Wow! Cairns is such a cool and different place from everywhere we have been so far in Australia. It really feels like we are on another continent…
Yesterday we planned on taking the 10:45 train to the Sydney domestic airport terminal, but ended up missing it by a few minutes. To take the train into Sydney to the airport costs an extra $9.00 on top of the cost to go into the city. When we did eventually get to the airport, check in and security was so quick. Security was more lenient, I think, because we were only traveling domestically. We didn’t have to remove our shoes or throw our any drinks.
We flew on Virgin Blue on a Boeing 737. Each seat had a tv in the back of the headrest so we could track the plane across Australia, and all the seats were leather. The flight was almost 3 hours. We chatted with the man sitting next to us- he is from Cairns, and told us that this season has been VERY wet. It has rained every day since October in the area, and tropical showers keep coming from Asia. We were a little worried about this... When we began the descent we were high in layers of clouds, but over the ocean, and we could see the coastline perfectly. My first sight of Cairns and the Queensland coast was really special- the area is REALLY undeveloped, and it looks just like I would imagine Hawaii would. The rainforest mountains begin right at the coast, and they are wild and green and tropical looking. There are areas where absolutely nothing has been built, and it seriously looks like a movie. When we landed at the airport, the island mystique felt even more real. Small planes were parked next to hangers all over the airport, and behind them the green mountains towered into the clouds.
We quickly got our bags and called our hostel for pick up. A hostel bus came and got us and took us abot 10 minutes into town to Calypso Inn, where we are staying. This is my first hostel experience, so I was excited to be greeted by friendly people at check-in. The hostel is situated around a big pool in the center of the complex. There is a bar on one end, with a pool table and dance floor, and then also bathrooms all around the complex for everyone to share. There is also a big kitchen for everyone to share. Everything is very open, so when sitting outside near the pool you can see who is in the kitchen, talk to people at the bar, and see what’s going on at the check in desk. Our room is on the other side of the bar area- it has 3 bunk beds (I got a bottom bunk) so it is just us in the room, tile floors, and air conditioning. The bathrooms and showers are across the way; boys and girls bathrooms are separate, so the bathrooms are relatively clean.
For dinner we walked a block or two to Pizza Hut and each got a personal pizza for about $4 each. We were all worn out from traveling during the day, so we brought out pizzas back to our room and stayed around the hostel. We did meet some interesting people in the complex though- a guy from Ireland and another one from the UK. They have been in Australia for awhile, and offered us a lot of advice about traveling on a budget.
For our first night in a hostel, we all agreed that we slept pretty well (except for the creaky bunk beds), Today we had a free day before our tours started, and we weren’t really sure what we should do. We ended up walking to the lagoon in town, or the Esplanade downtown. The city built this huge pool in the center of town that is absolutely awesome because the citizens wanted a place to swim. No one can enter the water along the coastline in town because of stingers and estuarine crocodiles. The area is so cool- all these water play areas were built for children, and the pool was built to look like it disappears into the ocean (like an infinity pool). It also has sand and a ‘beach’ area where people can lay out like they are at the beach, and wade into the sandy water like being at the beach. It is such a nice pool it seems like it would be in Las Vegas, but it is really a public pool in the center of a city. I am so impressed by the lagoon, and can’t wait to go back on a free afternoon! We even found a huge coconut lying on the ground that we couldn’t leave; all afternoon we challenged one another to try and get it open. For lunch and in the afternoon we walked around the touristy areas. The souvenirs here seem to be cheaper than anywhere else we have been (ex. Uggs around $90). There was a market in the park next to the pool, so I bought a few things made by local artisans, including a necklace made of a spiral shell and the first t-shirt I have gotten in Australia. We had late lunch/dinner on special- a plate of fish and chips with drinks for $11.50! The fish was delicious, and the fries were delicious, and the cold, icey coke was delicious.
When we got back to the hostel around 5:00pm I got into the pool to relax for a while, and we all took showers. We are planning on hanging out at the hostel and then going into town to meet some locals and hang out with some other backpackers. We have a big, early day tomorrow sea kayaking to Fitzroy Island, so we aren’t planning on being out late.
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