Australia

Australia was always a country I wanted to visit so I saved up some money and booked a flight to go travelling up the East Coast at the end of my work placement in France. I had some friends studying there this year so it was the perfect opportunity to travel around and see friends as well as explore some new places on my own.

The flight made me realise exactly how far away Australia is from home. I spent 10 hours travelling on a plane from London to Hong Kong, then a further 8 hours to Sydney, my first stop in Australia. The flight went quite quickly though, since there were lots of films to watch to keep me entertained. It was strange when I arrived because everything is upside down over there; it was the start of winter (in May)! Fortunately for me the weather was still hot and sunny though. It also took me a while to get used to the time difference, as I was always one day ahead of all my friends and family back home.

The country is truly beautiful, full of incredible views and wildlife you wouldn't find anywhere else in the world. One of the highlights of my trip was visiting a koala sanctuary in Brisbane - there were koalas everywhere sleeping in the eucalyptus trees and I even got the chance to hold one. I learnt lots of facts about koalas too - did you know they can sleep for up to 22 hours a day to conserve energy? That's a very long time! At the sanctuary there was also a big lawn full of kangaroos that we were allowed to feed and stroke. They were really cute and very friendly. There was also a snake show which featured a huge long snake, although I kept my distance as I'm not a big fan of snakes.

Another highlight of my trip was snorkelling in the Great Barrier Reef, as the water was amazingly clear and a beautiful shade of blue. I also got the chance to spot some incredible creatures, such as sea turtles and even a shark.

I loved visiting everywhere from the stunning mountains and waterfalls in the National Parks to the long white sandy beaches. It's an incredible country and worth visiting one day if you ever get the chance. I'm already dreaming of going back, especially since it's raining back in England at the moment, and it's meant to be summer over here!