Life...

Around CAIRNS

Early Wednesday morning we hug and kiss goodbye to Kalle at the airport, and there we are again: just the two of us. Aww. The threesome was fun :D Love you, Kalllllleee!!! From the bottom of our great big hearts and from the bottom of the world. Sad and lonely, we take the first bus to the party town Cairns, shop till we drop, and finally retreat ourselves to a weekend getaway at Cape Tribulation and Atherton Tablelands. An Aussie version of Ms Spears :) Cape Trib is fab. Hidden in the rainforests, surrounded by palm trees and wild beaches, it takes us two brave hearts to get there on Friday night. Leaving Cairns in the afternoon with our new rental friend Holden, and with stops along the way: Palm Cove, Port Douglas, Mossman and Daintree, we cross the Daintree River at the sunset, driving right into the dark and unknown. A narrow road through the hills and towering trees of the tropical rainforest make sure no sunshine at the daytime and no moon or starlight at the nighttime gets through to lighten your way out of what seems like a scary movie. At the top speed of 30 km/h it takes a good hour and a half to find some sort of a civilization at Cape Trib and shelter at the Cape Trib Beach House where million mysterious voices and whispers lull you to a deep sleep with sounds of rainforests. Only your imagination sets boundaries to what’s going on out there. Cape Trib was as far as we could go with our friend Holden, further north from there takes you only a 4WD. But you get a good idea of the tropical rainforest at the local Daintree Discovery Centre with an aerial walkway and its Canopy Tower. Due to a staggering annual rainfall of up to 4.5 metres, the rainforest, which is home to over 3000 plant species including trees, vines, palms, ferns, epiphytes, is so lush you can almost see it growing. And if you’re lucky, you might spot a python curled up in a giant basket fern or one of the region’s most famous icons, a colourful cassowary. Lucky or unlucky, we saw them both on display only. Back on the south banks of the Daintree River, which you can only cross by an almost nonstop river ferry (catch me if you can!), we drive into a completely different environment of Atheron Tablelands with its little country towns and beautiful waterfalls. Mossman Gorge, Mt Molloy, Mareeba, Atherton, Yungaburra, Malanda, Milla Milla and Kuranda, and the most beautiful of them all, KAIRI :) My very own town Down Under with Kairi Hotel, Kairi Store and Kairi Public School. Anyway, jokes aside and being honest, because Kairi is just another country town, one of the most beautiful was probably Yungaburra, where the village has existed largely unchanged since 1910 with many of the original buildings still remaining, like the historic Lake Eacham Hotel, fondly known as the Yungaburra Pub. Fascinating, just like a step back to the history. And the village seems to know the truth of the life. A sign at a local teahouse says: ‘Life is uncertain.. Eat the dessert first.’ Or did they want us to try one of their delicious cakes? (a) The Milla Milla waterfall circuit is definitely worth to see as well, and so are the enormous Curtain and Cathedral Fig trees close to Yungaburra. The only place we missed out on, but that looked like a nice village in the rainforests, was Kuranda where we arrived late and unable to find accommodation on Sunday night had to turn back to Cairns one day early.

Yey! Go Sean Kingston and 'BEAUTIFUL GIRLS', the song of the weekend! :)

MAGNETIC

The next stop on our way up the coast is a town called Townsville. It’s Kalle’s final destination Down Under before he flies back home to greet the colours of the fast arriving fall. The magic of four seasons, something you won’t have in Australia. At least not to the same extent. To add the final touch to Kalle’s holidays, we take off to the Magnetic Island. Close to Townsville, but so different. So little, so peaceful, so magnetic. And so adorably cute, just as the island’s world famous family of Mokes. We rent one called Tinkerbell (she’s baby pink and has great big eyes!), and Tinkerbell takes us around anywhere we wanna go: is it the Italian restaurant down the beach, or Horseshoe Bay, or Nelly Bay’s Super IGA – Moke knows the roads. Even when we are delightfully tipsy of Lambrusco and filled with the 3-course Italian dinner, Mokes takes us back to our beach front bungalow for a good night sleep. The question is: who was driving? Tinkerbell!! Of course :)

THE WHITSUNDAYS

Airlie Beach, the gateway to the Whitsundays, is humming constantly to the tune of party. Backpackers are tripping into town to embark on the mandatory island cruise, or simply cruise through the night in the glut of pubs, bars, clubs and cafes. Our dream yacht, sold in a brochure as a romantic tallship that has sailed seas and oceans, turns out to be a ‘fish boat’ that used to sail the Antarctic’s. Brrr :) The crew of the ‘fish boat’ consists of a comic skipper, a Mr Muscle diving instructor and a cook with 3-week cooking experience. But the ship can navigate, the intro dive and plenty of snorkeling goes without glitch, and the food exceeds all expectations. Except for a little sea-sickness and its after-effects after the 2-day-2-night sailing experience :D Alcohol? :) And the islands are a natural wonderland – a drowned landscape, these continental islands are the tips of mountains fringed with coral. Plenty of reef and plenty of fish everywhere as soon as you stick your mask and snorkel into the blue-green waters.

BRISBANE & NORTH STRADDIE

The city that first saw us arriving Down Under still feels like home away from home. Friends Ash’n’Arpi, and their never-ending hospitality, and Kirit with his alcometer :) Nights in Fortitude Valley. Days on South Bank. The September Riverfire. Probably one of the best places in Oz to live, and to visit. The big-city package exists here but the pretensions and speed are refreshingly absent. So Brisszzzie :P And it’s got ‘Straddie’ – the tranquil sand island just a stone throw away from Brisbane.
Naa-naa [singing].. I’ve still got sand in my shoes, and I can’t shake the thought of you.. :)