Rainy Byron Bay and a touch of claustrophobia...

What can I tell you? We have now left the Gold Coast after an amazing time - Coolengatta was lovely and the boys had lovely surf and beautiful weather. The day before we left we went to 'Wet and Wild' which is a huge water park with the biggest scariest slides you can imagine. Sam's favourite was one which was a plastic tube with a vertical drop. You stood at the top and a trapdoor opened lauching you vertically downwards and with such force that you did a loop the loop. Naturally I sat that one out.

Will's favourite was a surboard type ride which launched you into the air on a horse shoe shaped track - whilst spinning around - it looked horendous... and my favourite was the Tornado.

The three of us sat in a big inflatable ring and you are launched down a dark tunnel into a vertical drop and then up the sides of a horizontal cone before being sucked through the base of a tornado.It was right bloody scary and I screamed my head off - which was actually quite nice - fairground rides are the only time you can officially scream as loudly as your lungs allow. We had a fab time at the water park - got there when it opened and left just as it was closing.

Then we headed down to Byron and this is where things took a turn for the worse. There are a few reasons for this 1) It's pissing down and there is nothing worse than being stuck in the van in the rain...except when combined with 2) It's ram jammed here - seriously it's like a tourist trap - i'm sure once upon a time this was a nice hippy community but now it feels like a place that's trying a bit too hard to recapture it's lost youth (as are many of the people who live here). There's nothing worse than a load of drug addled 40 somethings riding around on skate boards with no shoes. I'm sure when I was 18 I would have thought this was the coolest place, now it just makes me feel claustraphobic and makes me want to cry (or maybe that's the weather!). Anyway I have managed to escape the confines of the van and have found a coffee shop with free wi-fi whilst Will and Sam surf. There are actually loads of coffee shops here which of course would usually mean heaven but all of them are full to bursting because it's the Easter holidays and some stupid Blues Festival is taking place here. Hopefully we will only have to stay one more night and then we can escape to another place where there is space and fresh air and nice walks and room to breathe.

Will and Sam are currently surfing and I have left the van locked up so will have to depart and unlock it for them - but first will have to fight my way through the crowds of people who are also huddled in the coffee shop to escape the rain... So sorry to moan again but I hate the bloody rain. Hopefully a more chipper update next time (but don't hold your breath because it's not meant to brighten up until Weds).