Byron Bae — i am nicole

Next stop up the coast: Byron Bay aka the hippie's homeland. I stepped off the night bus to a cloud of smoke and dreadlocks...maybe that's a little dramatic, but I have never seen so much tie dye.

The town was very chill with beach vibes and a nice slow pace. And what do you do in a happy little beach town? Learn to surf of course! Not to brag or anything...but I totally got up on my first try. Pro status. Unfortunately I don't have photo evidence. $20 was too much for a couple bad shots. But I'm sure you can imagine it just fine.

This is where I learned to surf! Clarkes Beach

After surfing all morning, Ann-Marie and I decided it'd be a good day for a hike up to the Cape Byron Lighthouse. We walked all along Main Beach and Clarke's Beach which were covered in little jellyfish and this giant one.

Giant washed up jellyfish. Shoe for size.

Once we got to the trail, we realized it's more of a staircase than a hiking trail...but it's worth it! It has breathtaking views and wallabies and even goes along the easterly most point of the Australian mainland.

The Cape Byron Lighthouse at the top of the hill has a great outlook over the entire area with Byron Bay and mountains to one side and the ocean to the other. Google says this is also Australia's most powerful lighthouse. Fun facts!

There were a bunch of really cute cafes which of course we had to stop at. And here's my lame attempt at overhead pics of the foods. But the exciting food story of Byron is that I finally tried a meat pie! Australia isn't exactly known for any great dishes, but they've got this pot pie type thing that I had to try or this trip would just be a waste.

Ice coffee here is always so fancy. No ice cream in this one, but it's a cold brew with coconut cream. And flowers bc why not.

Finally tried an Australian classic: a meat pie. Yum!

One day, I convinced Ann-Marie it'd be fun to hire (yeah, that's what they say here) a bike and we rode out to Tea Tree Lake. It is an isolated lake right next to the beach that is so full of tea tree oil that it's turned yellow and red. The oil is used in all kinds of beauty products so we jumped right in and soaked up the moisture. Oddly enough, it doesn't leave an oily sheen on your skin, but makes everything feel soft.

Ann-Marie a little nervous about biking...

Tea Tree Lake with the ocean to the left

So yellowed from the oils! I promise, this hasn't been edited!