The Clipper

I left you all off with me waiting to go on The Clipper,   a backpacker boat in The Whitsundays with a reputation of being the craziest party boat!!! Let me tell...The Cipper definately held up to it's reputation.  To be honest,  I wished I was in my early 20's again so I could've really gotten involved as much as the younger ones did.  It was a mix of Jersey Shore and Spring Break in Cancun on the water for 2 nights....that's probably not the best way to describe it because it makes it sound horrible and not give it the justice it deserves but those are the only words that seem to fit with an explanation of my experience on the boat.  In other words AWESOME!!!!  Come on, we all know I love JS!
Anyways, I had to walk to the Marina, it was only a 20 minute walk but with my overnight bag, a box of Goon and massive humidity it was brutal.  I was swearing at the company under my breath about how much money I spent and there could at least be a bus. I was sweating and my goon was heavy and I had absolutely no idea where I was going.  They said follow the path but it turned and then disappeared and with my sense of direction I was ready to turn around and go back to the hostel and let the boat keep my $400, but with determination and asking for directions I finally made it.
We all boarded the boat put our stuff in the bar area and went upstairs to the main deck to have our orientation.  Jimmy one of the decky's comes out and says "alright guys we are only suppossed to have 53 people on this boat and we have 55 so we need to find out who the idiots are before we can leave."  He begins reading off names and everyone is saying here, here, here.  After about 10 names this girl said "did you say this was the Clipper?" "Yes"  "Ummm ya we are the idiots, sorry guys"  we all clapped and waved them on there merry way.  Jimmy says "wow this looks fun lets just randomly walk on a boat filled with backpackers and see wehre it takes us!"  Anyways with all that figured out we finaly set sail and
had a bit of an orientation that went something like "welcome to The Clipper....please use our toilet paper not your own as ours is made for the toilets....your goone is in the beer fridge....ladies no strings no wings in the toilet....the music and beer fridge close at midnight....there is a spa on the lower deck....please do not jump into the waters tonight there are sharks.... guys those little rubber things you "sometimes" use please tie a knot at the top and place them in the rubbish bin....for all of you drinking goone the cups are in the cupboard that say cups so please do not ask where we keep them.  Tonight is a night of drinks and music so grab your goone and whatever else you backpackers drink and party!  Definatly my type of boat already.
I ended up sitting with 4 girls that I spent the next two days with, Amy, Selina, Emily and Ketchup...yes that's right Ketchup.  She is Dutch and when people can't say her name properly it ends up sounding like Ketchup so that's what she calls herself.  
A few hours later I was pretty pissed and I looked over the side of the boat and I say " OMG guys look at the sharks!"  "ummm Emmmie they are dolphins and they have been swimming here for 2 hours!"  I'm sorry I was drinkning goone we all know what happens when I drink goone...it's like tequila for me I take one sip and say "see you guys tomorrow" which is exactly what happened.  I ended up passing out at 10pm and when I woke up the next morning to Jimmy singing at the top of his lungs to wake us up I didn't even remember I was on the clipper.  I was so confused.  With bleery eyes I got dressed into my wet shorts and bathing suit and made my way up for breakfast.  Jimmy after his singing said "alright guys get your bacon and eggs up in the bar area!" So all the guys roll out of bed and race up the stairs only to find toast and fruit, lol too funny.
"My clothes are still wet from being thrown in the spa last night" I said when I sat with the girls at breakfast.  "Thrown in? No Emmie you went in willingly"  "oh dude really, fuck, I remember getting thrown in." "nope you went in willingly and then you flashed the guys"  "oh no really?  oh...and now that you mention it I remember...I swear it's the goone I am a completely different person when I drink it!"
Our first stop that morning was to Whitsunday Island where we would get to spend the morning hours at Whitehaven Beach.   Before going to the beach you head up a hilll to the look out.  Now everyoe is extremely hungover and dying on this trek complaining how hard it is and that they feel like dying...me who would usually be winjing myself was so used to hiking up and down the island hills that I was like "hard?  come on guys suck it up this is an easy trek"  honestly living on the island and having to hike to and from work everyday has totally helped my fitness level.  Anyways the look out is where all the pictures of the Whitsundays are taken for postcards and let me tell you the view from there was postcard perfect.  Blue blue water with swishes of the whitest sand swirling through it.  That's all I can say to describe it,  I don't think there is anything to describe what it loooks like except "you have to go see it!"  Seriously that's it!  I don't know what else to say. It was beautiful, it was breathtaking, stunning, incredible...whatever else you can think on is probably just the tip of what it looked like.  I could've looked at it all day but the beach was calling my name, so me and Stu (one of the guys I met  on the Clipper) made our way back down the path to head to the beach.  
As we are walking we hear a rustling sound in the bushes and see something "oh my god what is that?" said Stu stepping back.  - Stu is quite new to Australia so not overly used to the wildlife here.  Me on the other hand don't freek with snakes and spiders anymore and am picking up bugs with my fingers...I know I know but what can I say. - Next thing you know an oversized lizard slowly, taking his time walks out on to the path in front of us and making his way down the hill.  "It's just a Guana, don't be such a pussy" I said calmly getting out my camera as I had never seen one and wanted a picture.
Whithaven!  WOW!  Fucking incredible!  I loved it as much as the beach in Abel Tasman.  It was so incrdibly beautiful.  The first view of the beach when you leave the tree covered path to the white sand is incredible.  The sand is the whitest sand you have ever seen and so incredibly soft on your feet, and you see miles of white that eventually meets the clearest water you have ever seen.
  The sand is made with silica, it's the only beach in the world with sand like this.  You can shine your silver,  rub and wash your skinn with it making it soft like a new born baby's bum,  brush your teeth to whiten them it was amazing.   The water is crystal clear...I mean crystal clear.  You look down at your feet and it's like you are standing in a bathtub looking at your feet in the water.  It was so refreshing and felt so good.   We sat all morning in the water hanging out and playing around using Stu to put us up on his shoulders so we could get photos.  Washing our skin and brushing our teeth with the sand which didn't feel the greatest when rinsing the our now hot bottles of water.   We could've stayed all day but it was time to head back to the boat so we could get our mid day feed and head to Hook Island for some afternoon snorkelling.
I wasn't overly keen on going snorkelling.  The girls were all planning on going but I had already gone in Cairns and ended up struggling to much and not enjoying myself so I was gonna hang back on the boat with Stu  and a few of the guys and enjoy the waterslide and the divingboard, but when I saw that the snorkellers and divers were being dropped off on Hook Island not out in the open water like in Cairns I decided I wanted to go. I grabbed snorkel gear and hopped on the dingy boat with Amy.  
The first bit of snorkelling wasn't the greatest or should I say the first part of the water wasn't the greatest.  There was this brown algae on top of the water that stinks and makes you feel like you were walking through poo...I had to hold my breath...but it only took us a minute to wade through it and then we were off.  I am so glad I went.  The water was calm and the sun was shinning and I didn't have to struggle with my swimming like the time before.  Amy hadn't snorkelled before and was a little nervous which I was ok with because I was still a little nervous in the water.   They gave floating noodles to go out with so we doubled them up and just chilled out and took our time.   We ran into Selina, I mean swam into Selina...so she joined us and we snorkelled around together.  Amy finally had the nerve to look in the water and loved what she saw.  It was really awesome!  The coral itself wasn't what I had seen in Cairns but the fish....there were so many of them.  There were heaps of Dori fish and Zebra fish that at one point I felt like I was at the zoo in the Zebra section.  "Wow, my fish Jack would love it here.  It's short for Jack Daniels.  I also have Smirnoff but Jack would definatly love it here!"  "Selina I don't think this would be overly safe for your fish"  I said as I put my head back in the water.  "I know but he would love the coral and all the fish he would have so many friends." "Selina...haha are you still talking, here we are snorkelling away and you keep talking about your fish Jack.  Stick your head in and enjoy it"  " I know, I'm just saying the would've loved it.  He died awhile back."  Amy and I started laughing.  "Still he would've loved it."
That night was a fucking crazy as party.  First we all had to go in these big bins and grab clothing and put it on.  The clothes stunk so bad lol.  You could tell they were clothes people had left behind and were covered in alcohol and sweat from previous parties on the boat. 
The guys...of course...put on dresses and got their makeup done.  I don't know what it is with boys and dresses, I swear they all want to be women.  One of the guys Stu wore a bra on his head.  Amy stuffed the front of Lukes shirt to make him have boobs, they were so uneven and saggy it was awesome.   The staff was dressed up and was involved with everything.   The whole night was to see who the King/Queen of the Clipper was.  People got illiminated every round and when they got eliminated we had to sing "nah nah nah nah, hey hey hey, goodbye"   NO!  I was thinking....that's what they sing when you leave the island lol I really don't want to hear or sing this.  The games were crazy we had to pretend to be zoo animals, one round theycalled freeze and we had to hold our positions we couldn't move or laugh, even if they tickled us we couldn't crack a smile.  While holding ourselves still the staff came around and put us into sexual positions.  There was a guy and girl standing beside me.  They bent her over and put him in a position with his beer botthe up to his mouth and made him hump back and forth the whole time.  This was the only thing I could see and I was doing everything not to laugh and I survived the round and moved on.  One round the guys were Eucalyptus trees and the girls were Koalas and we had to climb them and hold onto them.  Next round we had to be letters of the alphabet.  "Right lets make the letter B"  So I jumped up and wrapped my legs around one of the girls and curled up in a ball.   A third girl curled up at the bottom of her legs.  " Her head is in my croch"  "Thats ok" I replied "I am actually resting my ass on her head and my face in your boobs...this isn't akward at all.  My name is Emmie by the way"   The next round is where I got eliminated.  We had to pretend we were in a rowing competition, we had to keep together and row as fast as we could.  I never want to be a rower.  It was hard work, I think we even moved a foot across the boat we were rowing so hard.  I was a little upset I didn't make it on to the next round but when I turned around and saw that almost everyone still left in the game were naked I was so thankful I could just drink and watch the craziness that at one time in my life I would've been involved in and loving.  There was music and strobe lights and singing, it was insane, if we were on the mainland we would've shaken the ground.
I was one of the last ones up...I know it's amazing...I wanted to go to bed early but Stu kept saying "no Emmie you have to stay up tonight, enough of this sleeping business."  A few of us hung out upstairs on the main deck with Jimmy  he told us when they were cleaning out the spa that morning to refill it, it was clogged with someones underwear.  "honestly, his said there have been so many things I have seen on this boat it's incredible."
The next day we were heading back to Airlie but we got one more snorkel off of Hayman Island.  THE best snorkelling I have done in Australia so far.  The colours of the reef were incredible and there were so many things I hadn't seen before.  At one point I was completely surrounded by Dori fish and I mean surrounded I could stick my finger out and touch them they were so close to my face.   One of the staff had thrown in fish food so they would come around and boy did they ever.  There were so many you could see them pop out of the water and feel the swim up against you.  I was a little freaked out but it was worth it.   There was this massive fish (I don't know the name)  they call Elvis that we could pet and swim with.  It was amazing,   I wanted to stay in all day, I didn't want to get back in the dingy but we had to start heading back to the mainland.
When we got back to the Clipper we really wanted to do one time down the waterslide.   Awsomeness!  plus there were these huge blue fish swimming with us it was cool.
That night there was an after party at Phoenix and a drink and half a pizza for $5.   The girls and I went but after I ate my pizza I was ready to go to bed.  "You do too much sleeping for my liking Emmie" said Lee.  I didn't actually go to bed I was meeting up with Aidan and Max as it was Aidans last night so I went for a few drinks with them and headed off to bed.  
I had a message from Dan telling me to call HR when I got back.  They had found me a job and were going to move him and I into a double room.  Once again I got the run around for 2 days finally with an answer "sorry Emmie but Vickie won't let you back"  I waited around for nothing!   I didn't know what to do or what my plans were but then Dan quit his job on the island because he wanted to come with me but he still had to stay another work.  My friend Siimon hooked me and Alexa (from the island) up with his friends apartment for 4 nights rent free.  All we had to do was clean the apartment.  Perfect.  The days went slow and were boring, Dan and I were counting down the days until I got to go to the island.  I was going back on the Tuesday night (his last night) as his guest for the night.  It was so much fun and felt so good to be back,  the boys were happy to see me and so was everyone else.  "Party tonight boys" "of course Emmie your here" "Umm it's my last night"  Dan says "ya but Emmie always throws parties...Emmie wants to get drunk party...Keep me on the island party....I'm leaving the Island party....I want to party party....andd we love them you can come though"
The next day we made our way back to Airlie and then booked the bus to Cairns for the next day.  Honestly 10 hour bus rides are not fun, but we went with Premiere and they have more leg room then Greyhound and they play movies almost the whole way so we really couldn't complain. 
So it was back to Cairns.  It feels good to be back, my Aussie landing ground.  I walk in the door and I hear "Emmies back!"  Everyone wants us to stay but we really want to find work in the Outback for the next 3 months.  I know, more isolation but it is the best way to save and make money, and it is quite nice being away from technology.


what was the thing i need you to remind me about the clipper

The Run Around

By the time I got to my second week I knew I wanted to extend.   I had met incredible people, I loved my job and I was living in paradise, what more could I ask for.  After a shift I said to my manager “I would really like to extend for about 2 weeks”  she said she had to talk to my supervisor and she would get back to me. While I waited to hear back I talked to some of my mates and they said I might as well stay longer, the longer I stay the more money I save and then I can travel for months and not work.  Why not I loved it there anyways.  Five days later I still hadn’t heard anything back so again after work I asked “have you talked to Jim yet” (my supervisor) “no I haven’t, I will tomorrow”  “ok, well I would really love an extension, I love my job here and really want to stay till at least mid-November possibly January.  I then went to HR to talk to them. ( My manager has to go to HR who has to go to the Chief of Village of final decisions. )

I was a little on edge for the next little while.  I still didn’t have an answer therefore I didn’t know what was going on and I was getting stressed out.   One day at work I asked my supervisor what was going on he said they were cutting staff but there were two spots available.  They were 100% keeping Jarrett because he wanted 3 months and that someone from FnB (food and beverage) had put in a request to transfer.  Nothing against my work ethic but that was the decision. Then as I went to sign out at the end of the day my manager says “Emmie I am cutting down to 7 staff so I’m not giving you an extension!”  Just like that, in front of everyone.  I was a little embarrassed and upset.   I went right up to HR and told them I would do the three months.  That I really wanted to stay and I wasn’t ready to leave.

I was far from ready.  Everything was amazing on the Island.  I lived in the best spot, I had amazing friends who I adored and I kind of started dating someone.  Everything was just perfect and didn’t want it to end.

The next day while putting up curtains with my supervisor he said “you should’ve said you can stay for three months” and then continued to tell me about how the French Canadian guy Christian got the position and that all the paperwork was getting done that day.  The next day I see Christian and his wife  Nadia.  “Hey Emmie did you get any good news about your extension?”  “I didn’t get it!  You got the position!”  “No!  they told me to come back that no decision had been made.”  “they told me all the paperwork got done yesterday.”  “they give you information they don’t tell me.  It is your job I don’t want to take it from you.”

I was so frustrated.  I didn’t know what was going on.  I went to speak to HR again and she said I wasn’t the only one trying to get an extension and that I should be prepared to leave the following Tuesday when my contract was done; but then that night at disco she said “Emmie I don’t want you to leave I am doing everything to keep you on the Island.”  Dan and I had no idea what was going on,  we didn’t know if I was coming or going, staying or leaving, packing or settling.  He even wanted to get me in the kitchen with him as a dishy but they don’t allow girls to be dishy’s.  WTF!!!  

I was gutted!  I didn’t want to leave, everything was perfect and I was so happy. In honour of myself I threw a Keep Emmie on the Island Party where I took marker (that we borrowed from kids club) and wrote in big letters on a club med towel to make a banner that one of the guys wore as a cape.  It was a success the boys showed up and got pissed up and then we all headed to the disco.

  Head’s of departments were telling me not to worry something would come up, looking to see if they could find a spot for me anywhere on the resort.  Then Scottie, gardens supervisor said “hey I need another person in gardens would you be interested”  “HELLS YES!”  “allright then let me just run it by Luke.”  Well Luke said yes,  all he had to do was talk to HR.  Oh great here we go again…the run around.  5 days later I still hadn’t heard anything it was always come back, we haven’t spoken, your fine don’t worry,  I have a meeting I will know tomorrow.  I was getting so anxious it was the last day of my contract and I still hadn’t heard anything!  And to top it off HR was closed for the day!! Dan kept telling me not to worry, that I had massive support to be kept on the Island there is no way I was leaving.   Finally, I was told to be at a meeting the next morning to get everything sorted out.  It sounded really positive and raised my spirits a little bit,  it’s the closest thing I had to a reply in days.

The next morning after my meeting I went straight to my room to wake up Dan.  “How did it go?”  “it didn’t” “it didn’t” “what do you mean it didn’t”  “they said there is no budget and I have to leave tomorrow morning”  I couldn’t believe it!  Actually no one could believe it.  “What do you mean you didn’t a get transfer” “that’s bullshit” “why do they always get rid of the good ones”  “I just don’t get it”  people I have barley even spoken to knew I didn’t get it and were coming up to me.  The guys were knocking on my door asking for hugs and how they heard.  Dan had told everyone when he saw them at work.  “there is nothing else I can do to keep her here. We’ve tried everything.” 

I was told of a few spots opening up in a couple weeks but I had to leave and come back if they accepted me into the job.  It seemed pointless.  So unwillingly I packed up my little donga all day and got prepared for my last night with my Island family.  It was a really nice night, all the boys showed and even some of the chefs popped up when they were done work to say goodbye.  As much as I didn’t get to stay the love and support I had from everyone was enough for me.

It was a sad goodbye on the jetty the next day.   I didn’t let Dan come and say goodbye.  “it’s bad enough I am leaving I don’t want to have to say goodbye, besides you are coming to Airlie in a couple days I will see you then.”  The guys came down with me “Emmie why are you crying we will see you in Airlie on Friday” Graeme the bus driver got out and hugged me.  “you take care of your self sweetie. I love you.” Then he looks at me “oh don’t you start crying” then it came to my goodbye with Shira.  Shira is the reception manager and me and her became mates one night over some wine.  I had spent a half hour in her office the previous morning crying when I didn’t get my extension.   She came up to me put her arms around me and we hugged so tight (well as tight was we could as I had on my massive backpack)  “emmie you are such a beautiful person,  good luck with everything and never change.”

I so did not want to get on the ferry.  The guys were taking pictures of me leaving, everyone was waving and singing “na na na na hey hey hey goodbye.”  I hated every minute of it.  There were a few of us leaving so at least I didn’t have to do the travel on my own.  It took us hours to get back to Airlie.  By the time I checked into the hostel it was 4.5 hours later.  It was such a long day.

I ran into a friend from the Island so we hung out for a couple days at the bars during happy hour.  I even ran into a mate from back home that I hadn’t seen is 6 years, it was so random.  Dan came out on Thursday for two nights.  He told me the girl who got the PA position was leaving in a week and the spot was opening back up!  WTF!  Aidan and Max (2 of our mates that just finished their contracts, also PA) said that it was 100% that she was leaving and my one supervisor was trying to get them to hire me back.  It’s retarded!  Plus there are ad’s up all over Airlie for immediate work on the Island?!?  It makes no sense to me what so ever.  Dan left today and he is heading straight to HR to find out what is going on.

Oh well, I’m just thinking of this as a mini vacay and the fact that there is a gastro outbreak on the Island I don’t mind not being there.   We had a wicked two days. Shopping, watching movies, bar hoping, swimming in the pool.  It was really nice to have some time away from the Island.  Now to continue my vacation I am heading on to a boat called the Clipper.  One of the best party boats to go on through the Whitsundays.  Honestly, even with the run around I have had with the Island, life is great and it just keeps getting better.

The Magic Ingredients to a Perfect Life on an Island

I have a log book that has logged every day of my travels.  It includes stickers of the places I have been, quotes from people and letters from people I have met along the way.  I recently made a really great friend on the Island who unfortunately was done with her contract and left . It was sad saying goodbye though unfortunately with travelling it happens often, you meet great people but you blink and they are gone, it sux but thats apart of travelling.  The night before she left she wrote me a beautiful letter in my book that almost brought me to tears and wanted  to post it. 

The Magic Ingredient to a Perfect Life on an Island:

The people I have met!

I live in a little box where they succeeded in  making fit a tiny little bed, a shelf, and a broken fridge.  But the rest of the time I stay with my dongas family spending the time messing around drinking a few beers on the floor of the “living room” or watching a movie: 7 people in 1 bed!  And then we get ready for the Disco!  Every Wednesday and Friday, and the main question the morning is “who is getting NBO?” or “How and when the held did I get home?”

We pet Elvis and Pete the cockatoos, go to discover the island and try to swim back the current without drowning, count how many points we made last night, try to wake up and go to work on time but it never happens, hunt turkeys with craig and fishing line, nominate the queen/mother/god…of the dongas, count how many flies we’ve killed in a day, look at the NBO’s party pictures, kill our hangover by the pool talking about the gossips, debat on who are the new hotties and GO’s assholes, take pictures when we party so we can actually remember what happened,  have to open 4 different rooms to find our belongings…and so on!

And now it is time to go.  Not because I want to but because I have to.  I’ve been dreaming for this moment for so long, but now that it’s here, I just don’t wanna leave.  I feel exactly the same as when I left home 11 months ago to do my world tour, this weird feeling in my stomach because I’m leaving my family/friends/routine, and now the real world is calling me…but I don’t wanna go.  Now I’ll have to go to a supermarket and cook my own food, meet strangers in the street, have to take the bus to go to the beach, lock my door, have to pick up the phone when it rings (I don’t even remember my phone number), be a backpacker again and pack everyday (which I hate!)

So, yeah! This is it, 5 months on Lindeman.  Awesome time with awesome people.  I really hope that you will experience it as longs as you can cause you deserve it little crazy mother donga’s ! J

Make sure we meet up again, why not south America when this beautiful Argentinien will have stolen my heart haha! Or in Europe and get crazy and catch up this time that we didn’t spend together and I wilsh we had but I left too early or you came too late…

Take care of the Donga’s as you are the new feminine representant and only girls rule J

I miss you and all of you already.  Keep smiling and getting shit faced but not NBO!

Xxx Justine Mother/Queen/Donga’s!

I don’t think it could’ve been said any better then that.  Those really are all the ingredients though you have been the only ingredient missing these days.   You have been missed and I always say that the party is missing something…you.   I hope all is well and that we get to meet up somewhere in this crazy world again.  Take care and I miss you!

Your Replacement Mother Donga xox