Eleanor's Indian, Australian and Indonesian Adventure!: First Rule of Surfing: Always Look Cool

We went to Woolgoolga (4 hours South of Byron Bay) for 2 days/2 nights at surf school last week. I thought I might hate it, but I absolutely loved it! We stayed in cabins onsite by the beach and all food was included in the price. Our first lesson was 3 hours long, and we had to sit in a class to learn the basics. Our instructor said the first rule of surfing is to always look cool. Pretty sure I fail that straight away. We were also told there are sharks out there (as well as some dolphins early this morning) but they don't really say any more than that presumably in case people refuse to get in the sea! Once we were in the water I managed to stand for the first time after about 15 mins which was a surprise.There were some great photos, some of me standing, some of me managing to step off my board and fall in style. It didn't even matter that it was raining and windy because it was so much fun and the sea was really warm. Getting back into the surf was such hard work against the rip so after a 3 hour lesson followed by dinner, we went to bed at a record 8pm! The next day was our second and final lesson and luckily the sun was shining and it was very hot that morning. Even better today, I went out further to attempt the bigger waves. Obviously got wiped out and completely battered by the water but surfing has definitely made me more confident with large waves. Sadly no photos were taken on our second day, so you'll all have to just take my word for it that I was amazing and surfing the biggest waves. Haha. So, surfing was great and it's actually the thing I've enjoyed the most so far in Australia. Next: Byron Bay. Obviously it was raining in Byron. We're staying in a really cool hostel called the Arts Factory and it's really hippy-ish and chilled out. We only planned to stay one night because it's quite expensive, but loved it so much we're here for 3! Our first 2 nights we stayed in a 6 bed teepee which was fun, but a bit damp as it had been raining. Today we have moved to the Island Retreat, which is a big wooden place on the lake with all the big lizards and bush turkeys running around. It is a luxury because it has its own kitchen and bathroom! However, our roomate managed to fall in the disgusting lake last night because she thought it looked like the road. Her sobriety was questionable. Talking of questionable sobriety, we went on a day trip to Nimbin yesterday. Nimbin is an hour or so inland from Byron, and is known as the little hippy town where everybody buys their drugs. The tours are for you to see, and sample if you like, the local delicacies. Unfortunately the police were on the rampage and turned up while we were there. The locals were not pleased and screamed at them to leave them to it. Then on our way out, our bus was stopped and searched by sniffer dogs, so most people threw anything they had up in the luggage hold but everything was cleared out. The dog got particularly excited about one bag, and consequently 3 Canadians were cautioned for carrying substances which was very bad news. Then we got a flat tyre. We just have brilliant luck. Anyway, to end the day well we had a big BBQ then swam in a waterfall.

Tomorrow we are going to stay with Mum and Dad's friend, Sledge. We are going to stay at his Kingscliff apartment on the beach, then come back Monday night to their place just outside of Nimbin. We are then heading up to Noosa, then will be starting our trips like Fraser Island tour and sailing around the Whitsundays.

xxxxx