East Coast Expedition: Anxiety At Airlie Beach

Jan 18, 2011

I woke up this morning and hopped on a 6:20 a.m. bus to Airlie Beach, a small town located at the heart of the Whitsunday Islands. The highlight of the ride was passing the Big Mango in Bowen, Queensland. There is nothing more exciting than glancing out the window and seeing a brobdingnagian mango in the middle of no where. (I learned that word today and felt compelled to use it. Brobdingnagian means 'gigantic, enormous or tremendous.' Go out into the world and use it. There's nothing wrong with having sesquipedalian abilities. That's another one I learned today. It means 'given to using long words'. Isn't this fun? Ok, I'll continue now.) I arrived to Airlie Beach a little after mid-day and settled into my room at Beaches Backpacker Hostel. As I mentioned in the last post, I was coming to Airlie Beach to go on a sailing trip around the Whitsunday Islands. The Whitsundays are a group of 74 islands located on the tropical coast of Queensland along side the Great Barrier Reef. The pictures I had seen in travel books of these islands were the most exquisite, beautiful tropical isles I had ever seen, with snow-white sandy beaches and radiant teal blue waters. Just looking at the pictures I could hear the waves crashing on the beach, feel the warm ocean breeze against my skin, and taste the salty sea water. Of all the places in Australia I wanted to travel to, this was number one in my book. My heart ached to physically stand on the islands my eyes had fallen in love with.

The Big Mango

Back in Sydney I made certain to pre-book my Whitsunday sailing trip through a travel company. It was for a 3-day, 2-night trip on the Venus, a traditional and fully restored sailing vessel. I was to spend my days sailing around the islands, snorkeling and sun bathing, and my evenings at the Hook Island Beach Resort where I was to relax in my air conditioned room, float in the pool, play at the beach, and socialize at the bar. I was psyched. I was instructed to arrive the day prior to the ship's departure so that I could attend an orientation meeting about the trip. This is why I had to skedaddle so quickly from Magnetic Island; if I missed orientation at 2:00 p.m. this afternoon then I would have missed my trip. I came to soon found out that missing orientation wasn't the only thing I had to be worried about.

What the Whitsunday Islands looked like in the travel books. Incredible, right?

I arrived at the orientation spot at 1:59 p.m. They told me to come back at 5:00 p.m. So I wandered the tourist friendly streets of Airlie Beach, wandering into book shops, surf shops and trinket shops. I went on a jog along the Bicentennial Boardwalk, a coastal track that winds 3.7 km between Airlie Beach and Cannonvale Beach. It would have been an enjoyable run had it not been so dang humid! I could open my mouth and swallow water from the air it was so humid. I passed the remaining time I had to kill watching the Australian Open on television, which was currently taking place in Melbourne, Australia.

Airlie Beach and Lagoon from above

At 5:00 p.m. I returned to the orientation spot, eager to get all the information on the following day's sailing trip. But inside I was informed that the ship was not going to set sail tomorrow. I stared at the messenger in disbelief. How could that be? The bearer of bad news explained that there were only 8 people signed up for the trip and it was a boat made for 30 people. It just wasn't in the Venus's best financial interests to operate the trip. She apologized. She said that the flooding in Brisbane had screwed up everyone's travels. "It's been dead here because of the flooding," she told me apologetically. Tears began to accumulate in my eyes as I digested her words. This was devastating news. I was speechless. "What am I to do then?" I inquired, hanging onto hope that perhaps there was an alternative option that would make this wrong a right at the snap of a finger.

Unfortunately, the options presented to me only sent me into a further state of anxiety, worry and fret.

• Option 1: I could wait around in Airlie Beach for 4 days until the next Venus trip was scheduled to take part. By Sunday she anticipated they would have enough people for the trip. I was on a tight schedule, however, and could not afford to stay in Airlie that long. This option was no good.
• Option 2: I could shell out an additional $200 and upgrade to a different sailing trip scheduled to depart tomorrow. I was also on a tight budget. I wasn't sure I had enough funds to afford the upgrade and afford room and board the remainder of my trip. It was a chance I was hesitant to take, and money I was hesitant to spend
• Option 3: I could get a refund for my trip, accept that it wasn't meant to be and carry onwards with my trip. This was most definitely NOT an option. First of all, there was no guarantee I would even get a refund. Secondly, and more importantly, there was no way I was leaving Australia without sailing around the Whitsunday Islands. I had fantasized about this trip for far too long to just walk away now. 
• Option 4: I could contact the travel agent who booked my trip and see if he could transfer me onto a different sailing trip at no additional charge. 

Option 4 seemed the best of my options. Now all I had to do was figure out a way to get in contact with Andy, my "travel agent", and get him to get me on a different sailboat by the following morning. Piece of cake, right? Hah. Previously I had tried getting in touch with Andy, the man who assured me if I had any problems to just give him a call. I had left Andy email and phone messages before asking about the trips I had booked. And did he return any of them? No.So my faith in getting in touch with Andy now, in my moment of desperation, was not high. At this point there was nothing more I could do. It was now late evening. The travel company would not be open until the following morning. All I could do was pray that things would work out the next morning. I laid my head down that night with the faith alive that my dream of sailing the Whitsunday Islands would come true.

East Coast Expedition: A Brief Getaway To Magnetic Island

Jan 18, 2011

After two incredible days in Cairns, it was now time to begin my decent along the Australian east coast. I caught a 7:47 a.m. Greyhound bus to Townsville. This unofficial capital of North Queensland is located adjacent to the middle part of the Great Barrier Reef. I arrived at 1:46 p.m. Asides from passing the Big Golden Gumboot monument (remember how I explained that Australia is obsessed with erecting giant statutes of random things? well this was one of them), the six hour bus ride was rather uneventful. I chatted with my neighbor who was from Ontario, Canada and together we realized that neither one of us had yet to see a wild kangaroo, an unbelievable fact considering we had both been in Australia for over four months. When I wasn't sleeping or attempting to solve impossible crossword puzzles, we stared intently out the window trying to spot this iconic Aussie animal in it's natural habitat. We didn't. I must have used up all my luck spotting-animals the day prior when I saw the platypus.

The Big Golden Gumboot

When I arrived in Townsville, I trekked a few blocks to my hostel, checked in and quickly freshened up. I had a big dinner date on an island with one of my most favorite co-workers from Summit restaurant, Alexi, that couldn't be missed! Alexi actually trained me when I first began work at the Summit. She was my savior who I turned to whenever I felt like a deer in headlights (which was a lot at first). And then Alexi left me. She went off to Europe with her boyfriend and his family for 3 months, leaving me to fend for myself at Summit. I missed having my security blanket by my side, especially because Alexi was such a lovely person. She always made me feel comfortable and welcome. Above all else, she made me laugh and realize not to take my new job too seriously. As you know, I eventually settled into my position at Summit just fine, and before I knew it three months had passed and Alexi was back! Together we vented about other incompetent workers, rolled our eyes at cranky managers and laughed at absurd customers. When the clock struck "go-home" o'clock we frequently slipped off to the bar next door for a much needed glass (or two) of wine.

It just so happened that Alexi, my beloved hostess side-kick, had an older sister and brother-in-law who had just built a vacation home on Magnetic Island. It also just so happened that Magnetic Island was located right off the coast of Townsville, and Alexi just so happened to be there on holiday the same time I was passing through. Talk about perfect timing! Being the exception hostess she was, Alexi generously invited me over to visit with her and her family that evening. I eagerly accepted this offer. After my past few weeks of non-strop traveling, I was looking forward to spending some down time on a secluded island with Alexi and her family.

Mag Island. You can see Townsville on land too.

I boarded the "Cat" ferry mid-afternoon which carried me across the Cleveland Bay to Magnetic Island. Alexi and her boyfriend, Raph, picked me up in an tiny island car called a Mini Moke. These are designed like jeeps, only much smaller.  It began to rain when I arrived, so instead of exploring the island on foot the duo drove me around the island in the Moke, from one end to the other, pointing out all there was to see. As you can tell from the map above, Magnetic island is only 11 km long so it literally took ten minutes to cross. It was a small paradise (there was just one police officer on the island), and even with the gloomy weather I could see why Alexi fancied the place so much- it was beautiful. We journeyed up Mt. Cook and viewed the spectacular beaches and bays that spanned around us. My only dislike was that no one on the island could swim in the ocean water because it was infested with those dang deadly boxer jelly fish. In my mind I wondered, what's the point of an island "getaway" if you can't swim in it's sparkling water? But this was a trivial thought since the rain had washed away my desire to swim anyway.

Magnetic Island on a clear day (from a helicopter I was not on)

After the Mini Moke Magnetic Island tour, we retreated to Alexi's sisters home. I walked through the door and was greeted by three butt-naked, blonde-haired and blue-eyed little girls. They were adorable angels. Just naked. And they remained that way the rest of the evening, jumping on the trampoline, coloring and even eating dinner in the nude. As much as Alexi tried to persuade the girls to put some clothing on, they refused. It cracked me up. In addition to the three naked angels, I met Alexi's sister, her brother-in-law, her mother and her step father. They were all incredibly welcoming, friendly and fun. I never cease to be amazed at how hospitable the Aussies are. The group of us sat outside chatting, sipping wine and relaxing. It was just what the travel doctor ordered. Then we dined on the most succulent, flavorful rack of lamb I've ever tasted. Granted, I'm not a huge lamb eater, but that's probably because I've never tasted lamb like this. I licked the bone clean. Alexi's family kept me laughing the entire meal with their humorous table talk and silly family banter. I can't express how comforting it was to be surrounded by a wonderfully wacky family. It warmed my soul.

Alexi with her sister, brother-in-law and three nieces (fully clothed). I borrowed this photo from Alexi since I couldn't take one due to my broken camera.

After dinner, we gathered round the television and watched Outback Fight Club. Oh yeaaaa. This wasn't some Aussie made-for-tv take on the Brad Pitt movie Fight Club. Oh no. This was a documentary about actual people who live in the outback of Australia and fight each other for sport. The show synopsis is as follows: "Fred Brophy runs a unique outback fight club. He leads a troupe that tours rural Australia and invites ordinary people from the crowd to fight professional boxers (picture beer guts and missing teeth)- for a cash reward. Tent boxing is an unusual form of entertainment (that's an understatement) that is loved by those living in rural Australia." It was like the Ringling Bros Circus meets a state fair meets a keg party meets a really terrible high school fight in a back alleyway. Outback Fight Club was the most outrageous, hilarious, entertaining 60 minutes of television my eyes have seen. Even Alexi and her family were blown away by the show, confirming what myself, and clearly the rest of Australians, think about people who live in the outback: they are crazy. Stick to the coast if and when you visit Australia, it will save you a trip or two to the hospital.

I had to leave by 9:00 that evening to catch the ferry back to Townsville. I was reluctant to leave and wished I had more than an evening to spend on the island, but knew I had to be on my way to catch my bus the next morning. Missing that would mean missing the sailing trip around the Whitsunday Islands that I had pre-purchased. I didn't want that. That would have been no bueno. When i arrived to the hostel, I was displeased to find that some punk had taken the lower bunk bed that I had clearly claimed as "TAKEN" by my bags and clothing laying atop it. This guy had the nerve to move my stuff on to the top bunk and climb into my lower bunk for a good night sleep, a move that clearly violates backpacker etiquette. I went to great lengths to make a ruckus as I prepared for bed that evening, although I'm doubtful that taught the inconsiderate nuisance anything. I should have whipped out some of the moves I learned on Outback Fight Club. That would have taught him not to steal a bunk from me.

East Coast Expedition: Uncle Brian's Tour in Cairns

Jan 17, 2011

On my second day in Cairns I took part in Uncle Brian's Atherton Tablelands and Waterfall Tour. I was picked up at 8:00 a.m. by the driver and tour guide for the day, "Cousin Brad." Apparently Uncle Brian was busy with more important things than showing a bunch of tourists around his home town. So we got stuck we Cousin Brad (and I say that as endearingly as possible), an interesting fellow who was a cross between Jack Sparrow (Johny Depp) in Pirates of the Caribbean, Tom Green, and Lt. Dan Taylor from Forrest Gump. He was tall, skinny, tattooed, and had dreadlocks. Cousin Brad was the most energetic, happy, bubbly individual I have ever met in my entire life. I'm convinced that his mouth ran on a couple dozen Energizer batteries because he just kept talking and talking and talking. He is a master at spitting out one run-on sentence after the other, without stopping to take a single breath.

"Hellooooo family!" he would shout (he loved to call us "family"). "Look at you all. We're such a good looking family! (He also liked to compliment our looks). We're going to be best of friends by the end of the day. We're going to eat and swim and eat and swim and eat and swim allllllll day. Isn't that wonderful?" (If you didn't read that in the voice of Captain Jack Sparrow, go back and read it again but this time in character). Before anyone had a chance to answer, he would be off again. "Oh, you're all so good looking! Aren't we such a good looking bunch?" The "good looking bunch" he was referring to was our group of 13 travelers. There were 3 couples: Vinny and Mary Lou (French), Martin and Francesca (German), and these other two love birds who couldn't keep their hands to themselves (probably French). Then there were the remaining single folks: Emily (Swedish), Yukon (Finnish), Lindsey (Canadian), and Leslie, Siobhan and Steven (English). Overall, it was a nice, chill group.

Our tourguide, on the other hand, needed to chill out. At least I thought so. No one should have that much energy at eight in the morning. I wasn't sure at first if I was going to be able to tolerate Cousin Brad and his nonstop blabbering. For the entire drive to our first destination (which was a good hour and a half) he told one nonsense story after another. To make matters more bizarre, Cousin Brad had an Elmo doll in the van that he would talk to, and whom he encouraged us to talk to too. He explained that a 3 year old girl had given him the doll and made him promise to keep it with him at all times. Since that day, Elmo has accompanied him on every tour he has guided since. At first all I wanted to do was stick plugs in my ears and go to sleep, but after a while I grew fond of Cousin Brad and his tendency to ramble on forever. By the bus ride home he had the entire van singing their lungs out, passing Elmo around from passenger to passenger for Elmo hugs and love. Speaking of van, this was no ordinary one. Oh no. His name was Wally. Cousin Brad referred to Wally as his pet, and he put great energy into making Wally come alive. Cousin Brad talked to Wally, and Wally answered via horn honking, braking and windshield wiping. Whenever Cousin Brad brought up a sensitive subject, his breakup with his ex-girlfriend the Milk truck, Wally would cry via windshield spray. It was cute and, being the sympathy crier that I am, also touching. Less amusing was Cousin Brad's infatuation with doing u-turns. Any time we approached a roundabout or loop he would proceed to drive around and around and around them. His goal was to get over 20 u-turns by the end of the day. I think he well exceeded that goal.

Steven with Elmo

Our entire day was to take place in the Atherton Tablelands, a fertile plateau inland from Cairns that contains diverse scenery including (as described by Uncle Brian) "rolling grassy hills contrasting against deep rainforest gullies and dense eucalypti mountains. Majestic, cascading waterfalls, volcanic craters and birdlife of every description playing wildly in the treetops." Around mid-morning we arrived to our first destination in the Tablelands- The North Queensland's Ancient Coastal Rainforest. This is the oldest rainforest in the world because it was the only rainforest to survive the ice age over 20,000 years ago. We walked through the rainforest observing the plants and animals around us. Mainly we saw spiders and butterflies, but we also crossed paths with a beautifully colored teal-blue snake. Cousin Brad new a thing or two about Aussie wildlife, and assured us that she wasn't poisonous, so we lingered for a few moments "ooo-ing" and "ahhh-ing" at how effortlessly she glided across the rainforest floor. We also saw a might creek that Cousin Brad warned us to be very dangerous. The aboriginals believe that a young girl's soul lives in the water, and that she takes young men's lives in attempt to find her murdered lover. Only men between the ages of 18-26 have died in that creek. So let this be a warning to all the males out there: don't swim in this creek.

Cousin Brad pointing out some rainforest facts

The snake spotting. See it dangling from the branch? 

The deadly creek- beware!

Next we drove over to Josephine Falls, located in the Wooroonooran National Park. " The waters of Josephine Creek plunge over granite boulders forming a turbulent waterfall at the base of Queensland's highest mountain, Bartle Fere (1,622 meters). Surrounding the falls is a mesophyll vine forest, the most complex rainforest type in Australia" (Thank you Queensland Holiday). What's cool about these falls is that they make for an exception water-slide. We stripped down to our bathing suits and jumped into the water to experience the thrill of sliding down Josephine's rock water slide. Before we could go down the slide, we had to get up the rock slope to the top. This proved to be more challenging than anyone anticipated. The instant our wet bodies touched the rock it became slippery. There was nothing to grip to hoist ourselves up with. The only maneuver that successfully got me to up the rock was to wiggle my body like a seal upwards, slowly shifting higher and higher until I finally reached the top and could stand once again. Then I shuffled on my butt across the waterfall until I was positioned in the center of Josephine's fall. I plugged my nose, pushed myself forward, and slid rapidly down the rock's side splashing forcefully at the bottom. It was great fun. I enjoyed a few more rides down the slide. Eventually, I retreated to a nearby rock to give my poor legs a rest; doing the seal-shuffle up the rock had left them banged and bruised. From there I watched my fellow companions attempt new ways of going down the slide: head first, sideways, backwards, etc.

Sliding down Josephine Falls

The line to go down the water slide

Once everyone had become wiped out, we piled back into Wally and set off for our next stop: lunch. On the way we played puzzles and car ride games, like "Pass the life saver from person to person using only a match and no hands in under a minute." We aced the challenge and were given a hunk of milk chocolate as our reward. Cha-ching! We enjoyed lunch at a local restaurant, where we were served mounds of fresh-baked pasta, break, chicken, ice cream and chocolate cake. We took this time to get more acquainted with one another. I bonded with the three English kids as we discussed where we had been and where we were planning to go. I also probed Cousin Brad to try and "figure" him out. Turns out he wasn't even Australian, he was a Kiwi! This bumped him up in my book, only because I had just returned from there and was nostalgic of my time there. It was during this one-on-one time that Brad the real person came out. What a relief to know that Cousin Brad was just a crazy character he played. And well. So well, in fact, that I thought he really was that wacky. Brad, I nominate you for best male actor in an Australian adventure tour. You are extremely believable in your role of Cousin Brad the tourguide. Bravo! Knowing it was all an act further enhanced my liking of the dude.

Playing "Pass the lifesaver using matches"

After lunch, our next stop was to Milla Milla Falls, Australia's most famous waterfall. You've probably seen these falls on TV at one point or another in your life. I had too, I just didn't realize it until Cousin Brad explained their 15 minutes of fame. The Milla Milla Falls are famous for their appearance in two things. Thing number one: this is the waterfall that appeared in Peter Andre's 1996 music video "Mysterious Girl." Now this fact meant nothing to me since I didn't know who Peter Andre was, nor was I familiar with his "Mysterious Girl" hit song. Does this mean something to you? It meant something to all the other girls in the room who began to fan themselves in giddiness. My English friends were baffled and shocked that I didn't know Peter Andre. They stammered about how much the loved him and his incredible 6-pack abs when they were younger. I was very familiar with thing number two, however. Thing number two: this waterfall was used in the Herbal Essence commercials where the model is shampooing her hair in a waterfall. Ding, ding, ding! We have a winner. Of course I knew Herbal Essence, and I faintly remembered these commercials. Phew, I wasn't as sheltered as a youth as I feared.

How the Milla Milla Falls are suppose to look...

Before arriving to the falls, Cousin Brad explained to the group that he wanted each of us to reenact the Herbal Essence commercial by dipping our heads in the water and then whipping our heads backwards to create a cool, sexy (if you were an Herbal Essence model) visual of our hair flying up and water spraying out. I chuckled at his silliness. Then we arrived to the waterfall and I realized that he was being dead serious. He started shouting at us to give him our cameras and get in the water for our photo shoots. There was no way I was getting into that water, however. Absolutely no way. It wasn't the photo shoot that I was scared of, it was the water. While the waterfall itself was dynamic and stunning, the actual water was brown. It looked like a massive pool of hot cocoa or Dunkin Donuts coffee. That's not what I remember the Herbal Essence girl showering in. I prefer the water I swim in to be somewhat transparent. I should be able to see my hand when I stick it in the water. This was not the case. Plus I didn't have a camera because it broke the day prior. Thus I looked Cousin Brad straight in the eyes and dealt him the devastating news, that I was not going to go into the Milla Milla Falls no matter how famous they were. Cousin Brad tried with all his might to persuade me otherwise, but I stood my ground. He promised that he was going to pick on me for the rest of the trip, to which I replied gaily, "Bring it on." There were other braver souls who did venture into the hot cocoa falls that day. And their Herbal Essence imitation photos are hilarious. Thus I will share a couple with you so you can chuckle as much as I did.

How the Milla Milla Falls looked when we were there. You can't even see Steven in that water. 

Steven and Siobhan imitating Herbal Essence. I think they nailed it. 

Our next stop was Lake Eacham, an extinct volcanic crater that is filled with cool, clean, crystal clear water (the way water is suppose to be). On the half hour ride over, Cousin Brad made good on his promise. "Family," he said. "I have something to share with you. Earlier today Sarah told Elmo a secret, which Elmo then told me. I know Sarah's secret and I'm going to share it with you all because we are family." I looked at Cousin Brad with wide eyes, wondering what on earth he was going to say my secret was. "Family," he said. "Sarah is famous. She was the winner of American Idol Season 10!" I burst out laughing. My enjoyment was only heightened by the reaction of everyone else on the bus. "You were?!" they inquired with delight. "Oh my god, that's so cool!" By this point I was dying with laughter because they actually believed him. I thought it was obvious that this was a fib Cousin Brad had made up, but they thought he was telling the truth. "No!" I insisted. "He's joking." I had forgotten that I was the only American aboard Wally, so it was understandable that they wouldn't know about our American Idol contestants and winners. Then Cousin Brad instructed me to reach under my seat. I stuck my hand suspiciously down and picked up the object residing beneath- a tambourine. "We're going to sing along with Sarah," Cousin Brad announced, "to Brown Eyed Girl." And with that he pushed play on Wally's stereo and Brown Eyed Girl began to ring out over the speakers. I taped, slapped and shook that tambourine with all my might while the rest of the bus sang along. We were quite good, I must say. Then Cousin Brad instructed us on dance moves that we had to do. On his command, we moved our arms to the left. Then to the right. We shook 'em all around. We turned our hands into snakes and slithered them up and down. I felt like I was back in kindergarten, doing the hokey-pokey on the bus. But I'd be lying if I said we didn't thoroughly enjoy this playtime.

Lake Eacham

By the time we reached Lake Eacham, we had worked up a sweat from our tambourine shaking, high-pitched singing, and Macarena dancing. It was time for a dip! Lake Eacham was a much more preferable swimming pool compared to the Milla Milla Falls. The water was a nice temperature and actual clear. The entire group floated about the lake treading water for a while. Eventually we became fatigued, and we climbed out of the lake and back into Wally to go to our next and final destination for the day. On the way we swung by a farm where Cousin Brad pointed out a milk truck parked on the left side of the road. I guessed that this was Wally's ex-girlfriend and that Cousin Brad was going to reenact a Romeo and Juliet love scene between the two vehicles. I was wrong. Instead he told us to turn around and look out the right side of the bus. To our surprise, there on the side of the road stood an old woman waving a massive caterpillar stuffed animal in the air at us. Yup. I was as confused as you are. We waved and Wally honked and then we continued onwards. For a day full of bizarreness, this was the most bizarre occurrence yet.

The entire group in the water with Snake-hands

The last activity on our itinerary was to go look for platypus. Platypus are a very rare and special species found in Northern Queensland. They are semi-aquatic mammals that have a pouch like a kangaroo, a duck bill, a beaver tail, and otter feet. It is the only mammal that lays eggs instead of giving birth to live young. It's also one of the only few venomous mammals. It pees, poops and reproduces from the same hole. Oh, and it doesn't have breasts so it sweats its milk through its arm pit for the baby platypus to drink. Pretty neat, huh (or fowl. but I sided with neat)? I had never seen a platypus in the wild before, so I was hopeful that I would get to see one. However, Cousin Brad warned us that our chances were pretty slim of spotting a platypus because it was the wet season when they usually are in hiding. He said we had about a 8% chance of seeing a platypus. The odds were not high. But we were determined to find one, and to our pure delight we did! It was hard to see because it moved so quickly through the water coming up for air only on occasion; but regardless, we spotted the little fellow. He was adorable. Brad was shocked. It was the first time he had seen one since Christmas, and he said that only 2% of Australians have ever seen a wild platypus. We were psyched, and grateful that luck was on our side that evening.

Look! A platypus =)

At last, it was time to retreat back to Cairns. The day had been a long and exciting one. Brad made good on his promise: we swam and ate and swam and ate the day away. To cap off the evening, we had a sing-along all the way back to Cairns. We belted out our favorite oldies, from Greece to Surfing USA to In The Jungle and YMCA. I have to hand it to Cousin Brad, he really knew how to make a bunch of complete strangers act as goofy as he does. And for that I owe him a big thank you because it was a really terrific time. The day wouldn't have been nearly as fun without his charisma and quirk.

East Coast Expedition: The Great Barrier Reef

Jan 16, 2011

Ah, back in Australia, my second home away from home! Cairns, Australia to be exact; home to exotic tropical rainforest and the one and only Great Barrier Reef. I didn't know what to expect when I arrived to Cairns, but to my great delight I fell "in like" with the place immediately. By the end of my short stay there my "in like" bumped up to an "almost in love". Knowing that it was a place of humid, tropical rainforests, I was prepared to come face to face with creepy, crawly, slimy creatures the instant I stepped off the plane. Fortunately, my imagination got the best of me. While I was greeted with a heap of humidity, the only creatures I came in contact with were the hospital folks of Cairns. The actual town of Cairns was quite likable with crossroads full of shops, bars and restaurants, bright lights and palm trees all just meters away from the ocean.

Sunset from my plane window heading back to Australia

My first full day in Cairns, I went on an Ocean Spirit Cruise to the Great Barrier Reef to go snorkeling. This is probably one of the, if not the, first places and activities that comes to people's minds when they think of Australia. And rightly so. The Great Barrier Reef is one of the seven natural wonders of the world. It is the world's largest reef system made up of over 3,000 individual reefs flourishing with diverse marine life and more than 90 exotic islands. This sucker is huge. It's the largest single structure made from living organisms in the world. It can be seen from space, for goodness sake. Need I go on? I think it's pretty evident that my time in Australia wouldn't be complete without going to pay this unique world wonder a visit.

Cairns Harbor

The Ocean Spirit Cruise departed from Cairns at 8:00 a.m. The ship set out on a 2 hour cruise to our first destination- Oyster Reef. On the way we were instructed on how to snorkel and use the equipment properly (flippers, goggles and a snorkel). Among other things I learned that I needed to swim horizontally so that my flippers wouldn't hit any of the reef or wildlife me. Too rid my snorkel of any water that may have accumulated inside, I simply had to say the words "Chew, chew" into it, and just like magic the water would burst out of the top. Lastly, I didn't want to tighten my goggles too much otherwise I would get lightheaded. We were given the option to purchase a wetsuit to wear in the water for $5.00. I coughed this money over in a heart beat. The world's most venomous and deadly animal, the boxer jelly fish, inhabits the reef waters- there was absolutely no way I was getting in that ocean without a wetsuit covering my body from head to toe.

The Ocean Spirit

The deck and hang out area

Once I had all my snorkel gear, I lounged on the boat deck enjoying the gorgeous day and getting acquainted with my fellow cruse comrades. First, I chatted with two young Canadian girls. Prior to arriving in Cairns, the pair worked on a peach farm. Their legs were covered in terrible rashes and scars that resulted from allergic reactions they had to the peaches. Ouch. I was glad I opted for hospitality work rather than farm work. Then I struck up conversation with two Irish men, Anthony and Martin. These lads were great fun and became my sidekicks for the remainder of the day.

Snorkel gear in hand!

Before I knew it, we were parking the Oyster Spirit in the middle of the ocean. We had arrived at Oyster Reef! It was snorkeling time. According to their website, Oyster Reef is "clear, shallow and teeming with marine life; it is out of this world." They didn't lie. I really felt emerged in a whole new world. Cue the Disney classic "A Whole New World" (Aladdin) because that is exactly how I how felt: "A whole new world. A dazzling place I never knew...Unbelievable sights. Indescribable feelings. Soaring (Swimming), tumbling (floating), freewheeling (flipping), through an endless diamond sky (turquoise ocean)." Hold the applause, I'm not done yet. "A whole new world. Don't you dare close your eyes. A hundred thousand things to see (fishies and coral galore!)...Every turn a surprise (more fishies and coral to see, whoopie!). A whole new world." Now I'm finished. It was a truly incredible experience. I loved every minute of it. I didn't want to get out of the water. But alas, the call came from the crew to climb back on board the boat. It was time to sail off to location number two- Upolu Reef.

The ocean and reef below (see the green color in the water? that's the reef)

While sailing to our next destination, Anthony, Martin and I reflected on our incredible snorkel experiences while munching on fresh fruit and seafood. My Irish pals were also debating whether or not to go scuba diving. I had already decided that I wasn't going to go, despite multiple efforts by the crew to convince me to go diving. My reasoning was two-fold. First, it was more money that I didn't want to spend. Second, considering that I had neither gone snorkeling or scuba diving before, I thought it a bit too ambitious to attempt both in one day. As much as I love trying new things and checking items off my "Do before I die" list, I still wanted to have some things left to do down the road. The way I see it, not scuba diving means that I have to come back to Australia so I can scuba dive the Great Barrier Reef. And it won't just be for 20 minutes like it would have been today, it will be an entire day of scuba diving. The Irish eventually came to the same decision as I, but for a different reason. During the scuba instruction session they had been told that if someone hits a button on their suit it will allow all the water to rush into their helmet and kill them instantly. They heated the thought of dying at the hands of some imbecile tourists, and so they decided to pass.

Getting ready to hop in the water for some snorkel action

An hour or so later we arrived at Upolu Reef, which they described as being "magical with Moray Eels to check out, giant clams, turtles and if you're really lucky perhaps a reef shark." I considered myself lucky that I didn't see a reef shark. Nor did I see eels or turtles, and for that I consider myself unlucky. However, I did see a giant clam. When I say giant, I mean GIANT. This clam was larger than a grown man. At one point, one of the scuba instructors dove down to the giant clam and touched it's center and the clam closed around his entire body. Insane, huh? Fret not, the clam opened back up and released the daring instructor from its insides. Again, I was mesmerized by the ocean world I was immersed in. I have never seen tropical fish or coral reef like this before, not even in an aquarium. My favorite bit of reef was this bright green neon coral that looked like a glowing brain on the reef. That's a souvenir I wish I could have taken home with me. Anytime I spotted a fish I liked, I would follow it as it zipped around the colorful reef below. Every once and a while I would pop my head out of the water to make sure that the boat hadn't left without me. Can you imagine being left behind? I certainly couldn't. My insides turned at the thought of it, stranded in the middle of the ocean where sharks and other killer creature reside. Gulp. Fortunately, I didn't find myself in this predicament. When the time came, I reluctantly made my way onto the ship sad that my time at sea with the fish and reef had come to an end.

Hanging out on the deck

On the return cruise home I befriended the Captain of the Oyster Spirit. He invited me into the "cock pit" where he was steering the ship in his enclosed room along with his skipper. I felt privileged to be allowed inside considering the sign on the door read, "Staff only." Ah, the benefits of being a young girl traveling by her lonesome self. We had a grand time chit chatting about their lives at sea and mine in Australia up to this point. As always, I enjoyed getting to know the locals. As we pulled into the harbor, my heart twanged with sad melodies: I didn't want to leave! Asides from the fact that my "water proof" camera broke the second it touched the ocean water (don't buy an Olympus Stylus Tough, it was the worst purchase I ever made), it had been a perfect day. If it wasn't for the fact that I had three weeks to get back to Sydney to catch my flight home to NY, I think I would have begged the Captain to let me work aboard his ship. At that moment, all I wanted was to be able to cruise out to that magnificent reef each day and go snorkeling morning, noon and night. Recognizing that not all fantasies can become a reality, I disembarked the ship to carry forth with my Australian adventures.

Not wanting the fun to end, I made plans with my Irish pals to meet up that evening for dinner and drinks. After a refreshing shower, I headed into town and met them at a cozy pub where they treated me to pizza and beer. We chatted the night away the Irish way. It was an enjoyable ending to an exceptional day.