Okay . . . currently in Rainbow Beach. Just finished a 3- day self-duided 4W drive tour of Fraser Island the biggest sand island in the world and a world heritage listed area. The beach on the eastern side spans 75 miles. However, no swimming, as the island also boasts a healthy shark population and dangerous currents. So, you couldn't even go in the water as a means of escape. Val and I headed off with great expectations . . . we couldn't wait for the end after the first day. Myself, Val, 5 germans and 2 brits set off to explore and camp with about 10 other groups of people for a not so exciting time on the island. At this point, I'm just glad I made it back with some sanity. The camping gear was ancient, we had to wash our dishes in the ocean with no soap, we got a bum tent, the foamies might as well have been made of paper, and I woke up sore with tight muscles each morning. Did I mention the sandflies?! I remember camping as a fun experience when I was growing up. Not really feeling it at this point. Perhaps it was the utter lack of help from the germans, or perhaps it was their incessant chatter in a language I can't understand . . . how strange it is to be around people that talk amongst themselves and you have absolutely no clue what they're talking about. They stood around while we unloaded, set up camp, and reloaded?! The Fraser Island sights were pretty cool (Lake Mackenzie, Champage Pools) but I was so tired most of the time that it was just a relief to get to the attraction so that I could rest. The dingos managed to get away with some of our food so we ended up with bread and butter sandwiches for breakfast and lunch on the last day. If you're reading this and you know me, you can imagine my mental state at not having enough food to eat. And so, here I sit, about to depart on a bus (12 fun-filled hours overnight) headed for Airlie Beach and the infamous Whitsunday Islands. My 30th awaits me there and I am still coming to terms with it. The 23 year old brits in the group joked about Val and I being the oldies . . . not cool. Anyway, probably running out of time on the internet. Will write and upload pics when I have more time. I remain optimistic about the Whitsundays and look forward to seeing Vickie and Jen as well. Will be a great b-day!

Hope everyone is well. Talk soon. Miss everyone.