Bowen, Queensland, Australia

The time has come for us to say goodbye to Home Hill, jump in a bus for an hour that will bring us down to the lovely seaside town of Bowen. First impressions seem really good. The hostel, 'Harbourside Homestay' looks very basic but clean. The owner, Alan seems very friendly as do our housemates, including Harry and James from England. One of the good things about this working hostel is that it's divided up into different locations across the town. We managed to get a small house that kinda feels like home. Of course, the best thing of all is that we were out picking tomatoes the next day which is brilliant. There's certainly plenty of work with most people working a seven day week. The picking isn't too bad, except when all the fruit is at the very bottom, which makes things not so easy, especially when your tall like me! Hopefully, after a couple of days, my body will get used to it and my leg starts to improve! Fingers crossed I still have a back at the end of it. The money's not great, but hopefully that will improve. That evening, we got word from home that the package we had sent from Vietnam all the way back in June had finally arrived. A bit later than expected, but I suppose we should be thankful it arrived! After a couple of days on the farm and with my leg still aching from Home Hill, I noticed a lump in my foot. I immediately thought I must have fractured a bone when I had a large pallet fall on my foot the previous week at work. The next day I went to the hospital to have it checked out. Of course, with my history, they automatically suspected a DVT in my leg. As a precaution, they kept me in over night, in the Children's Ward. Thankfully, I had the whole ward to myself where I had full control over the tv and where the nurses took great care of me. They even fattened me up with really nice food! Who said hospital food is bad? The next day, the doctor's instincts were right, as an ultra sound confirmed the worst. I guess its blood thinners and lovely, long compression socks for me. Considering, it's going to get a lot hotter over here, I don't know how I'm going to cope with them. On an upside, at least they were free, cause I don't fancy paying out a whopping AU$80 for a pair. To be fair, I shouldn't complain too much as I got to reap the rewards of free healthcare for all Irish Down Under. And who says the Aussies don't like the Irish? On another up, I was discharged after only one night, of course I was under strict instructions that complete bed rest was the best thing for me. Hey, if it means a break from the farm, I'm not complaining! Both Alan and Jo, who cleans our house every morning, have both been very good to me. Jo took the two of us out on a trip around Bowen to show us all the lovely beaches. It was nice to be able to leave the house as I was confined to the four walls for most of the week. I think the walls of the bedroom were getting closer and closer together! It's a shame that most backpackers only get to see the farm and not the real Bowen and all it has to offer! When we got a phone call from the lovely Katharina informing us of her imminent arrival to Bowen the following day, both myself and Jason got very excited. The next day, right on time, Katharina arrived. After she got settled in, the two of us took a stroll up to the local supermarket, Woolworths. Walking up wasn't too bad, but walking back with more than we could carry was a bit of nightmare! Thankfully, a passer by in her car took pity on us and offered us a lift. The two of us could have kissed her shoes! With all the boring stuff out of the way, we both went on a walk down to the beach where we ended up walking along the pier. It was really nice. The water was so blue and there wasn't a cloud insight. Definitely worth a stroll! What a week of surprise's. Not only was Katharina now staying in Bowen, but the lovely Anna-Lena was now making her way down to us. It was great to have our two friends with us again. When Anna-Lena arrived, I made sure to show her a bit of Bowen by taking her on a walk along the beach and up to the harbour. The two of us even adventured into what looked like the outback as we headed straight up to 'Flagstaff Hill' which offers great lookout views of all of Bowen and some of it's beautiful beaches, blue waters with two tiny islands stuck in the middle. Australia really is a beautiful country! While it was great having our friends back, the only problem was that they were both in different houses, but at least they were close by! With two weeks off from the farm, it was time for me to return. Hopefully my leg wouldn't give me too much stick! After my first day back, I was wrecked, I wasn't use to all this work. It definitely took it's toll on me. It was Katharina's birthday and I didn't even have the energy to pop over to her. But, the following day, all four of us met up at our place where we had a card and a present for Katharina. Myself and Jason were happy we got her something as it was the only present and card she got for her birthday. We all spent most of the evening together enjoying the full moon eclipsed by planet Mars. It was like seeing a big red tomato in the sky! At first I thought my eyes were playing tricks on me! Alan, the hostel owner, asked us if we would like to be in the same house as our two friends, Anna-Lena and Katharina. Of course, we were all thrilled to say yes. Poor Katharina wasn't too happy to be woken up early in the morning with a bad hangover to be told she had to get up immediately and pack her stuff straight away. But she didn't mind. When we arrived at our new home, all four of us were shocked at how nice and modern it is. There are two bedrooms with nice, big beds and en-suites. It's more like a fancy apartment, but with a garden. We were all thrilled. It makes the farm work so much easier as we can come back to a nice comfortable place with our lovely friends. I think we will have no problem settling in! On one of our very rare days off, all of us headed up to 'Horseshoe Bay' for a day of relaxation by the sea. While we are getting used to the farm work, it's still not easy. The money isn't great and we don't even get paid for all the work we do. Val the supervisor is crazy. Half the time all you can hear is her shouting 'Pick the fuc**** colour' and 'Come on Bundy girl!' She is a mad thing, buy at least she likes myself and Jason which is good. A couple of times on the farm we've seen big Emu birds which are incredible creatures. After only a handful of weeks in our new place, we were forced to say goodbye to it and move into somewhere a lot more basic behind where we were staying originally. The only good thing is that all four of us are still together! What more could we want? It's a bit too small, hence why I'm always banging my head. To be fair, there's nothing new there. We may not have a door to our bedroom, but we do have a curtain. How cool is that? Jealous? You should be! It's like a tree house! Not sure if that's a good thing or a bad thing! Looking forward to a nice lie- in on one of our few days off, we got a phone call from Alan, the hostel owner who informed us that we had to get up straight away and help out on a pumpkin farm. This was on Halloween Eve. I don't know what you lot did for Halloween this year, but I spent it working on a pumpkin farm! How cool is that? The bad thing about the farm is having to get up at 5am every morning. Of course, it's also a lot harder work, but its great exercise. Who needs the gym? A great tip for you all, get a pumpkin and see if you can walk for nine hours constantly picking it up and putting it down, with the heating turned up full blast! Think you can do it, then what are you waiting for? Get yourself to a farm now! The great thing about this farm is that there is a lot more variety as there are three different types of pumpkins and your either clipping them, throwing them on a tractor or catching them. Most importantly the money is a lot better! The team are really nice. There is an Irish couple called Dave and Aíne AKA Una McFey, as I call her. We knew them from the tomato farm, but we didn't know them that well. We all have a laugh together. Una is very funny. All she can say is 'That's €uro money,' 'Ahhhh here, leave it out' and 'Ahhhh here, lass es liegen!' It's German for 'Leave it on the floor. Not very nice, but still sounds very funny, especially in a Ballymun accent. You Tube it and you will understand! Each morning our supervisor Wes, without fail, comes up to us and says 'Good morning people, how are we all today?' It's the small things in life that are the most memorable. Surprisingly, I thought all the insects and bugs would have bothered me, especially when a lot of them could kill me. The other day, I lifted up a pumpkin and underneath was a red back spider, one of the most deadliest spiders in the world and I didn't even give it a second thought! The amount of things we see would make the hairs on your back stand up. The team have seen snakes, spiders, Emu's, Cane Toads, to name but a few. And then there are all the fly's that never leave you alone. There up your nose and in your mouth! How wonderful? Poor Aíne had a wasp fly into her mouth and sting her on the inside of her lip. How lovely! Me throwing pumpkins don't go together. I hate to admit it, but I have bruised most of the team. Oh well! I can't help where the pumpkin goes, even if it is about 10kg! We did have two newbies that didn't last the day. They didn't even bring water with them, which is crazy considering how dehydrated you get. Jason offered them some of his, and they asked him if it was tap or bottled water. When your that thirsty, you will drink anything. One of them even had phobia of bugs. What he was doing on a farm with millions of Gods creatures, is anyone's guess! The lovely Jason got to spend his 29th birthday pretending to be a farmer. God he's getting old, thank God I'm still only 28! Hate to be that old. Ha! To be fair we had a half day! The birthday boy, myself, Katharina, Anna, Una and Dave celebrated Jay's birthday down on the beach for a nice Aussie Barbie and a couple of drinks. Two of the guys from the farm joined us. One of them brought his guitar down. Live music, good company, tasty-tasty food, amazing weather and a few drinks, what more could Jay have wanted? With the Christmas season well under way, it was time we figured out where we were going to spend it. Myself, Jay, Katharina, Danny Boy and Anna are going to celebrate the festive season in the Aussie style down at Rainbow beach and ring-in 2015 in Brisbane. Christmas on the beach, we are in Oz after all! It will be a completely different experience, but at least we get to spend it with the girls. The following day, the lovely Katharina, who has basically been with us since we first arrived in Oz, began her journey down the coast to Brisbane to meet the lovely Danny Boy. Unfortunately, that weekend, the city was hosting 'The G20' summit so the whole CBD area was blocked off. Oh well! At least she had Danny Boy back! A couple of days later, the three of us moved into a bigger house with Una and Dave. It's a lot nicer and modern. I'm not constantly banging my poor head and we got to swap our bedroom curtain for a door. What more could we want? Between the farm, and our lovely new house, life is certainly good for myself and Jay at the moment! From all the farm work, Jason has lost some weight, I don't think even his lovely mother would recognise him if she saw him. He looks great though. His little sheep are still dancing away in his head! How lovely is that? How lovely! We are having no problem settling into our new house, especially when it comes to Aíne's family Sunday dinners. They are as good as they sound. It's only fair that we give them an 'Off the scale' rating. Each morning, as we look into the distance, we can see Skippy hoping along. It is pretty cool to see. Of course, you shouldn't really go near them, as they will punch you until you can feel no more, but nevertheless, they are Australia, and they are amazing to see! Myself and Jason were very naughty one evening! We had kangaroo meat, and we loved it! Sorry Skippy! That weekend the girls decided to go a bit wild and have a couple of drinks. After all, it was a tough week on the farm. However, things turned sour the morning after when everyone in the house got a rather nasty text from Alan informing us all that he was evicting every single one of us. Unfortunately, a certain person in the house just couldn't hold their drink. Alan was not impressed. It was a horrible morning for all of us as we didn't want to be evicted and we all couldn't afford to loose our $200 deposits. As the morning went on, the more angrier we were all becoming as no one was owning up to it. Eventually we all put two and two together and confronted that person. Of course, they denied it. Maybe they were afraid of getting into trouble or maybe they just couldn't remember. After a bit of persuading, a very hungover Anna-Lena admitted the truth to us and to Alan. Of course, Alan slapped her hand as punishment, but what was most strange was that he was more concerned about all the beer bottles that were left on the counter rather than all the sick. Like I've explained, it really was the morning from hell! Later that week, we were in for an eventful time on the farm. After an hour or so at work, a major storm decided to make its presence felt. With only a few minutes to get us to shelter, the race was well and truly on. Fortunately, Wes got myself, Jason and Una back in time. Unfortunately for the rest of the team, well I'm sure you can figure it out. Lets just say there was a lot of pounding rain mixed in with very strong winds. By the time the rest of the guys made it to shelter, they were like drowned rats. I'm sure it was very refreshing for them! Not sure if they would agree though. On an up, we eventually got to see the 'Don River' with some water flowing in it as it had been bone dry for months! As we were coming into the last few days of our Bowen adventure, a picture of the 'Bowenwood' sign was a must. After the movie 'Australia' which starred Nicole Kidman, which happened to be filmed right here in Bowen, the community took it upon themselves to mark their towns new found fame and to ensure future generations will never forget the time a big film crew came to their small beachside town. Walking back, both of Jason's sandals decided they had had enough of his smelly feet. Jason and his lovely sandals both discovered each other right at the beginning of our big adventure. Until now, they have had a very good relationship, but honestly, I don't know how they lasted so long. With only bare feet to get Jason home, it was a very long walk back. Stopping to take some photos, I was nearly attacked by two very aggressive birds. Both of them were circling me, swooping down to bite me. Luckily enough at the last minute, I decided to move. Vicious little things! After what has been a rollercoaster of a time for both of us, the time had come for us to consign 'Blowen Bowen' to our memory banks. Overall, Bowen had been good to us, but after thirteen weeks, it was definitely time for the two of us to move on! Bowen, we will never forget you! Goodbye! Xxx The time has come for us to say goodbye to Home Hill, jump in a bus for an hour that will bring us down to the lovely seaside town of Bowen. First impressions seem really good. The hostel, 'Harbourside Homestay' looks very basic but clean. The owner, Alan seems very friendly as do our housemates, including Harry and James from England. One of the good things about this working hostel is that it's divided up into different locations across the town. We managed to get a small house that kinda feels like home. Of course, the best thing of all is that we were out picking tomatoes the next day which is brilliant. There's certainly plenty of work with most people working a seven day week. The picking isn't too bad, except when all the fruit is at the very bottom, which makes things not so easy, especially when your tall like me! Hopefully, after a couple of days, my body will get used to it and my leg starts to improve! Fingers crossed I still have a back at the end of it. The money's not great, but hopefully that will improve. That evening, we got word from home that the package we had sent from Vietnam all the way back in June had finally arrived. A bit later than expected, but I suppose we should be thankful it arrived! After a couple of days on the farm and with my leg still aching from Home Hill, I noticed a lump in my foot. I immediately thought I must have fractured a bone when I had a large pallet fall on my foot the previous week at work. The next day I went to the hospital to have it checked out. Of course, with my history, they automatically suspected a DVT in my leg. As a precaution, they kept me in over night, in the Children's Ward. Thankfully, I had the whole ward to myself where I had full control over the tv and where the nurses took great care of me. They even fattened me up with really nice food! Who said hospital food is bad? The next day, the doctor's instincts were right, as an ultra sound confirmed the worst. I guess its blood thinners and lovely, long compression socks for me. Considering, it's going to get a lot hotter over here, I don't know how I'm going to cope with them. On an upside, at least they were free, cause I don't fancy paying out a whopping AU$80 for a pair. To be fair, I shouldn't complain too much as I got to reap the rewards of free healthcare for all Irish Down Under. And who says the Aussies don't like the Irish? On another up, I was discharged after only one night, of course I was under strict instructions that complete bed rest was the best thing for me. Hey, if it means a break from the farm, I'm not complaining! Both Alan and Jo, who cleans our house every morning, have both been very good to me. Jo took the two of us out on a trip around Bowen to show us all the lovely beaches. It was nice to be able to leave the house as I was confined to the four walls for most of the week. I think the walls of the bedroom were getting closer and closer together! It's a shame that most backpackers only get to see the farm and not the real Bowen and all it has to offer! When we got a phone call from the lovely Katharina informing us of her imminent arrival to Bowen the following day, both myself and Jason got very excited. The next day, right on time, Katharina arrived. After she got settled in, the two of us took a stroll up to the local supermarket, Woolworths. Walking up wasn't too bad, but walking back with more than we could carry was a bit of nightmare! Thankfully, a passer by in her car took pity on us and offered us a lift. The two of us could have kissed her shoes! With all the boring stuff out of the way, we both went on a walk down to the beach where we ended up walking along the pier. It was really nice. The water was so blue and there wasn't a cloud insight. Definitely worth a stroll! What a week of surprise's. Not only was Katharina now staying in Bowen, but the lovely Anna-Lena was now making her way down to us. It was great to have our two friends with us again. When Anna-Lena arrived, I made sure to show her a bit of Bowen by taking her on a walk along the beach and up to the harbour. The two of us even adventured into what looked like the outback as we headed straight up to 'Flagstaff Hill' which offers great lookout views of all of Bowen and some of it's beautiful beaches, blue waters with two tiny islands stuck in the middle. Australia really is a beautiful country! While it was great having our friends back, the only problem was that they were both in different houses, but at least they were close by! With two weeks off from the farm, it was time for me to return. Hopefully my leg wouldn't give me too much stick! After my first day back, I was wrecked, I wasn't use to all this work. It definitely took it's toll on me. It was Katharina's birthday and I didn't even have the energy to pop over to her. But, the following day, all four of us met up at our place where we had a card and a present for Katharina. Myself and Jason were happy we got her something as it was the only present and card she got for her birthday. We all spent most of the evening together enjoying the full moon eclipsed by planet Mars. It was like seeing a big red tomato in the sky! At first I thought my eyes were playing tricks on me! Alan, the hostel owner, asked us if we would like to be in the same house as our two friends, Anna-Lena and Katharina. Of course, we were all thrilled to say yes. Poor Katharina wasn't too happy to be woken up early in the morning with a bad hangover to be told she had to get up immediately and pack her stuff straight away. But she didn't mind. When we arrived at our new home, all four of us were shocked at how nice and modern it is. There are two bedrooms with nice, big beds and en-suites. It's more like a fancy apartment, but with a garden. We were all thrilled. It makes the farm work so much easier as we can come back to a nice comfortable place with our lovely friends. I think we will have no problem settling in! On one of our very rare days off, all of us headed up to 'Horseshoe Bay' for a day of relaxation by the sea. While we are getting used to the farm work, it's still not easy. The money isn't great and we don't even get paid for all the work we do. Val the supervisor is crazy. Half the time all you can hear is her shouting 'Pick the fuc**** colour' and 'Come on Bundy girl!' She is a mad thing, buy at least she likes myself and Jason which is good. A couple of times on the farm we've seen big Emu birds which are incredible creatures. After only a handful of weeks in our new place, we were forced to say goodbye to it and move into somewhere a lot more basic behind where we were staying originally. The only good thing is that all four of us are still together! What more could we want? It's a bit too small, hence why I'm always banging my head. To be fair, there's nothing new there. We may not have a door to our bedroom, but we do have a curtain. How cool is that? Jealous? You should be! It's like a tree house! Not sure if that's a good thing or a bad thing! Looking forward to a nice lie- in on one of our few days off, we got a phone call from Alan, the hostel owner who informed us that we had to get up straight away and help out on a pumpkin farm. This was on Halloween Eve. I don't know what you lot did for Halloween this year, but I spent it working on a pumpkin farm! How cool is that? The bad thing about the farm is having to get up at 5am every morning. Of course, it's also a lot harder work, but its great exercise. Who needs the gym? A great tip for you all, get a pumpkin and see if you can walk for nine hours constantly picking it up and putting it down, with the heating turned up full blast! Think you can do it, then what are you waiting for? Get yourself to a farm now! The great thing about this farm is that there is a lot more variety as there are three different types of pumpkins and your either clipping them, throwing them on a tractor or catching them. Most importantly the money is a lot better! The team are really nice. There is an Irish couple called Dave and Aíne AKA Una McFey, as I call her. We knew them from the tomato farm, but we didn't know them that well. We all have a laugh together. Una is very funny. All she can say is 'That's €uro money,' 'Ahhhh here, leave it out' and 'Ahhhh here, lass es liegen!' It's German for 'Leave it on the floor. Not very nice, but still sounds very funny, especially in a Ballymun accent. You Tube it and you will understand! Each morning our supervisor Wes, without fail, comes up to us and says 'Good morning people, how are we all today?' It's the small things in life that are the most memorable. Surprisingly, I thought all the insects and bugs would have bothered me, especially when a lot of them could kill me. The other day, I lifted up a pumpkin and underneath was a red back spider, one of the most deadliest spiders in the world and I didn't even give it a second thought! The amount of things we see would make the hairs on your back stand up. The team have seen snakes, spiders, Emu's, Cane Toads, to name but a few. And then there are all the fly's that never leave you alone. There up your nose and in your mouth! How wonderful? Poor Aíne had a wasp fly into her mouth and sting her on the inside of her lip. How lovely! Me throwing pumpkins don't go together. I hate to admit it, but I have bruised most of the team. Oh well! I can't help where the pumpkin goes, even if it is about 10kg! We did have two newbies that didn't last the day. They didn't even bring water with them, which is crazy considering how dehydrated you get. Jason offered them some of his, and they asked him if it was tap or bottled water. When your that thirsty, you will drink anything. One of them even had phobia of bugs. What he was doing on a farm with millions of Gods creatures, is anyone's guess! The lovely Jason got to spend his 29th birthday pretending to be a farmer. God he's getting old, thank God I'm still only 28! Hate to be that old. Ha! To be fair we had a half day! The birthday boy, myself, Katharina, Anna, Una and Dave celebrated Jay's birthday down on the beach for a nice Aussie Barbie and a couple of drinks. Two of the guys from the farm joined us. One of them brought his guitar down. Live music, good company, tasty-tasty food, amazing weather and a few drinks, what more could Jay have wanted? With the Christmas season well under way, it was time we figured out where we were going to spend it. Myself, Jay, Katharina, Danny Boy and Anna are going to celebrate the festive season in the Aussie style down at Rainbow beach and ring-in 2015 in Brisbane. Christmas on the beach, we are in Oz after all! It will be a completely different experience, but at least we get to spend it with the girls. The following day, the lovely Katharina, who has basically been with us since we first arrived in Oz, began her journey down the coast to Brisbane to meet the lovely Danny Boy. Unfortunately, that weekend, the city was hosting 'The G20' summit so the whole CBD area was blocked off. Oh well! At least she had Danny Boy back! A couple of days later, the three of us moved into a bigger house with Una and Dave. It's a lot nicer and modern. I'm not constantly banging my poor head and we got to swap our bedroom curtain for a door. What more could we want? Between the farm, and our lovely new house, life is certainly good for myself and Jay at the moment! From all the farm work, Jason has lost some weight, I don't think even his lovely mother would recognise him if she saw him. He looks great though. His little sheep are still dancing away in his head! How lovely is that? How lovely! We are having no problem settling into our new house, especially when it comes to Aíne's family Sunday dinners. They are as good as they sound. It's only fair that we give them an 'Off the scale' rating. Each morning, as we look into the distance, we can see Skippy hoping along. It is pretty cool to see. Of course, you shouldn't really go near them, as they will punch you until you can feel no more, but nevertheless, they are Australia, and they are amazing to see! Myself and Jason were very naughty one evening! We had kangaroo meat, and we loved it! Sorry Skippy! That weekend the girls decided to go a bit wild and have a couple of drinks. After all, it was a tough week on the farm. However, things turned sour the morning after when everyone in the house got a rather nasty text from Alan informing us all that he was evicting every single one of us. Unfortunately, a certain person in the house just couldn't hold their drink. Alan was not impressed. It was a horrible morning for all of us as we didn't want to be evicted and we all couldn't afford to loose our $200 deposits. As the morning went on, the more angrier we were all becoming as no one was owning up to it. Eventually we all put two and two together and confronted that person. Of course, they denied it. Maybe they were afraid of getting into trouble or maybe they just couldn't remember. After a bit of persuading, a very hungover Anna-Lena admitted the truth to us and to Alan. Of course, Alan slapped her hand as punishment, but what was most strange was that he was more concerned about all the beer bottles that were left on the counter rather than all the sick. Like I've explained, it really was the morning from hell! Later that week, we were in for an eventful time on the farm. After an hour or so at work, a major storm decided to make its presence felt. With only a few minutes to get us to shelter, the race was well and truly on. Fortunately, Wes got myself, Jason and Una back in time. Unfortunately for the rest of the team, well I'm sure you can figure it out. Lets just say there was a lot of pounding rain mixed in with very strong winds. By the time the rest of the guys made it to shelter, they were like drowned rats. I'm sure it was very refreshing for them! Not sure if they would agree though. On an up, we eventually got to see the 'Don River' with some water flowing in it as it had been bone dry for months! As we were coming into the last few days of our Bowen adventure, a picture of the 'Bowenwood' sign was a must. After the movie 'Australia' which starred Nicole Kidman, which happened to be filmed right here in Bowen, the community took it upon themselves to mark their towns new found fame and to ensure future generations will never forget the time a big film crew came to their small beachside town. Walking back, both of Jason's sandals decided they had had enough of his smelly feet. Jason and his lovely sandals both discovered each other right at the beginning of our big adventure. Until now, they have had a very good relationship, but honestly, I don't know how they lasted so long. With only bare feet to get Jason home, it was a very long walk back. Stopping to take some photos, I was nearly attacked by two very aggressive birds. Both of them were circling me, swooping down to bite me. Luckily enough at the last minute, I decided to move. Vicious little things! After what has been a rollercoaster of a time for both of us, the time had come for us to consign 'Blowen Bowen' to our memory banks. Overall, Bowen had been good to us, but after thirteen weeks, it was definitely time for the two of us to move on! Bowen, we will never forget you! Goodbye! Xxx

By Andrew

#australia #queensland #farmwork #clot #horseshoebay #pumpkins #halloween