For two weeks I lived on a 'hill' in Wodonga. For me who's from the flat north of Germany, it was more like a mountain. Anyway, the views were absolutely amazing, like really halleluja amazing. The surrounding hills looked like out of a painting. The setting, colour, really everything looked like a painting. Except that it was real. Just me wandering around the property and enjoying these spectacular views. The first day I couldn't stop...I kept on saying 'Please poke me, I think I'm dreaming.'. Cause this is exactly what I felt like when I looked around. It was just breathtaking.
The lady was so kind and nice. My travel mate and I had a wonderful stay while helping her in the garden and with some computer work. Also, she has a beautiful Bed & Breakfast to share her spectacular house and views. There are also many beautiful handmade metal sculptures in her big garden. The whole property is an artwork.
Just see for yourself:
In our spare time, we visited Beechworth, a beautiful old mining town which kept its beautiful old charm. When we arrived I felt like I stepped inside an old western movie. It really looks like movies of the 60s. Only the saloon was missing. :D
Another reason to go to Beechworth is their amazing honey. They have so many different kinds and tastes and you can try them all for free. Also, they have other honey products like cosmetics honey beer, wine and other drinks. We bought some honey & lemon soda and it was super delicious. I never even dreamt of honey drinks, but it tastes amazing. And you can try them for free as well.
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After exploring the beautiful Blue Mountains I went traveling south. Arrived in the much warmer Jervis Bay on a nice and sunny day with 27 degrees. It was a crazy adventure staying in the forest bushy area just in some cabins with only filtered rainwater. Experiencing compost toilet and ultimate water saving. In exchange for accommodation and food worked in the forest and cleared it from small trees to make the property bushfire safe.
The highlight was visiting the Booderee National Park. It looks like paradise with beautiful beaches and nature. You can stay at campsites or use the picnic areas for your day trip. There are many walks to explore the massive beauty of nature. Even though some are closed because they were too damaged by the bushfire that happened in September this year. You can see the remains everywhere. The fire must have been terribly powerful. Actually, that shocked me a lot. I saw massive trees with charred bark up to 10m high. I'm mean everyone knows how destructive fires can be, but seeing this was kind of frightening. Now I fully understand why everyone in Australia is going crazy about bushfire safety.
Let's get back to the beautiful experiences I made. Another amazing thing about Booderee National Park are the Kangaroos. They don't have the big Kangaroos. But a smaller kind inhabits the national park. The crazy thing is that these Kangaroos are so used to humans that you can actually touch them. That was a great experience, the Roos were just so calm and relaxed.
For three weeks I stayed in Bondi. It was a crazy and fun local experience. I was staying with a local gardener and beekeeper. So for helping him with his gardening job and in exchange stayed with him at no extra cost. Explored the beautiful beach and walks. Saw some really amazing and funny sculptures at Sculptures by the Sea. Actually, attended a hippie party. I had never done this before and found it quite interesting. But the music and beats were so loud that I couldn’t hear until the morning…I really enjoyed getting involved with Transition Bondi and the community garden.
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xo Sandra
Right after Surf Camp, I started my first job which my travel company supplied to me. It was at a kids carnival in Sydney. I was the one selling tickets and advising customers. Really liked the job, sometimes it was a bit stressful with some hard to please people. But still, it was a nice job for 12 days in a fun team. And a good start to earn the first money in Australia. Been staying in a hostel during that period. Luckily not for long because prices get ridiculously high in the mid/end of October. It’s the beginning of backpacker high season.
xo Sandra
I got introduced to Surf Camp Australia on my first day in Australia. Never imagined learning to surf within five days, but we did and had lots of fun. Starting to stand on the surfboard on the first day was feeling really good. Also, the food was too delicious 😋 I tried Kangaroo for the first time. It was very nice and smooth. Gerroa is such a cute little holiday village and Seven Mile Beach is just sooo beautiful. Even though it was a bit cold our wetsuits kept us warm. Met great people as well as great spirit everywhere.
Chakka 🤙
