Airlie Beach is the jumping off point for the Whitsundays, a large group of picturesque islands off the coast. We had hoped to find another Port Douglas in Airlie Beach, but got the polar opposite. The main drag is one backpackers after another with the requisite cheap eats, bars, internet shops, and tacky souvenir shops to go with them. After being scared by the local tourist info center that we wouldn't find a room for the night, we booked a rather expensive hotel on the waterfront that turned out to be pretty empty. J thinks the office we went into was [View Full Entry]

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We arrived in Townsville after dark. Driving down the Strand we noticed some type of winter carnival/concert going on in the park. We later learned it was a living nativity. After finding a hotel and settling in, we set out for dinner and found town to be absolutely hopping. Large groups of young women in short skirts and heavy makeup were out on the town for the evening, as were clumps of guys with short hair having beers. Turns out Townsville is home to a huge military base which explains the party atmosphere in town on a Thursday night. All over [View Full Entry]

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The Rainforest Habitat Wildlife Sanctuary is just outside of Port Douglas. We got there in time to have "Breakfast with the Birds." We sat in the open air restaurant surrounded by birds large and small eyeing our food - the waitress actually told us to go to the buffet one a time! We were able to pet a koala, but not to hold it ourselves unfortunately. They are incredibly soft and appear stoned all the time from the eucalyptus they eat all day long. We also had the opportunity to hand feed kangaroos! They are fed all day long so aren't [View Full Entry]

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Arriving in Queensland we were astounded by the tropical climate and geography - it looks like Hawaii with lush green mountainsides, white sand beaches, and cool ocean breezes! Pineapple, mango and sugar cane fields are abundant. We flew into Cairns and drove straight up to Port Douglas, about an hour north. Several people had suggested we visit this seaside town and we sure are glad they did! It reminded us a bit of Cannon Beach, Oregon with one main street of shops and restaurants, a nice long beach, and many places to stay. We really loved Scoops, an ice cream shop [View Full Entry]

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Australia is extremely strict when it comes to Customs. We were pulled aside because we checked yes on our arrival cards for carrying medications. We had a ziploc bag with the usual traveller's meds such as Pepto-Bismol and Sudafed that they went through with a fine tooth comb. CM had purchased some cold medicine over the counter in Singapore, including some Contac NT recommended by the pharmacist there. As it contained pseudophedrine, it was promptly confiscated by the Australian authorities. They claimed at the dose of 90 mg per tablet, the packet was worth $600 Australian on the black [View Full Entry]

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We did take one of our taxi drivers up on his offer to take us for a day long island tour. We liked that his cab company was based in Bali, rather than the others that are based in Jakarta and send money off the island of Bali. He took us to the Ubud area which is known for its many artists. In one day we went to a batik factory, a silver factory, a huge art gallery of paintings, and a wood carving shop. The variety of art produced in Bali and the incredible talent of the artisans is astounding! [View Full Entry]

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J was keen to scuba dive in Bali so he signed up for a wreck dive at the Liberty in Tulamben (on the northeast coast of the island). We were picked up from the hotel bright and early for a two and a half hour drive (each way) through the Balinese countryside to the dive site. The scenery was unreal with rice terraces, volcanos in the distance, and beautiful beaches. The dive was off a volcanic beach of large black rocks. When we arrived, several women greeted us at the van and proceeded to carry all of the dive gear down [View Full Entry]

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As nice as the resort was, we did get out to see some of the island! Kuta Beach is a more touristy area (and site of one of the bombings). We went there for dinner one night and weren't terribly impressed; it was like Koh Samui, or worse - Cabo. We walked down to the beach for the sunset and were immediately bombarded with women selling jewelry and sarongs and men painting temporary tattoos. Jimbaran Beach (another bombing site) was more relaxed, with lots of restaurants right on the sand. Some Canadian paramedics we met on a dive trip gave us [View Full Entry]

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Our original itinerary called for just 3 days in Bali before heading to Perth, Australia. However, CM caught a cold in Singapore and was unable to enjoy Bali for the first few days so we decided to stay longer (good thing because J subsequently caught the cold). Doing so caused us to change our ticket to Darwin (instead of Perth as planned) so we'll have to see Western Australia another time. We are sure glad we stayed 8 days in Bali - we loved it! We stayed at the Westin, a fantastic resort in the Nusa Dua area of the island. [View Full Entry]

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We spent part of our honeymoon in 2000 in Singapore and J lived there back in 1987 so it was fun to return for a couple of days on this trip. We stayed on Orchard Road and spent much of our time caught up in the Christmas shopping frenzy of that area. The street is lined with shopping malls and filled with street vendors as well. Each had a huge Christmas display and you could find a giveaway contest of some sort in every block. In fact, the level of commercialism in Singapore was overwhelming to the point of being disturbing. [View Full Entry]

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