Surfin' in the rain, just surfin' in the rain.

Day 9: Thursday, June 25th, 2015

Steps taken: 5,526

The next morning we were going surfing.  I had a light breakfast, and then we were on our way.  We saw the very famous Shawn the Prawn on the way.  The surf company that was teaching us was called Mojo Surf.  We put on our wetsuits, got a training board, and did some preliminary stretches and played some outlandish games such as a wheelbarrow race before hitting the water.  I think Caitlin and I came in 3rd or 4th out of 10 teams.  Not bad.

Once we learned how to get up on the board, paddle, and stand up, we were ready to hit the surf.  Weezer's "Surf Wax America" playing in my head.  Just as long as my surfing didn't end the same way as the song.  However, early on I was carrying my board the wrong way and as a wave collided with it, the board was thrust into my adam's apple.  That hurt.  I was stunned for ten seconds, and then recomposed myself.  Surfing itself was amazing though.  I've said it before and I'll say it again: I love the being in the water (even if it takes my glasses).  At first I was able to get up on my board almost with each.  After a few times it was getting more arduous rather than easier.  I was getting a little more tired each time.  It was getting to a point where I was just riding the waves without trying to stand up.  That was still thrilling though.  Then the instructor came to help me get more comfortable.  She was cool.  She was from New Zealand, and I somehow managed to guess her hometown by her just saying that she was from an east coast town on the North Island (Napier).  I will be visiting Napier for a day during my first week in NZ.  Anyway, by the end of it I was getting back on top of the board for a few seconds again.  I was having so much fun that I barely noticed that I was one of the last of us to leave the water.

After leaving the water, we brought our boards back to the portable surf shop bus, and gave back the boards.  Then we all went into a fresh water-and I use that term loosely because the water was the color of coca-cola-to rinse off the salt water.  The next thing we did was remove our wetsuits, and change.  I took a quick shower as well.  Then we were on the bus heading to Byron Bay.

https://mojosurf.com/
(Mojo Surf is an awesome company.  If you want to get surf lessons while in Australia, New Zealand, and Bali I would recommend them.  If I get to Bali, one of the activities I will do is another surf lesson with them.)

Our first stop in Byron Bay was the lighthouse there for lunch.  I was famished, however I went to take pictures of the lighthouse and coast first while everyone else started eating.  Then I joined them eating my chicken and cheese sandwich that I purchased earlier at a rest stop in a small town.  While we were there, there was a great whale spotting.  A few whales were splashing their fins in the distance.  Splash on, Whales, splash on.

When we left the lighthouse, we drove around Byron Bay for a bit.  As we were descending the lighthouse cliffs, we saw people paragliding.  A fair amount of people on this tour were set to go skydiving and/or bungee jumping.  I will do anything for adventure, but I won't do that! I would consider going paragliding though.  I was however very interested in going kayaking in Byron Bay, which was a cool place overall.  Very hippie-ish.  Tons of outdoor activities, and good peaceful vibes.  It reminded me of my beloved New Paltz if it was set in a physical environment like Florida.  Lost of arts and creativity abound.

The Arts Hostel that we stayed at was like a creative person's wet dream.  There was murals, sculptures, and art everywhere! Nothing was plain or ordinary here.  We stayed in bungalows around a lake.  We settled in, and then I checked in with home before the group was to meet again to watch a video of our surfing.  Thankfully they didn't have any footage of me getting smashed in the throat or wiping out. (That or they keep a personal blooper reel.)

Once that was over we got dinner at the brewery on the premises.  I had a dark lager, and the kangaroo burger special.  Still felt guilty, but it was a good meal.  After dinner I went back to the bungalow to read.  I had finished reading The Necromancer by Michael Scott by this point, and was reading Neil Gaiman's Neverwhere.  Shortly after the group went to an Irish pub where there was a two piece folk band playing.  The main guy's name was Mick McHugh I believe.  He was very much influenced by Bob Dylan (but who isn't).  Nothing wrong with that.  Apparently this was the place to be that night.  I left early for some peace, quiet, and rest.  That's when the rain began.