Moving to Margaret River . . .

The six hour bus journey from Perth down to Margaret River looks bleak as the grey skies close in, rain pelting the windscreen, the boy in front of me crying for his mother, recently past away. The driver, sensitive to the mourning of a son, his mother lost to lung cancer, offering the passengers frequent 5 minute stops to join him for some deadly "fresh air"!

Cruising through sprawling towns, houses and drive thrus - Chicken Treats/Cellarbrations/Liquor Land - scattered along the roadside. Past endless bush where kangaroos are camoflaged by the grey trees. Forks of lightning brighten the morbid skies, light at the end of the tunnel, and I am hopeful that Margaret River will be a bright and cheerful light at the end of this journey!

I-pod tunes offering me hope, the Aussie favourite "Tim Tams" (choccie biccies) to feed my hunger (thanks Nick!), I while away the hours thinking of my trip so far and the job prospects still to come - praying that my nightmare a few nights ago of being a cleaner doesn't materialise!
Things were looking up as the skies cleared and the bus finally arrived in Margaret River and I was whisked off to the youth hostel. The hostel is situated about 1.5km from the main street and was filled with friendly faces and a good atmosphere. Starving, and in need of a beer after my traumatic bus journey, I trotted into town - further than I had realised - to get some groceries, before settling into the hostel life of chatting, drinking and watching film after film! The hostel has now become my new home and I, along with many others who are working in the area, am hoping to use this as a base for the next few weeks - or for as long as I can stand living in a dorm room!

Another bright prospect was the thought of living in this beautiful wine region and I promptly booked on a wine tour for my first day here - to help me to get my bearings - honest! With my roommate Sally, and two others, we headed off for the first of our six vinyards with our tour guide, Andy. Instructing us on how to drink wine correctly (!) and the rules of the six s's, (See, Smell, Swirl, Sip, Spit/Swallow) Andy filled us with facts about the region - that after a few glasses of vino I promptly forgot! Visiting the smaller wineries in the region was great as we were able to sample many new and old products. We also got to visit a cheese factory and a chocolate factory where I polished off a few dishes of samples. Never mind picks - we were using scoops to guzzle the free choccie! A fantastic day and a brilliant way to experience the delicacies that Margaret River has to offer!

Tom, aka Tim Tam (yes - he polished off my packet of Tim Tams!), a pal from the Youth Hostel, and I also headed to Prevelly Beach that lies on the coast about 12kms from Margaret River. The coastline here is just stunning and is renowned for surfing and immaculate stretches of beach. The weather is so cold, windy and wet just now (feels like home!) that it certainly wasn't a day for sunbathing or surfing, but we had fun watching a windsurfer cruising across the waves and I had a laugh when Tim Tam was engulfed by a wave!

Deciding to stay in Margaret River for a few months to stock up on dollars for a couple of months of travel with Ali, Kate and Kees over Christmas and then with Joolz in the new year, I applied for a job at the Margaret River Resort. See link: http://www.margaret-river-resort.com.au/ After an interview (which was conducted sitting at the bar!), and then a pint with the General Manager, the job was mine! I have been employed as a food and beverage chick to work in the bar and thai restaurant - with a few extra shifts in the steak house (although being vegetarian and working in a steakhouse don't really go well together and the chef - who I have named Pumpkin - already takes great delight in describing to me, in great detail, which part of the cow he is serving and enjoys writing "Son of Bambi" on the menu! I am also getting extra shifts in housekeeping as they are shortstaffed - so the cleaner nightmare did come true! - although I am apparently going to be training new starts as of next week so am definitely inline for a quick pay rise!

Having secured a job, and having had enough of being woken up at 5am by the backpackers who are working on the wineries (I lasted a week so maybe my tolerance level is getting better!?), I decided to move out of the hostel and into a share house. I saw an ad for a room to rent to a clean, easy-going female, and thought I was just the lady! My new flatmates, Nick and Pete, have a fab pad on the outskirts of Margaret River that they share with Nick's dog, a gorgeous golden labrador, and his cat. For those of you who know me well you will be surprised to hear that I am living with a cat (I hate them and always think I am allergic!), but I have decided that it is mind over matter and the cat and I have already had words . . . to the extent that when I moved in yesterday it left me a little present in the bath! But, it's all good and the guys seem really nice - plus they both work on wineries and there are case-loads of wine all over the place! Awesome!

Inorder for me to get around Margaret River I have bought myself a mean machine bike - complete with 10-year old boy style helmet with a skull on the top of it! I managed to pick it up for 20 dollars - a bargin! I certainly am getting some stares as I ride around town - although I do seem to know most of the people here already it seems! Everywhere I go I am bumping into familiar faces and having to cast my mind back to which drunken night out I met them on, or at which karaoke session (a local favourite it seems!). Checkout me on my mean-machine below: