Oh, this is where the sun lives!

Yoga on the beach!

Jet lag woke us up at 5:30am on Sunday - our first day in Australia. But we are excited and tired at the same time and not sure what to do about it except try some vegemite and explore Mooloolaba. We spread ourselves across all 30 sq feet of cell block 3 (our room at the hostel), already regretting how much crap we brought with us, and then took a shower that flooded the whole bathroom - although I suspect this is how they designed the bathroom.

In all seriousness, this is an amazing hostel and we're so happy to have chosen it as our first spot in Australia. There are tropical birds singing outside our window and palms swaying in the sea breeze. There's both a pool table and a swimming pool, a large friendly couch and an oversized picnic table where everyone congregates day and night to swap stories, and the friendliest staff ever who help us with EVERYTHING. So we were actually not adventurous enough to brave the vegemite, but that's only because - wonder of all wonders - there was peanut butter to use instead!!! We chilled out enjoying our free continental breakfast (tea and toast) and watched Whose Line Is It Anyway? with other jet lagged zombies awake at ungodly hours. Germany, Russia, Mexico, Britain and Ireland are all present and accounted for.

Chris relaxing on the Mooloolaba Esplanade,
near the "Loo With A View"

It's Sunday and we can't get to the bank, so we're left to survive with the cash we grabbed from the airport. We walk all over town, along the palm-lined boardwalk and up the beach. There are so many coffee shops...more than restaurants. All kinds of food, from sushi to Thai to fish n' chips. We head back to the hostel for our beach gear and walk two blocks back to the sand and surf for some time in the sun. The swim flags are up: yellow and red mean swimming is open. Surf craft to the left. Lifeguards mark every beach and there are signs everywhere informing you about proper surfing etiquette. There are surf boards to take at our hostel, but since my ankle still appears broken this will have to wait another week or two...or three, ugh!

The water is warm, the sand is warm, the sun is warm. Ahhhh. Yes, I could spend a long time here in Mooloolaba.