Traveling the Australian Outback: Queensland

So, I know it’s been a while since I last updated this blog, but the purpose of my blog is to not only share my travel experiences but also help and encourage others to travel the world through giving helpful tips.  During my recent stay in Australia, I came across this really cool website called HelpX, which has prompted me to basically pack up all of my things to get a taste of what its like to live in the Australian outback.

HelpX is a website that connects backpackers/travelers to people that are looking for help, normally on farms or in other remote places.  The term is called woofing, which stands for working on an organic farm, but is not limited to only farm work.  Australia is great place for woofing because over 50 percent of its land is used for farming and livestock grazing, especially in the northeastern part of the country.  However, the website has people looking for helpers all throughout the world including the US, Europe, New Zealand, many places in Mexico, South America, and even Southeast Asia. It is also well known for people that are interested in riding and training horses.  In exchange for working 2 or 3 hours per day, doing a variety of things that may include farming, gardening, cleaning, or other housework you get free accommodation and food.   For someone on a tight budget, this can be extremely useful, not to mention an amazing experience.

Me and my favorite horse Diana.

The Australian Bush

My first woofing experience was in a place called the WhitSundays in the Bush.  The bush is basically a word used to describe a rural, underdeveloped land in a wooded, shrub land and/or forest.  My friend and I stayed on a beautiful ranch with horses, dogs, gecko’s and frogs, and a beautiful huntsman spider that lived in the bathroom. 

The spider that lived in our bathroom.

Our host, Glen, was a country Ozzie guy straight from the outback, with this thick Australian accent, and a potty mouth that you could not imagine.  My experience was interesting to say the least.  We stayed in the middle of nowhere with not much around, so for a person that loves to walk, it was still nearly impossible to get from one place to another without a car.  But overall, the experience was really cool!  We learned about his culture and lifestyle, we got to ride horses and we were only 1 hr away from paradise, the beautiful WhitSundays.

The Jungle

My next woofing experience was in a place called the Bloomfield River, 3 hours north of Cairns.  I called this my jungle experience because the house we stayed in was situated literally in the middle of the rainforest. Everything was completely different from anything I had ever experienced.  I stayed in a house with no walls, and compared to the other houses around, this was considered luxury. Most of the houses around ran off of solar power because there was no electricity company that serviced the area, or some didnt' have power at all.
 

The house with no walls.

The swinging bed.

The coolest shower ever!

The experience itself though was simply amazing. With little to no access to the TV, the Internet, and the regular gossip blog sites that I go to everyday, I had a lot of time to really enjoy life and the nature surrounding me.  I slept in a swinging bed outside with nature. Every night, I went to sleep to the sounds of crickets chirping and the sounds of leave crunching from footsteps by the animals that came out in the dark (YES it was alittle scary). Every morning, beautiful peacocks that wanted food clucked around the bed to see if they could find scraps of left overs. Even though, I was horrified in the beginning, I really appreciated the experience. 

Everyday was a new adventure!  Whether it was walking around in the rainforest to spot wildlife, going fishing, crabbing, or crocodile spotting, I enjoyed all of the days and nights.  I did new and exciting things everyday like swim in a fresh water creek and hike up rocks to find a beautiful waterfall.

Me and Lisa in at the freshwater creek.

My television consisted of watching a golden orb eat a moth, or the peacock spread its fan to attract the ladies.  It was better than watching national geographic!  I chatted with the locals and learned about their way of life.   It was really cool as well because Bloomfield River is primarily aboriginal communities, so it was insightful to speak with native Australians.  I was shocked to find out that some didn’t know Beyonce, Lady Gaga, or even Barack Obama!!!SMH!!!  But they educated me all of these tropical fruits that I didn’t know.  It was not only an exchange for work and accommodation but also an exchange of cultures and lifestyles.  

Me and Philomena

Working for Emirates

If I were not in Australia at the moment, I would definitely try and work for Emirates Airlines.  My friend, Juliette, works for Emirates and she has the most amazing life in Dubai.  Every month, she's in a new and exciting country, and it seems as though she's always on vacation.  Not to mention, she has the cutest uniform ever!! I think if you are just graduating from college and want to travel the world this seems to be the best option.

The Low Down on Working for Emirates
In addition to getting a tax-free salary of about $1,000 US dollars, plus flying pay of approximately $600 US dollars, you also get free furnished shared accommodation.  Yep thats right....no living expenses except for food!  Additionally, you get medical insurance, free duty transport, a 3 year renewable contract, end-of-service bonus, and a confirmed ticket to your home country.

The process to apply is relatively easy.  All that you you have to do is visit their website, and find a city closest to you where they recruit.  For more information visit Emirates Careers.

You also get the opportunity to live in beautiful Dubai!  Last month, I visited Juliette in Dubai and had the time of my life.   The city is simply breath-taking, and the architecture is something that is a must-see.  I was really shocked when I arrived because I had these preconceived misconceptions about the city in general.  I thought everyone had to cover themselves, you were not allowed to drink alcohol, or kiss in public.  However, Dubai is actually quite liberal in comparison to the other Middle Eastern countries.

Me smoking shisha with Juliette until 3am

Also, it was such a culture shock to go to a big city where there were no homeless people! The crime rate is extremely low, making it a safe city.  The country is extremely rich because of oil, and the government has an amazing system that takes care of the locals. The shopping malls are ridiculous big and stay open until 12 am in the morning. People still are shopping at that time btw! Businesses and stores all flock to Dubai because there is so much disposable income, so you can find just about every thing that you would in the states and more.  I even found a Pinkberry!  Simply put...

My Life in Australia

About 4 months ago, I was lying in bed in London trying to figure out what to do with my life as I knew my visa to work in the UK would expire in February 2011.  So I had a deep think about the things that I wanted to do in my lifetime.  I thought to myself "I really want to learn to surf....where is the best place?"  Immediately, Australia came to mind. Since their summer time is our winter time, I thought it was a perfect vacation to escape London's torturous winter.  So, I got the working/holiday visa and decided to move to Australia.

I arrived here about two weeks ago.  I didn't know anyone, nor did I have a place to stay.  I just decided to pack my things up and trek all the way across the world to surf the lovely beaches in Sydney.  Some people call it idiotic, brave, but I just do the things that make me happy:)  And somehow I know that everything will always work out for me, or at least I convince myself to think that way.  Before coming here, I travelled to Dubai, Sri Lanka, and Thailand which I will later post about.  When I arrived, I stayed in a backpackers hostel which I found on hostelworld. Staying in a hostel is not what you would expect from watching movies like Hostel, lol.  You are not going to killed!  You might have to sacrifice privacy because you do share a room, but if you are traveling alone, its the best place to meet people.

Me and my hostel mates.  This pic is actually from Thailand, but you get the picture!

So upon arriving to Sydney, I stayed in a really nice hostel called Jackaroo.  It took me a couple of days to find a flat but I finally did in the city, even though its not really ideal.  I've managed to make a good network of friends, and even found a hair stylist to go to.  Im really happy here in Sydney and glad I decided to move! 

In addition to working part-time, this is going to be my second job!

Tamara the Ozzie surfer!!!

Moving to Australia

Sydney, Australia: Rated the 10th best city to live in.  Renowned for its beautiful beaches and sunny weather.

So before I get into living in other countries, I first want to say that Australia is one of the easiest countries to live in and WORK!  One of the biggest obstacles to moving to a foreign country without having a sponsored job is obtaining a visa to work because let's face it...that is the most important thing.   Unless you want to risk working illegally, its best to sort out some type of visa. Australia has a relatively small population if you take into account its land mass.  Therefore, the government wants to encourage individuals to live and work in their country.  One of the ways that they do this is by making it extremely easy to obtain a working visa.

Working Holiday Visa
When I moved to Australia, I obtained a Working/Holiday visa (Subclass 462), which allows you to work to supplement your travels, for up to a year. It allows young people to experience living in a foreign country, without finding a sponsorship in advance or going on university study abroad programs. So if you are between the ages of 18 to 35, and have at least a high school diploma and/or a college degree, you are are eligible for a working holiday visa.  It is an electronic visa that usually takes only a week to get a response, some people get responses within 48 hours.  While you are expected to have at least $5,000 US dollars in your bank account, no one at immigration checks when you arrive.  Its really easy and not too costly.  The visa will cost you are $150.

Working in Australia
The minimum wage in Australia for adults 21 and over is about $15/hr.  However, usually if you work for big companies that wage jumps to about $20 to $25 and hour.   Unfortunately because this wage is so high, the cost of living is equally expensive if not more.  No seriously, Sydney is probably one of the most expensive cities I've ever lived in, especially given that the Australian dollar and the US dollar is about the same.

As a backpacker (which is the term they use to call foreigners on the working/holiday visa), it can become extremely congested since there are so many people coming to work in Australia.  Since you are only allowed to work up to 6 months at one job, finding a proper job can be difficult.  Most backpackers end up working as barmaids. Some helpful sites to use are: Gumtree, Seek, Career One, and My Career. I was lucky enough to transfer from my old part-time job in London working for Christian Louboutin.  Ahhhhh, a girl's best friend!

I think if you have just graduated from school or need a break from work and life, and would like to travel and work a job that is not too serious, then Australia is the best place to come!

Traveling the World: It's a Piece of Cake

So over the past couple of years, I have been fortunate enough to travel pretty much across the world. I've recently just moved to beautiful Australia and decided to finally share with everyone, after I received so many Facebook inboxes, on how easy it is to live in a foreign country and travel the world. Before moving to Australia, I lived in London for a year and before London, I lived in Spain (which is by far my favorite country).  I've visited France, Portugal, Belgium, Italy, Morocco, Ghana, Dubai, Thailand, Sri Lanka and there are still so many more places that I still want to explore. The first thing that people might assume is that I am a spoiled rich girl with infinite funds.  Others believe that I am in a program or have some type of an amazing job that allows me to travel around the world. We'll I'm not really rich, nor do I have an amazing job that enables me to travel.  In fact, most of my decisions to move to a different country are basically an attempt to avoid working a full-time job in the real world.

You Only Have One Life to Live
I've decided to write a blog to not only share my experiences but hopefully provide helpful traveling tips and advice to those thinking about traveling. Looking back on my experiences, traveling is really simple and easy, and the hardest part was just gathering the courage to get over the fear and as Nike says "Just do It."  This may sound cliche but you seriously only have one life to live, so you might as well do it big. I hear people all the time with a million excuses to not follow their dreams.  "I have this or I have that," or I don't have this." We have all either worked hard in school or work....you deserve to travel! In my opinion, traveling to other countries is a vital part of life, and I have so many amazing experiences that are priceless.  Make the time.

Stop Being Afraid
As Americans, we are bombarded with television programs and movies that make us afraid to leave our houses, let alone travel to a foreign country. My mother ingrained in my head as a child, that there was always a sexual predator lurking around.  For most of my life I was paranoid, but I realized that if I continued to be think that way, I would stay in Durham, NC. Actually, depending on what part of the world you go to, especially Europe and Australia, they are safer than most places in the States. I've travelled most of the time alone and I am OK.  Moreover, most of us are afraid to step out of our comfort zones.  Well, if you think about it, the richest people in the world are the ones that take risks. "Feel the Fear and Do it Anyway!"

With a little money saved, and some time, the last thing that you need is guts and a big set of balls.  I've learned that one of the main reasons why people don't travel, is because they don't have travel companions, or their friends have backed out at the last minute.  While it is not ideal, you can travel alone and still have an amazing time. Believe it or not, there are millions of people that travel alone.  If I waited around for others, I would have never seen some of the things I did. You can move to a foreign country alone, and still meet friends and enjoy your life. You might miss your friends and family, but they will always be there. The opportunity to travel might not, so do it while you still can.

Before I left London, a dear friend of mine, who has become a very close friend, gave me this amazing book to read when traveling to Australia called "The Secret." One of the quotes from the book said "If you can see it in your mind, you're going to hold it in your hand." So I've always said to myself that "thoughts become things," and it has helped me get past my fear of moving all the way across the world.