Beautiful sunset!

We stayed in Pacha Mama, a very gringo hostel but with a great chilled-out environment right by the beach, AND a pancake breakfast with free coffee all-day long (Brad’s heaven?!)

We checked out some stellar sunsets on the beach there, played some football, and of course watched the superbowl. WOn’t mention the outcome…except that, that was the night we cut all of Brad’s locks off with a pair of cheap paper scissors haha! A LITTLE…under the influence. Turned out surprisingly nice though!

Beautiful locks! :)

All the hair!

All gone!

Soon enough, we began our terror journey to Costa Rica. First step, bus ride to Rivas….easy! Hop on another bus to the border town…easy! THEN, we get in line at the border….what turned into 3 grueling hours in the heat. First we get in a line in the sun just to pay this border town a small fee to get through the gate to the actual immigration. Then we hop in this MASSIVE line that seems to move so slow that its moving backwards. Probably because it practically was…we were getting cut left and right by locals. We found out that there are actually professional line-cutters that get paid to cut the line, and then bring the group of people up! grrrr!

Eventually we got through, paid our tax, and walked 1km or so at noon across to the Costa Rican immigration, which we thought would be much more civilized. NOPE…even worse line cutters. In fact,

at one point Brad blocked the way of these guys trying to move up in line in front of us, and then the guy behind us pushed in front, then the guy behind him…and so on! It was GREAT..everyone was standing up to this line-cutter because of Brad’s inititative!

Crossing the border!

We get stamped for 10 days and on the (much nicer) bus to Liberia! FINALLY! Our plan was to make it to Montezuma, but after a 3 hour delay at the border… that wasn’t happening, so we stayed in Liberia the night and worked out our next move! Already though, we noticed a huge difference in Costa Rica. While sitting in the main square in town, we noticed kids playing…riding their skateboards, running around, texting on their cellphones! NOT trying to sell us everything and anything under the sun…it was refreshing after 2 months of fighting off these poor kids everywhere else.

So with only 10 days in beautiful Costa Rica, we knew we were going to enjoy them! Pura Vida!

The Split!

Getting there was a costly affair though. I recomend splitting a taxi from the airport to Belize City because the cost runs at about $50BLZ ($25). Our driver dropped us off right at the water taxi and after a short wait we packed into the medium sized boat headed for Caye Caulker.

The ride was only

about 40 minutes, but packed to the max with tourists and locals alike, and as soon as we stepped off the boat, we were loving the vibe! No cars, just bicycles and…golf carts haha! Everything was so colorful, rastas everywhere! Ya Mon!

Love the colors!

We found our hostel, “Bella’s” which we were actually camping at for just under 8 bucks a night! It was pretty run down, but safe and it seemed to be cool! Everyone was hanging around the kitchen and common area. What was cool during the day ended up being super aggravating at

night…but I guess we can’t complain too much! Actually they let you use their canoe for free too, so Brad and I took it out for a sunset rum cruise

Rum for Sunset! :)

After setting up the tent, we hit “The Split”, which is the part of Caye Caulker that used to be island, but is now ocean after a bad hurricane hit! It’s got a very chill vibe, with reggae music playing from an open hut bar that sits in between the 2 hang out spots – a hard gravel beach, or a jetty that everyone lounges around! The water is SO beautiful and clear blue!

The Split!

That was basically our time spent in Caye Caulker… riding our bikes around the tiny island, enjoying the sun at the split, and chilling at the hostel with new friends! Very appropriate for the island…laid back!

Catching up in the Gas Lamp district

She was awesome, her job as a concierge at the Hotel Del Coronado scored us some sweet looks at the historic landmark as well as some free passes to activities around town. Â Greer must be really good at her job because she made us feel so welcome and comfortable during our stay.

Me and Gee

We had plans on

meeting Kelly in San Diego but since we were both flying into LAX (and Kelly renting a car) Chels decided to meet up with her and catch a ride while I flew in and caught up with Greer.

Group before Torrey Pines

Greer took us around on our second day to Torrey Pines, which she describes as a typical San Diego activity. Â It was a laid back hiking trail that started from the enormous beach and weaved up through the rocks and finished with a sweet view

overlooking the Pacific. Â We watched the sunset cartwheeling on the beach and headed out that night for some cheap and delicious Mexicali.

Cartwheels for Sunset

Most of our time here was spent sampling the local fare!  We had Mexican; Sushi; visited a warehouse full of fresh produce; enjoyed mouthwatering local craft brews; ordered an entire meal via ipad and of course sampled the most famous California fast food chain – In and Out.

"Incredible Desserts"

One of the highlights of our San Diego experience was ice skating on the beach at the Hotel Del, complements of Greer. Â The rink was set up with an ocean view, under the Christmas Lights. Â It was a great atmosphere, perfect for that time of year.

How romantic

On our last day Chels and I checked out the USS Midway.  I highly recommend this to any traveler passing through.  San Diego has a large navel base so it’s appropriate to check out the massive aircraft carrier.  The best parts was sitting in the fighter-plane cockpits and examining the air crafts up on the flight deck.  Powerful machines that make you appreciate times of peace!

Yikes

It was great seeing Greer again and catching

up with Kelly! Â Big Thanks to Gee for letting us crash and being an AMAZING host!!

I recognize this scene

Probably the most typical Hawaiian vacation involves lounging on the beaches of Waikiki watching the lazy waves roll in from the far away reef. To your left is the ever present and impressive Diamond Head, the quintessential view for the Hawaiian Islands.  What Chelsea and I discovered throughout the week was that this area is the least impressive on Oahu, even if you spend a night in one of the overpriced hotels. The whole area is geared for tourists to spend money; in fact the majority of the islands are that way, but Waikiki in particular. It didn’t take long for us to get sick of the tourist polluted atmosphere so after a few hours of sunbaking we headed for our CouchSurfers place on the eastern side of the island in Kaneohe

Waikkiki!

Our hosts Wayne and Kate were awesome and first timers to CouchSurfing. Originally from Maryland they had spent the last year living the Hawaiian lifestyle. We got along so easy and they invited us back for the weekend. It was a pleasure getting to know both of them and they took us to some great spots around the island…one being an old military railway line that you hiked straight UP!  (This was the day after Stairway to Heaven…which we will get to later…so we were SO sore already)..needless to say, it was a challenge!

Phew made it to the top!

Thankfully, W8 also knew a great place to cool off after the hike where you could jump off some small cliffs and check out the snorkeling! Super local spot..very

cool! They happened to know where Dog the Bounty Hunter lives and apparently we HAD to go by because he has a massive mosaic of himself on his gate! lol… loves himself a little too much! We had a delicious burger before checking out a lava tube, which was not altered to attract tourism (like the one on the Big Island) so that was also very cool! It led out to the ocean and some crazy-looking volcanic rocks and tide pools that reminded me a bit of Christmas Island and Wave Rock meshed together!

Looks like its belly first!

Hehe!

One sweet little spot that our CS host Kate turned us onto was the Macadamian Nut farm. Upon entry we were given free macadamian nut coffee and delicious samples of their specialty nuts. The coolest part about this place was that we got to crack a nut with a rock and eat the inside.Â

Cracking a Mac Nut!

An even sweeter spot…the LOST village!!!!

The Black Smokes coming!

We felt lucky to be in Oahu for the 70th anniversary and commencement ceremonies at Pearl Harbor. Â The event is one of the most important events in our nations history and it was definitely worth walking around checking out the sights and recognizing the sacrifices the men and women who died that day. Unfortunately, though we arrived super early, the tours were already booked out.

Submarine...crazy!

That night we found a sweet little camping spot right on  a beach in Laia. We got up early to watch the sunrise and I rented a long board and did some surfing; mostly to say that I’ve surfed waves on the North Shore of Oahu, but also to get pumped up for Pipe Masters surf Competition that day.Â

Sunrise at our camp spot!

Pipe Masters is the final competition in the Van’s Triple Crown series. It takes place on the North Shore of Oahu Nov-Dec on possibly the most epic spectator friendly wave in the world. Not because of its size but how close it breaks to shore and it’s near perfect top to bottom barrels. Of course, no one can guarantee that the waves will be good on a particular day, so there is a holding period of about 13 days for Pipe Masters. On any one of these days the competition can be “called” in the morning. Lucky for us, on the first day in the holding period the competition was on!Â

Wooo HOO!

We parked at the famous Sunset beach, planning to walk from there and right when we pulled up we could see the massive  swell. The competition is a big event, drawing in big time sponsors, hundreds of photographers and thousands of spectators. So, along with the masses we made our way towards the competition Beach.Â

The Pipe!

The waves where pushing 30 feet (15ft Hawaiian, because they measure from the back of the wave) and swallowing up and spitting out riders in the near perfect barrels. The beach was the perfect venue, sloping slightly downhill towards the water creating the perfect amphitheater for the most fan friendly surfing event of the year. Easy to say we were stoked.Â

Met the guy who made this beautiful art!

Even better was that our next CS host Wes lived right down the road from the competition.Â

Wes is a super cool thrill-seeker living on Oahu and helping shape young minds in the classroom. His girlfriend Kristyn is a Brockton native and naturally we had a lot to talk about! It was good vibes and happy days the entire time, hanging out with his skydiving neighbors and meeting all sorts of interesting people.Â

Wes sees Oahu as his playground and out of his toy box came the idea for climbing the Haiku Steps or Stairway to Heaven. The track has been closed down for some time now in part because out of shape tourists would try to climb, get stuck, and have to be rescued but also the apparent danger of falling to your death.  Â

Soooo Steeeep!

The steps were originally built to service a radio tower at the top of the mountain and it took  3,922 steps to get there. Since the steps are being guarded during the day we had to sneak around through the jungle and enter the steps at a higher point. So, Wes led us through the thick bush and we entered the trail at about step 300. Right before we started the trail we all regrouped and Wes told us that we would need to climb as fast as we could to the first platform so that the guard wouldn’t catch us. Onto the trail we went, practically running up the near vertical steps, an impossible pace and it didn’t take long before we started to wear out. Even though we could hear the guard behind us blowing his whistle we pushed on in hoping that he would give up and let us continue.  At about step 500, already down one member of our group who had turned around due to vertigo, we hear the guard yelling “STOP”. He had caught up to us in an amazing feat of athletic ability. O’well, at least we tried. Wes knew the guard because he had been caught before so he started shooting the breeze with him. Turns out he’s a super nice guy just doing his job and once he realized we weren’t some punk tourists he let us continue, stating that he respected how we snuck around him in the beginning lol.Â

YAY!!

What followed was a true test of endurance and will power, but the reward was a sense of accomplishment and spectacular views. Plus, coming down was super fun and fast. Wes gave us some gardening gloves and told us to let our hands slide down the railing letting our feet kick up in the air.

Breathtaking View!

As if climbing 4,000 steps wasn’t enough of a rush, Wes’ neighbors had told so many crazy stories about skydiving we spontaneously decided to take the fall ourselves. Kristyn decided she would join us and we even convinced Wes’ little sister to join in!

Our plan to skydive had always been New Zealand for the first jump, but since we had been getting to know the folks who ran the jumps and it was one of the cheapest places in the world to do it, we went for it. The day started off cloudy and it didn’t look like we would be able to jump, but all of a sudden the skies cleared and before we knew it we were taking off, destination 14,000 feet.Â

Just before the "No turning back" point!

The plane ride was definitely the most nerve-wrecking part of the experience! I remember noticing how the white tips in the ocean were getting smaller and smaller…and more numerous! Then my tandem guy showed me his altitude watch showing we’ll be going up to 14,000 feet and freefall until 5,000… and at that moment we were ONLY AT 6,000!!! I thought we were already SO high!

Brad was first out…I saw him standing at the door and then he just DROPPED out SOOO fast …. It was unreal! When it was my turn….I didn’t even have time to be scared…and we were falling…and then after the initial few seconds…falling turned into FLYING! It was soo beautiful! Stunning views and it wasn’t even scary! 60 seconds flew by and then the parachute was pulled and I was allowed to control our movements…twirling around in the sky! Only 5 jumps before you can do it on your own..woah I can’t imagine that!

Flying!

Too fun!

After the incredible time we had and awesome people we met, Oahu instantly sprung to the top tier of places we’ve been to on our long journey. Who knows, we may even find ourselves calling this amazing island home!

Arriving in HAWAII!!!

Our first stop was Maui the second largest in size and population. The island offers such a diverse landscape that within an hour you could go from sunny, dry desert to lush tropical rainforest in under an hour. We had lots to explore on Maui and couldn’t wait to get back­­­­_­ into living the island lifestyle again!

After a long couple hour waiting for the right bus, we finally made our way to the always sunny Lahaina, on the west side of Maui, where our couchsurfer Sarah awaited us! We all meshed immediately and made plans for a hike the next morning to go fruit-picking in the mountains, so after a home-made carrot juice, we were on our way with Odin, Sarahs big sweetheart dog to scour for as many guavas and Liliquoy (passionfruit) that we could get our hands on! We totalled about 50 in all, and shared with whoever would accept! Definitely something I loved about Maui…. It was all about living off the land, respecting the land, and sharing the joy!

Guavas galore!

Brad and I went exploring through the little tourist town when we stumbled upon the most amazing tree we’ve ever seen! They’re called Banyan trees, and their branches extend out and then drop to the ground to plant new roots….with look like new trees that have MORE branches that make more trees! And they’re all connected to this one “mother tree”… It was just unbelievably beautiful!

Banyan Tree!

Eventually Brad pulled me away and we made our way to the beach for sunset! It was beautiful as we watched a dog play fetch with a coconut, and kayakers passing in front of the picturesque mountains of Lanai.

Sunset in Lahaina!

Next stop…Paia, the alternative hippie town on the road to Hana… sometimes sunny sometimes rainy! We had a bit of trouble on the bus…future note to all backpackers heading for Hawaii… they don’t allow bags on the public busses! (this can also depend on the drivers mood and available space)BOO… we were pretty annoyed that they basically make all tourists rent a car or take a taxi! Luckily couchsurfers are BADASS and our new one in Paia, Kevin, came to collect us!

Sunset in Paia!

Lucky for us our hosts were not only cool people, but excellent tour guides, with an itinerary that was just our speed. Our first day we visited the Iao Needle, which is a lush mountain range offering swimming holes and exciting views.Â

Amazing view!

The next day was even better. We headed out towards the road to Hana and somewhere near Huiku we pulled off on this small dirt road and found our trail. Down we climbed until we reach the first of many swimming holes and were greeted by a beautiful family of three who were soaking up the sun where it usually doesn’t shine!Â

Right away I spotted some hanging vines and had the urge to swing. I gave it a hard tug and a test run before making my swing across the water. “Get up higher” said Chelsea, and I willingly obliged and as I did no sooner did my butt meet the hard rocks of the river. Nothing a

little laughter didn’t cure.Â

Vine swinging!

On we went only to emerge to a beautiful waterfall and oasis, straight out of a movie! Green rainforest all around,

turquoise blue water…and nobody else around! We all jumped in….I needed a little push cus it was sooo cold! BUT SO worth it! The little waterfalls coming from the rock were warm too so major plus! We all found ourselves sitting in silence, some meditating, really taking in the

beauty around us! We didnt want to leave!

Tranquility!

All we ended up doing was hiking to ANOTHER beautiful waterfall. This hike was harder and through heavy forest with lots of bushwhacking, but again, we arrived in isolation! This one was taller and provided a nice little rock to jump off of!

Brad backflipping!

Our time in Maui was truly unique and wouldn’t have been the same without our adventurous earth-loving couchsurfers! We left with a new love for all the local fruits , the lush green mountains, and of course the Aloha spirit! Definitely could live in Maui Not too sad though, becaue next stop … the Big Island!

Olympic emblem

Sydney, once the site of Britain’s first Australian settlement is today the southern hemispheres stylish and lively hub of multiculturalism. Approximately five million people from all around the world have made Sydney their home yet, it maintains the Aussie essence. It is a bustling metropolis full of opportunity and wonderment with no shortage of happenings. Whether you’re after the spectacular landmarks near Sydney and darling harbor, surfing beaches, endless shopping, a stroll through the botanical gardens, or letting hours melt away in a café – Sydney has something for everyone. Â

Sydney Harbor

One first day in Sydney, we took it easy while we were overcoming the jet lag (which was affecting me unusually severely ) and took a stroll to the beach. Coogee Beach is one of the major beaches in Sydney that Sam happens to live 10 minutes walk from. It has a lot of character, with a street lined with locals cafes and smoothie shops, a park overlooking the water, and a promenade type area to sit and admire the view. The beach was already “packed” in the eyes of us WA beach bums, and it was only Tuesday!! Since it still wasn’t too hott yet, we decided to keep walking on to Bondi.

Bench for giants!

Little did we know, Bondi was really over 6 kms away, and walking around the jutted coastline took much longer than we expected. However, we were pleasantly surprised because not only was the view,of course, spectacular, but we happened to be there for

“Sculptures by the Sea”!! We actually had seen this at Cottesloe in WA, and I got probably overly excited when I saw the same awkward red man in a different position!

Weird red man!

We finally made it to Bondi and were overwhelmed by how busy it actually was!! We plopped down on the sand, ate our peanut butter sandwiches, and people watched…hoping to see a famous Bondi rescue! … AND WE DID!!! It totally made the 2+ hour walk there worth it

Bondi!!

Sam and Ariel arrived that night and it was so so great to see a familiar face…..and a gorgeous happy as ever little Sam look-alike! We took a girls day with a stroll to some markets that sold all things i love most about markets. One purchase of this amazing broccoli/silverbeet/kale veggie juice, a gobble down of a chunk of buffalo mozzarella, and a few tastes of some local olive oils, and we were on our way to get our nails done, compliments of my love Brad

Nail Day!

That same night we all went to Kristy and Colins for dinner! After eating way too much cheese and crackers, we enjoyed some delicious pizza for a really nice night in playing with the girls and chatting over wine!

My little buddies :)

Brad and I took to the city the next day and fell in love with Sydney Harbour! The water with the bridge and opera house make it so picturesque…. even in the rain, we enjoyed the view. After roaming around all the little towns, we walked across the bridge for the best view of all!Â

LOVED this view!

On the other side, the famous Luna Park awaited our arrival. It was actually closed…. but the gates were open and we wandered around this abandoned clown park  in foggy rainy weather. It was eerie!! I loved it!

We were lucky to get another nice day in Sydney, and took the ferry across to Manly! Although the beach was nice, it was similar to Bondi, and I actually found I enjoyed the bay more. Our favorite by far though was the 4 pines microbrewery. I recommend anyone to go…it’s got a really laid back atmosphere, a tasting plate of good sized beer for only $15 and everything else you could hope for in a microbrew!Â

4 Pines!

We waited until dark to catch the ferry back, so we could see the city lit up at night! It was so beautiful, and I feel like we were SO lucky, because we saw fireworks at the Sydney Opera House and it was such a cool atmosphere!

Fireworks!!

The weekend arrived, and that meant only one thing…. STAMPEDE!! The valley stampede in Glenworth Valley to be exact. My family friend, Michelle picked us up for the road trip up there to what turned out to be one of the most unique and crazy things any of us have ever experienced. Dressed in Christmas gear, a group of 8 of us set of on a 5k obstacle course through the mud. After some log rolling, tire skipping, ice trenching, rope climbing and hay jumping….we were all wondering why everyone was finishing this thing SO dirty.

Straight Grossness!

WELL… bring on the mud. Next was running through deep wet mud, crawling through muddy tunnels, slip and sliding down into mud and straight up jumping into a sloppy mud pool! It was MAYHEM!!! The funniest obstacle of all was probably running through an electric maze…which really did electrocute you!! How they got away with that…I’ll never know!

The gang!

Anyway it was an absolute blast, and even better being able to catch up and spend time with Michelle and her friends! We finished the day off perfectly with a BBQ and drinks at a nearby hotel. Thanks Shelly for organizing everything!

Our last day in Sydney was spent exploring Darling Harbour. It’s got lots to offer, and the Chinese Garden looked very cool….BUT we mostly just walked around and took in all the crazy Santas floating around

It was really great to get back into the thick of it again and the busy streets of Sydney was a great launching pad. Â Thanks so much to Sam, Valerio and Ariel for hosting us as we remembered how to be budget travelers again. Â Much love to Kristy, Colin and the girls as well. Â

We’re excited for phase two of our travels and hope we have as many amazing stories to share as the first half. Â Thanks for reading!

Beautiful White Sand!

If you ask any local what the best beach on Christmas Island is they’ll probably tell you, Dolly! Standing out as one of the islands premier beaches, the white floury sand welcomes your feet after a two kilometre jungle trek. The approximate 300 meters of beach front abuts groves of fruit bearing coconut trees that jut out and up towards the sea. Beneath the trees are hundreds of crawling robber crabs fighting for dominance and pilfering distracted beachgoers lunches. As the tide recedes the dazzling rock pools are revealed seducing bathers into their cool electric blue waters.Â

Rahhh Robber crabs!

Relaxing by the palms!

Not only does Dolly Beach make for a great day trip, but the soft sand and remote location beckons the adventurous campers. Receding tide is the best time to visit Dolly, so be sure to

check for the times in the Islander.

Jungle Hike home!

Brad's masterpiece painting!

One place that you should take some time and get to know while on the island is Ethel Beach. Given its proximity to Lily one might expect a similar layout, but it is actually very different. From the parking lot there is a boardwalk that will lead you down to a set of steps bringing you out onto Ethel OR you can walk down the (unused) boat ramp and climb through some rocks to a private beach.

Rock Pools at Ethel

Once you touch down

on the pebbly sand you have a choice to either set up

in front of the shimmering indigo rock pools that are just deep enough to lounge in or stroll to the left where space is plentiful until you find a spot that suits you. This is also a great place to view the casino, but even better for sunrise if you’re keen for a 5am wake up call.Â

Yea

Probably the most important thing to take into consideration before planning a trip here is the tide. Always choose low or going out over high/coming in because at its highest point the waves will be crashing into the steps leading down to the beach and the chill space becomes nil. Â

View from the top!

Greta is yet again another beach only accessible by 4 wheel drive. The walk through the

jungle is only short before you come to a staircase leading down to the sand!  It’s actually so beautiful and could

be one of the nicest beaches on the island if it weren’t for all the trash!

Crazy Staircase!

At low tide and calm waters, you can wander around the cliffs to come to a giant rock pool that you can fully swim in.

Loved this twisted branch!