Cairns

First, I would like to apologize for taking so long to post these pictures! Second, I just got back from the most incredible weekend in Cairns! If you aren't familiar with Cairns it is located in the north of Australia in Queensland. It is around a 3 hour flight north of Sydney and it is home to the Great Barrier Reef and the Daintree Rainforest! We stayed in a lovely (note the sarcasm) hostel called Gilligan's that was near to the center of the city and other hostels and clubs.

The first day of our trip was snorkeling and scuba diving on the reef. They wouldn't let me scuba because I have such terrible sinuses, but I was able to snorkel! Unfortunately, the day we went it was very rough and all the sediment was swirling around so it was difficult to see but it was still pretty cool just to see the massive size of the reef.

The Reef! 

Cairns

A rainbow from the stern of the boat on our way back from snorkeling 

The second day of the trip was a tour through the Daintree Rainforest. We went on a few walks through the rainforest and we went on a crocodile spotting cruise down the Daintree River. We also went for a picnic lunch at the beach where we saw beautiful mangroves and hermit crabs. Here is the scariest thing about crocodiles in Australia: THEY LIVE IN SALTWATER AND FRESHWATER! This means that not only can you not swim in the rivers but you also can't swim at many of the beaches in the area!

The rainforest! 

This is what happens when a climbing fig completely cuts off the oxygen supply of the tree it is climbing up. 

A portion of exposed reef in the Daintree forest. 

Me in the mangroves at the beach in the Daintree forest

(Don't worry, there weren't any crocs here!)

A giant crocodile on the Daintree River! 

The last day of the trip was completely adrenaline filled consisting of skydiving and bungy jumping. I just have to get it out of the way and say that I HATED bungy jumping and would never ever recommend it to anyone. BUT, because I know you all want to see it, here is a video:

I did a tandem jump because I knew I would be too scared to go alone. My friend Caitlin is the other person in the video and she is visibly way more into the jump than I am.... big shock there! 

Here is an actual bungy cord used at the site in Cairns where I jumped! 

Ok, now that that's out of the way, let's talk about skydiving! AMAZING! Definitely the coolest thing I have ever done! This will sound crazy but it isn't scary at all and it actually seems very natural and more like floating than falling.

The first shot out of the airplane!

My instructor Rob

I am headed back to the states soon but I will try to do one final post before I leave! 

Port Stephens Trip

This weekend we went on a lovely getaway to Port Stephens. Port Stephens isn't actually the official name, it is Nelson's Bay and Anna Bay, but it is popularly known as such in Australia. We arrived late on Friday night and woke up early Saturday morning to feed sharks and giant sting rays! The sharks were mostly under 3 feet but a few of the nurse and zebra sharks were almost 10 feet long! The giant ray was essentially a giant circle with a diameter of around 7 feet.... in other words, it was HUGE! We all climbed into the tanks until we were waist-deep and used wooden sticks to feed them so they wouldn't bite our fingers off.

Giant Sting Ray

3ft long sharks or smaller

Nurse Sharks (~10 ft)

Super duper excited about feeding the zebra shark!!!

We went for a VERY steep hike up to a lookout point in Nelson's Bay and had amazing views of the beaches below. We also went on a whale watching cruise and while I wasn't quick enough to snap a picture of the whales, I did get a few pictures of the beautiful scenery from the boat. 

Nelson's Bay

After a long day of whale watching and hiking we relaxed by taking a tour of Murray's Brewery and the Skinny Dip vineyard. We went for a wine and beer tasting at the end and stuffed ourselves silly with pizza. The label for the beer is pictured below:

Lots of beer!

Skinny Dip Vineyard

The second day of our trip was filled with duneboarding and  camel riding! Duneboarding is a little bit like snowboarding but on sand. Also, when the hill is really high you have to sit on the board instead of stand up.

The beach next to where we duneboarded and rode camels.

Here they are folks...the camels! Camels are without question one of the grossest species on the planet. They have nasty teeth that they use to chew their cud over and over and over. Their teeth squeak and they tend to spit. They also make very disturbing noises and have lots of gas. Overall: I do not like camels...BUT I loved riding them! 

Here I am! 

The last portion of our trip was a quick game of costume bowling. Our team was the riot police but we stole the mustaches from the Mexican team because we didn't feel like real cops without a little bit of facial hair. 

Surfing

Welcome to spectacular Bondi Beach in the north end of greater Sydney! A few weekends ago we decided to talk the historic walk from Bronte Beach to Bondi and we were so inspired by it that we decided to go back and take a surf lesson. We were very lucky to schedule our lesson for one of the few days that is wasn't raining and that it was actually sunny and warm. Even the water was warm! Take a look at these super cool wetsuits we wore!

These are four of the seven SMU girls on the trip!

 Here are a few pictures from the walk from Bronte to Bondi:

Bronte Beach

The walk...

more...

more...

This is the pool at the Iceberg Club just before Bondi. The club trains lifeguards year-round in this pool where waves crash over the side and fill the pool with salt water and create a rough current. In addition to the current, the lifeguards need to train for the extreme cold temperatures in the Pacific during the winter months. The name "Iceberg Club" comes from the fact that they fill the pool with ice if it gets warm so that it is always 2 degrees colder than the water. This helps prevent shock when the lifeguards jump into the cold waters to rescue swimmers. We are hoping to find some time near the end of our trip to head back to the club and have a swim. Here is a video of the pool:

Bondi Beach! 

This is where our walk ended and where we learned to surf!

Bridge Climb

Yesterday, despite my fear of heights, I climbed the 439 feet to the top of the Sydney Harbor Bridge! From the very top of the bridge it is around the height of a 40 story building and, amazingly, it was built by hand during the great depression. I tried to talk my friends into going with me but I guess I was the only one crazy enough to go. It is so much colder and windier at the top than at sea level that despite the hot and sunny day below we had to take beanies, gloves, and fleeces with us to the top. We also were required to wear some pretty "cute" jumpsuits and harnesses on the climb to keep us warm and prevent us from falling off! We got all hooked up on a cable system attached to our harness and somehow we actually made it to the top!

This shot was taken about halfway up the bridge. The world-famous Sydney Opera House is behind me and Sydney Harbor lies below. I will be headed to the opera next week to see Terminus.

Also about halfway up the bridge with a view of the city behind me

Sydney Harbor Bridge

MISSION ACCOMPLISHED!

FINALLY, I HAVE SEEN THE PYGMY HIPPO IN PERSON!!!!!!
That's right folks, the pygmy hippo (or three of them actually) has been seen with my very own eyes! I am now more obsessed than ever!!!! Take a look at this:

The differences between pygmy and common hippos:

The similarities between pygmy and common hippos:

(That's right, it says they mark their territory by spraying dung with their tails. Ewwww!)

I took a short little video of the mom and baby hippos so that you can all experience the magic!!!! ENJOY!

The excitement is easy to see....it was AWESOME!

The Pygmy Hippos live at the Taronga Zoo, just a short ferry ride from downtown Sydney. The beach surrounding the zoo is a beautiful white sand beach with green-blue waters and it is isolated in a small bay. There is a skyway that takes you up the hill to the zoo and as you ascend you float over elephants and gorillas in their enclosures. The view from the top of the Taronga zoo is a beautiful panorama of downtown sydney and the opera house. 

This is a mother and daughter pair. The daughter is the small pygmy hippo pictured previously on my blog and pictured below (I have to admit that these two were taken awhile ago so she was much bigger when I saw her this weekend). 

I loved the pygmy hippos so much that I purchased multiple pygmy hippo post cards and even spent money on a little pygmy hippo stuffed animal!

My new little buddy!!!

Taronga Zoo postcard

Take a look at my facebook to see even more photos of all the animals from the zoo!