Byron Bay

I had one, whole day in Byron Bay. I took full advantage of it, because I had to. I was so close to this beautiful city, the place to be in this part of Australia. Even in such a short amount of time, I managed to love it and every minute there.

How would I describe Byron Bay? It’s a hippie town. A little bit cool, a little bit grunge. There are a lot of backpackers, and the town feels young overall. There’s easy ocean access and stunning cliffs if you want them.

I started my Thursday at the Byron Bay Farmers Market. I am a sucker for a good market. I love them - always have and always will. If you want to get to know a town, go to their weekly Farmers Market. You’ll see all kinds of people and vendors, almost all of them in a good mood. Have you noticed that it’s actually hard to be in a bad mood when you’re shopping for fresh produce and local items with a basket under your arm and a heart full of hope? Just me? Fair enough. I walked the stalls, bought an amazing lamb samosa, sat on my beach towel and listened to the live musician. It was truly a perfect way to start the morning.

From there, I walked to a cafe to do some work. Dear reader, I did not work hard. I think there are better cafes than the one I went to, and would recommend a coffee to-go. The streets of Byron are really meant to walk and shop. I enjoyed bopping into the many shops and striking up conversations with the associates. I did end up purchasing a Turkish towel (it’s an obsession I need to feed) from the Dancing Pixie, and the cutest linen set from Academy. I needed neither of those things, but here I am, saving the Australian GDP once again. I’m a giver, I give.

I made my way to Byron Beach. I spent a couple of hours on my beach towel, trying to avoid Ibises (also known as “bin chickens”) and catching up on some calls. The best thing about time zones, is FaceTiming your loved ones from beautiful beaches while they’re sitting in the dark in boring places like Dallas, TX. Despite this dynamic, I realized that I was missing home. The only way to resolve this, was with a taco. I found my way to Chihuahua Taqueria, and I would go back just for the elote. It was fun to find Mexican food in a beach town in Australia, but that’s the beauty of culture - it spreads to unexpected places.

If you want to burn off your lunch, you can hike up to the Cape Byron Lighthouse. This trek is not for the weak. It’s hilly and will test your patience and skill.

Anyway, I took an uber to the lighthouse.

I thought the lighthouse was home to one of the most beautiful scenes in Australia. You can actually walk to the most easternly point of the entire continent (I promise I actually walked it). It’s a surreal feeling to know that you’re on the very edge of an entire continent and surround by water on three sides. You know, I even shed a little tear. I felt really lucky to have that experience and there’s nothing I would change about the day.

If I wasn’t exhausted from not climbing up that hill, I probably would have stayed in Byron for dinner. That’s okay, it’s just another reason to go back.