The Theft

There’s something you should know about Australia. Regardless of the fact that it is a mecca for backpackers from around the world. Regardless of the fact that the country seems to cater to this particular segment of the tourism industry with hostel chains, backpacker packages on buses, and deals galore, the country is still taking financial advantage of us.

Don’t get me wrong, I love the country. The people are great, the men are hot, and the accents are to die for. And while I know that in the end, it came down to a slight lapse of judgment on my part, I’m still putting a lot of the blame for putting me in that situation on Australia’s blatant gauging.

Because if you’re a backpacker, on a tight budget, paying $30+ for a dorm room bed, and the hostel is still charging $10+ for a couple hours of internet, what would you do?

Landing in “Bali”–AKA Sydney

The plan has been in the works for weeks, if not months. When it became obviously clear that I would not be in Melbourne for Christmas or New Years to spend those holidays with my good friend Steve from Stevivor.com, I decided on getting there for his birthday at the end of January. I got a hold of his amazing boyfriend Matt and found out the date for the birthday party: February 4. And so, a plan formed. I would lie through Facebook, Twitter, etc. by giving the impression I was heading to Bali when in actuality I was heading to the Land Down Under. The only people in the know were travelers I had told in person, Matt, and my good friend Mick who I would be staying with for the first few days in Sydney.

NOT the Bali Airport. Guess my flight was diverted?

I Went to Vang Vieng and Didn’t Tube!

Days 387-390, December 19-22, 2011

Vang Vieng, Laos is one of those places that almost seems to get trapped in a singular focus. Ask most backpackers or travelers about that town and they’ll all name the “must do” thing there: tubing. At home, tubing means being put in an inflated tire tube and pulled being the back of a speeding boat around the lake. Here, it means laying in an inflated tire tube, floating slowly down the Nay Som River, and getting drunk off your ass. At least a dozen bars are located on the rivers edge, pulling tubers in for free shots, cheap beer, and even cheaper buckets of whiskey cola.

Each of those cost $1.20

Swings, zip lines, and slides are also found in abundance at these riverside bars. I’m trying not to judge those that go strictly for that, but there’s enough deaths each year that you’d think people would realize that extreme alcohol + water + rocks + jumping in drunk = not a good combination. I had no desire to do the drinking and tubing mix. In my head, I was going to do the tubing, have a beer at one bar, and spend the rest of my time floating down the river taking photos. I had no idea that there was so much more to do in Vang Vieng than the tubing.

And I spent three days doing everything but tubing.