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Thursday 16 June 2011

Jonathan's Birthday

I knew before I arrived at the farm for my WWOOFing adventure that I wanted to leave before Josh's birthday. I knew that I wanted to celebrate it alone, it just felt right. Having decided I rather liked my Bundaberg host family I left leaving until a couple of days before Josh’s birthday and therefore arrived in Brisbane at 6pm on Wednesday night giving me a day in Brisbane to decide what to do for his birthday on the Friday. Of course since booking and leaving I had decided to visit the Dreamworld Theme park so this meant I had a day to find out about buses, tickets and explore Brisbane instead. On the bus from Bundaberg to Brisbane I decided that as I was only there a week, had plans for the Friday already and probably wouldn't be the best company then I probably wouldn't be making any friends on this short stop over. Which is why of course the first person I talked to turned out to be really nice and at a loose end during the weekend. She was helpful from the get go and directed me to the nearest supermarket so I could get my supplies for my week long stay.

On Thursday it was lovely knowing that I didn’t have to get up but I was in a new city and it seemed a shame to waste even a moment of it by lying in bed. Once up and fed I headed in to the CBD to investigate the shops and tour offices. I got some more information on possible tours for when my friend comes to visit and bought my ticket to Dreamworld for Josh’s 29th birthday. Having saved a whole two dollars by buying my ticket from the tourist information office I celebrated my ticket purchase with cake and hot chocolate at a nearby cafe.  Spending splurge over I headed back to the hostel to plan the rest of my visit to the city and have dinner with my newest friend.

On Friday I was up early and ready to be scared witless. I made my train with time to spare but it was held up on the way to theme park meaning I didn’t arrive there until nearly 11am, an hour later than the 10am start I had planned on. Even though the day was pleasantly warm it was a week day and not a school holiday so it wasn’t very busy. I was able to get on my first thrill ride called the Claw with only a few minutes wait. I’m not sure what I expected but what I got was a really fun ride. I was turned upside down and spun around whilst being very high up but I didn’t scream and couldn’t help but laugh as we flew through the air. The next ride, Wipeout, wasn’t as much fun but it also made me laugh as once more I was turned upside down and twisted about the place. Having conquered the Claw and Wipeout the rollercoaster was a cinch and even though I was right at the front I still found I was enjoying myself immensely.  I was on my way to thrill ride number four when I saw the swings. They were aimed at children really but I’ve always had a weakness for them so I had a quick go on them and some of the other gentler rides before heading to the Tower of Terror Two; I didn’t like to ask what happened to Tower number one in case the answer disturbed me! I honestly had no idea what to expect from this ride. I just rocked up and sat down on what looked like a rollercoaster type set up. So you can imagine my shock when the ride started and we were shot backwards before coming to a stop then hurtling forwards and up a steep hill stopping half way up a very tall tower which turned out to another ride called the Drop. I did scream a little when I was thrown backwards but once more there was more laughing then terror, though this was definitely my scariest ride so far. From the Tower there was only one place to go and that was the Drop. I did stop by Wipeout and the Claw for another turn on them to see if they were as much fin the second time round. Wipeout was more so as this time I got to sit at the edge but The Claw was definitely my favourite ride of the day. Fun over it was on to The Drop. I didn’t want to go on it, I don’t know why but for some reason the idea of sitting really, really really high up then being dropped and going into freefall made me feel a little uncomfortable.  However as I do want to do some bungee jumping at  some point in the future I reckoned this would be good practice so up I went. Well. The view was stunning, Once I was up there I was perfectly comfortable and happy, even looking down didn’t faze me but the minute the magnets let us go and we went in to free fall I screamed. The fall only lasted 5 seconds but I screamed for all of them. I am glad I did it and I still want to bunjee but I don’t think I’ll be rushing back to the Drop any time soon. With the other big thrill ride closed I headed for my final to the Log Ride for my final Dreamworld ‘official’ picture. Sadly they take it before you hit the water so I look all happy and dry and not shocked and cold as I was when I left the ride. The water was really cold when it hit but it was still good fun and it only took me a few minutes to dry out once I left the ride.

Thrill rides over it was time to collect Zack and my camera from my locker I’d hired for the day, a worth while investment to be sure as it left me free to go on the rides without worrying about my possensions. With Zack, my camera and purse recovered and the rest of my stuff left in the locker I took a walk round the park to try capture the rides I had been on and to see the various animals they had there. They had the usual Aussie aniumals including the obligatory koalas, kangaroos and wallaby’s but they also had my favourite animals Bengal tigers. They did a show with the tigers but stressed that all behaviours showcased were natural and they talked a lot about the animals and how important it was to conserve their natural habitats which I hope the kids watching took in whilst being impressed by the big cats moves. Zack even got his picture taken with a stuffed tiger that happened to be beside us! By this time it was getting late and as fun as the day had been there had been stressful moments when I really missed Josh, especially when I was so high up and I knew how much he would have hated being where I was. I grabbed a quick hotdog and head for the bus and train to take me back to Brisbane. Once back in the city I had time for a quick bite to eat, shower and skype before I was heading back out. This time though I was only off to the cinema to see the Hangover Two and have a few drinks with my newest friend. The film and company were both pretty good. We tried a few different bars and had a toast to Josh but didn’t stay out late as we were both tired however we did promise each other that we would make up for it by going dancing the next night. All in all it was a really good day and I am sure Josh would have approved even if the rides would have made him green. The fact was I did something I have never done before  and I hope this a tradition that I will manage to carry on every year from now on.














1 comment:

  1. There simply are not words for how proud of you I am Missus xx

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