Days 5&6 - Airlie Beach

Days 5&6 - Airlie Beach

The whole reason I came to Airlie beach was because I wanted to see the Whitsunday islands - I specifically wanted to see Whitehaven beach. So, I signed up for a boat tour yesterday and it was AMAZING!

I instantly clicked with another Canadian man (from Alberta) on the tour who was also solo traveling, as well as another solo man from Norway. The three of us stuck together during he tour and it was fantastic! 

 

The boat ride was great - it was a super fast boat so we were at the first beach under an hour. Whitehaven beach is INCREDIBLE. I'm so convinced that someone just took loads and loads of flour and dumped it on this island - that's how fine and white the sand is. 

We got to spend a couple hours there, so our little trio did some island exploring. The water at this beach is filled with stingrays, which actually reminded me of dogs! They come up to you and wade around you and are super friendly! They only sting you if they're threatened. Along with the stingrays I also saw two giant spiders the size of my palm today (this time they were NOT hair balls) and wow those things are nasty. 

 

 

 

After Whitehaven we moved on to Mantaray bay and did some snorkeling! This was my first time snorkeling and I was pretty scared. Fish scare me and being underwater scares me and that's all snorkeling is so...yeah. But it turned out to be great fun! The fish were like confetti all around you, and then there were some massive guys. There was one they called "George" who was about 2/3 my height in length - SO SCARY. But very friendly! He apparently loves human interaction - explains why he kept nudging the other snorkelers and I. I am super sad I didn't get a photo of him though, every time he got close to me I screamed and surfaced. Ah well.

 

 

The water and the sun were exhausting, so when we got back to Airlie, the Canadian and I grabbed some drinks and a burger and called it a day.

Today, I didn't have much going on until the evening, so I decided so sunbathe for a few hours. BIG MISTAKE. I have never in my life ever, not once, burned - until today. The sun here is some crazy ball of fire just out to get everyone!! I am red and sore and wow I have never felt any sensation like this before. How do people deal with it?!

 

After some aloe and a cold shower I felt a little better. This evening I had plans to meet up with one of my first year RA's, Trent, who's living and working in Airlie beach! He took me for some food and drinks in some of the coolest places in Airlie that I didn't even know existed! It was SO great to see a friendly face - especially after having a couple down days and feeling a lil lonely. I am so thankful he was able to make time to meet up with me!

After catching up at a couple cool, quiet bars, we decided to hit the pubs and meet people! After unsuccessfully attempting to make friends with a solo girl at the bar, we moved on and found a cute pair of girls at a table and sat down with them. They were awesome!! They both worked on Hamilton Island and one of them was celebrating her birthday, so  they went down to Airlie for the night. We were having such a great evening that when it came time for Trent to catch his bus home, the girls encouraged me to come out with them. So, they adopted me for the evening and took me to one of the local clubs. I had such a fun evening with them and I still can't get over how sweet, welcoming, and inclusive with me they were the entire night!!

 

All in all, the last couple days in Airlie have been highly eventful! I'm exhausted and I'm off to Brisbane again tomorrow to do some more exploring on my own! I cannot wait. But I doubt the hungover flight will be fun...wish me luck!

Until next update, 

Shay