Monday 11 May, 7pm local time. At a deli/convenient store/make-shift internet cafe in the pretty little town of Townsville. Unfortunately, the usb ports are not working so I can't post any pics just yet...

First and foremost, HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY to all the mama's, especially my very own!!! This blog is for you, mama bear...

We would have liked to update you sooner, but internet cafe's are a rarity in the land of Oz's small towns. What complicates matters further is that shops/stores/cafes close nice and early at around 5pm (with the exception of Thursday nights for some reason? If you want to get something done, Thursday is your day!). In any case, I better start writing because I only have an hour, and so much to say!

Brisbane, 2-4 May

We had a blast in the quaint city of Brisbane. Highlights were the guided tour of the Brisbane City Botanic Gardens (learned "heaps" about grass, trees, flowers, and sugar cane); Celebrated Buddha's birthday by the South Bank River (we ate so many fried dumplings and spring rolls, and washed it down with yummy bubble tea); Visited the Gallery of Modern Art (saw Aborigine art as well as "The China Project" exhibition); Strolled through the lively and happening Queen Street, which is full of shops and restaurants.

Hervey Bay & Fraser Island, 4-6 May

After driving 3.5 hours north, we arrived at Hervey Bay. There isn't a whole lot to do there except to visit Fraser Island, which is the largest sand island in the world, and is also world heritage listed. We booked a 2 day/ 1 night tour, and off we went exploring with 32 other "holidaymakers" (as our Bob Marley-like tour guide, Warren, liked to call us) on a 52 seater 4 WD bus. We had a blast cruising down 75 mile beach (in the bus!) trying to avoid the high tide, and random rocks/bolders along the way; Visited beautiful, blue Lake Mackenzie, and had a chance to polish my jewellery with the fine white sand (99% silica); Took a plane ride over the island, which was just stunning!; Trekked through Wanggoolba Creek rainforest reserve (and did my best to avoid the damn leaches!); Climbed to the top of Indian Head lookout point (and did our best not to get blown away by the strong winds); Walked up stream, and then down stream through crystyal clear Eli Creek (water reached our waist at some points); Spotted the native dog/wolf, the "dingo", which is quite aggressive (they're known to attact anything at eye level i.e. children... there are warning signs throughout the island, and yet children still roam free!).

Airlie Beach, Whitsunday Islands & Great Barrier Reef, 6-10 May

The 6th of May was as uneventful as it gets... we spent a whopping 12 hours driving!!! Of those 12, I'm very proud to share that I drove 3 hours, and managed to stay on the "wrong" side (or left hand side) of the road the entire time! Once we settled in at Airlie Beach we booked two more tours.

The first was out to the Whitsunday Islands (including Whitehaven Beach) on a lilac coloured catamaran called "Camira". It did not stop raining for a minute so it's difficult to say that we've really, and truly experienced Whitehaven's beauty. Thankfully, we met the best people EVER! Everyone aboard was so friendly and fun we ended up having a blast swimming in the rain in our wet suits (avoiding jelly fish, and stingers), playing every card game under the sun (I mean rain!), and taking some great pics on the net/trampoline thingy at the front of the boat ;-)

The second trip was out to the Great Barrier Reef abroad the Seaflight cruise ship. We both did scuba diving for the first time! Apparently you're meant to take a 4 day course in order to become certified, but we had a 15 minute crash course on the basics (how to pop our ears, breathe calmly, removed water from our mask, and a bunch of hand signals), and then we were off for a 45 minute dive, hand in hand with our instructor. We saw so many incredible sea creatures, fish and coral... we even took our picture with "Walle" a huge fish (Maori Wrasse) the size of a person!

Townsville & Magnetic Island, 10-11 May

Today we spent the day on Magnetic Island (20 minutes off the shore of Townsville). We visited "Bungalow Bay Koala Village", and you guessed it, saw koalas!!! We also saw, and held, a crocodile, lizzards, snake, parrot/bird (we actually french kissed the parrot with the help of sunflower seeds!), wallaby (who tried to eat my pajmina!), and butterflys! Afterwards, we rented bikes and wandered about the island discovering 2 koalas in the wild on our own!

As far as tomorrow goes, we're heading to Cairns, and spending the last few days there (or thereabouts)...

Lots of love,
Jennifer & Daniel x