Life In Cellblock

Posted by Ray

Posted on July 2, 2008

Where to begin?

Stepping off the train at Bundaberg Station on the 9th of April I did dwell for a moment what exactly I’d be letting myself in for. The thought of ending up on some slave camp farm or not enjoying the working hostel life did cross my mind on the five hour journey from Brisbane. On the plus side for me it was a clean slate from four months in Sydney and a chance to meet tonnes of new people.

Equipped with the trusty backpack, laptop and guitar I walked around to the Cellblock which was just off ...

Filed under Dubs Down Under, Australia >< 9 Comments

People Of Cellblock

Posted by Ray

Posted on July 4, 2008

This is mainly a picture post. Thought it would be nice to dedicate a little space on the blog to all the folk who made Cellblock a brilliant place to stay for the three months.

Filed under Dubs Down Under, Australia >< 10 Comments

Tomatoes Not For The Faint Hearted

Posted by Ray

Posted on July 6, 2008

My first experience of fruit picking was in fact tomato wiring. The basic tying wire around stakes to keep the plant upright. Simple enough job, but when you throw in a hangover and 30 degrees heat it's a different matter. Added to that my lunch for the day consisted of one bottle of water and a bag of crisps for the ten hour day.

The grueling day finished and I had made just $50. Mainly due to the wires being very low (called the first wire), Allot of bending over required and I worked with a Norwegian guy call Jan-Erik. ...

Filed under Dubs Down Under, Australia >< 517 Comments

Fraser Island - A Bit Of A Washout

Posted by Ray

Posted on July 15, 2008

In one way or another we were all a bit sad leaving Bundaberg. Our three months were complete, so it was time to move on.

The big trip was now in full swing with the first port of call being Fraser Island. Booking through Aussie Trax we organised a two day one night trip to the Island in a Landcruiser for the five of us working out at $177 each. Pretty good value.

We arrived early in Hervey Bay and picked up the keys. For some reason we were given an automatic Landrover. We drove the short distance to the ...

Filed under Dubs Down Under, Australia >< 4 Comments

Adelaide - Kangaroos & Koalas

Posted by Ray

Posted on July 15, 2008

Before going to Adelaide it was a quick pit-stop for two days in Brisbane. It was good to catch up and see college buddy Del who has been working away for the past three months for a design based engineering company. This is something I hope to do next year all going well. The laptop and other bits and bobs were dropped off for convenience.

I wasn't sure what to expect from Adelaide. I met few people who had been to the South Australian state or even Adelaide city. There was little to see coming in on bus from the ...

Filed under Dubs Down Under, Australia >< 8 Comments

Adelaide 2 Alice / Groovy Grape Style

Posted by Ray

Posted on July 28, 2008

Any flights in or out of Alice Springs are usually very expensive. This is due to Alice being in the middle of Australia and completely isolated from any other town or city. With this in mind we booked a two day bus tour with a stop over in Coober Pedy with Groovy Grape Tours. For $195 we covered the 1600km by mini bus crossing over from South Australia into the Northern Territory.

The thought of sitting on a bus for two days didn't sound that appealing, but I really enjoyed it. With a really laid back guide called ...

Filed under Dubs Down Under, Australia >< 8 Comments