The 60's Live On

As I was boarding my flight from Auckland, New Zealand to Brisbane, Australia I day dreamed about that great experiences that were awaiting me.  Seeing the red dirt of the outback, taking post-card photos of the Sydney Opera House, and most importantly listening to those charming Australian accents.  Now I knew there would be things I would come across that I would not expect, but this one was really off the charts.  The village of Nimbin is tucked away off numerous side roads in the mountains of New South Wales, about an hour drive from the university I was at in the Gold Coast, Queensland.

About 7 of us hopped into a van, and after two hours of being totally lost, found this magical village known as Nimbin.  As we pulled up to the village, I had to blink twice.  It was unlike anything I had ever seen, something you would see in a movie or hallucinate when you are high (which is probably how it was developed).  Nimbin was a true hippie village, creating everything from all natural hemp, and hosting rallies each day at 4:20 p.m.  The rallies were hosted by locals who either sang or spoke in the support of legalizing marijuana.  The locals who hung out there and work their were as friendly as they come, I'm sure for reasons than other being a welcoming Australian.  You could roll your own fatty in some of the cafes, enjoy a hemp cookie or some hookah.  Either way it was a place to escape the bustling cities on the coast and really just chill.  A couple of us tried the cookies while we were there--absolutely delicious!  Resulting in absolute happiness later.

Nimbin also had their own special museum dedicated to that special green plant.  The museum had replicas of old VW buses as well as protest signs for legalization of marijuana.  One room is dedicated to wars Australians have been brought into as allies, promoting nothing but peace.  It was just astounding to me to see such a museum exist in such a town.  If not for my pictures I took I would have thought I was dreaming it all up or just on some crazy high.

This is something I can truly never forget, even if I tried.  So as I close with this wild adventure I experienced, I leave you all with some pictures.  Nimbin made me love Australia even more.