9:30PM Friday
OK, so Cairns is pretty neat but not exactly what I expected. It's on a bay and you'd expect there to be a pretty beach, but the beach is ugly and unusable. At low tide it's just a muddy mess, and there's crocodiles (so they say - we didn't see any) and some kind of deadly jellyfish so you can't go into the water. There IS a beach you can use, but it's like the beach at Schlitterbahn - fake - actually a big swimming pool with a fake sand beach, right next to the real beach. Strange. And, as I said before, it's really hot and humid. Tomorrow we're going out on a boat to the reef so we should actually be able to get into the water.
Sun noon - Kuranda
Yesterday we took a boat ride out to a small island & bird sanctuary on the Great Barrier reef & snorkeled & did a semi-submersible boat ride. It was beautiful.
Today we took a scenic train thru the rainforest this am & are taking a sky-cable car back. Saw more kangaroos & melissa got to hold a koala! So cute.
Monday noon - posting from pda so no pictures - will try to add some later. Still raining here - we're ready to leave & get on to melbourne.
Sunday, February 10, 2008
Friday, February 8, 2008
Sydney to Cairns
Thurs 8pm
There's only one tv channel in Sydney with an actual tv show on & it's in german. There are about 5 Fox Sports channels, showing cricket, soccer, australian football, rugby, darts, pool, poker (texas holdem of course), basketball. The other channels are weird reality shows, news or children's shows. The cricket & aust football are on all day long. Channel surfing is not a good sport here.
Fri 7:30pm cairns
It's really hot & humd here!!!! Like florida or houston humid!! We're eating italian & they have free internet. Whoops, food's here.
There's only one tv channel in Sydney with an actual tv show on & it's in german. There are about 5 Fox Sports channels, showing cricket, soccer, australian football, rugby, darts, pool, poker (texas holdem of course), basketball. The other channels are weird reality shows, news or children's shows. The cricket & aust football are on all day long. Channel surfing is not a good sport here.
Fri 7:30pm cairns
It's really hot & humd here!!!! Like florida or houston humid!! We're eating italian & they have free internet. Whoops, food's here.
Wednesday, February 6, 2008
About Comments
I changed the settings so you no longer have to register to comment (didn't know you could do this). So if you haven't commented before, now you can. Thanks to Tim and Larry for letting me know you're enjoying reading this - I'm enjoying doing it and it's more fun than keeping a journal but serves the same purpose. We really are having a good time.
Australia Time
Tues 8pm Sydney time
Ugh. I'm getting tired of going to the airport every few days. Train, bus or car travel lets you sightsee & stuff & is part of the vacation but flying is just a waste of a day. Oh well, we're here but are just staying in the hotel tonight - got an early day tomorrow - bus tour to a wildlife area.
Internet @ the hotel is expensive so I can hopefully find a free signal somewhere tomorrow.
Wed 11am - on a tour bus to Blue Mtns & wildlife preserve - nice weather.
5:30p
Pretty mountain views & we rode the "steepest train in the southern hemisphere" down to a rain forest. Then we went to a wildlife preserve & got to see a lot of animals & koalas real close up & walk around with them & pet kangaroos. It was really neat. We took a river ferry back to town instead of the bus & saw the big bridge & opera house. We're kinda tuckered out & melissa's leg hurts (she bruised it pretty badly on the jet boat) so I'm going out for takeout later and also look for free internet. Can't post pictures with this pda so will have to wait until later.
Thurs 2:30 pm
Today we slept late then took a city bus tour. It was nice until it started raining and we had to move down from the top. We got off to go to the Hard Rock Cafe, but it closed down a couple of months ago. So we came back to the room & are waiting for the rain to stop and then will head off to do some city walking. Tomorrow off to Cairns - early day again.
Ugh. I'm getting tired of going to the airport every few days. Train, bus or car travel lets you sightsee & stuff & is part of the vacation but flying is just a waste of a day. Oh well, we're here but are just staying in the hotel tonight - got an early day tomorrow - bus tour to a wildlife area.
Internet @ the hotel is expensive so I can hopefully find a free signal somewhere tomorrow.
Wed 11am - on a tour bus to Blue Mtns & wildlife preserve - nice weather.
5:30p
Pretty mountain views & we rode the "steepest train in the southern hemisphere" down to a rain forest. Then we went to a wildlife preserve & got to see a lot of animals & koalas real close up & walk around with them & pet kangaroos. It was really neat. We took a river ferry back to town instead of the bus & saw the big bridge & opera house. We're kinda tuckered out & melissa's leg hurts (she bruised it pretty badly on the jet boat) so I'm going out for takeout later and also look for free internet. Can't post pictures with this pda so will have to wait until later.
Thurs 2:30 pm
Today we slept late then took a city bus tour. It was nice until it started raining and we had to move down from the top. We got off to go to the Hard Rock Cafe, but it closed down a couple of months ago. So we came back to the room & are waiting for the rain to stop and then will head off to do some city walking. Tomorrow off to Cairns - early day again.
Monday, February 4, 2008
More Adventures
Mon 7P
This morning we went abseiling (rapelling) and it was great! It was only Melissa and me and the guide, so we got to go several times each. I got to go 3 times and the guide said I could go one more time, but I couldn't climb up there again. It was a long climb to the base of the cliff and a short but steep climb from the base to the top. It wasn't scary at all going over the edge. I loved it.
This afternoon we took a Lord of the Rings jeep tour up to where they did a lot of the filming for LOTR. We saw Fangorn forest, where Isengard would be if it was real (the backdrop for it anyway), the Misty mountains and other places. There was also a large crew there filming scenes from the new Wolverine movie. Hugh Jackman is in town but we haven't seen him. He took the jetboat ride yesterday tho, just a few hours before us.
Tomorrow we're off to Sydney
.
This morning we went abseiling (rapelling) and it was great! It was only Melissa and me and the guide, so we got to go several times each. I got to go 3 times and the guide said I could go one more time, but I couldn't climb up there again. It was a long climb to the base of the cliff and a short but steep climb from the base to the top. It wasn't scary at all going over the edge. I loved it.
This afternoon we took a Lord of the Rings jeep tour up to where they did a lot of the filming for LOTR. We saw Fangorn forest, where Isengard would be if it was real (the backdrop for it anyway), the Misty mountains and other places. There was also a large crew there filming scenes from the new Wolverine movie. Hugh Jackman is in town but we haven't seen him. He took the jetboat ride yesterday tho, just a few hours before us.
Tomorrow we're off to Sydney
.
Sunday, February 3, 2008
Another day, another 3 or 4 hundred dollars
Sun 1 pm
This am we went jet-boating. The jet-boat was great! It made me miss the jet ski. It was a lot like that only faster & dryer. It was in a narrow canyon & the driver tried to scare us.
Those betting on me doing the bungy jump just lost their bet - sorry. I wasn't confident that I would be able to go thru with it, once push came to shove (so to speak) so, not wanting to waste my money, I decided to go as a spectator.
Melissa is going to do it tho - she chose the highest one - 134 meters into a canyon - 8.5 secs fall time. Brave girl.
6pm
GOOD CHOICE!!! There's no way they'd have gotten me off that ledge. It was a lot of fun watching tho & melissa thought it was great - she didn't even scream much. I'm trying to upload a short movie of her jumping off - hopefully it finishes uploading before we run out of computer battery juice.
This am we went jet-boating. The jet-boat was great! It made me miss the jet ski. It was a lot like that only faster & dryer. It was in a narrow canyon & the driver tried to scare us.
Those betting on me doing the bungy jump just lost their bet - sorry. I wasn't confident that I would be able to go thru with it, once push came to shove (so to speak) so, not wanting to waste my money, I decided to go as a spectator.
Melissa is going to do it tho - she chose the highest one - 134 meters into a canyon - 8.5 secs fall time. Brave girl.
6pm
GOOD CHOICE!!! There's no way they'd have gotten me off that ledge. It was a lot of fun watching tho & melissa thought it was great - she didn't even scream much. I'm trying to upload a short movie of her jumping off - hopefully it finishes uploading before we run out of computer battery juice.
Saturday, February 2, 2008
Fri Feb 1 10pm
We're in Queenstown. I still haven't seen the southern skies @ night. It stays light until 9:30 - keeps confusing me that it's summer here. Queenstown is a lot like Breckenridge but smaller. It's much cooler here.
This hotel is very nice & it's a short walk to town. We do an all-day bus/boat tour tomorrow to fjord country (leave @ 6:45am)
We turned our cell phones on in Auckland to see if we could use them for alarm clocks & to my surprise, they had the right time & date & had a signal, tho it said roaming. I wouldn't dare try to dial, but yesterday got a text msg from verizon that said "urgent, dial *86". Now I'm afraid we got charged for just having them on. I'm scared to dial *86 tho - will it cost an arm & a leg? Maybe I should just leave my phone off - it's such a good alarm clock tho.
Sat, 3pm
We're on the bus on our way back from Milford Sound, a beautiful fjord on the West coast. It's clear and sunny and warm today. It was a long trip here but was worth it - waterfalls & mountains & stuff. We get to sleep in tomorrow, hooray! Melissa is listening to Lord of the Rings on her ipod - this is very familiar scenery here. Tomorrow is jet-boat & maybe bungee. Do I have the nerve to really do this? Stay tuned.
7pm
They have deer farms here & export venison & make things out of possum fur - weird, right?
We're in Queenstown. I still haven't seen the southern skies @ night. It stays light until 9:30 - keeps confusing me that it's summer here. Queenstown is a lot like Breckenridge but smaller. It's much cooler here.
This hotel is very nice & it's a short walk to town. We do an all-day bus/boat tour tomorrow to fjord country (leave @ 6:45am)
We turned our cell phones on in Auckland to see if we could use them for alarm clocks & to my surprise, they had the right time & date & had a signal, tho it said roaming. I wouldn't dare try to dial, but yesterday got a text msg from verizon that said "urgent, dial *86". Now I'm afraid we got charged for just having them on. I'm scared to dial *86 tho - will it cost an arm & a leg? Maybe I should just leave my phone off - it's such a good alarm clock tho.
Sat, 3pm
We're on the bus on our way back from Milford Sound, a beautiful fjord on the West coast. It's clear and sunny and warm today. It was a long trip here but was worth it - waterfalls & mountains & stuff. We get to sleep in tomorrow, hooray! Melissa is listening to Lord of the Rings on her ipod - this is very familiar scenery here. Tomorrow is jet-boat & maybe bungee. Do I have the nerve to really do this? Stay tuned.
7pm
They have deer farms here & export venison & make things out of possum fur - weird, right?
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