"...actually I feel fine.." I say as i jump on bus and am asked how I feel...
"Oh you have jumped before?"
"oh no," I say "I am just so excited!"

Half an hour later, dressed in a jumpsuit with a million and one straps dangling from my quaking frame...

"So what are we doing today Jo?"

"...SKYDIVING!!!!!!"

...fine, i admit it, as excited as I was (and I was very very exciited) even though I was smiling enthusiastically (perhaps a little too enthusiatically) my eyes betrayed my inner fear...when did I become so remarkably unhinged that I thought throwing myself (or ,being thrown, to be more exact) out of a plane was a sane thing to do...travelling addles the mind!

But i did it! I tumbled through space...hurtled to earth at an incredibly alarming pace and had the most awesome experience of my lifetime.

I am trying to upload the photos to my website (http://jrobinson118.bebo.com) but they are too big so I will have to sort this!
For those of you interested though, I will bore you with the video which follows me from start to finish, set to Gorrillaz and drum and base....sorted!

I am alive, i am well, I am truly truly ecstatic and I love you all, Jo x x x

So I believe I left off in Cairns where it was raining hard but hey, I was in Australia so who can complain!

Cape Tribulation was brilliant, I was considerably hungover from drinking free, yes free champagne at Rhinos all night (the trip had been cancelled and postponed for a day because of the rain so our plan was if we got wasted and had horrfic hangovers it was bound to be on as we had to be up so early...the plan worked) and we found it pretty hard to get excited about the dolphins kicking around in the surf next to us as we drove up the coast but by the time we hit the hostel in the heart of the forest morale was back to normal and we were able to enjoy everything that Cape trib has to offer including Canopy surfing on zip wires through the rainforest and over waterfalls and then a walk around Cape Tribulation bay. The next day we went to a different hostel in the Daintree which was much quieter (there were 4 of us and one othergroup of 3!) but was really relaxing and we played pool with all the staff and they gave us free drinks..resulting in an interesting game of twister, and I also mastered some more poy moves (thats that one I started learning in Mission, the balls on the end of strings...)
Then the next morning, me Hells and a german girl Micahela who we picked up on the way, got up at 5 and went to watch the sunrise with a bottle of champagne. It was pretty freaky wandering around in absolute pitch black and walking through a creek with a very ineffective maglite (may I remind you we were in Croc country!) and once we had positioned ourselves on the beach and opened the champers we all kept casually turning around and scoping the space around us to check thatwe were still alone (hey, we saw signs warning about crocodile sightings, we were nervous!) but after a while the sun started to rise (really slowly like someone was unzipping the clouds) and we chilled out with a glass each, huddled together in our pjs, it was lovely. It was quite cloudy but it was still mesmerising to watch and I got some good shots so Ill upload them when I get chance.

So next up after that was the reef trip.

Now bearing in mind that my snorkelling experience on the whitsundays began with some panicking and lip wobbling, the fact that the reef trip we went on offered a free introductory dive really should have sent me pegging it onto the sunloungers with a magazine, however since surfing, kayaking and 4 wheel driving wernt really up my street but I tried them anyway and loved them , I decided once again to put my self out of that fluffy comfort zone I am so accustomed to and give it ago.
Ok so I was bricking it. Myself and Helen gingerly lowered ourselves onto the platform on the back of the boat in our wetsuits and let them load us up with weights and a tank and all the rest of the diving paraphenalia and then we practiced breathing throught the tube (through your mouth Jo...thats right) and then we rolled in. Now I wont pretend that I wasnt unnerved when I first got in and under the water, and in fact completely freaked out is probably more accurate. Everytime I started climbing down the bars on the back of the boat (underwater) I panicked and swam to the surface...as did Helen. But after a couple of attempts and a very patient instructor I made it to the bottom bar and performed my two tricks; emptying my mask underwater; and taking out the breathing apparatus and blowing bubbles. So when we got back to the top and we got asked whether we would like to go on the proper half hour dive, an invisible force found its way into my throat and I found myself agreeing to go. I am so so pleased that I did. I saw giant clams, clown fish, coral that looked like velvet and a giant camoflauge coloured cod! And even tjough I was gripping onto the hand of the instrucor the entire time it was the most amazing experience. Then we sunbathed for the rest of the afternoon and did some more snorkelling which for your information I have now maste

Arrrrrrrrrr me hearties, how goes the rough wind at sea where me treasure lies..

...so I just got back from sailing the Whitsundays on a racing boat called Broomstick. It was absolutely awesome! Everytime the skipper said 'we are going sailing' everyone had to go 'arrrrrrrrrrrr'...yes we are really that sad, it was hilarious! We basically spent 3 days sailing around the islands, stopping off at Whitehaven beach to sunbath for a while and play in the sea in our devestatingly sexy stinger suits. We all felt a bit like giant condoms all zipped up in skin tight jump suits! I have a good photo of me emerging from the surf like Halle Berry (...did she not wear a stinger suit in James Bond...?) Then after that we went snorkelling which was so so amazing, we were just off the end of the great barrier reef (think its called the fringe reef...?!) so it was so colourful. It took me a few attempts to get to grips with the snorkel paraphenalia...

me:"...um..I think mines broken! I keep snorting salt water and my throats beginning to hurt!.." (sniff,wobbly lip)
Zac the deckhand :"....try breathing through your mouth..."
me: "oh"

But once I had mastered it, I didnt want to get out! I saw a turtle, parrot fish, electric blue shoals and a few times found myself swimming in amongst schools of different fish it was just amazing!

Then the second night we were out, we rafted up against another two boats which never happens and we just wandered from boat to boat drinking goon and playing limbo!
So Im back in Airlie beach now and Im staying until Tuesday and then I move on to Magnetic Island. I have met up with some wicked norhern chicks from the Oz bus and Im planning the rest of my trip with them and another lovely girl called Bex.


....ooooh! Ive just realised, I havent told you about Fraser Island!!
Ok..just quickly then abecause I can see your eyes are getting heavy (or do you just want to run and make a cup of coffee..? ...Ill wait...


...ok so Fraser was over last weekend. I was on a self drive with 8 girls and 1 (poor poor) bloke ( he was meant to do the man jobs like putting up the tents and opening jam jars but he was a bit of a wuss..lovely but a bit dizzy and mothered by his equally lovely but slightly highly strung girlfriend "...MATTHEW! SLOW DOWN! ....MATTHEW! Please dont stand so close to that!" etc...)(NB to mum, she sounded abit like aunty Joan when she said Matthew) We all had ago at driving and managed to survive a really nasty skid atht very very almost turned into a roll and caused a little blanket of silence for a few minutes as we all gipped the seats and thanked God for being on our side! And even I had ago (even though I was a bit nervous after that!) I drove along the beach to a chorus of "we love you Grandma" (...what! Im a careful driver!!...you still have to indicate on empty beaches...) and then once I got up inland a bit, I got a bit more confident, swinging around mountain corners merrily beeping my horn and bouncing over very rough terrain, almost taking out someones wing mirror and carrying half of the forset under my wheels, it was brilliant fun.
Then in the evenings we camped out in tents after bbqs and more goon. The stars were spectacular, I have never seen anything like it, they are beautiful when theres no pollution to mask them!
ANyway, so that was Fraser. I have also been to a cattle station since then and done goat rodeoing and mechanical bull riding but that will make my email into a book so perhaps Ill leave that.

Im hanging around here for a bit so will be on email for the next few days.
So much love to you all, keep smiling, Jo x x