My second day at Byron Bay, unfortunately, also went by without a sighting of any celebrities. Even after I’d asked the staff at reception about the Hemsworth family and knew that they liked to frequent a frozen yoghurt place nearby. I suppose, though, that there were plenty of reasons for not being able to spy on Chris or Liam Hemsworth during my stay. First and foremost being the fact that my mother wanted to go sightseeing rather than celebrity stalking.

And so, reluctantly, I hopped into the car on Saturday and headed north. Our destination? Crystal Castle and Shambhala Gardens. A perfect place for gurus of all sorts and believers of the healing power of crystals. Now, I won’t say I’m a sceptic, since I actually wear a jade bracelet, but I’m basically a sceptic. It didn’t help that it also felt like the people running it had appropriated various religions and cultures and melded it into a hodgepodge of Asia. 

Honestly, when we first entered, I felt like I was stepping into a Western interpretation of the Oriental. There were torii gates (Japanese Shinto) mixed in with statues of Buddha (Buddhism) and Ganesh (Hinduism). It felt weird, to be sure, and I was very uncomfortable during my time there. I was also disappointed that none of the staff there asked about my jade bracelet.

But I suppose if you sniff a few sticks of incense, channel your chakra and open up your third eye, it’s just spiritual guidance. Find your INNER PEACE. MEDITATION!

After taking plenty of photos with crystal lodes filled with quartz and amethysts, we finally decided to head back to Byron Bay for lunch. 

Hearing a good review from a friend, my mother opted to have fish and chips at HunkyDory. Stuffed to the gills with fish and chips and salad and rice, I decided to walk back to the place we were staying while my mum drove. Along the way, I took in the sights and sounds of the local scene – feeling a little out of place because I’d basically been in Sydney all my life. Did they think us foreigners?

I even stopped at a local bookstore and browsed the shelves. There were plenty of books on offer and I was tempted to buy a few. A little self-restraint meant that I walked away empty-handed, though my heart was lightened looking at the titles held within. And if I had a choice of browsing a video game or book store, I’d definitely defer to books. So many worlds to explore. So many characters to embody and witness their lives.

A quiet afternoon soon followed, where I started on Bravely Default II. At five, my mother and I decided to set out and have a look at Main Beach. After coming all this way, it seemed a little inappropriate to have come all this way and NOT take a look at the beaches that make Australia such a treat for visitors. Even if I hate sand. Why? Because it’s coarse, rough, irritating and gets everywhere.

I’ll admit, it was nice to take in the ambiance. To soak in the fact that people were lazing out on the grass, listening to music and drinking a beer. The perfect Saturday to rest. Normalcy had returned after a frightful year of disease and my family were contributing, a little, to the revitalisation of the Australian economy.

While I would have preferred to continue gaming after dinner, my mother had other plans. Once again, I served as the chauffeur to drive her out to the lighthouse so she could see the full moon. I tried to steer her away, citing the heavy cloud cover and the fact that she would be barely be able to see anything. It was in vain. Adamant, just like her zodiac sign, she harangued me up the hill and I dropped her at the top so she could stare at a blood-red line that was quickly obscured.

The next day, we set out bright and early. Since we were so close to the border, we saw fit to visit Tweed Heads. To my surprise, it was a sizeable city, bustling with traffic. Considering how close it is to the Gold Coast, and by extension Brisbane, it made sense. 

We stopped briefly at the visitors information centre, chatting with the two lovely ladies there. Eager to talk, they spoke about the border controls when Queensland had closed the border with New South Wales and how police had diverted residents and visitors through tight checkpoints. They were also kind enough to tell us of a few good places to take a gander at.

Following their advice, we took photos of the State Border Monument before we headed towards our next stop on our tour of northern New South Wales. Along the way, we detoured again to Queensland to witness a waterfall at Natural Bridge.

That done, we were on the road again, stopping briefly at a town called Casino, before we arrived at the place where we would be staying the night: the Jacaranda Capital Grafton.