We flew into the hot and humid Hong Kong yesterday and here we would spend one night on Lantau Island before flying out to Vancouver on the 7th. In British Columbia we then spent six days before we would fly back home to Toronto on the 13th. With the stopover we decided to leave two days for Vancouver, and four days for driving around the nearby Coastal Mountains. We rented a car and did some mountain hiking and overnight camping at Nairn Falls, Cheakamus Lake (my favourite), and Garibaldi Lake.

Although seeing the Canadian forest and nature was a great way of coming back and reuniting with our country, Air Canada on the other hand greeted us rather coldly and deserves a mention for their greedy way of taking money from us at every possible corner. Let me first start that although we flew often with other airlines on this trip, it was only our last connecting flight from Vancouver to Toronto with Air Canada that we were charged extra for our luggage. Doing a long intercontinental flight and this being a connecting flight we should have been ok with our two luggages, but Air Canada thought otherwise. Secondly, upon entering the aircraft the inside temperature was hot and as the sweat was forming up, thoughts came running down if perhaps they were trying to save a couple of cents on their air conditioning bill? Thirdly, everything on the flight from drinks to food to blankets was being charged for (AC was set to max once we took off). Fourthly, one of my last luggage was not put on the flight and arrived late the next day. Way to go you cheap bastards!!! Ranting aside, it was good to land in Toronto to see some friendly faces. :)

The world’s largest sand island – Fraser Island. We did a day tour of the island with a company that organized everything. I think the only minus this tour and tours in general is that you cannot decide how long you want to be in one spot, it is all decided for you. Meaning at times you feel a bit rushed. There was lots to see, so maybe it was good someone was keeping us on the move. The waters are crystal clear in the lakes and streams. They are also cold since it is winter time. Some people made a plunge into Lake McKenzie, even though it was only maybe 12’C. I decided to admire the blues of the water and the whites of the sand. Lunch was included, buffet style with salads, some meats and a selection of warm dishes. Then the 4 wheel drive bus drove along the beach. It made stops by a ship wreck, steam that you could walk along and further down colourful sands. Indeed this is paradise (that too many people know about).

Last night we camped out near this beach. In the morning we walked over for the sunrise, and for the remainder of the day we pretty much drove over to Hervey Bay. From there we would see Fraser Island the next day.

Last night we drove into this place which is known for its platypuses. Yup … found them (and some turtles) while doing a rain forest river walk. Woohoo.

Today we went out to see the Hardy Reef and the Whitsunday Islands (named by Captain Cook during Easter time – see the link) with a tour operator called FantaSea.� First we got bused from Airlie Beach to Shute Harbour.� � � The islands reminded me of northern Ontario landscape.� When I looked up at the hills on the islands I saw forests that looked like they were made up of deciduous trees and some pines, with rocks closer to shore.� The difference here is that occasionally there are palms and some islands hold beautiful beaches of fine white sands.

The cruise boat took us to a platform AHH reef called Reefworld that floats in the ocean right by Hardy Reef. We got our gear ready for snorkeling and put on body suits for the water was rather on the cold side.� Maybe for whales it is warmer, they migrate to have their young this time of year and we actually spotted some as they were swimming farther out by the boat.� Back to the reef…it was magnificent.� I got so occupied looking at the various crevices, corals and fish I did not notice how cold I got, being in the water for about an hour.� I came out with blue lips and my body was shacking for a while after.� Then again, when will I come back to the reef?� � A reef of many reefs that stretches 2500km (you can see it from space!).� The corals have colours of blue, yellow, purple, white, the fish are also very colourful and have many patterns on their bodies. � This tour also included: lunch, complimentary tea and cakes. There was also a ride in a semi-submerged submarine and a viewing window where a 3 meter groper swam about.� For the price we paid (which seemed pricy at first), it was all worth it for this whole day excursion.

We arrived in Charters Towers in the morning and stopped over for breakfast with Ewa’s acquaintances (Aneta & Luke), and then did some more driving to Airlie Beach where we would see the reef the next day.

We left Kakadu and drove a bit to Katherine Gorge where we rented a double kayak. It took us a while to get better paddling coordination, but eventually we figured it out. Afterwards we kept an eye out for fresh water crocs (theoretically harmless unless provoked) and plunged in to the gorge for a quick dip. Woohoo.

Last night we drove closer to Cooinda in Kakadu, where we booked an early morning Yellow Water boat cruise and setup camp. Today we woke up super early and where in the boat by 6:45am – a great experience. The bird and croc watching tour lasted two hours, with very friendly and informative guides – highly recommended.

Today: hiking through the park; sweating; drinking lots of water; watching aboriginal rock art; enjoying the wetlands and billabongs; taking pictures (too many?) of the rich wild life.

Kakadu today has really drawn a line of contrast with the red center outback we were stuck in a week ago. Whereas a week ago the ground was red, dry, and with very little and limited visible life, today on the other hand we’re seeing lots of greenery, water and tons of moving things all over the place.

Today we made it to Kakadu National Park – a huge area in the tropical top end of Australia filled with tons of wildlife such as beautiful wetland birds, annoying humid loving mosquitoes, some crocodiles, a number of sporadic natural forest fires, and a spider the size of a fist sitting on a nearby toilet door (we decided to stay clear and pee in the grass that night).

We setup our tent in a park camping spot that had very limited amenities – some grass, some sandy spots, a parking lot, the toilet with that huge spider, a river filled with crocs 100 meters away and … actually that’s it. On these rewarding grounds there was one more couple sleeping in a van that night. As an aside, this couple was a cool Czech duo we would coincidentally bump into over and over the next few days – a quite funny experience. Anyhow, I have to admit that fearless Ewa slept like a solid slab of concrete this night. I on the other hand would have an irrational fear haunting me. Seeing an overabundance of crocodile warning signs during the day, and the 100 meter proximity of our tent to a river, I imagined that one of those oversized reptiles would crawl over when we were sleeping and taste our delicious meat. Of course that was very irrational as crocs don’t come out of the river to hunt in the dry grass. Nevertheless I woke up around 20 times that night with every crack of a nearby twig or a fallen leaf, and a dosage of adrenaline to keep my heart pounding. Soon enough, the sun rose and all was well again.