Australia » We’re leaving on a jet plane…….

Down Under! – Parting Shots

Wednesday, January 31st, 2007

As we have left each country we have tried to reflect on the things we liked or disliked about the country. With Australia there are so many things that spring to mind so instead of elaborating we will just give you a quick list.

Likes (in no particular order)

Diving with sharks
Iced coffee (Chris is a huge fan!)
Coogee (home from home)
Melbourne botannical gardens (obvious reasons)
Echidnas (cute waddle)
Swag bags under the stars
Sydney Harbour – simply breathtaking
Yongala Wreck Dive – another world
The jelly sweets from the corner shop by the bus stop in Coogee
Five – Os – incredible value for money and unpretencious hangout
Relaxed beach style – boardies and surf wear are the way forward
Swimming in the sea on Christmas day
Outdoor lifestyle – a healthier way to live
Bootcamp on the beach – exercise as the sun rises over the sea
24 hour pie shops – kebabs take a back seat after a night out
Smoothies – yum

We could really be here typing all night!

Dislikes (in no particular order)

The phrase ‘Too Easy’ – which means something like OK/ Nice One!
No good Curry houses!
One-sided sports coverage – ie if they win they cover it, if they don’t they cut it!
A distinct lack of customer service outside of the major cities
Cockroaches – Yuk and you cant kill them as their eggs fly everywhere!
Invisable Aborigines – they are on the outside of society in every way
Greyhound breakdown procedure
Watching England get hammered at Cricket (this is technically more of a dislike about the England Cricket team!)
Speeding tickets
The flies…these things take persistent to another level…they try to get in your nose, ears, eyes and won’t take no for an answer!

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Final days in Oz

Wednesday, January 31st, 2007

26th January 2007

Having completed our diving adventures on the reef we headed out with the rest of the group for a night on the lash in Cairns to celebrate. The group was a good mix of people from all over the place, and we had a good laugh, we were treated to some rock ‘n’ roll dancing courtesy of Kurt and Kelly from Texas (Yes Sir / Maam, y’all know those Texans can dance!) and as the night wore on and the shots were downed some interesting sides of peoples characters were revealed! Charlotte and I (for once) managed not to disgrace ourselves and we watched in interest as all the singles from the trip began to kop off / attempt to kop off with each other. The most funny story of the night though was definitely the 2 lads who decided upon their return to the hostel, to ‘brand’ themselves in some drunken self mutilation ritual with an Iron…..we saw them the next day hobbling through town with a nurse, with Iron shaped raw flesh wounds on their calves….nice!

The next day we went up to Kuranda in the rainforest via the skytrain from Cairns. Basically this is an hour long cable car ride, and a bit of a tourist gimmick, but not a bad way to pass the day when a bit hungover. Passing over the top of the rainforest canopy affords a great view of the dense, lush vegetation below, all this with views out over the reef in the background and it is easy to see why this is a world heritage listed area!

Kuranda was nice, the Bowman falls probably the highlight, although we also visited some mad ‘bat lady’ women who ran a centre for injured fruit bats (the places you end up when they advertise ‘free admission’!). It was surprisingly good, she even manages to get the bats to recognise their own names and come over when she calls them, it did get a bit weird though when she started referring to them as her babies, so at that point we made a hasty exit!

After a more social evening and a meal out with Kurt and Kelly on our return to Cairns, the next day we headed north to Port Douglas. Port Douglas is a small, picturesque town, much more chilled out than Cairns, and with the added bonus of a beach (rather than the mud flats down at Cairns). We spent a day taking in the town, saw a nice little church, and even a Python resting up in a tree! The next day we headed out on an organised trip to the Daintree river, for a croc spotting cruise. Despite not being the best time of year for spotting crocs (its nesting season!), we did see 3 in total, of which one was certainly big enough to have human on the menu! Next stop was the scenic Mossman gorge, and a walk through the rainforest. Unfortunately we didn’t see any of the rare wild Cassowary birds that inhabit the area, although we did learn that when it rains in the rainforest, it absolutely pi$$es it down!

And that was just about it for Australia! The next morning we headed back down the Captain Cook Highway to Cairns for our flight out to Singapore. We have had a great stint in Oz, and enjoyed spending time with old friends and new. In the five months we have spent here, we have enjoyed every minute (except the cricket), even the working lifestyle in Sydney! The country is so diverse, with some really nice cities, the barren isolation of the red centre and the relaxed tropics! We would have loved to have made it over to the West coast, but unfortunately we ran out of time, but at least we have the perfect reason to come back!

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Reef Shark v Charlotte

Wednesday, January 31st, 2007

26th January 2006 Here is some footage of a white tip reef shark taken with our underwater camera on the Great Barrier Reef. Who is more scary in the water....the shark or Charlotte....you decide!

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Diving The Great Barrier Reef

Thursday, January 25th, 2007

26 January 2007 We left Townsville on the overnight bus and headed North to Cairns. On ariving in Cairns we checked ... [Continue reading this entry]

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Townsville: Diving the Yongala Wreck

Saturday, January 20th, 2007

21st January 2007 We arrived in Townsville on Thursday 18th January. Our reason for visiting on our way to Cairns was to dive the Yongala wreck. We had heard lots of positive ... [Continue reading this entry]

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Sailing the Whitsundays – Ohh Argh Me Hearties!

Wednesday, January 17th, 2007

18th January 2007 We boarded the Ileola, a 60-foot, three-masted schooner, built in 1952 carrying plenty of history and charm. The ... [Continue reading this entry]

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