning. This was the first time I really recognised the difference in the season I was currently living in and the one my friends and family were experiencing. That said, even in autumn at home I have never seen such red leaves, Canberra's lake looked even prettier as a result. 

Sydney

Ahh Sydney, where do I begin? 

Well it was by far my most favourite place that I visited whilst in Australia, for a few reasons really. Of course the city itself is amazing, but also we were pretty lucky with our hostel 'Sydney Central Backpackers'. As well as the free breakfast, which included cereals, toast, 8 different kinds of jam!!, peanut butter BOTH crunchy AND smooth - the hostel organised nights out each day of the week to different clubs in the Kings Cross district. We also made a few good friends at this hostel including Jessica, a Swedish girl we shared a dorm with who was just so lovely and like us! We ended up staying in Sydney over a week and explored pretty much the whole city. We visited museums and art galleries, the botanical gardens, the Opera House (of course) and Harbour Bridge and so much more. A really cool area we wandered around was The Rocks, made up of little lanes of cute cafes and shops as well as the Museum of Contemporary Art. Other days included trips to Bondi Beach, and the Blue Mountains where we hiked for three hours down into the valleys and back up again - the views here were incredible! My sister has just moved to Sydney, unfortunately she left before I arrived home but after I'd left Australia, but on the good side, I have an excuse to visit the city again soon.  

 

Byron Bay

Byron Bay was definitely a favourite place in Australia. I'd heard good things about it from others both before I left for travelling and whilst in the North of Australia's East Coast. It's just pretty chilled out and all the people are so friendly - that sounds a bit typical of any Australian city, but there was something a bit cooler about Byron. We stayed in a sweet hostel which offered free pancakes for breakfast!! And they were even cooked on the BBQ - amazing. I wish I'd taken a surf lesson whilst there as there are so many decent surf schools offering lessons, some a pretty reasonable price. We didn't have too long here though and I spent a day in Nimbin- a tiny hippy village which holds the legendary Mardi Gras festivals every year. We also went on a long coastal walk up to a lighthouse and the most eastern point of Australia - such incredible views.