the road abroad.: Crikey! Surfing Safari in Noosa

NOOSA, AUSTRALIA

Beautiful skies in Noosa!

When we arrived to Dolphins Backpackers hostel in the posh town of Noosa, I could just feel a good vibe emanating from the hot pink building that covered the property. There were backpackers lounging in hammocks and bowl chairs watching others play ping pong on the main patio. It was located just a few minutes from Sunshine beach so we caught some rays there on the first afternoon. I met a few German guys who had been surfing and they gave me some tips that I would use the following day. There were heaps of Germans throughout the entire trip and they insisted on speaking German once they found out Lena was also from there. Lena wanted to speak English as much as possible so she chose to tell everyone at our hostel that she was from Poland. We both spent the four days in Noosa trying to keep track of all of her lies. I supported her with the lie because I would have done the same if I were in her German shoes.

The next day, we took our time when hiking the beautiful coastal walk from Sunshine beach to Main beach. We took plenty of landscape pictures along the way but put the camera away while we walked along a nudist beach. Don’t get excited- it was full of old men. We stopped off at a semi-private beach for a nice swim and then napped a bit on our towels. We were a little early for sunset on Main beach so we meandered along the shops on Hasting Street. Of course we got distracted and missed sunset. Oh well. When you’re on vacation, there’s always tomorrow.

The next morning, the ocean was calling my name. I grabbed a surfboard from the hostel and made my way to Main beach for my big surfing debut. We got a few tips from the guy who rented us our wetsuits and off we went. Everyone told me that surfing was really hard and they were all correct. But the hard part isn’t just getting up. The hard part is being tolerant of heavy waves beating the crap out of you! I was able to catch the baby waves at Main beach and ride the board in. But when I turned around to make my way back out, I got slammed over and over. I was so afraid the board was going to smack me in the face. Our second jaunt at surfing went much better and I got close to standing up. I felt pretty waterlogged though and was very bruised up from the board. I started thinking of how those bruises would look in the bridesmaid dress that I would be wearing in 3 weeks- not very lady-like.

While Lena snoozed away the next morning, I got some alone time on Main Beach and gave another try at surfing. I got some good pointers from a German girl and I learned more about reading the waves and positioning myself correctly. I was able to get up a few times by the end of the day and had a lot of fun. I was getting tougher in the water too so the waves didn’t knock me around too badly. I was satisfied if my surfing career began and ended in Noosa. J

Coastal walk in Noosa

Surfer babes

Which way to the beach?

Dolphins Backpackers Hostel

Who wouldn't enjoy this place?

After feeding the elephant

We got an early start on the bus headed to the Australia Zoo. They were playing Steve Irwin’s documentary and I thoroughly enjoyed it. We arrived at the zoo in time for the morning elephant feed. So cool! The three sister elephants lined up and could be fed old fruit and vegetable scraps from visitors. We watched the crocodile show, which was really impressive. They had the croc going in and out of the water and jumping high into the air for food. They also had birds that flew in and out of the 5000 seat stadium and it was a very entertaining show overall. We were able to walk amongst the fun kangaroos and pat the lazy koalas throughout the entire park. There was also an informative elephant show that took place while the elephants got their daily bath. We saw plenty of tigers, tasmanian devils, wombats, camels, snakes, crocodiles, sea otters, and dingos. It was the most interactive zoo I had ever been to and I had an incredible time. The animals (and staff) seemed to be very happy! I think Steve Irwin would have been very pleased with the legacy he left behind.