I linked up with my parents in Cairns and we accomplished a lot in a short period of time! In just over a week, we:
Traveled the Daintree Rainforest
To my knowledge, I'd never been in a rainforest before. I learned that rainforests are called so because of the amount of precipitation they get, so even though I had envisioned the Amazon, all rain forest's plant life are not created equal.
We rode up and over the rainforest canopy on a sky rail and got off to explore the town at the sumit. It was mostly authentic arts and crafts vendors. To descend, we took the train.
View of an impressive waterfall from the train in Daintree.
Visited Magnetic Island
This is where I saw my first koala in the wild! I was becoming concerned that I wouldn't see any on my trip. This island is off of the coast of Townsville and was filled with secluded beaches and minimal foot traffic. It was a nice getaway.
I almost didn't spot this guy!
Snorkeled the Great Barrier Reef
I refused to leave Australia without first seeing the reef! It was an ugly day above the surface, but gorgeous down below. Our 150 ft yacht was amazing and served one of the best meals I've tasted in my entire life! I need to get the name of the company so that I can recommend them to everyone I know! It also had a mini submarine attached to it that I rode in. I didn't really like the feeling of being underwater and under pressure. It was a little sickening for me, to be honest.
I did come face-to-face with what I'm deeming a tiger shark. It may not have been a tiger shark but if not, it was a zebra shark. And if that's not a real thing, then I don't know what to say. It was big and I was snorkeling deep when it swam across my face! It was striped black and white and was long and skinny. UPDATE: I figured it out! It's called a banded shark or cat shark. Check it out here. Guess it's not that scary, after all.
Dad, Mom, and myself, all suited up to dive!
Visited a wildlife conservatory
If you have limited time and want to see all of the wildlife that you don't often see in your home country, where do you go? To a wildlife center. And so, we did.
I had a little too much fun with this statue:
Shhh! They're sleeping...
There is a petting-zoo type of enclosure for the wallabies and you can go in and interact with them. I fed them out of my hand!
They're super gentle. The same can't be said of their cousin, the kangaroo!
I actually held a snake. Never thought I'd be that girl but once you've held a croc,
you're basically a professional handler.
Tried to Take Pictures with Every Type of Road-Crossing Sign We Came Across
I don't think there was one for crocs:
Dad tried to drive the rental car immediately after possessing it but the first thing he did was go the wrong way around a roundabout as we were exiting the airport. He pulled over and got out without speaking and I just casually took his place. It's best not to insult the egos of men, especially when they've already surrendered.
Thanks for the reminder!
Made it to Sydney
I went in the Sydney Opera House, checked out Luna Park, and visited the Sydney Zoo. The transportation system here is very sophisticated!
Dad and I in the marina in front of the opera house
Drove Down to See the Twelve Apostles
There are only like 6 remaining at this point, but it is still pretty amazing what the forces of nature can do! Along this drive, I also spotted 60+ koalas and 2 kangaroos! I eventually stopped counting the koalas because the closer we got to dusk, the more obvious they became. Most of those pictures were taken on Dad's camera so I don't have them to share right now.
Mom and I huddling for warmth, with some of the remaining
Twelve Apostles standing in the background
Not bad for about a week and 2k miles, eh?
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