Hey everyone, Firstly I'd like to apologise for the time it has taken us to update our journal. Australia is soooo expensive and so we have found it difficult to update photos without it breaking the piggy bank. Exuses, exuses I know. Anyways I thought I'd just give you a quick synopsis of our travels in Queensland so far. We flew from Singapore to Cairns at the start of August and slept for pretty much 2 days. After venturing out of the Hostel we started to explore the small city. It is very compact and easy to get around and there is a lovely little lagoon (public swimming pool) looking onto the marina which is ideal for sleeping the day away and day dreaming about owning one of the luxury yahts in the marina. After a few days of relaxing in Cairns and cooking our own food and washing our own clothes, which was such a novelty after not being able to do these things in S.E Asia ("what!" I can hear you say), we travelled up to Port Douglas. PD is a lovely boutique town where all the rich and famous hang out. Apparently just recently Keanu Reeves was staying in one of the big resorts there which costs around $4000 per night. The beach in Port Douglas is stunning with pure white sands and crystal blue waters but the water is so cold, so J and I opted for hiring a bike and cycling along the beach instead of going for a dip. The scenery is lovely it is the only place in the world where the rainforest meets the beach, it is as if the forest is trying to crawl out into the sea. One of the first differences that really hits you in Australia is the warning signs everywhere which state "WARNING DO NOT GO IN THE WATER OR RIVERS AS THERE ARE CROCODILES!" there are also bottles of vinegar beside every entrance to the beaches intended for use on jelly fish stings and these bottles look well used. I once heard someone say that in Australia there are all these lovely beaches and rivers but nobody is on them or swimming because of the above reason. After hearing a lot about these creatures we decided we wanted to investigate them further and so headed up to Cape Tribulation which is one of the worlds oldest Rainforests and is home to the Daintree River which is home sweet home to many crocs. James was in heaven as all the accommodation was situated in the rainforest so all the little mammals would come out at night and nosey about beside the dorms. We were advantly told in every hostel not to store any food in our room as apparently there is a little furry mammal called a mesomy which will chew threw anything to get at it. I didnt say anything but I thought that this little creature might be distantly related to James considering he behaves like that whenever chocolate is around. We actually heard the little mesomy one night and couldnt stop laughing as it sounded like the creature out of the film Ice Age called "Scratch" he just sniffed and then scuttled and then scraped at the door as if to stay "please let me in I know there is food in there". We also managed to squeeze in a river boat cruise and saw some big crocs some even reaching to over 5m. Apparently they live in the shallowest and murkiest waters so you are not even safe washing your hands at the banks of rivers. An author called Bill Bryson tells a story about a group of people at christmas who decided to go for a festive dip in the Daintree River now they all jumped in but one an older woman who decided it would be safer to not get wet. As all these people were splashing about in this croc infested waters this woman innocently bent down to wash her hands in the shallow water at the bank and "bang" she was taken by a croc and never seen again. Now I dont know about you but this really sent shivers down my spine. While in Cape Tribulation we also saw another dangerous creature a bird this time called a Cassowary. It resembles an emu and a large turkey but I think it looks like a large raptor with a huge big claw. We were told to keep well away as in the mating season they have been known to jump at people and can tear there stomachs open with their huge claw. Apart from all the wildlife in Australia that can kill you spiders, plants, jellyfish, crocs, sharks and fish it is really a very picturesque place honest! I apologise if this entry has been more like a David Attenbourgh exert the towns were lovely I just wish we had the time to visit more of them but everywhere is so spaced out. I cannot believe the time it takes to get anywhere. Bye for now. Love J and J xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx