The 60s are calling, they want Byron Bay back

If you've ever toyed with abandoning personal hygeine, if you think surfing is a spiritual calling, if all of the 80s are one giant K-hole.... you belong in Byron Bay.

The sky here is just showing off. There's no sense in explaining it, I will just post some photos while you book your flights here. Byron Bay is notoriously a hippy, surfer party beach town with breathtaking ocean scenery and wild night life. In the winter (like now) it's much quieter and the "locals" (largely expat backpackers who came for a weekend and stayed for years) seem more interested in the scenery than the booze. But the entire town is stuck in the 60s. The shops peddle hemp clothing, spiritual cleansing, and organic juice drinks. The beach parking lot is crowded with vintage 70s vans with curtains over the back windows that serve as dual-function transportation and accommodation for the large population of wandering souls that have found themselves on Australia's Gold Coast.

Our first day here we took an eternal hike to the town lighthouse on the top of a mountain overlooking the bay. Sore legs aside, it was a fantastic view. During the winter months the migrating humpback whales hang out in Cape Byron and we saw a few off them wave a flipper as they passed. There are also groups of dolphins that play in the bay, darting between surfers fearlessly. Man and nature are one in Byron Bay in ways that previously only seemed plausible at Sea World.

Back in town, I decided to do as the locals do and let an ayurvedic healer have a crack at my previously undisclosed knee injury (deep breaths Mom, I'm fine). It was an interesting and painful experience, though honestly I am feeling better today.

After that, I did as the other locals do and went to the local pharmacy seeking the strongest muscle relaxants money could buy. I learned just one more way in which the American medical system makes the simple into the needlessly complex-- the pharmacists in Australia can sell you certain prescription-strength drugs after a simple consultation. My consultation consisted of limping in, her asking "you need something strong?" and me wimpering until she handed over the good stuff. It wouldn't take much acting skill to develop a trendy habit in these parts.

Our one and only night in Byron Bay was exactly what you'd expect when you crash a hippy commune-- vegetarian dinner, a spotaneous Bob Dylan sing along with random guitar players, and a beer under the stars by a fire.

Ok, one more beach shot just to rub it in. I walked along the water barefoot this morning, sipping my morning coffee and thinking I might just stay forever.

I know...

Our second day in Byron Bay we went on an eco-tour of the area to see Australia's finest wildlife in its natural environment. Our guide was a reincarnation of Steve Irwin-- he clearly loved the animals, knew everything about them, and (slightly creepily) impersonated their various calls in ways that drew them to him. We saw a ton of parrots, koala bears, kangaroos, flying foxes, whales, dolphins... all in their natural habitats. It was amazing.

Despite spending far too little time in this incredible place, we got into a rental car and headed north to Brisbane for the next leg of our journey. Clare gave me the incredibly helpful advice that if the headlights were coming directly for me, I was driving in the wrong lane. With that rule of thumb memorized, we set off.

Australian Zoo tomorrow!! I want a koala.