Sunday 20th April - Day 77

A 6:30am start on the greyhound bus will get me to Hervey Bay at about 10:30am. It's a stop off point to get to Fraser Island. So many people have said, Fraser Island is a 'must see.'

I have something to complain about (don't remember the last time I had cause to complain about anything) my hostel room is unclean. I'm at 'The 'Palace' hostel. "Sorry sir, we haven't got around to cleaning it yet," says the Receptionist. Okay. I leave the hostel to check out my surroundings. Later in the day I return to find clean sheets on my bed but the floor isn't clean. I go down to complain. A new Receptionist asks, did I not notice it was unclean when I booked in ? After expaining that I had, she gives me a key to another room. This time the room has had it's floor cleaned, but the surfaces are dirty and the shower doesn't look too good. I go back to the first room.

The beach at Hervey bay is stunning. There aren't many people along this beach and it's easy just to stare at the sea and watch the waves and day dream. A thought crosses my mind: what were they thinking 200 years ago ? The politicians transported convicts to a place where there is plenty of land, natural resources, outstanding natural beauty, a round thing in the sky called the sun and much more. And everyone else stayed on a small island where the sun is hardly seen. Maybe the convicts should have been left in the U.K. and everyone else moved to Australia ? Who's laughing now ?

Inland from the beach there is a narrow strip of woodland and shrubs, etc, a pavement, a road, another pavement on the otherside and a line of shops, cafes and bars in spurts. It puzzles me why people are running along the pavement when there is a really nice beach to run along. Maybe the sun has gone to their heads.