Byron Bay: A Memory to Never Forget

To start: This was my favorite trip despite the fact it was the cheapest excursion thus far and was only for two days.

We left for Byron Bay bright and early Saturday morning. It's only a mere two hours away from our sunshine city Brisbane. There were 11 of us total that went on this trip. One of our Australian friends rented a van and we road tripped down the coast. On the way down we listened to old school and Disney sound tracks. The views were mesmerizing the full two hours down. There were countless rolling hillsides filled with vineyards, farms, and plantations with rows of different vegetation. Houses were beautiful as they lined the ascending landscape. We spent our first day at the local beach right across from the main stretch in Byron Bay. There were cute, little shops and restaurants all across from the beach. The beach stretched for miles and had spectacular views on both sides; one had countless, overlapping hillsides leading up to its famous lighthouse and on the opposite side were mountains lining the horizon. It was a perfect mix of Australia's best landscapes.

Did I mention that nudity was not at all frowned upon farther down the stretch of the beach?

"When in Rome..."

We decided to participate in this "cultural experience" and let the bathing suite tops drop. To be frank, it was liberating.

After spending the entirety of the first day laying out, exploring, and participating in "self expression" on the central beach at Byron Bay, we drove to another spot called "7 mile beach" (interesting since they use kilometers instead of miles here right?). This beach was about 20 minutes away from the initial beach. We drove up through the mountains and a rainforest before heading back down the other side to our destination. Despite the fact there was a clear sign that deliberately said NO CAMPING, we camped out for the night right on the beach. It was amazing. We pitched our tent, built a fire, and "settled down" for the night with some music and drinks. The evening was filled with nothing but laughter and smiles and the night sky was remarkable. I've never seen so many stars. The distant galaxies were visible, the Milky Way, and eclipsing moon were as plain as the eye could see...AND I saw at least 10 shooting stars (one that was brilliant red) throughout the night.

A few even decided to experience the joys of skinny dipping. However, night times here tend to be a bit chilly, so I sat that one out...with reluctance of course. To top off a spectacular night, I went crabbing a few times (one of my favorite things to do with my family). There weren't many crabs, but we caught a few and decided to pull a prank or two while they were in our possession. Unfortunately, people didn't have their whits about them and didn't even let out a mere squeal with the unexpected crab crawling on them...they didn't even know it was a crab! They unknowingly threw it off over their shoulder or broke it in half thinking it was a stick or leaf that blew on them! After being up half the night, me and 3 others decided to brave the true outdoors and sleep out by the fire while the others retired to the tent. It was a cold night and the sand was far from comfortable, but we prevailed and made it through the whole night till sunrise the next morning. It was a true memory.

That day we drove back to the main beach in Byron, had some lunch, and caught up on our sleep under the sun. The trip was filled with spontaneity and true friendships. Memories were gained and my voice lost (from the freezing night and remnants of my previous cold).