Cairns

On Saturday, April 13th, six members of the Thoe family flew from Sydney to Cairns.  It also happened to be my birthday.  Heading off on a holiday is not a bad way to spend a birthday.  Just flying into Cairns was gorgeous.  Cairns is situated on the coast of the Coral Sea in North Queensland.  It is a popular location for tourists to visit the Great Barrier Reef.  The area to the west of the city is a dense, tropical rainforest blanketing this section of the Great Dividing Mountain Range. A tour guide on one of our excursions mentioned that the rainforest around Cairns was used as an inspiration for the set designers of the movie Avatar.  There is also a lot of farmland in the plains (or the tablelands) around the mountains to the south of Cairns.  It is in these farmlands that they grow a lot of tropical produce, like bananas and sugarcane.  

The red pin is Cairns and the blue dot is Sydney

Even though most of the area in and around Cairns is beautiful, the actual coastline of the city is lacking.  

The coastline of the city center is actually a mudflat.  But, the city has done a great job of making the most of a bad situation.  There is a park with a huge playground along the coast with a wide boardwalk.

The boardwalk connects the playground to this....."The Lagoon" on Cairns Esplanade.  It is a large saltwater pool that even has a sandy side to give it a bit of a beachy feel.

From this side of the pool, you can completely forget about that nasty mudflat. 

One thing that Cairns is known for is its large population of flying foxes (fruit bats).  In the evening thousands of bats fly over the center of Cairns.  It is quite a site to see.

 

This is just a small depiction of all the bats.  They were flying over us for at least 30 minutes.

On our first full day in Cairns, Sunday, we drove about an hour north to Port Douglas.  Port Douglas is also a popular tourist spot.  Part of the attraction of Port Douglas is that it has beaches close to the town.  The beaches are spectacular. However, once we saw the signs around the beaches warning of salt water crocodiles and stingers (jellyfish), we were more than happy we had chosen to rent an apartment with a pool for our week on holiday.  The beaches even had bottles of vinegar located about every 20 feet so that people could treat their jellyfish stings as quickly as possible.  We decided to enjoy the beauty of those beaches from afar.

Since we were so close to Daintree National Park, we decided to drive through it.  However, we found out that driving through the park isn't really an option because there are no major roads that go through it; at least not in the area of Port Douglas.  There were guided tours we could look into doing on another day.  But, Aubrey had gotten really motion sick on the windy road up to Port Douglas.  So, we did not venture back up to that area during our time in Cairns.

We followed the blue line along the coast from Cairns up to Port Douglas. (On a side note, all the light blue island things in the ocean are the reefs.)

One of the beautiful beaches between Port Douglas and Cairns

A closeup; the water is such a stunning shade of blue

This is why we were not too excited to visit one of these beautiful beaches up close.

The kids were having the best time with the pool situated right off of our terrace.  On most days they fit in a swim in the morning and then another when we returned back to the apartment in the late afternoon/evening.

Aubrey loved jumping in off of the dock.  Our apartment was directly behind where Aubrey is standing.  It was all set up for outdoor living with a dining table right by the pool.

Sean took pictures of the kids with his new underwater camera.

This is the other dock the kids loved to jump from.

Carter had an interesting way of diving.

Aubrey practicing her karate moves by the pool.

On Monday, I took a little downtime for myself at a spa to relieve some of that moving stress that I was still holding onto.  It was thanks to my birthday gift from Sean that I got the luxury of doing that.  Then, Sean and I had a kid-free evening in Cairns thanks to Sean's parents.  When you live away from family for so long, you forget how nice it is to have free babysitters that actually WANT to spend time with your children.  

We went out on a great adventure on Tuesday.  We booked tickets on the Kuranda Scenic Railway.  The railway was originally built in the late 1800's to get supplies from the coast to tin miners up in the mountains.  It runs between Cairns and the village of Kuranda.  We were on the train for about an hour and a half.  It took us past waterfalls and over the Barron Valley as we climbed up the mountain.  Once we got up to the village, we took a little hike through the rainforest on a trail.  After lunch, we headed back down the mountain on the Skyrail Rainforest Cableway.  It was definitely a trip to remember.  The kids said it was one of their favorite experiences since being in Australia.  

The red pin is the village of Kuranda

 This is the front of the train (we were riding in the back).

Looking down at the suburbs of Cairns near the beginning of our journey

Carter was loving it!

This bridge seemed a little treacherous, but it was awesome to see the waterfall that was running right alongside the train. 

This is what we saw when we looked to the left of the train while on the bridge.

The view as we climbed higher

Aubrey sneaking a peek at Dad

We are really getting high now!

Barron Falls

The beginning of the jungle walk in Kuranda

This certainly doesn't look like the Midwest!

A view of the Skyrail from below

Carter on the Skyrail

Barron Falls from the Skyrail

It was kind of scary to be up this high in a little cabin suspended by a cable.  But, the views were totally worth it.

Looking down at the valley with the ocean beyond

View on the final descent

Wednesday we stuck around the apartment until early afternoon.  Then, we drove an hour and a half south to the Atherton Tablelands to visit Paronella Park.  Paronella Park is where Joseph Paronella, a Spaniard, built a large castle in the 1920's/1930's to be used for entertainment.  It had a large ballroom, a theatre to show movies every Saturday night, and various kitchens where Joseph's wife would sell concessions.  It has multiple levels of gardens and it is built alongside a creek with a large waterfall, which was a popular swimming hole.  Since that time it has undergone a fire, floods, cyclones (hurricanes), and a salt water crocodile moved into the swimming hole.  Right now they are in the beginning stages of trying to rebuild the ballroom, but for the most part, the castle is in ruins.  It is a wonderful place to explore though.  You feel as though you are walking amongst ruins that are much older than the early 1900's.  It has a magical feel to it.   

The red dot is Paronella Park

Paronella Castle from the suspension pedestrian bridge that goes over Mena Creek Falls

Family photo before the tour

This is the stage area of the ballroom.  This is the portion of the castle that had a fire and then lost a wall during a cyclone.

This is the ballroom looking from the stage area

Staircase leading from the top section of the castle to the creek

Family photo by the swimming hole.  Not much swimming goes on there now that the saltie made it his home!

Carter and Aubrey feeding the fish.  Heaps of jungle perch come to the surface in that spot just waiting for the fish food from tourists.

We noticed these while the kids were feeding the jungle perch.  They are long-finned eels.  The baby eel was staying up under the rocks and the mama eel was coming up to check on her baby.  

The lower portion of the castle surrounded by gardens

Fountain in the lower gardens

Visiting another, smaller waterfall on the property

Beehive Ginger plant flowers on the Paronella Park grounds

Thursday was a highlight of our trip to Cairns.  This was the day that we headed out on a tour to the outer Great Barrier Reef.  We booked a cruise on Reef Magic.  We rode on a catamaran for about 90 minutes to an all-weather platform called Marine World.  This platform is docked over the Moore Reef.  There is a roped off area where you can snorkel at any time during the day and someone stands watch over this area to make sure that everyone is doing okay.  They have timed excursions for a glass bottom boat, a semi-submersible boat, guided snorkel tours, and scuba diving.  We were out on the platform for 5 hours before riding the catamaran back to shore.  

I will admit that I was a little nervous about this trip out to the reef with the kids.  Aubrey tends to get very motion sick (as do I on occasion).  Besides that, I was also nervous about how the kids would handle snorkeling out in the ocean over the reef.  Everyone assured me that it was safe, but a mom still has to worry sometimes.  

It was amazing and I had no need to worry.  It was still "stinger season", so the kids and I wore stinger suits.  They were full body wet suits that even had a hood.  The kids had a blast snorkeling off the platform.  They wore life jackets and they could also use noodles to help hold them up and feel comfortable.  The reef comes up so close to the top of the water in the roped off area that you don't have too look down very far.  In some spots, I even had to be careful that I didn't hit the reef with my fins when swimming over it.  Sean and Terry chose to go out further on one of the guided tours.  The kids and I stayed in the roped off area and then we went out with Margi for a ride on a glass bottom boat.  The seas were very calm on the day we went out and none of us had issues with motion sickness.  The 5 hours flew by and it was time to head back into shore before we knew it.  It was an experience of a lifetime.

Carter on the boat going out to the reef

Carter later went outside with Papa

This is Marine World.  It is a platform that stays out at the reef and the catamaran docks up to it.

Carter ready to snorkel

Almost ready to head out!

Carter with his fogged up goggles.  He wouldn't let us spit in them to get rid of the fogginess.

Aubrey and Papa; she used the noodle part of the time while she was snorkeling.

Aubrey and Mom

Zebra damselfish

Closeup of a jellyfish

Diagonal banded sweetlips fish

Sean taking a self-portrait

Nemo is peeking out!!

It was amazing to see all the different types of coral. 

This is a giant clam.  He is currently closed.  He has the turquoise scalloped "lips".  The bright color is actually algae that lives on the clam.  While we were taking the glass bottom boat ride, we saw the clam open and then quickly closing on some prey.

This is a photo of a parrotfish.  The parrotfish is so interesting as it starts out a dull red, brown, or gray color and female.  As they age they become male and turn a bright color.  When they are older and more brightly colored, they are in the "terminal phase".

Another parrotfish amongst the coral

This is some type of angelfish, but not sure of the exact species

Sean with Wally.  He is a maori wrasse.  The tour guides compare his personality to that of a dog.  He swam around the reef with the tourists all day.  You could pet him and he didn't mind at all.  

Wally coming up by the platform (to the area where you get your fins on and such before going out to snorkel).  The resident marine biologist fed the fish and talked about the species for a short presentation after lunch.    

Carter hanging out on the platform waiting for his turn to pet Wally

Wally swimming around the reef

Landscape shot while coming back into shore

This was just a small representation of all the marine life we saw while snorkeling.  All you had to do was stick your head down in the water and you could be mesmerized for hours on end.  It was an experience that cannot be replicated by visiting an aquarium.  It was mind-blowing to actually be swimming with all those fish and there was no way predict what you might see next.    

Friday was our last full day in Cairns.  We spent the day lounging.  We did walk the 15 minutes to go to "The Lagoon" in Cairns for a little while in the morning, but other than this, we just stayed around the apartment.  It was a nice lazy day to bring our holiday to a close.

We had a little time to still enjoy Cairns on Saturday morning before we had to go to the airport.  Sean and his parents decided to drive our rental car up to the village of Kuranda to see the sights again.  The kids and I stayed down in Cairns to shop the local markets for souvenirs.  Then, it was time to fly back.  The weather had been so nice and tropical in Cairns and we knew it was a rainy, cold day in Sydney.  Luckily, we missed most of the grey weather in Sydney since our flight didn't get back in until around 6:00 pm.  Sean managed to capture a few pictures from the airplane window both leaving Cairns and arriving back into Sydney.  For a commercial flight, he got some pretty nice photos. 

Photos of the Great Barrier Reef when leaving Cairns

Sydney's north shore

Southern portion of the harbour

Southern aspect of Sydney CBD

It is always a challenge for me to live in the moment.  I am often worrying about the next step or the next thing that needs to be done, especially when I am with the kids.  But, then I write these posts and take a little time to look at everything we have done.  I am often struck with how blessed we are to have these opportunities.  We always tell the kids how lucky they are to have these experiences.  I hope they can look at these photos when they are a little older and gain a deeper understanding of that.

Cool moon photo that Sean captured in Cairns