Cairns, Australia

I gave away my excursion ticket today in order to stay behind and see the ship doctor. I dread seeing my bill now - seeing a ship doctor is absurdly ridiculous $$$ but Ronnie insisted I get seen after another night of horrible coughing. The good news is that it's bronchitis (not pneumonia) and I should be fine if I continue taking the antibiotic our travel doctor sent with us.

I was also happy to learn that the lady we gave my ticket to was already on the waiting list for that excursion, so that worked out well.  I sent Ronnie off with instructions to take lots of photos, and to get closer to his subjects. ha! I'm proud of him and I will share some of my favorites that he took today. However, he will write a few words about what they experienced. (bottom)

 

beautiful Lady Gouldian Finches - native to Australia

Ronnie: It was a rainy day from start to finish. The rain was already coming down when we boarded the bus, and it never really let up. Still, we made the most of it as we drove through Cairns, getting a glimpse of the town on our way out, and then seeing entirely different areas as we returned along another route. Cairns is a modern city with a population of about 180,000 people. 

Our first stop was Kuranda Village, a touristy spot tucked into the rainforest. There were all kinds of shops to explore—books, local goods, a butterfly museum and visitor center. It would have been easy to spend more time there if the weather had cooperated, but our schedule kept us moving along.

We watched a demonstration of a didgeridoo, a long wind instrument crafted by Indigenous Australians from eucalyptus wood. It is naturally hollowed out by termites and produces a deep, resonant drone. It is considered one of the world's oldest musical instruments. It was used to call animals and also in their dances.

From there, we continued on to Rainforest Station Nature Park, where we watched an Aboriginal cultural performance. I especially enjoyed the demonstrations of boomerang and spear throwing—I even gave it a try myself and did surprisingly well!

Each dancer had an animal name given to them at birth. They are not allowed to marry someone with the same animal name. After their dance, we boarded Army Ducks for a ride through the rainforest. Although we didn’t spot any wildlife (despite the area being full of it), we were surrounded by incredibly dense, lush vegetation. This region is believed to be one of the oldest living rainforests in the world, which made it all the more fascinating—even in the pouring rain.

And one can see from the photos, the rain wasn’t just a drizzle—it was coming down hard.

 

Townsville, Australia

This morning we woke in Townsville, located in the northeastern part of Queensland, Australia. Townsville is a large city with modern amenities and a lot of natural beauty. It was founded in 1864 and quickly grew into a busy port town due to the discovery of gold in the region. Its current population is 200,000, and it is considered the gateway to the central Great Barrier Reef and Magnetic Island.

After 3 days on the new antibiotic, I actually felt like going to breakfast this morning. Ronnie was able to get another good run in off the ship this morning. Other than an uber ride to and from the music store, I’ve accomplished absolutely nothing today but hopefully I’ll be up for an excursion by tomorrow morning.  

Welcome to Townsville

Townsville Cruise Port

There are often artisans or craftspeople set up to display their wares in the terminal buildings or even on the sidewalks so that passengers can purchase souvenirs and such. This lady was pedaling a spinning wheel with her feet to turn alpaca fleece into yarn. On the table behind her were items she had made from the yarn.

 

pedaling alpaca fleece

catching an uber

banyan tree trunk

Thankfully, however, we didn’t have an excursion planned and my goal was to rest and drink lots of water. Ha! I managed to do just that except for a quick ride to and from a music store with Ronnie to get a strap for his ukulele. He is still enjoying practicing on sea days with a group of other ukulele players on the ship, usually fluctuating between 8 and 10 persons.

all colors and kinds, even electric ones (not shown)

t-shirt in music store

I wouldn't even blog today but as I've said before, this is my trip diary and it helps me keep up with where we've been. So...apologies for a boring post!

Whitsunday Island (Airlie Beach), Australia

It’s fun to wake up in the morning, pull back the curtains and see where we sailed to during the night. Here is this morning's sunrise and our first glimpse of the Whitsunday region along Australia’s eastern coastline. After another night of coughing, I had no plans to even get off the ship today but after lunch I changed my mind and decided to venture out. 

good morning, Whitsunday islands

The Whitsundays use their own tenders which are essentially speedboats used to transport passengers from large vessels like ours to shore. That turned out to be a good thing since the water was white capping and our smaller tenders would have provided a much bumpier ride. Theirs were also very large and air conditioned, so that was a plus as well.

 

Whitsunday tenders

our ride to the island

We didn’t plan to stay long because I’m still lacking stamina and also because Ronnie was hoping to be back in time for Team Trivia. We arrived on the island, then took the complimentary bus for about a 15 minute ride to Arlie Beach. The waters are so beautiful, blue and clear. However, the tide was out so we didn’t spend any time on the beach. In fact, kids were out playing and picking up shells where the water would normally be.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

don't we wish!

We walked around a bit and went into a Woolworth – remember those? In Australia, they are not dime stores (do dime stores even exist anymore?) but large grocery stores. Ronnie is on a never ending search for hamburger dill pickles – the equivalent to his favorite kind at home. We did find one halfway decent substitute a while back though I can’t remember where. So the search will continue.

 

 

There are 74 islands that make up Whitsunday. They are known for their pristine white-sand beaches, clear waters and tropical vegetation. They are also known for their incredible marine life, colorful fish, sea turtles and dolphins. Without a doubt, Arlie Beach has everything one could want in a beach town. The streets were very clean and pleasant with lots of tourists and locals shopping or eating, many of them wearing swimsuits. The main street was home to colorful shops and restaurants. 

 

hats anyone?

 

A fitting way to end this post is as it started – the beautiful sky over the Whitsunday islands - this time at sunset. 

goodbye, Whitsunday islands