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'World's best job' finalists arrive on island
They've had a snoop around the caretaker's digs, gorged on local seafood and taken a dip in what will become - for one of them, at least - their own backyard swimming pool: the Great Barrier Reef. The job is better than it sounds, the lucky winner will be paid £150,000 and live for six months in a luxury villa.See pictures of contestants
They've had a snoop around the caretaker's digs, gorged on local seafood and taken a dip in what will become - for one of them, at least - their own backyard swimming pool: the Great Barrier Reef.
And while a couple have complained about being stressed, jet-lagged and issued with ordinary Tourism Queensland cameras, contestants in the Best Job in the World competition have been singing the praises of the natural wonder in a series of online blogs written as part of the three-day "job interview" on Hamilton Island - exactly as organisers had intended.
The "best job in the world" that began with the world's longest interview process (at least it seems that way) should not be taken to go by the literal meaning of the word. The job is better than it sounds, the lucky winner will be paid £150,000 Australian dollars and live for six months in a luxury villa.The 16 finalists for what has been dubbed the "world's best job" have arrived on the Australian island where they hope to live for the next six months.
Applicants will now complete a series of tasks as bosses pick the winner who will become caretaker of Hamilton Island. "Caretaking" duties include going scuba-diving to check on the marine life and writing a blog about their experiences ... not the same as being a caretaker at the local swimming pool is it?
The final 16 candidates from 15 countries include students, journalists, TV presenters, photographers, a receptionist, radio DJ, teacher, charity event manager and an actress.
A spokesperson for Tourism Queensland said: "This is an incredibly diverse group all with one thing in common – a passion for Queensland and a desire to do their utmost to prove themselves the best person for the Best Job in the World."
The winner will be announced on May 6th. He or she will spend six months writing a weekly blog about the adventures that take place on the resort.
The lucky 16 job hopefuls are:
Anjaan RJ - India
Ben Henry - France
Ben Southall - UK
Cali Lewis - USA
Clare Wang - Taiwan (wild card applicant announced March 25)
Clarke Gayford – New Zealand
Erik Rolfsen - Canada
George Karellas - Ireland
Greg Reynen - Singapore
Hailey Turner - Australia
James Hill - Australia
Juweon Kim - Korea
Magali Heuberger - Netherlands
Mieko Kobayashi - Japan
Mirjam Novak - Germany
Yi Yao - China
