Playing Catch-Up: Queensland Edition

Massive apologies for the internet silence!!  The last couple weeks have been wonderful but pretty jam-packed, and it has been really difficult to find good, cheap internet that I can use for more than a short period of time.  I have to admit, I am starting to regret my choice to leave my laptop at home.  Anyway, there's lots to talk about, so I guess I will get to it.  Since the end of our Red Centre tour on July 8th, Kelsey and I have been exploring Queensland, a large tropical state in Australia's northeast. Back in the States, we both agreed that we were most exited about this region, so we decided to spend most of our time together there.  We flew to Cairns, Queensland's biggest city and the "gateway to the Great Barrier Reef," on the evening of July 9th and spent the next day madly booking tours, accommodation, and attempting to rent a car so we could drive up the coast to remote Cape Tribulation.  Unbeknownst to us, we had arrived in Australia's premiere winter tourism region at the beginning of school holidays, which meant that our planning day culminated in us slumped over at a table eating gelato, exhausted and wondering what the heck we were doing.  Let's just say I will do A LOT of research before I book a car again.  We shelled out quite a bit of cash to get what I believe was the last car available in the entire region.  Unfortunately, because we spent so much time researching and making bookings, we didn't get to see much of Cairns, but the parts we did see while running around were beautiful.  It's a nice size, has a beautiful beach and lovely swimming lagoon, and has a nice, relaxed vibe.  We definitely enjoyed the abundance of palm trees and tropical fruit!

Our first destination after Cairns was Port Douglas -- a small town about an hour up the coast.  We had heard great things about the snorkeling and diving out of Port Douglas, and one of Kelsey's friends highly recommended the town itself.  We stayed at a backpacker resort, complete with hammocks and tiki torches, outside of town.  We decided it was a perfect place to start our "vacation" (we had made a pact not to think about planning until we returned to Cairns a few days later...this only partially came to pass).  After relaxing for a day, we hopped into our coveted car and headed further up the coast to the Daintree Rainforest. 
Driving in Australia was quite an experience; the steering wheel is on the right, and everyone drives on the left.  So confusing!  Kelsey and I took turns driving around the Daintree and Cape Tribulation region, which involved lots of winding roads and big speed bumps.  I am proud to say that we returned our car unscathed -- we each turned onto the wrong side of the road only once. Not too bad, I think.  We absolutely loved the freedom that came along with having a car and really enjoyed driving up and down the forested coast.  We were able to stop at abandoned beaches, roadside fruit stands, and took advantage of the many rainforest boardwalks we found along the way.  We stayed at a YHA hostel in the middle of the rainforest called Crocodylus.  I loved this place -- the staff were kooky, hilarious, and very knowledgeable, the vibe catered more towards families than backpackers (I personally enjoyed this change), and the scenery was beautiful.  This was my first time in a tropical rainforest, and I was completely enchanted. I loved falling asleep and waking up to rain against our tent roof and various animal sounds.  Apparently, the forest was abnormally quiet while we were there, but I still enjoyed it.  On our first night, I went on a night walk with Possum, a man who could walk thought the pitch black rainforest, know without a doubt where he was going, and tell you about every plant and animal along the way.  Although we didn't see any mammals on our walk, we saw several frogs, a golden orb spider  , and lots of fascinating insects.  On our second day, Kelsey and I drove up to Cape Tribulation, exploring beaches and rainforest walks.  Although I dropped my camera in the ocean (an unfortunate event whose after-effects have followed me all the way back to Sydney), my memories of this area are 100% positive.  I thoroughly enjoyed being in such a remote part of Australia, and I was definitely sad to leave after our brief stay.  I hope to return some day! 

We made the trek back down to Port Douglas, where we had made plans to take a day trip to the Outer Great Barrier Reef.  Kelsey and I were giddy with excitement the next morning.  As marine biologists, snorkeling the Great Barrier Reef was a huge dream for both of us.  Although we were fighting 25-30 knot winds and got battered around quite a bit, we were not disappointed by what we saw.  Our boat visited three different reef sites, all of which were incredible.  The visibility was great, and the sheer variety of fish and coral species was amazing.  We took pictures with a disposable underwater camera, but they absolutely don't do the reef justice.  It was absolutely beautiful!  We returned to our hostel exhausted but very, very happy.  Satisfied with our reef and rainforest experience, we headed back down to Cairns for a few more days.  Here, we took a day trip to Kuranda -- a touristy but lovely rainforest town with markets galore. We each bought a small aboriginal painting and indulged in a lunch of savory crepes.  Despite our biologist instincts, we also visited the Koala Gardens.....where we held a koala and fed kangaroos and wallabies by hand.  I know, I know!  It's horrible...and I suffered the consequences in the form of allergies later.  But, I cannot lie. We loved it.  Kelsey is now certifiably obsessed with koalas, and I have to say I love them too.  Not only are they adorable to watch, they are also calm and very sweet.  We may or may not have pictures of us with a koala named Harry.

Well, I have officially been using this free internet for a long time.  I'll write another update soon!  Kelsey and I are in Sydney now, getting ready to celebrate my birthday and her last night in Australia in the most epic way we know how: seeing Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers with a live orchestra and choir doing the score.  At the Sydney Opera House.  WOOHOO!!!  We are very excited.  Love to everyone at home -- thanks for reading!  

Oh, Hey Australia!

I am sitting in an internet cafe in Sydney.  Australia.  What??!  I feel like I'm on another planet...the trees have no leaves, people are walking around in winter coats (it's freaking cold), and all the salads seem to have something called "rocket" on them.  WHERE AM I.  Today is my first full day in Sydney; my flight from Auckland, NZ arrived yesterday around noon. At that point, I was delerious from exhaustion (I barely slept a wink on the plane from LA to New Zealand), and my brain was in "if you do anything else but sleep, I will make your life very difficult" mode.  I barely even remember my layover in the Auckland airport...apparently, I bought a small kiwi bird stuffed animal and a coke.  Despite being in a debilitating fog, I do remember being completely taken with New Zealand just from my two hour experience.  Maybe it's just becase I could barely walk upright, but from the moment I stepped off the plane, I was mystified and enchanted.  There were panoramic posters of breathtaking landscapes lining the walkways, shops filled with merino wool clothing and abalone pendants, and maori and nature-insipired influences throughout the airport.  I have wanted to visit New Zealand for years, and I was surprised ro find myself overtaken by a desire to stay there intead of boarding my plane to Sydney.  Needless to say, when I have recovered a bit, I am going to tentatively consider adding NZ to my itinerary (if I can find a reasonible flight, that is). 

Onward to Sydney.  After spending a large part of today taking in areas surrounding Kings Cross (where my hostel is located), I can safely say I am a fan of this city.  It's clean, people are very friendly, and the layout is perfect for on-foot exploration.  This morning, I visited the Australian Museum -- a kind of Sydney version of the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History in Washington D.C.  In short, I loved it.  The special exhibition on deep ocean life and exploration was extremely informative, and I was thrilled by the green tree frogs in the Australian wildlife section of the museum (I took a video...it will be up shortly!).  I was also very  impressed with the Indigenous Australia part of the museum, which is where I spent most of my time.  I came to Australia hoping to learn as much as possible about Aboriginal life, and I certainly left the museum knowing more than I had before.  I perused artifacts, read panels about the historically tense (to say the least) relationship between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal Australians, and listened to interviews about dreamtime stories and vanishing languages. 

Bolstered by the excitement of new knowledge, I continued my exploration by attending the opening celebrations for NAIDOC (National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Week).  This was a completely unexpected and welcome coincidence, both in terms of date and location; the celebration was located in Hyde Park, which is adjacent to the Australian Museum.  I had seen banners advertising the event in the morning and picked up a brochure at the museum...I had no idea I would get to attend the festival this afternoon!  I got to taste several diffeent bush fruits as part of a traditional medicine panel, and I saw a ceremonial dance demonstration, compelte with didgeridoo.  I really, really loved it.  I took several pictures and videos, which I will post as soon as I am able (forgot to bring my USB cord to the internet cafe. Like I said...jet-lagged).  My plan for this evening was to visit the Royal Botanical Gardens, but as I sit here, I feel like I need to acknowledge and address the fact that my eyes are burning and my ability to form coherent sentences is quickly fading. I am feeling MUCH better than yesterday, but I'm still clearly struggling with the drastic time-change. Sorry for the lack of pics, but I wanted to check in to let you all know that I am alive and (mostly) well.  I am missing home, but for now, the excitment of being in a new place is carrying me through.  I will write again soon!