Day 4-7. Hervey Bay, Noosa and Sunshine Coast

Day 4 - 4th November:

We headed back down the coast and aborted mission to head to Cairns. We probably should of thought of this sooner but we found it very hot in the camper at night and as we headed further north the temperature would only get hotter. Cairns is also so far away that we felt so much time would be spent on the road as opposed to exploring and seeing as much as we could. 

So with this in mind we headed back to Hersey Bay where we were a couple of days ago. We really loved it here so wanted to spend a bit more time there. We treated ourselves to a subway as basic rations in the camper were getting a bit tedious! We then parked along the coast near Urangan. We walked all the way to the end of Urangan Pier. After this we bought some chips near by and headed to an off road car park for the night. 

Day 5 - 5th November:

We woke up around 5.30am and quickly moved as we were paranoid about where we stayed!! 

I FaceTimed my mum and dad back home who were wrapped up in scarfs back home! That's a bit of a difference to the 25+ degrees we are experiencing here!!

We went just down the road to a car park and had a coffee on the park. We met a local man walki his dogs who stopped and chatted to us for ages. He gave us lots of local knowledge and informed us about the pier we walked down yesterday as he renovated it a few years ago. 

Ben wanted to watch the UFC fight that afternoon so we found a sports bar, I happily sat in the shade and drank lemonade!

Then it was my turn to do something so we went and got frozen yogurt, my favourite!

We headed to the nearest free camp site from Hervey Bay which was in Tiaro. This camp site even had free hot showers which seems a luxury when you're living in a campervan!

Day 6 - 6th November 

We left the campsite around 9am and headed to Noosa where we spent a few hours. We parked down the end at Park Road car park at the beginning of the National Park for anyone thinking of going here - it's an ideal place to park but everyone has the same idea, so expect to do several laps of the car park before finding a space. 

We walked along the coastal path and stopped at a couple of beaches along the way. It's such a stunning, picturesque place. The weather was fairly overcast which worked in our favour as if he t was any hotter it probably would of been unbearable! We stopped at the cafe on the way back and I had a cappuccino which was amazing after almost a week with just instant coffee (torture for a coffee addict)

We then planned to stay at Belli Creek camp site. But after the bloody satnav (that we both want to throw out of the window) sent us round the houses we ended up nearer to Glenview where we spent our very first night in the camper. 

Day 7 - 7th November:

Today we had our usual morning coffee on our camp chairs outside the campervan, one of my favourite thins to do this trip! We left and headed to Dicky Bay on the Sunshine Coast. Spent the morning here which was lovely. We had a swim in the sea, a sunbathe and breakfast on the beach (an apple and a blueberry muffin from Aldi!!...) after this we had a shower at the beach and made Thai green chicken curry for lunch. It was actually really nice and we were surprised how creative we can actually be with basic food and 2 stoves! 

There was a thunder and lightening storm at the beach. So we headed back to the camper and decided to make our way to the camp site we would be staying at this evening - Wyllie Park rest area. 

3 months in a Campervan in Australia!

Day 1-3. After arriving in Brisbane after a very long journey we checked into an Airbnb where we spent our first few nights to try and adjust to the time difference before picking up our campervan. Our Airbnb was in Kedron which is a 15 minute drive from the airport. We woke up at 4am for the first couple of nights and felt like we would never adjust to the time difference!

Day 4 - 1st November 2017. 

We checked out of our Airbnb and headed to Travellers Autobarn to collect our campervan. We completed the paper work, paid and away we went! We chose to stay in their 'kuga' campervan which is a 2-3 berth and has a seating area that turns into a double bed, a microwave, fridge and sink. We paid for some added extras such as; sleeping equipment, a satnav, a fan and 2 camping chairs. The fridge, microwave and power sockets only work when connected to a powered camp site. So we wont be using these too much as we are trying to stay at as many free camp sites as we can. 

We went to Coles which is a big supermarket here to get all of our cheap essential supplies (mainly pasta!). 

Our first stop was a free campsite in Glenview where we set up camp for the night. We were both feeling rather under the weather and think we caught a cold from the flights. 

^Our first night in the camper was spent here

^Sunrise at Glenview 

Day 2 - 2nd November. 

We left the camp site around 7am (still waking up early.) and headed to Rainbow Beach. This is where we saw a lot of campervans parked on the side of the road and finally felt like we weren't the only young travellers in small campervans! Rainbow Beach was stunning, the weather was hot and the sea blue! We had showers here as there were free facilities near the beach. 

We downloaded the Travellers Autobarn app on collection of our campervan as this indicates all campsites nearby. When looking on the app to see where we wouldn't sleep tonight we saw an offer on at The Palms campsite in Hervey Bay. We decided to book this as it was only $28 which is good for a powered camp site. We had access to a kitchen, hot showers (!), swimming pool- but most importantly electricity. This meant we could use the fan all night long as well as have a cold fridge! Once we got to The Palms we had a swim, cooked some lunch and went for a walk near the beach at Hervey Bay. We bought some burgers from a local butchers for our meal that night and sat on the beach as the sunset. 

^Rainbow Beach



^Sunset at Hervey Bay

Day 3- 3rd November. 

We left The Palms around 9am (after making the most of the hot showers) and headed towards Bargara near Bundaberg. 

After both feeling quite poorly the past couple of days we went to a chemist to speak to a pharmacist and get some medicine for our colds/chesty coughs. We are hoping this helps as we just want to get better to fully enjoy our adventure!

We drove along Woongarra Senic Drive which took us along the coast of Bargara. We had a pit stop along the way to tip our toes in the sea. 

After this we found a free camp site 30 minutes from Bargara called Sharon Gorge Nature Reserve where we will be staying tonight! 

^Kellys Beach/Money's Creek at Bargara


^Moneys Creek at Bargara

Cape Verde 2017

I have recently got back from a holiday to Cape Verde. We landed on the island of Boa Vista and stayed at the a Rui Touareg resort. Here are some photos of our trip. 

Im Going Travelling...

If all goes to plan i should be going away at the end of October on a big travelling trip. We will be starting in Australia and spending a few months travelling around the gold coast. We're not sure whether to go on from there or come back after Australia but we have a few ideas floating around at the moment. Nothing is set in stone just yet. The idea is to potentially land in Brisbane and hire a camper van. I never realised the amount of effort that goes into planning a massive trip.

We spent a long time deciding on a destination. But obviously thats the first big decision to make. Australia both appealed to us, and its such a popular place to travel that we figured doing a popular route would teach us all the tricks we need to know when travelling so that when we travel different countries in the future we have some knowledge behind us, rather than going massively off the beaten track for our first big trip.

Next we decided on a time length. We new that going in our winter would be ideal for my work, and it would be Australias summer. Going for a few months means we can really make the most of it and relax at the same time without it being too stressful and intense.

A camper van seemed perfect for us as its our accommodation and allows us to travel. When i went to Australia in March we were going to get a camper van, I'm really glad we didn't as it wouldn't of worked because we were really central in Sydney. Whereas a trip like this seems perfect for a camper van. This is definitely the thing that is going to cost us the most money whilst travelling, but we can justify this as it is our home and car for a few months and we need to be comfortable. We are thinking about hiring a mid-sized camper van to ensure we have enough room. As we will be there for Australias summer we need to make sure we don't overheat!

Nothing is set in stone for our trip yet and we are still planning to make sure we get everything as right as we can. We could even change our mind and choose a completely different destination! But for now these are our plans.

If anyone has any tips for travelling, especially in Australia please let me know, it would be much appreciated.

Eyelash Lift and Tint

A few days ago i got my eyelashes lifted and tinted for the first time. I wanted to share the experience and talk through the process incase anyone is thinking of getting this treatment.

The idea of the process is to make the lashes look fuller and thicker without wearing eye make-up. Of course, you can wear eye makeup after having the eyelash lift, but the process makes it look like you're wearing natural eye makeup anyway.

It took about 45 minutes with some breaks in between of waiting as the solutions to work on the lashes. This was fine by me because i had just had a facial and massage and i was ready to drop off!

Im sure the process is done slightly differently where ever you go to have an eyelash lift, but this is how mine worked.

1. Firstly, my lower lashes were taped down

2. A guard was placed on my eye to create the curl and protect my eye from any solutions 

3. The first solution is placed on the eye lashes and is removed after 15 minutes

4. The setting solution is placed on the eye lashes and again, removed after 15 minutes

5. A tint was applied to the lashes and removed after 5-10minutes

The actual process was quick and easy and fairly relaxing. However, i did find it slightly uncomfortable having the tape on my lower lashes as this restricted my blinking and i couldn't laugh or smile as the tape wouldn't allow the skin around my eyes to move! Its really important to keep your eyes closed throughout all the application as it would be very painful to get any solution in your eyes.

I was really overwhelmed by how well this worked on my eyelashes. Its three days later now and i haven't worn any mascara on my upper lashes since having this done.

This treatment really appealed to me as i spend ages curling my lashes every single day, and the mascara application is something i find really boring and tedious even though i love the end result of wearing mascara. I also do shift work, so anything to make my life easier on an early shift is wonderful. Overall I'm happy with the results, and depending on how long the treatment lasts i will consider having it done again.

Left: Before image. Right: After image
Please excuse the redness of my face; i had just had a facial and one of the products used didn't agree with my skin!




XXX

How To Stay Positive

Its so easy to get yourself in a rut about things in life. With me, its usually something so small irrelevant that I let get to me. Then something else so small will get to me as well. (Talk about kick myself once I'm down!) And before i know it I'm in a viscous cycle of bad moods, hating life and being so negative; and no one else is to blame than myself!

Whether its your job, body image, money or even the weather. You have to realise that if you're not to blame for the way you feel then its out of your control and you have to accept it. If you could be to blame its time to make some changes to get yourself away from the negative vibes!

1) Surround yourself by positive people.

Being around people who genuinely bring you happiness is so important. Whats the point in spending time with negative people who also bring you down?

2) Be grateful.

Instead of thinking about what you don't have, why not be grateful for the things you do have? 

3) Treat yourself.

A little retail therapy never hurt anyone. Treating myself to something, even a nail polish can really cheer me up sometimes, its the small things. I have a long week coming up at work, so I've booked myself in for a massage and facial at the end of the week so i have something to look forward to. This is a bit extravagant and i won't be making a habit of this, but for a one off, why not?

4) Make time for YOU.

Lives can get so hectic, before we know it every minute of our time is taken up. Clear your schedule if you can. Even a free hour in the evening to have a bath, exfoliate, shave your legs and use a face mask! Its surprising what a bit of 'you time' can do!

5) Eat well.

I know this is a typical one, and something most of us struggle with. But a bit of healthy eating didn't hurt anyone. I truly feel better and positive once knowing what I've put into my body is benefitting my body. Don't restrict yourself, but eat in proportion.

6) Look out for someone else.

Its amazing how a small gesture towards someone else can really make you feel good about yourself. It works both ways, knowing you've made someone else's day should really make you feel great too. Even buying a work colleague a coffee.

7) Recognising other's emotions.

Is someone else feeling down around you and that having an impact on you? Try and find out why they aren't okay and if theres something you can do to help. 

Personalised things that cheer me up and keep me positive and happy....

1) Clean bed sheets

2) Baking

3) Coffee

4) Walking my dogs

5) A new bag/top/jeans/shoes

6) A boiling bubble-bath.

7) Hair wash day

8) Homemade smoothies

9) Having plans in place to look forward to

10) Making an effort with people I want to spend time with

11) Holidays/trips away/weekend breaks

12) Steak!

13) A full tank of diesel

14) Blasting old time favourite songs

15) Taking the time to chose a good outfit

16) Prepping my meals

17) Organisation in general

18) Keeping my journals up to date

19) Cheesecake

20) Meals out in restaurants

Favourite positive quotes......

'Start each day with a grateful heart'

'Worry about loving yourself instead of loving the idea of people loving you'

'The grass is greener where you water it'

'All things are difficult before they are easy'

'Don't give up great things take time'

'Grow through what you go through'

You can't buy back time, and you can't buy memories.

Ive tried to be a bit more creative when it comes to giving gifts for occasions. Instead of the typical bath sets that no one really wants I've tried to push the boat out a bit more recently. 

In April 2016 myself and my partner went away for a long weekend to Newquay in Cornwall to celebrate our birthdays, last year for my mums birthday i took her to CenterParcs for the weekend, myself and my partner are off to Cape Verde in September which a gift from me for his 21st. 

You can't buy back time, and you can't buy memories. This is why I've realised its so important to make memories yourself; no one is able to make them for you. 

For my mums birthday this year I took her to a Spa hotel and country club call Park Farm near Norwich, Norfolk. I booked the apartment for one night. It was absolutely gorgeous and her reaction made the surprise so worth it. She was so over the moon and grateful. This was such a special moment and so much happiness was brought upon both of us. I will treasure her reaction and always remember her holding her head in her hands and crying tears of happiness on the edge of the blue chequered sofa. 

Here are some pictures of our gorgeous apartment.