Cairns, Cape Tribulation& Port Douglas

Another one of those places that i had heard of before i got to Oz but still had no idea what to expect. Cairns is a lovely city. So it doesn't have a lovely beach but the lagoon makes up for that. The city centre is a mangable size with some lovely cafes and one off shops. It has an ace english seaside holiday town vibe to it that i like. You would walk along the esplanade after dark and there would be the hum of people dining and the glare from souviner shops...could have been in Great Yarmouth! I visited yet another botanical garden, this one offered many pretty flowers and an Aboriginal plant area. Another thing that made cairns great was that i met some awesome people and reunited with i think 14 on my last count of people i had met along the east coast.

During my time in Cairns i took a trip to Cape Tribulation. The drive there was stunning as we drove along the ocean and saw beach after beach. We were taken to the rainforest and taught about the plants and trees. I even licked an ants butt as it tastes of citrus and also gives you an electric shock. The aborigines used them dried in cooking or would crush and snort them as a decongestant!

Stayed in Cape Trib for a couple of nights. Did some more rainforest and beach walks. Her you can admire the rare sight of two ecosystems coming together, the great barrier reef and the daintree rainforest. I also went on a sailing trip out to the barrier reef for the 2nd time to do some snorkling. It was absolutely wonderful...no wonder it is the 2nd on the list of things to do before you die. I'll do the first in New Zealand...a skydive! I saw a huge cod fish and turtle, both as big as my torso, if not bigger! The turtle let me stroke its shell and i got right up close and poped my head out of the water when it did, such a fantastic experience. There were so many types of colourful fish and coral, it was a huge underwater wonderland. I can't describe it so go on the net, write in great barrier reef and look at the fantastic sights i have seen....magical!

After 2 nights in Cape trib staying in a hut in the middle of a rainforest (yes it did rain!) I was picked up and did the rest of my tour. Went to mossman gorge, a fresh water lake and waterfalls. Did take a bit of a fall on the rocks and my camera suffered a dip but all was well. Had fun crossing the rope bridge and shaking it freaked out a few people.

I then spent a couple of nights on the way back in Port Douglas, a sleepy little holiday town with a great atomosphere to relax in. Not much to do here apart from stroll along the long parade of shops and soak up the rays on the beautiful beach and swim in the calm sea. Claire (a girl i met on the trip) and I got asked to take out Body boards to see if we could entice others to hire them...with no waves it was like trying to sell snow to the eskimos (is that a saying??)! For a town that seemed dead at 9.30pm we managed to have a good night out and stay out till gone 3am!

Returned by bus to Cairns, I remained there for 3 more nights. I stayed on the esplanade so it was great for my last place in Oz to be staying by the sea. I spent several days relaxing by the Lagoon and making the most of the few more days i had left in the sunshine.

Sad to be leaving Oz but onto another exciting country...New Zealand.