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| This adorable Kookaburra posed for me in the yard while sitting on the fence next to the rain gauge. These birds are much larger than appears in this photo. |
No grass grows under our feet here in Australia. It seems that we’re out exploring every few days, more than we’ve done in other countries.
There’s so much to see here compared to many of the remote areas we’ve lived around the world. We’ve always stated here that sightseeing on occasion was befitting our lifestyle, but not doing so quite as often as we’ve done so in Australia.
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| After a while she/he relocated to the roof, looking down for a possible morsel of food. They are known to snatch food off of plates when cooking on the “barbie.” More on Kookaburras will be coming in a few days with our wildlife posts. |
Who goes sightseeing, several times a week in their everyday life? And part of our lives is simply the “every day” not necessarily filled with typical tourist activities. However, we’ve found plenty to see several times a week, sharing it here with our readers.
While in Australia we’ve made a choice to avoid spending money on tourist attractions when possible when we’ve been busy pre-paying for vacation rentals and cruises as much as two years in advance. Tom is on one of his cruise booking frenzies and I don’t moderate what he chooses for us.
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| Growing like crazy in the yard are these common Yellow Allamanda. |
All I do is document the booked cruises in our master excel spreadsheet in a manner in which my brain is able to decipher dates and dollars. It’s from these calculations that we determine how much we can spend on “extras.” At the moment, it’s limited.
We’ve yet to dine out when groceries have been very affordable. If we can dine at home for US $30, AUD $40.28 a day as opposed to spending US $60, AUD $80.56, in a restaurant, it’s a no-brainer, especially when much of the food in restaurants these days have few items I can order.
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| Bottlebrush blooming in the yard. |
We’ve been able to find a wide array of activities we can do without cost other than for gas to and fro. Also, writing stories and posting photos for a variety of tourist attractions in many countries with our vast and growing worldwide readership, we find our entrance is often hosted by the venue’s management, as in the case for any “journalist.”
As was the case yesterday, when we were provided an extraordinary experience at the Cairns Tropical Zoo. Over the next few days, we’ll be preparing the story and hundreds of photos to present in a two-day story of our appreciated and educational tour, meeting many interesting and endearing Australian animals, we’ve never seen in our travels.
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| We drove up the mountain behind the market to Kuranda. When we began the steep and winding trek it was sunny. By the time we arrived at the first overlook, it was cloudy and rain began to fall. We turned back with a plan to return to see the village at the top on a sunny day. |
Hold tight, dear readers. In the next week, our two posts about the zoo will be online with many details and some photos that make me swoon, recalling “meeting” the loved and well-cared-for animals in this magical place.
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| We could imagine how beautiful this expansive view will be when we return on a sunny day. |
In the interim, we continue to drive to more and more special locations searching for the scene that swoops in and captures our hearts and well as our camera.
Today, with much encouragement from responses from many readers, I have a medical “check-up” at the local doctor clinic. Feeling well, I don’t know what to “complain about” but a check and blood tests are in order.
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| The mountain and ocean view reminds us of Kauai, Hawaii. |
When my appointment and tests results are completed, we’ll schedule Tom’s similar appointment and then we’ll be done, except for the soon to be booked dentist appointments which we’ll schedule shortly before departing Trinity Beach in two months. Then, we can be off to Fiji, where medical care will be limited and perhaps uncertain.
This afternoon after the doctor’s appointment I’ll get back to work on the zoo stories and choosing our favorite of the many photos.
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| The sections of land always create such an interesting view both from the air and overlook at higher elevations. |
Yesterday, we had a tremendous response from our old friends in Kauai and our readers in regard to the story of the Laysan Albatross chicks fledging and Bob Waid’s fabulous photos. Thank you for sharing that meaningful event with us.
Have a wonderful day!
Photo from one year ago today, July 8, 2014:
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| One year ago today, we booked and posted the cruise information for Royal Caribbean’s Explorer of the Seas for next April with its itinerary mostly traveling part of the perimeter of Australia and New Zealand. Unfortunately, recently the cruise line canceled the entire cruise when the ship had been reserved for a private event. We found a replacement cruise and our deposit was transferred over. With Australia as huge as the US, cruising is the best way to see as much as possible. Please click this link for details. |