May 14, 2023
Day Fourteen of Queensland’s East Coast Roadtrip
Mission Beach
Magnetic Island – Townsville – Mission Beach
Background
I met two Irish girls in the Gold Coast who invited me to tag along on their road trip up the East Coast of Queensland, Australia.
Despite only just meeting these girls, I spontaneously agreed and am having the time of my life.
I’ve created this article as part of a sixteen-day series, documenting my experience of exploring Queensland. For better context and understanding, I encourage you to read my previous articles.
Aisling
Ireland
Altan
ireland
Me
new zealand
Mission Beach
Our hostels homely yet weird, with less than 15 guests (all long-term stayers).
Considering the hostel’s size, it could’ve been an old home. With an open-plan kitchen, a small dining area, and one bedroom for females and one room for males. Its so hot here; they have all the fans going and no glass on the windows. The bedrooms are kept closed with the air con blasting.
This is definately the hottest temperatures I’ve felt in Australia.
The hostel does a van trip to the supermarket each day, about 10 km away. Unfortunately, we’d just missed it.
We bought some yummy ingredients and ate bagels on the beach by the hostel, which was incredible (as in incredible-y infested with crocodiles and mosquitos). There were palm trees running down the coast for miles. And coconuts everywhere!
We had a quiet night in speaking to the guys at the hostel who were here for their regional work. They said jobs were hard to come by being a small town, apart from at a fish factory that they’d all tried. They said it absolutely stank, to the point they’d vomit. The smell would stick to their hands and clothes, impossible to get rid of.
May 15, 2023
Day Fifteen of Queensland’s East Coast Roadtrip
Mission Beach
Anxious Annabelle
The girls woke up early for a group walk up a hill near our hostel. I pretended to be asleep so I could stay in bed.
Last night, one of the girls said she’d been chased by a cassowary (the world’s deadliest bird) on the same walk.
Altan and Aisling decided they wanted to stay another night in
Mission Bay. Unlike me, they like quiet places, whereas I prefer busy places. At this point, I have itchy bites all over me, even my face. I also forgot to restock my anti-anxiety medication which and haven’t taken for the past couple of days. I’m on a high dose, so my body is having withdrawals and I’m an emotional wreck.
Altan and Aisling decided they wanted to stay another night in
Mission Bay. Unlike me, they like quiet places, whereas I prefer busy places. At this point, I have itchy bites all over me, even my face. I also forgot to restock my anti-anxiety medication which and haven’t taken for the past couple of days. I’m on a high dose, so my body is having withdrawals and I’m an emotional wreck. In Australia, you can get prescriptions from online doctors. They called me within 10 minutes, and sent my prescription to the local pharmacy, avoiding an in-person visit altogether.
Exploring the area
Aisling and Altan walked into the local pub, asking for a job straight off the bat. Those girls are so brave. It’s something most people are scared to do, but they wouldn’t think twice.
Below are some beautiful photos from our drive: