Cory U of CUExperiments

We were on a boat all day long. All. Day. Long. If someone had told us that more clearly we may have all taken the odds of sea sickness more seriously. It was a very rocky & gloomy day to be out in the water for the 9 hours that we were. I didn’t get sick, but I sure didn’t feel well.

It took a solid 90 minutes to drive out to our final reef destination that day. The waves were rocking the boat real good the whole way through & never let up. Sitting outside was also an adventure as the waves kept coming up the side of the boat. No seat stayed dry that day. We really held onto our seats & got to know eachother real well grabbing onto whoever was around when the boat rocked.

The funniest was watching this Asian man take photos of us indiscreetly as we posed for our own; so I in turn to the liberty to get a photo of him as well.

NEXT UP: The Reef

-Cory U

Day three we were headed back to Cairns & all excited for the next day of swimming in the reef. Still can’t believe I’ve now swam one of the Wonders of the World! Thank goodness for the best purchase I’ve made in Australia; a $25 digital waterproof camera!

NEXT UP: Heading out to the Great Barrier Reef

-Cory U

Most took the downtime we had at a small cafe as a time to try & dry off. I took it as a time to walk some more along the beach. Being a rainy day, it was nice & quiet & easy to explore. Got some more great views of the rainforest on the beach line as I walked along the coast.

My favourite part was noticing the jelly fish sign as I returned back to the group. There was a nice bottle resting at the sign carrying blue vinegar to ease the pain if you get stung.

Seeing a coconut cracked in half was pretty fun too! Most places I’ve gone with palm trees are near residential areas so the coconuts are cleared from the trees & away from peoples’ heads. Here, you could definitely have a Newton moment with coconuts instead of apples.

NEXT UP: Day Three & Four

-Cory U

Only the second stop & the boardwalks were slippery & my shoes soaked during this part of the day. Thank goodness I had so many pairs to switch up because multiple shoes were definitely needed. It was like walking on sponges for days! It was also raining so hard our umbrellas were leaking right through. Poor Dana had a rather wet top by the end, & I was less than thrilled by the end.

Anyways… here’s a few images from the rainforest walk. It was tough looking up as we were all buried under umbrellas but the tress did stretch on forever. Glad to have seen some wildlife as I was afraid the rain would scare them all away. Top left; a spider, & top right; a lizard of some sort (too hard to hear what species they actually were as the rain was loud & our group was rather large).

Still great sites to see however! Can’t believe how green everything can be since the majority of plant life here doesn’t get direct sunlight due to other taller plants. Big competition here!

NEXT UP: A Beach Walk

-Cory U

I can’t say it was the best day for viewing anything but that didn’t stop me from taking it all in. Finally got to where the Rainforest & Reef meet in Cape Tribulation! The day had only just started & we were already a little damp walking along the beaches under umbrellas, ponchos & garbage bin bags.

The strangest part was seeing a pile of sandals lying on the beach with no one else around. It wasn’t a great day to be out swimming if they were out there. It actually rained so much the day before that anyone who signed up for kayaking were let down as it got cancelled due to the rough waters.

Too bad the only proof I was there is a very shadowed outline of myself… I’ll just have to go back on a sunnier day!

NEXT UP: Rainforest Walk

-Cory U

Day two was spent exploring the Daintree Rainforest & beaches of Cape Tribulation. Still staying in the same place, I made sure my suitcases were zipped & everything was sealed up before going out; didn’t want surprise creatures popping out of my clothes or shoes. The day was mostly rainy but I finally got to see what I was most excited for this far North; where the Rainforest & Reef meet.

NEXT UP: The Rainforest meets the Reef

-Cory U

I wouldn’t normally brag about where I’m staying but when you get a cute upgrade after you find your original room not cleaned, it’s hard not to. Would’ve been happy just to wait for housekeeping for our original accommodations but being in the jungle, housekeeping was already gone & off duty. So instead we got a cute little family suite with a loft away from anyone else. I definitely did a little happy dance right when we got it.

Took great advantage of the porch during some downtime each day to get some things done & organized… I don’t rest when I’m on vacation much.

Worst part was finding a roach roaming over our bags; but there were bugs everywhere! (Found a little gecko on the ceiling too!)

NEXT UP: Day Two

-Cory U

Almost at our stay for the evening, we stopped at Mossman Gorge for a quick swim. Even though I’ve been living in Australia for 5 months, I haven’t had much of a chance to enjoy its waters until this trip.

The rapids here have a real strong current & I almost got pulled away trying to sit in the middle of the stream. You can’t see it, but I’m actually sitting atop a large rock in the river. The current was pulling right over it & tried to take me with it… I was almost defeated.

NEXT UP: Our Accommodations

-Cory U

Port Douglas reminded me a lot of what Niagara-on-the-Lake  would be like if it was beach side. It’s a quaint little harbour town with fun shops & lots of tourists. Apparently this is where Fool’s Gold was filmed with Matthew McConaughey & Kate Hudson. It’s also a place where among random souvenirs, Indian attire & bangles, you’ll find Cookie Monster & Oscar the Grouch t-shirts all under one roof.

The small church (middle left) has a 2 year wait list for weddings. It’s cute, tiny, & has a window looking out onto the beach behind it. For a place with such large bookings, there was no wedding going on while we were there… Strange & odd. 

My favourite part was finally sitting down to a good cup of coffee. Like this morning, I have a feeling they’ll be lots of instant/freeze dried coffee at most of our stays. Not good.

NEXT UP: Mossman Gorge

-Cory U

Starting the Reef & Rainforest tour from Cairns, a good 22 girls & 1 guy (plus tour guide & driver) headed in a tiny bus to Cape Tribulation. It’s Day One & these photos are taken somewhere between Cairns & Port Douglas.

We were warned ahead of time that as we headed further North there’d be no phone & data service. They got that right… & so starts the backlog of tour posts already.

So here I am. Day One & somewhere on the foggy coastline.

NEXT UP: Port Douglas

-Cory U

May marks the 5th month living in Australia. After finally being settled in Melbourne & knowing most of that city like it was home, it was about time for another trip away. What better timing for some R&R; Rainforests & Reefs.

Timing couldn’t be more perfect as the day before leaving the kitchen faucet in our apartment decided to let itself go. Just like the elastic waste-band on your favourite PJ pants, a seal (or something) gave weigh on the tap handle. Of course, it was too late for maintenance to come right away so with my handy dandy crafty skills most of the running water was stopped with the pressure of tightly wound yarn & elastic. (It pays to be crafty you know!)…

For worrying family back home: DON’T WORRY! It was scheduled to be fixed for us the day we left & I’m staying on it.

Anyways… Most of today was spent traveling & waiting. From tram, to bus, to plane, to shuttle it was a full day of transit. Nothing new to me.

The best part was arriving to the airport with our names being held by a coach driver waiting to take us away. No wait, & a quick few minutes to our beautiful hotel room. Even though it was a rainy day, I was still more than thrilled to be in hot tropical weather again. It’s strange how here you travel north for the warmer weather; opposite from home.

NEXT UP: Day One

-Cory U

After a day of running errands in the CBD we popped into the Library again. Our main focus was finding what we missed seeing last time; Ned Kelly’s armor. Of course the floor we needed was locked up for the night but we stayed in for a game of chess.

I was lucky enough to be taught chess in Math class during grade school, but for Dana there was a very quick learning curve. After a quick lesson we had a go. Dana’s promised me that the next time we play against each other it’ll be after a few google searches so she can beat me.

Now I’m wanting to watch “Searching for Bobby Fischer”.

-Cory U

PS I was really tempted to make up my own rules since Dana had never played before. If there weren’t some people creeping on our game, I might have…