Welcome to Cairns, northern Queensland, on the York Peninsula. A vastly different world from any place we have visited so far in this magnificent country.
This are the Tropics, folks, plain and simple. When we picked up our car, the Hertz attendant jokingly said "Welcome to Australia's Hellhole". We now know what he meant; the thermometer hit 108 degrees Fahrenheit (42 Centigrade); but unlike in Western Australia, where humidity is non-existent, here the dew point will leave you soaked in no time.
Call me crazy, but I love it here. We are surrounded by mountains of tropical rain-forests on three sides and the Coral Sea on the other. This is Australia's north-east, set on opposite corners from Perth, where we were just a few days ago.
Don't expect quality pictures. Days spent in-transit, flying between places, checking into your accommodations, take up much time and leave you little of it to explore. But we'll be here a while.
Cairns is the twelfth largest city in Australia, with a mere 142,000 people. It is a very attractive town, with much new construction in its sleepy historical downtown.
We are actually renting a lovely townhouse, not in Cairns, but in nearby Freshwater, near the Kuranda scenic railway station. It is a two-storied dwelling, immaculately kept. This is the view from our bedroom window.
When we arrived, the place was not yet ready, so we drove back into Cairns where Eric and Diane took refuge in the beautiful local Aquarium (and loved it). Why didn't I? Because while I was doing the paperwork for the car and retrieving our luggage, D and E had lunch at the airport. Since I was starving, I set out in search of a good place to eat, instead.
I chanced upon this incredible hole-in-the-wall, open-air Indonesian restaurant where I dined on a delightfully prepared grilled local fish. The place is highly rated on Trip Advisor, and I understand why.
In spite of the heat, I enjoyed my subsequent stroll along the waterfront and to the wharf,
stopping along the way in appreciation of the numerous shore birds,
and taking in the view from Hemingway's Brewery, where I gulped down a most refreshing lager.
Eventually, I picked up the rest of the family from the Aquarium, and we were able to check into the townhouse, where we all enjoyed a well-deserved air-conditioned rest.
I liked the Indonesian restaurant so much that we returned there for dinner. Everyone was equally impressed, and the very pleasant owners were very content of our appreciation.
When we took leave of the place, we strolled as a family along the shore. Darkness had already descended and we were surprised to see so many very large crows flying overhead; birds customarily do not fly at night. Upon closer look, we realized that these were not birds, but the most enormous bats we had ever seen. They are actually flying foxes and are endemic to this part of the world. It is a spectacle worthy of Ripley's Believe it or not. On account of the darkness I could not even attempt to take a photograph of these fast-moving creatures, so I took the liberty to download a photo from the computer; but I don't believe it renders it justice.
We are looking forward to the next few days in Queensland, Australia's second largest state, where one day you can venture into magnificent ancient rain-forests, and the next snorkel with over 2,000 species of fish in the Great Barrier Reef.
Hope you are still enjoying traveling Australia with us. Ciao for now.
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