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Published: November 30th 2008
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The Outback - Ayers Rock
Ayers Rock in the early morning hours G'day!
I did a little two-day trip to Toronto for a friend's wedding before heading to Australia. Seoul -> Vancouver -> Toronto -> Tokyo -> Seoul -> Cairns was completed in five days and left me pretty exhausted afterwards, so it was time for some "chillaxing"… or so I thought! During my "busy" one month stay in Oz territory, I traveled from Cairns to Alice Springs and then down to Airlie Beach, Fraser Island, Brisbane and finally Sydney. Australia was the first developed “western” country in my trip so far, which made traveling much easier than in other parts of the world.
Cairns
Cairns is a pretty, small and relaxed city in Queensland, close to the sea and a great place to explore The Great Barrier Reef - one of the best diving spots in the world. I booked a three day trip on a boat and passed my Advanced PADI Open Water diving license, swimming above colorful corals amidst a multitude of exotic fish, sharks and turtles in a 27 degrees crystal blue sea. After this nice boat trip I once again got into the water, but this time for a one-day trip on the Tully river for some
Cairns - Diving trip
Three days on a similar boat for some great fun at the Great Barrier Reef great rafting.
Alice Springs
This was the one thing I absolutely wanted to do while in Australia: a three-day trekking trip in the Outback to see Ayers Rock.
Ayers Rock (also called Uluru) is the second biggest rock formation in the world (apparently they discovered another one recently somewhere else in Australia!) and an important religious site for the aboriginals. Its size is impressive by itself but even more so considering that the land surrounding it is completely flat - for hundreds of kilometers! We (a group of about 20 people and our guide) trekked around Ayers Rock in the early morning when the colors are exceptionally beautiful and the heat is still acceptable (around 30-something degrees at 8.30am). We also trekked around the Olgas (28 hills in shape of domes, another sacred aboriginal site) and through Kings Canyon. We slept in swags (kind of sleeping bags with a hard bottom) under a star-filled sky. This trip allowed me to understand a bit more about aboriginal culture and their traditional way of living (sadly enough, the ones you see in cities are mostly drunk, or already way past that stage!).
Back in Alice Springs (one of the most
Cairns - Diving trip
Scuba Steve, our diving instructor during one of his dive briefings remote cities in the world), I had a special Australian mixed-grill dinner: crocodile, emu, camel, kangaroo and buffalo with (Belgian) fries and salad - carnivore paradise!
I flew back to Cairns for a 3-day trip into the jungle and some beach time at Cape Tribulation. Cape Tribulation is, I have been told, the only place in the world where two World Heritage sites exist side by side: The Great Barrier Reef and the Daintree National Park (rainforest). It is in that park that we spotted a 4 meter long crocodile, several big snakes and a cassowary (the heaviest flightless bird in the world, and sometimes pretty dangerous animal). My three days at Cape Tribulation were pretty relaxed and I enjoyed my time reading some books on the beach.
Whitsundays
I took the night bus from Cairns to Airlie Beach for some sailing in the Whitsundays. Bordered by the Great Barrier Reef and 74 tropical islands in the calm waters of the Coral Sea, the Whitsundays are one of the best sailing spots in the world! I booked my three days trip on the Anaconda III, a luxurious 30 meters sailing boat. Sailing through the Whitsundays was a
Cairns - Diving trip
Great food for everyone! beautiful experience, stopping at white sand beaches, swimming in crystal clear water, diving at the Great Barrier Reef or just sun bathing on the deck of the boat after a delicious lunch...that is what I call a relaxing holiday! I stayed one more day in Airlie Beach to get rid of my sea legs before heading south to Hervey Bay, the embarkation port for Fraser Island.
Fraser Island
Fraser Island stretches over 123 kilometers in length - the largest sand island in the world and is, yet another, World Heritage site. It is a place of exceptional beauty, with its long uninterrupted white beaches flanked by strikingly colored sand cliffs, over 100 freshwater lakes and ancient rainforests which grow in sand along the banks of fast-flowing, crystal-clear creeks. Together with two Dutch backpackers, we rented a 4*4 for our three days trip on the island, cruising on beaches and through thick rainforest, swimming in fresh water lakes and having great barbecues at night under a star filled sky. Fraser Island is an ecologically unique place in the world and well worth a visit!
Back on the mainland, the plan was to take a five hours bus ride from
Hervey Bay to Brisbane followed by a flight to Sydney. The schedule was pretty tight..and I missed my flight by five minutes - the first time that such a thing happened (during this trip). I went back to Brisbane to realize that all hostels were closed or fully booked - I had to go for the expensive double room for a couple hours of sleep before heading back to the airport.
Sydney
I spent a sunny three days in Sydney, strolling through the city's parks and gardens, walking over to the well known Opera House and Harbor Bridge (and updating my blogs for Japan and Korea). Sydney is really nice and I would have loved to spend more time there.
It was a very “busy” month in Australia and I have the impression that it passed so fast - with new experiences happening almost every day, great adventures and such a beautiful scenery! Australia is definitively a backpackers paradise… Off to Auckland now!
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