Upon leaving Sunrise Court we had to endure another over night coach journey, this time having to suffer 10 hours of being uncomfortable and sleep deprived until we reached our next destination, Airlie Beach, where we set sail for the Whitsunday islands. Airlie Beach was our first venture into the tropical region of Austalia, and we were relieved to see the sun was shining. Airlie Beach, which doesn't really have a beach as such, is a small but bustling town with most of the action happening on one street, and it is a bit of a mecca for backpackers as the Whitsundays is definetly on the 'Must do' list.
We spent one night in Airlie Beach before we set sail the next afternoon. We were going on a catamaran called 'The Pride of Airlie' and at our induction meeting we got speaking to Tom and Louise, friends from Newcastle Uni who were in Oz for a month, while Gem got talking to 2 girls from Kingston, Rachael and Nikki, one from Canvey island, Sarah, and one from Canada, Marsha, who we also ended up sharing a room with for the next couple of nights. Outnumbered again.
It took about 2 hours to sail to the island where our resort was, and on the way, we got our first impression of what these islands, 74 in total, were all about. Surrounded by deep turquoise water, most of the islands rise up high out of the sea and are covered in lush green forest, though most don't really have sandy beaches on their shores, they are gorgeous to sail around. 
When we got to our resort, we instantly felt relaxed and ready for a good holiday. As we stepped off the boat we saw our first tropical fish in the waters below, and headed for our room, which had a first class view.
A room with a view
After dumping our stuff, the next obvious place to visit was the bar, which again, opended out to the sea and gave us the chance to see a beautiful sunset as we settled in to our new home. After the sun had disappeared, that first night became a bit of a haze. When we booked our trip, we were told our boat was a bit of a party boat, and on that first night it certainly didn't disappoint.
Rachael & Sarah Me & Al with Tom (right) Louise (left)
and some random guy
We were soon all hammered, playing party games and dancing around, and also, and the photographic evidence is here, getting familiar with the pole that was placed in the middle of the dance floor. The biggest casualty of the night though was my right flip flop, which snapped at some point during the evening, and I was left having to wear two left feet for the next few days. They had been with me through thick and thin those flip flips, and I was sad to have to say goodbye.
The next morning was a struggle for everyone, but somehow we all managed to get on the boat at half seven and set sail for Whitehaven beach, while still trying to pick up the pieces of the night before. Your hangover soon clears however, when you come face to face with Whitehaven beach (left). It stretches for about 3 miles on a gentle curve, and is covered in fine, white, silica sand making it look like your ultimate paradise beach island. We stayed there for about 4 hours just chilling out, and swimming in the crystal clear, warm waters, and it was bliss. We even found a huge turtle resting on the sea bed in the bay and snorkelled round it, with Alex diving down, getting face to (huge!) face and stroking it's shell. Unfortunately, I was experiencing some technical difficulties with my snorkel mask, and never really got a good look at it.
By mid afternoon we had to drag ourselves away from the beach and get back to the resort. On the way back we stopped and jumped in the water for a quick dip, but Alex had to decline as his hangover was catching up with him again. We also even got to see a glimpse of a whale from about 100m, but unfortunately it got a bit shy when we all looking at it for a second look, and didn't resurface.
By late afternoon we were back at the resort and a few hours to kill before dinner. Me and the girls went off and found the spa and jacuzzi, and chilled out for a few hours, while Alex and Tom took in a round of golf. Seriously, this resort was at least 4 star quality, which is not something we have been accustomed to out here, so we were lapping it up!
The evening failed to live up to the previous night, and after dinner, not even the crew were up for getting drunk again, so it was a quiet night and everyone was in bed by 10! Our last day saw us visit the best snorkelling sight around the islands. When you look into the sea from above you can't see many of the fish, but once you have your mask on and dive beneath you are amazed at how many there are! All different colours and shapes, you just want to spit out your snorkel and shout 'Wow!' Fortunately, after the previous days problems, Gem got to grips with her mask and was able to enjoy this to, even hanging on to the back of the motorised dinghy and being pulled around over all the coral to get a better look at the fish. Much to her annoyance though, she forgot to bring her brand new camera with her, which was water proof, so she couldn't get any pictures of Nemo or his friends.
Unfortunately it was all over too quick and we were soon heading back to Airlie Beach. It had been a great two days, and was the perfect way to get all that fruit picking out of our systems, and in Gem's opinion, this surpassed even Fraser Island. Seeing the Great Barrier Reef really is the one of the best things you can do here, and it isn't overhyped at all. Once you get a hang of your breathing it is addictive, and we both vowed that we would be taking at least one more trip out to the reef before we left the east coast.
Back on the mainland, we met up with a group of the people we had just holidayed with to share dinner and a drink, play drinking games in our room and (in my case anyway) fall asleep, while everyone else went out to one of the nightclubs. We had one more day in Airlie Beach to recuperate and then the following morning we were off again, up to Mission Beach.