Gone Troppo!: The Working Holiday

We were lucky enough to welcome in the new year in our new hometown.

On new years eve, Josh and I (along with four others) flew to Brisbane once again to visit the farm. We were planning on spending three nights in Childers then another six nights in Hervey Bay (a 'tourist town' about 40 minutes away).

We grabbed the huge mini van at the airport and hit the road. It was a long drive and by the time we reached Childers at 6pm we were thrilled just to be done with travelling for the day. Excitedly, we drove around the back of the shed and all piled out.

The noise was unlike any other. The cicadas were so loud, chirping as the sun went down. The cane toads croaked loudly as they jumped around. Something else noisily scampered off when it heard all the noise. This wasn't the farm that I remembered.

The place seemed a lot more 'untamed' than last time. It had always been overgrown, but now it was also overrun by creatures. (In hindsight, this was the first time we'd ever been there in summer. It's the wet season in the subtropics, and everything was just out and about doing their thing.)

As the sun fell even lower, we accepted that we weren't going to get anything done that night, so we unpacked some gear and headed to the pub. The work could wait until 2015.

The next day, we headed back to the farm bright and early. We started by walking around the property, just to get a better idea of what needed to be done. The boys dismantled the tattered old shade sails outside, and the girls started sweeping and clearing out the junk in the cellar. Slowly, but surely, we started to see the place change.

The next day the boys got up early and headed into Bundaberg to grab some supplies from Bunnings. A few hours, and over $1000 later, they returned with a mini van full of gear...and it was on. Trees were getting attacked with chainsaws, the shed was getting a high pressure clean from top to bottom, toilets were getting bleached, ants were getting poisoned. It was full steam ahead, and we could start to see the changes.

Our last morning in Childers was a little more relaxed. We finished up a few of the last jobs then headed to Hervey Bay. We were all so excited to start the 'holiday' part of our 'working holiday'.

It was great being able to sleep in, stroll down to the cafe to grab a coffee and have a late, lazy breakfast. My highlight from the next few days was the day trip to Fraser Island. We spent the day driving all over the island, stopping off in the rainforest, Lake McKenzie, Eli Creek and 75 Mile Beach. It was such a beautiful place, a true testament to how amazing Australia is.

I loved spending a decent amount of time in Queensland - all of our previous visits had been rushed and crammed into a long weekend. It was great being able to slow down and take some time to enjoy our new home state. As much as I'm going to miss being a 'sand groper', I'm definitely excited to become a 'banana bender'.