Brisbane:
We took a boat ride from the Brisbane harbor down the river
to the Koala sanctuary. Here I got to hold a Koala named Barnacle. Aussie law
says that, Koalas can only be held for 30 minutes each day, and they get the
fourth day off, pretty easy life I’d say. The sanctuary also had kangaroos
running around to feed. Other native animals lived here too and I made sure to
take a few photos (edits to come).
We toured the Parkland Gardens and also City Hall. And of
course walked through some art galleries.
The past semester I have been cooking about 95% of the meals
that I eat, so needless to say, when my grandparents came to retrieve me, I ate
like a king! Eating at great places perched on the rivers edge, and indulging
in many seafood courses.
Airlie:
We flew up to Airlie Beach for a few nights in the hope that
I could dive the Great Barrier Reef. Of course nothing goes as planned and the
dive company cancelled on me twice in a row and all the other dive shops in
Airlie were full booked. Luckily we were hooked up with a company 2 ½ hours
north to Ayr. Woke up at 4:30 and drove the Yolangala dive shop. The S.S.
Yolangala was a Steam Ship that sank in 1903 and killed everyone on it. The
ship was 109 meters long and sat at the bottom of the ocean for 50 years before
it was discovered.
The ship lies in 30 meters of water and is a safe haven for
many species of fish. Pulling myself down the line to descend, I saw an Eagle
Ray right away. Other notable sightings included a couple of Sea Turtles,
Barracuda, and school of 12-15 Eagle
Rays. There were the typical reef fish down there as well, but these ones
looked like they were on steroids. Tropical fish bigger than anything I have
ever seen before, and vast amounts of them.
We also toured the small towns and local beaches around
Airlie. Though it was stinger season, we found an enclosed spot to swim and was
quite surprised on how warm the water was.
Currently writing this from the Sydney airport on the way to
Tasmania, where we will spend 5 days on the island.
Cheers
Ryan
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