Blogs from Port Douglas, Queensland, Australia, Oceania - page 5

Hi mates, The second day in Port Douglas, we got up early to go to the Sunday Markets. Lots of local goods like coconut juice and frozen fruits, but also souvenirs like bracelets, bags and henna tattoos. Really lovely little market. Bought some small presents, and a bracelet for myself, so my armpiece is now finished. While my dad and brother arranged a fishing trip, my sister and I discovered a new shop, Jay Jays. An amazing shop with clothes which were exactly my style. Pineapple shorts, sunflower tops, cookiemonster beanies and watermelon bikini's. Loved everything in there! I just wanted to take the whole shop with me! But I tried to keep it normal, so I bought 2 bikink's, a dress and a gift for someone. Just feel sad I couldn't take more. After the ... read more

Next stop was Cairns and Port Douglas. We had a night flight so arrived at our hotel at about 6.30am with check in being 2:00pm!! We had a long wait but headed to the beach to watch the sunrise which was pretty special but I was so tired I fell asleep on the beach too, like 2 homeless people lol! We headed up for breakfast and then waited around for our room we had a sleep in reception (yes we looked like tramps lol) then eventually got into our room about 12 as they knew we were waiting and spent the afternoon around the pool. I straight away loved the place and Brad knew I would, he'd been before and loved it too. We weren't too far away from the town too so were able to ... read more

I am back in Australia again but on the Eastern Coast this time, in Port Douglas. For those who don’t know the geography of Australia or don’t have a globe sitting next to them, Port Douglas is located in the Northern part of Queensland, about 70 kilometres north of Cairns. For all you that are interested in geography, the world coordinates are: url=http://tools.wmflabs.org/geohack/geohack.php?pagename=Port_Douglas%2C_Queensland¶ms=16_29_01_S_145_27_55_E_type:city_region:AU-QLD16°29′01″S 145°27′55″E. Port Douglas is one of the places where you can access the Great Barrier Reef (which I will tell you about later). The first night I arrived I was tired because I had just pulled an all nighter, since my flight from Bali didn’t leave until 1:30AM and then I didn’t sleep at all on the plane. I was not in any mood to go to the grocery store and buy some ... read more

Monday morning and we headed back out to the airport for our trip to Cairns and then on to Port Douglas. Amazing how a 3 hour flight feels like a quick hop after the previous trips but actually Sydney to Cairns is the equivalent of flying from London to Athens even though it does not look far on an Ozzie map. After arriving at Cairns we took a bus up to Port Douglas arriving around 3pm and checked into a fantastic appartment which is right in the heart of the town......it is beautifully appointed with a wonderful terrace, outside plunge pool and jacuzzi and the envitavble outdoor barbie. Port Douglas is a tourist location set up to serve both the Barrier Reef and also the Rainforest, both of which are world heritage sites. I wont bore ... read more

Long lie this morning.......coach pick-up not till 9.20. So we drove into Port Douglas and had a light breakfast. Rae's friend, Sue was on the same trip to the Great Barrier Reef. We left at 10 and arrived at the pontoon off the reef at 11.30. The upgrade meant that we were at the Agincourt section, not far from the continental shelf started. The first job was to get the lycra suits on - recommended to protect against jellyfish stings and also against the sun. You'll like the pics! Then it was into the ocean, in a large roped off area, with the flippers, mask and snorkel - it was tough at the start but I slowly (almost) mastered my breathing through the snorkel. Rae managed to get in as well - it was something else ... read more