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Published: June 12th 2007
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Baby Euro
Cross between a kangaroo and wallaby - I think I have found my new favourite animal! Hi!
The last week or so has been busy trying to sort out my time here.
In brief I've been in Cairns, Cape Tribulation, Port Douglas then Cairns again.
............
When I arrived in Cairns it was 25 degrees and really humid. It has since cooled down but I'm still in shorts, flip flops, bikini, sunglasses, sunhat etc having ditched the fleece, raincoat, covered shoes, headscarf etc (for now, apparently down south is very cold!)
The first few days I solidly trawled the many, many tourist agencies (all hostels double up as these as well) and read brochures. The price of activities in Oz shell shocked me again, I have quickly (and begrudginly) had to increase my Oz budget by a half.
The hardest decision was what company to go with to learn to dive and whether to go budget or really good quality with lots of experience.
I put of this decision for a few days by heading north to CAPE TRIBULATION on a tour.
Cape Trib is in the Daintree Rainforest region (a national heritage area alongside the Great Barrier reef).
The drive up was great - there were 11
of us, 9 of whom were solo travellers and everyone was really friendly.
Our driver/guide was absolutely passionate about the region, having lived there in the past. As a 'jungle jim' type he was stopping the bus to go in search of blue tongue berries and black bean pods etc.
We stopped on route at a Mangrove animal park where we observed animals native to the region:
Cassowary birds: The size of an Ostrich, blue with a 'helmet' of finger nail like material and dangerous if encountered; they have sharp claws on their feets and can jump up and gut a passing and unfortunate walker. Nice.
Crocodiles: All rivers and creeks in the Daintree are home to Crocs. We saw one in action as it was tempted out of the water by the guide - it was right on the edge in the shallows and completely invisible until it leaps out to grab things. We also went on a croc cruise on the way home.
Wallabies and Euros: A Euro is a cross between a kangaroo and a wallabie. We met some young ones and I think I have found my new found favourite animal.
The way they bounced around and were really inquisitive reminded me of kittens!
In Cape Tribulation itself we enjoyed luxiourious lodge accommodation, beautiful beaches and rainforest boardwalks. It was very relaxing.
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On the way home I spent 24 hours in Port Douglas, an attractive beach town that is a holiday destination for the wealthy (with a few added backpackers!).
When I arrived (with only $4 cash since the only atm machine in Cape Trib wasn't working) I discovered that my cash card wasn't working! After an initial panic it turned that an international visa fault had left people without money over the world! Luckily I had money the next morning because I doubt my $4 would have gone far.
...
Back in Cairns...today I vowed to sort out the East coast. I plan to travel the outback and west coast with my friends Anne and Alex who are further down the coast. So I'm flying from Brisbane to Melbourne to catch up with them and will later return to Brisbane to travel down the rest of the East coast to Melbourne.
I have just spent an exhausting full day trawling the
endless agencies trying to sell me packages (having first fending off the hostel's attempts!)
In order to catch up with Anne and Alex in time it's all packed together with little relaxation time, which I'm not sure is wise, but hey! It also cost a fortune (irrelevant of the time I'm doing it in) despite spending 4 hours in the budget agencies, so I'm feeling a little bit shellshocked atm! I could have got a much cheaper deal but it would have involved going on a packed out party boat for the Whitsundays Island Sailing, which did not appeal.
I ended up getting the agency to book all my hostels down to Brisbane. It seemed like a good idea at the time when my mind was fuzzed out after hours of trying to work out costs, packages etc. I'm now regretting that a little since I have no idea whether they'll be nice small ones or big bustling ones!
So my schedule:
Tomorrow I start a 5 day Padi (learn to dive) course with Pro Dive. 2 days theory and pool, 3 days live aboad boat and ocean diving.
Then I catch the greyhound bus (which is my transport down the east coast) for 2 days in Mission Beach
Then bus to Townsville for Magnetic Island
Then to Airlie Beach for a 3 day 2 night Whitsundays Sailing adventure. (I have booked the company Anne and Alex went with since they loved it, 14 people instead of 25-35).
Then jump on an overnight bus to arrive the next morning in Rainbow beach, the next day depart on a 3 day 2 night self drive 4x4 adventure on Fraser Island (Dingo land)
Then if there is time, sea kayaking with Dolphins, then immediately jump onto a bus to get to Noosa
Then 3 day 2 night kayak tour in the Everglades in Noosa, jump onto a bus to Brisbane a couple of hours later.
The next morning fly Brisbane to Melbourne.
Phew...I feel exhausted already...exciting stuff, but perhaps unwisely hectic. Oh well, the outback trip should be worth it.
So...wish me luck with SCUBA diving.
Photos will be uploaded when I have the time and am less tired! I'm supposed to be meeting a friend for dinner in an hour but I just can't be bothered! (I know, a hard life!)
Hope everything's well with everyone. xx
P.s. I'm getting a little less terrified of redbacks, funnel webs, whitebacks, stingers, stinging plants (not crocs or snakes!) but I'm still really scared! What a country! Everything is just bigger, more colourful, more exotic, more dangerous, more extreme!
The butterflies are incredible, and I've seen a few huntsmen and golden orb spiders (not dangerous, but a big as your hand, the golden orbs sit in the middle of webs that span between trees!).
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big alex murphy
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good luck with SCUBA- you'll love it! Don't worry about the animals, everytihng will kill you if you look at it like that- the animals- sharks, jellies, crocs, the rips in the water, the drought without rain, the floods with rain, the sun, the lack of sun (down south. it's cold!). See you soon x