Australia: Colorful Byron Bay

"What is your life goal?" Priyas question amazes me, we only know each other for ten minutes. And I am looking for an answer, roughly estimated, since my graduation. I am one of those people who only make preliminary decisions and spontaneously change plans and goals. Priya is 38 and comes from Germany. We stand together on a cliff at the easternmost point of Australia, the Cape Byron.

Obviously, my chance acquaintance does not expect an answer, but tells herself that she has been to almost every place in the world that has the reputation of making her head free and her soul happy. In Byron Bay, the coastal city in New South Wales, 800 kilometers north of Sydney, she has finally opened a sushi bar and started to paint pictures. "Think carefully about what you really want to achieve," she says at parting. "Here wishes come true." That was three years ago.

I was on my own in Australia, and my guide had touted the town as a celebrity. I found Byron Bay to be almost unreal. But the fact that I returned the following year was more likely due to Priya. Somehow her words had caught me.

The lightness of being

Art of Living: Ornaments carved in the rock

I suppose I just fell in love with Byron Bay. Maybe because life here feels so light-footed. My legs are always flying along the beach. The subtropical Byron is 25 to 30 degrees warm, at least between November and March. This is also the time when the city shows its most colorful side, a bit idiosyncratic and crazy it is always.

There are more organic shops than supermarkets, and the 1970s seem to have found a niche for eternity: backpackers go on drum lessons on the beach. The forests around it are home to the "Ferals", the savages - Australia's youngest hippie generation. Self-discovery, self-awareness, all this runs like a thread through the Byron society. All of them are always "laid back" - that is the favorite word of Australians for a relaxed lifestyle.

The woman next to me in the beach cafe "Swish" ordered "LSD"? Coffee with soy milk. This is a cult drink in the health-conscious Byron, although it tastes rather bland. The woman is one of the best-known writers in Australia: Di Morrissey, 54. "Anyone who lives here in Byron," she says, "has the feeling that she has been brought here." And something wanted. New power or creativity, the meaning of life or more sensuality. Crises, the partner or boss would have given these people a kick, so strong that they tumbled out of their everyday lives, says Di. She wanted to distance herself from her broken marriage. Write, forget. Her novel "Heart Of The Dreaming" (German: "The scent of the red earth") made her famous.

Chill out on the beach, alone. The sky spans 400 million stars over the bay, thicker stars than in Germany. There is the bright arrow of the north, there the blinking Milky Way, no trace of the Southern Cross. What did you say? Wishes come true at this end of the world? At the moment, nobody wants to come up with the best will.

Travel Info Byron Bay

Travel time: Summer is from December to February, then it gets to 38 degrees. Best travel time from February to the end of April, then it is quieter and cheaper, the temperatures are between 26 to 30 degrees, the water temperature 25 to 27 degrees. Rain more often in winter.

enjoyment

The Pass Café: have breakfast and read the local "echo", very relaxed; daily breakfast and lunch, Thu to Sat. also in the evening from 6 pm (Brooke Drive 1, Tel. 66 80 80 28, //thepasscafe.com.au).

Swish: good pancakes with maple syrup and fresh juices, creative vegetarian cuisine (Childe Street, Belongil Beach, tel. 66 85 71 44).

Sushi Wave: On a train sushi and sashimi roll along the counter, easy to access; daily from 12 o'clock (Lawson Street, Tel. 66 80 90 44).

Boomerang Grill: Crocodile fillets or ostrich carpaccio? The Canadian brothers serve international food as well as modern Australian cuisine. Very creative, very good. Tue to Sun from 6 pm (Middelton St. 4/14, Tel. 66 85 57 07).

trips

Lighthouse: Cape Byron is Australia's easternmost point and early bird's seat when the first rays of sunshine hit the continent.

Mount Warning: If you have a car, finding the way with map easily. It is best to lace up the trekking shoes at 2 o'clock in the morning and boot up the rainforest path to the mountain.

Orchard: "Tropical Fruit World" offers almost every exotic fruit in the world. Exciting are tours, delicious the fruit seminars. For children there is an entertainment park with animals and boat trips on the canal (Duranbah Road, Duranbah NSW 2487, Tel.66 77 72 22, www.tropicalfruitworld.com.au).

Swimming with dolphins: in the sea in front of Clarks Beach. If the dolphins are too far from the coast, paddle out with a kayak. Price: 20 euros (three-hour tours with Dolphin Kayaking Byron Bay, Tel. 66 85 80 44, or Byron Bay Sea Kayaks, Tel. 66 85 58 30).

water sports

Diving: blue bream, octopus and harmless sharks on Julian Rocks, a terrific area. Open water courses and dives z. B. at Sundive, Tel. 66 85 77 55th Four-day introductory course about 275 euros.

Surfing: Beginners book an introductory course at Byron Surf School, Tel. 18 00 70 72 74, or at Black Dog Surfing (female team), Tel. 66 80 98 28 for approximately 50 Euro.

Read

"Australia East Coast" (Lonely Planet, 22,99 Euro).

Info

In Germany: Tourism Australia, www.australia.com.

On site: Byron Visitor Center (Jonson St., Tel. 66 85 80 50, www.visitbyronbay.com, information on all offers and reservations for overnight stays.

travel packages: Expert tips and travel packages are available, for example at the Best of Travel Group.