We spent NYE in Cairns with Ricardo. He used to work with Emma at our favourite pub in Tooting, the Wheatsheaf. It was quite similar to Cheers, everyone knew our names! Ricardo is originally from Brazil, and has been in Australia for just over a year now so it was very exciting to catch up on the other side of the world.
We stayed in the Global Central Backpackers which confirmed that we are past our peak of lairy hostels and prefer the comfort of somewhere with a bit more comfort and some kind of facilities like a wi e glass or a cup of tea in the morning. However we managed to blend in for the days we were there and drank enough booze so that we didn’t notice the constant noise from the communal areas and main corridor that our room was directly next to, and joked that our prison like room that contained two metal framed single beds, a stupidly noisy air conditioning unit, and no natural day light would simply make us appreciate our next accommodation more! New Year passed in a bit of a blur as we continued to blend in with the party lifestyle of cairns and joined a bar crawl for the evening, and wondering if 2016 will be the year I grow up?!!
Not being the greatest fans of Cairns we hired a car and took a road trip north to the rainforest and Cape Tribulation. What an epic couple of days! Stop one was only an hour north of Cairns, at Hartley Crocodile Farm. We got there at lunchtime and had an amazing afternoon. They have a lagoon for boat rides, a crocodile breeding tour, snake handling show, crocodile attack show, koala feeding, wallabies, Cassawarys (a prehistoric bird that looks like a turkey with blue head).
We saw everything and had an incredible time. I had to leave the snake handling show when Jesse who was leading the show started to look nervous about a highly poisonous brown snake slithering up his arm with an evil glint I his eye.... I have never liked snakes. I tried to enjoy the show, but didn’t so retired to the cafe. I enjoyed a half hour of watching crocus in the lagoon and listening to a couple from Barnsley decried why they loved Australia so much. They were highly disappointed that their children, who had lived in Brisbane for two years had returned to the foul weather of the UK, and now their poor grandchildren had to stay indoors from October through to April. I thought about suggesting they invest in some coats, but thought better of it and was distracted by an Iguana wandering across the floor of the cafe.
The pinacle of the day was the crocodile attack show where the croc farmers prove to you just how little water a Croc can hide in, and how powerful their jaws really are.....as if we weren’t frightened enough already. Trent one of the farmers stood in a pool that is about half a meter deep. There is a croc in there lurking about, and it is so hard to tell where he is until he is enticed out, lured by a chicken head dangling on a string. His jaw snapping with immense power as Trent dived behind the safety gate. We then had a boat ride around the lagoon watching crocs fight each other over morsels of food. They really are incredible creatures, and move through the water without causing a ripple because of the way the scales on their backs are aligned. I have learnt two things from this, number one I will only be swimming in pools in Australia, number two I don’t ever want to work in a crocodile farm.
As we continued our drive up to Cape Tribulation we stopped off at the Mossman gorge. A beautiful walk into the rainforest and we found ourselves constantly checking for nature and wildlife. We have been given strict warnings at every place we have stopped about the dangers of crocodiles, snakes, spiders, jelly fish, sharks, mosquitos.....and most things that move. It’s hard not to be a little frightened of all of these things.........As we walked by the side of the flowing water we were comforted by the fact it was mostly clear, and reassured each other constantly as we looked up stream confirming ‘No worries, that’s just a rock, not a Croc,’ or the slightly less catchy ‘It’s only a root, it’s not a snake’, which is often hard to distinguish on the rainforest floor until you’re standing on it! So far the worst we have seen have all been in captivity.....and long may it stay that way!
We stayed in the Global Central Backpackers which confirmed that we are past our peak of lairy hostels and prefer the comfort of somewhere with a bit more comfort and some kind of facilities like a wi e glass or a cup of tea in the morning. However we managed to blend in for the days we were there and drank enough booze so that we didn’t notice the constant noise from the communal areas and main corridor that our room was directly next to, and joked that our prison like room that contained two metal framed single beds, a stupidly noisy air conditioning unit, and no natural day light would simply make us appreciate our next accommodation more! New Year passed in a bit of a blur as we continued to blend in with the party lifestyle of cairns and joined a bar crawl for the evening, and wondering if 2016 will be the year I grow up?!!
Not being the greatest fans of Cairns we hired a car and took a road trip north to the rainforest and Cape Tribulation. What an epic couple of days! Stop one was only an hour north of Cairns, at Hartley Crocodile Farm. We got there at lunchtime and had an amazing afternoon. They have a lagoon for boat rides, a crocodile breeding tour, snake handling show, crocodile attack show, koala feeding, wallabies, Cassawarys (a prehistoric bird that looks like a turkey with blue head).
We saw everything and had an incredible time. I had to leave the snake handling show when Jesse who was leading the show started to look nervous about a highly poisonous brown snake slithering up his arm with an evil glint I his eye.... I have never liked snakes. I tried to enjoy the show, but didn’t so retired to the cafe. I enjoyed a half hour of watching crocus in the lagoon and listening to a couple from Barnsley decried why they loved Australia so much. They were highly disappointed that their children, who had lived in Brisbane for two years had returned to the foul weather of the UK, and now their poor grandchildren had to stay indoors from October through to April. I thought about suggesting they invest in some coats, but thought better of it and was distracted by an Iguana wandering across the floor of the cafe.
The pinacle of the day was the crocodile attack show where the croc farmers prove to you just how little water a Croc can hide in, and how powerful their jaws really are.....as if we weren’t frightened enough already. Trent one of the farmers stood in a pool that is about half a meter deep. There is a croc in there lurking about, and it is so hard to tell where he is until he is enticed out, lured by a chicken head dangling on a string. His jaw snapping with immense power as Trent dived behind the safety gate. We then had a boat ride around the lagoon watching crocs fight each other over morsels of food. They really are incredible creatures, and move through the water without causing a ripple because of the way the scales on their backs are aligned. I have learnt two things from this, number one I will only be swimming in pools in Australia, number two I don’t ever want to work in a crocodile farm.
As we continued our drive up to Cape Tribulation we stopped off at the Mossman gorge. A beautiful walk into the rainforest and we found ourselves constantly checking for nature and wildlife. We have been given strict warnings at every place we have stopped about the dangers of crocodiles, snakes, spiders, jelly fish, sharks, mosquitos.....and most things that move. It’s hard not to be a little frightened of all of these things.........As we walked by the side of the flowing water we were comforted by the fact it was mostly clear, and reassured each other constantly as we looked up stream confirming ‘No worries, that’s just a rock, not a Croc,’ or the slightly less catchy ‘It’s only a root, it’s not a snake’, which is often hard to distinguish on the rainforest floor until you’re standing on it! So far the worst we have seen have all been in captivity.....and long may it stay that way!
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