Cairns!

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So we were lucky enough to have one girl in our unit not drink on this huge uni party night so she drove us to the bus station (you have to blow a 0.00 here).
We arrived in cairns at about 2 o'clock and took a shuttle to our hotel which I thought was going to be crap since it was so cheap but it really wasn't. We had a great room with a double bed and two single and our own bathroom. There was also a really nice pool outside. We didn't know what to do all day so we just called a taxi and told the driver to take us downtown wherever he thought was best. We ended up at the night market place that wasn't open yet so we just wandered around town going to different shops and looking at the ocean. I bought Michelle's gift at one of the shops. I think she's gunna love it! If she doesn't she can give it back to me because I love it lol. Once the night markets opened we went there and it was basically like this giant flea market. It was really cool at first but then everyone was selling the same stuff so it got repetitive. I did buy a sticker that says Australia to put on my laptop though. Shannon and Meghan bought done kangaroo jerky to bring home to their family. We also got harassed by these Asian people to get a massage it was a really good deal at $15 for 40 minutes but they weren't feeling it because they don't like people rubbing/poking them which was fine, definitely could have gone for one after being cramped in the plane but that's okay. We ended up walking like one and a half miles home since we had nothing better to do and then we literally went to sleep. It didn't really matter that it was only 7. We woke up bright and early on Friday because we were off to the Great Barrier Reef! It was kinda surreal to think that I was going to be swimming in it when I could remember putting a picture of it in my cubicle over the summer when I still wasn't even sure that I could come to Australia. The bus picked us up and brought us to the boat in port Douglas which would bring us to the outer reef. The smarties that we are, we sat on the top deck for a 90 minute ride with no sunscreen. Suffice to say we got a burn. Mine was really funny because it was a straight line in the middle of my back and I was wearing a scoop back bathing suit so it went from lobster to albino white. When we first debarked the ship we went straight on this underwater semi sub. It was spectacular we were all a little afraid to go in the water but then once we saw all the fish and coral we started getting really excited and we got a few pictures too with our digital cameras. We only had disposable waterproof ones for when we snorkelled. Shannon and Meghan found a turtle but I was on the other side so I didn't see it but there were still some funny fish there was this whole school of small green fish that swam towards the sub and the swam away then swam towards a different part and swam away again. I just kept laughing. The coral wasn't as bright as I hoped it would be, it was actually kinda hard to even see the different colors. I was a little disappointed but I quickly got over it because its still one of the seven wonders of the world and really I don't know many people who can say they've done that. We then ate lunch and went snorkelling. Shannon and Meghan rented the Lycra suits to swim in because of the jellyfish but I didn't because I thought it would bother my skin even more than just the salt water would. I snorkelled for about an hour and 15 minutes until my skin hurt too much and I had to get out. I quickly took a fresh water rinse. It didn't help much though. There was just so much salt in the air. Plus your hair become such a mess I don't understand why people like going to the beach. Weirdos. I'm not sure if I even got any good pictures because I couldn't really see through the lens with my goggles plus I wasn't used to winding it (throwback to early 2000s much?) The ride back to port Douglas was uneventful. We were going to sit up top again but it was raining so we sat down with these old people from Ohio and England that were on the tour as part of a big group. They had already been to Sydney and Uluru so we were talking about that. Plus the ladies from England have been to quite a few places around the worlds d they currently live in Spain. The people from Ohio had been to South Africa so we compared experiences and my bungee jumping came up and I found out that one of the English ladies was contemplating jumping in New Zealand and I told her she definitely should! That night we had nothing to do so we just watched some tv and ordered in from Pizza Hut, the pizza here is extremely different but I guess it tastes fine. Definitely wouldn't get it again though. We were watching animal planets version of hoarders it was so sad but luckily the animals were saved! Yay for happy endings. The next day slept in and relaxed by the pool. I tended to my sunburn and watched cartoons on nickelodeon. I honestly don't know what happened to that channel. I also did a little bit of homework but very minimum. I don't like to think I go to uni. I think I finally understand what my mon was always trying to teach me. Grades aren't everything, life experiences are what matters. So I'm cherishing all my memories of Australia and taking them in. I have a solid GPA at home and even if I get all Bs it won't be ruined. I would rather have the time of my life than spend every moment stressing out. Speaking of time of my life. On ours at day, Sunday, we booked a trip to kuranda where I met a koala! The tour picked us up at our hotel in the morning and the bus driver was so nice! We were the only group staying with him so when everyone else got off we moved up closer to the front. He dropped us off at the wildlife park where we met our tour guide. The three of us had our own tour of the place since it was so early. We pet kangaroos! They're so soft! It was amazing. We then went over to view the rest of the animals which included this giant crocodile that weighed a ton, a cassowary, some dingos, lizards and finally koalas. After our tour we went to hold a koala. I was so overjoyed I can't even explain it. It was like my life goal was achieved. Their fur is not really that soft it's all matted down. The koalas name is kara and she was so adorable with huge ears!! :D After that we waited for our aboriginal tour and this Asian guy took a picture of us. He didn't speak any English so I have no idea why he wanted our picture. Once we met up with our aboriginal we had our own tour again and he taught us about didgeridoos first. Then we all got to play them. I was actually pretty good! (I made sound first try) then we went over and watched him throw some spears. That was cool too but not as cool as the didgeridoos. Afterwards we went for a boomerang lesson and we got to throw one of those too. Mine didn't come back to me but that's because the wind picked it up. Then we went on to watch some aboriginal dancing and my friend Meghan went up and danced with them which was too funny. Then we went on a duck tour which was kinda dumb but the duck boat was used in World War II and still has its original gm motor in it. The duck tour was the last stop on our list so we got back in the coach and went off into town. We sat down and had these amazing burgers! Then we walked into town. At first it just had a few shops but the we practically went down a rabbit hole and found this whole new world of stores. It was all boho sheek which isn't really me but Shannon and Meghan enjoyed it. Then we went through another rabbit hole and found this Chinese lady selling puréed frozen fruit. It was so delicious. It tastes so much better than my smoothies in the morning I decided I need to go out and buy a purée machine. While we were eating that we noticed the time and we decided we should walk towards the skyrail. The skyrail us basically this huge ski lift over the rainforest. It was a gorgeous view I loved being that high up looking down on the world. At the first stop we got off and went to the three lookouts for this one waterfall. It was breathtaking. The water was an ugly brown but it really was beautiful. The second lookout was nothing special. But when we climbed over the mountain you could see the ocean and the Great Barrier Reef. The coach back to the accommodation ended our last day in cairns. We hailed a taxi to the airport where we went to check in only to find out there was a 2 hour delay. About an hour later the guy that helped us came over and gave us a meal voucher because the plane is going to be another 3 hours late. We won't get into Melbourne til 430am now and well have to chill and catch the 545 train home and grab a taxi. Meghan Shannon and I are killing the time outside laying down reading and blogging a successful 6 hours in the airport. T minus 30 minutes til we board!

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