When the driver arrived at the airport it was 12.30. The driver whose name was John is a crazy guy. On the road to the hostel, he talked to himself saying things like; “Where should I go? Where are we? Do you know how to get to the hostel? ”. He was the first person I met in Australia, but he was not very friendly. I didn’t really like him; he was a weird old man.
When I arrived at the hostel, it was very late. People in the rooms were all sleeping, and I had to be quiet. The price of the hostel was quite cheap compared with other hostels in Perth. It was about 15 Australia dollars per night. My dormitory room was very messy. There were backpacks, clothes and food all over the floor. I especially didn’t like the shower it was small and cramped and reminded me of a prison shower. When I eventually got to bed it was 3 am.
The next morning I went to the state library to meet my friend 雅琪. I first met 雅琪 at a gathering in Taiwan. It was a gathering for backpackers whose first stop in Australia was Perth. I kept in contact with 雅琪after she went to Australia in September.
She accompanied me and some other friends who came to Australia with me, to sort out things like bank accounts, mobiles and tax numbers. She also told us lots of information about life in Perth.
If you guys have seen my photo album, you probably may be curious about a photograph I took of the state library toilet. The toilet is illuminated in blue light. I didn’t understand why this toilet was blue. But a girl I met on the greyhound bus called Mira, told me the reason. She explained that the Australian government installed blue UV lights in public toilets to prevent people from injecting drugs as the light makes it harder to see your veins. She told me she had even seen a blue light in a bus in Melbourne. I was very surprised to hear that and told her that people in Taiwan often take MDMA in the night pub. Only a few people inject drugs.
The next day I had to catch a bus not far from my hostel. After I said goodbye to my friends, I went to the East train and bus station alone. Suddenly, I felt a little afraid and lonely, although I had only known my friends for two days, they were the only friends I had in Australia. Now I had to go to an unknown place and live with new people from all over the world for four weeks. The more I thought it about it the more nervous I became.But I reasoned with myself that fear of the unknown should not restrict my experiences as I explore the world.
After I made sure I was on the correct bus, I realized that I would have to be on the bus for more than 20 hours, so I went and bought some water. A bottle of water and eight pieces of toast were my only food on that long trip. I should have bought some food at the supermarket the day before, but fortunately the bus stopped at gas stations for lunch and dinner, where I bought some more food. Australia is really a big country. The only thing I could see in the first five hours was flat, dense bush land. Sometimes I saw cows and bulls standing under big trees to avoid the harsh sunlight. Sometimes I saw dozens of windmills erected in the middle of borderless green land. Adjoining pieces of land were often different colors and it looked like the squares on a chessboard. Sometimes the only two colors visible out the window were the blue of the sky and the yellow of the croplands.
On a long distance trip, you definitely need friends to talk to. That’s why I introduced myself to Jin. I first saw Jin at the bus station, I thought she might be from Japan but I was wrong. She had big eyes and pale skin, short hair and glasses set on the bridge of her nose. She told me that she was from Korea. We chatted casually as we ate lunch. When it was dinnertime I decided to learn more about her. We went shopping at the supermarket together. She had already been traveling around Australia for 7 months. She spoke good English and I could communicate with her easily. On the Internet I had learned that some people who came to Australia and met Korean travelers thought they were not good at English and they tended to stick together and avoid contact with other people. Jin totally changed my opinion to Korean travelers. Jin was headed to Canarvon to find a job on a farm. I sat next to her on the bus. We talked for about three or fours hours. Like I said, it is good to have friends when you are doing something new and exciting. I’m glad I met Jin on that long bus trip.
When the bus arrived at Canaravon it was about midnight. I said goodbye to Jin and she got off the bus. I told her I would meet her in Canarvon when my conservation volunteer program had finished. I felt sad when the bus started moving forward again. I watched out the window as Jin picked up her backpack and her silhouette became smaller and smaller, eventually disappearing in the dark. Good-bye my only friend on the bus.
The bus arrived in Exmouth at 8am. I didn’t know where I to go until the bus driver told me the location of the YHA (youth hostel). I followed some of the people from the bus to the Escape YHA and booked for in for one night. In my dorm room I met Susi and Mira. They had been on my bus too. I asked them whether they could take me to the tourist center after I heard them discussing it. At the tourist center and I asked the staff there what we should visit whilst in Exmouth. We hired a car and headed to the lighthouse and Turquoise Bay. When we saw the sea appear on the horizon, we became very excited. A few hours before I had been sad to say goodbye to Jin and now I was in a car with two new friends! I thought this must be the spirit of travel. You never know what people you will meet and what’s going to happened next. I wouldn’t be sad to leave a friend next time. I should be happy to have a new friend despite separation.
I will never forget the sight I saw at Turquoise Bay. It was the beach of my dreams. You guys can see the photo in my albums. I think there are no words in the world to describe the beautiful view I saw. You would have to experience it yourself to fully understand. I felt myself asking “Am I in heaven?”
The sunset was also unforgettable. It was hard for me to imagine this kind of view when I was in Taiwan. It took me four days to come to Exmouth, but it is really worth it. I will enjoy the beautiful views in Exmouth for the next four weeks.
Your English is really awesome!!! I can imagine how beautiful and pure the land is from your depiction.
Posted by allfar
at December 7,2007 07:05
Yeah....cool...
but this article is too long XD
Anyway...i got your postcard ...!!
It's really nice...the first postcard i recieved since i came to England..
hahah....that's what we called "Loyalty"!! before.but actually loyalty is a wrong word XD
Posted by fsp
at December 7,2007 21:49
loyalty is a wrong word? could you please explain further?
