This is a very brief note to let you all know that we are down here in Alice Springs, where it is sunnay, warm, and very dry. We seem to have the rooms at Toddy's sorted out, and will have an evening meal there with an Aboriginal didgeridoo player giving a concert this evening.
Everyone is fine and in good spirits. We are not weary of Australia yet!
--charlie
Wednesday, May 14, 2008
Monday, May 12, 2008
Kuranda
May 11
Cairns
Cloudy, then rainy and cooler.
Today was our day to head up to Kuranda via Sky Rail, and then pay a visit to Rainforest Station.
Sky Rail is an interesting enterprise. The system consists of a series of stanchions supporting a cable car system that has occupants glide over the rainforest, probably about 50 feet or so above the canopy. There are two stops along the way: one that lets out to a boardwalk permitting a short walk through the rain forest, the other with an education center and a second walk along the Barron River gorge, a major hydroelectric works. From this second stop, one can see the Kuranda Scenic Railway on the other side of the gorge as it brings its load of tourists to the top.
We do not have time for a walk through Kuranda itself, but our driver did drive us through for a quick look. Kuranda is very much a tourist village, with many craft shops alongside souvenir stores and eateries. There are a few interesting attractions: a butterfly garden, and sanctuaries for koalas and birds.
Our tour guide, David, is a native of the area, and told me a little bit about the history of Rainforest Station. It started off in the late 1800s as a coffee plantation, and one can still find coffee plants growing in the surrounding forest. During David's childhood in the 1970s, he remembers it as a citrus fruit orchard. The theme park started in the late 1980s, with the wildlife exhibits, the Army DUKW("Ducks") tours, and the restaurant. The Pamagirri Aboriginal Dance troupe was added in 1993, and the Dreamtime Tour in 1995.
We first took a tour of the wildlife park. Much of it repeats things that we have seen elsewhere. We then walked over to the Pamagirri Aboriginal Dance theatre for the noon show. The dancers have a very good sense of humor, and entertain the tourists very well. I was the butt of one joke; they do a snake dance in which they go into the audience, behaving like snakes, waiting to strike a victim. I was watching one of the dancer on the far side while, unknown to me -- and in full view of most of the audience behind me -- another dancer had positioned himself directly behind me and ready to strike. All the other dancers were a distraction; the surprise attack on me was the whole point, I guess. It was a very good laugh all around. The dance ended with some audience participation, and I am happy to report that two of our students got up right away to volunteer. The dance consisted of two steps and a pose, all of which look simple enough, though as the father of two dancers, I am very certain that what the Aboriginal dancers are doing is quite difficult to do well.
During the performance, the rains came. (We are in the wet tropics, and there's a reason it's called the rain forest.) Most of the areas for the tourists are under corrugated tin roofs for this reason. There have been times when we've visited Rainforest Station and it's been dry and sunny, but this day was not at all untypical. The rain continued as we we guided along the Dreamtime Walk, during which an Aboriginal guide shows us how to throw spears and boomerangs and how to play a didgeridoo. I did feel a little sorry for the guide, as he had to stand out in the rain during all of this. My boomerang throw was shameful, though my colleague and many of the students did quite well.
Lunch was a little disorganized; this is probably the weak link in the setup. In the past, our Aboriginal guide would lead us to our lunch spot, but not this time. So, when we arrived at the buffet area, no one told us what to do. Since there were many tour groups being seated or already eating, we felt a little at sea, though once I got a staff member's attention we got it all sorted out. Their buffet lunch is very good: many choices, all of it fresh and well-prepared. They feature a pumpkin soup that is particularly good.
The DUKW is a WWII vehicle brought over by the USA for use as an amphibious troop transport vehicle. The 'Duck' has six-wheels on the ground, all of which are driven (6WD). It also has a propeller, and so can scoot around in the water when need be. The DUKWs were just abandoned by the US after the war's end, and so many Aussies took them over and put them to use in various ways. Rainforest Station has six, I believe, and spare parts from many others. They have more or less the same appearance they had back in WWII, though they probably did not have the name 'Rainforest Station' stenciled on. They have all been converted to run on propane, too.
The rains returned for our Army Duck tour of the rainforest, but our driver passed around ponchos, so we were all fine. And seeing the rain forest while it's raining makes a point, too, as one can watch what the water does on its way down. The tour is a short one in terms of distance covered -- they run these Ducks in low gears and make a lot of stops. But it is informative; the guides always seem to be knowledgeable about the plants, and there is a lot to see. We were probably the only non-Asian tourists at Rainforest Station in the afternoon. Cairns has become a popular destination for large tour groups from Japan, China, and Korea. David estimates that about 75% of the tourist business he sees comes from those three countries. The rest are mostly Europeans, with a very few Canadians and even fewer Americans.
The students took their third quiz after we returned to the hotel; they did quite well, by and large. After that, we all got involved in our evening activities and got a good night's rest for tomorrow's tour of the Daintree.
Cairns
Cloudy, then rainy and cooler.
Today was our day to head up to Kuranda via Sky Rail, and then pay a visit to Rainforest Station.
Sky Rail is an interesting enterprise. The system consists of a series of stanchions supporting a cable car system that has occupants glide over the rainforest, probably about 50 feet or so above the canopy. There are two stops along the way: one that lets out to a boardwalk permitting a short walk through the rain forest, the other with an education center and a second walk along the Barron River gorge, a major hydroelectric works. From this second stop, one can see the Kuranda Scenic Railway on the other side of the gorge as it brings its load of tourists to the top.
We do not have time for a walk through Kuranda itself, but our driver did drive us through for a quick look. Kuranda is very much a tourist village, with many craft shops alongside souvenir stores and eateries. There are a few interesting attractions: a butterfly garden, and sanctuaries for koalas and birds.
Our tour guide, David, is a native of the area, and told me a little bit about the history of Rainforest Station. It started off in the late 1800s as a coffee plantation, and one can still find coffee plants growing in the surrounding forest. During David's childhood in the 1970s, he remembers it as a citrus fruit orchard. The theme park started in the late 1980s, with the wildlife exhibits, the Army DUKW("Ducks") tours, and the restaurant. The Pamagirri Aboriginal Dance troupe was added in 1993, and the Dreamtime Tour in 1995.
We first took a tour of the wildlife park. Much of it repeats things that we have seen elsewhere. We then walked over to the Pamagirri Aboriginal Dance theatre for the noon show. The dancers have a very good sense of humor, and entertain the tourists very well. I was the butt of one joke; they do a snake dance in which they go into the audience, behaving like snakes, waiting to strike a victim. I was watching one of the dancer on the far side while, unknown to me -- and in full view of most of the audience behind me -- another dancer had positioned himself directly behind me and ready to strike. All the other dancers were a distraction; the surprise attack on me was the whole point, I guess. It was a very good laugh all around. The dance ended with some audience participation, and I am happy to report that two of our students got up right away to volunteer. The dance consisted of two steps and a pose, all of which look simple enough, though as the father of two dancers, I am very certain that what the Aboriginal dancers are doing is quite difficult to do well.
During the performance, the rains came. (We are in the wet tropics, and there's a reason it's called the rain forest.) Most of the areas for the tourists are under corrugated tin roofs for this reason. There have been times when we've visited Rainforest Station and it's been dry and sunny, but this day was not at all untypical. The rain continued as we we guided along the Dreamtime Walk, during which an Aboriginal guide shows us how to throw spears and boomerangs and how to play a didgeridoo. I did feel a little sorry for the guide, as he had to stand out in the rain during all of this. My boomerang throw was shameful, though my colleague and many of the students did quite well.
Lunch was a little disorganized; this is probably the weak link in the setup. In the past, our Aboriginal guide would lead us to our lunch spot, but not this time. So, when we arrived at the buffet area, no one told us what to do. Since there were many tour groups being seated or already eating, we felt a little at sea, though once I got a staff member's attention we got it all sorted out. Their buffet lunch is very good: many choices, all of it fresh and well-prepared. They feature a pumpkin soup that is particularly good.
The DUKW is a WWII vehicle brought over by the USA for use as an amphibious troop transport vehicle. The 'Duck' has six-wheels on the ground, all of which are driven (6WD). It also has a propeller, and so can scoot around in the water when need be. The DUKWs were just abandoned by the US after the war's end, and so many Aussies took them over and put them to use in various ways. Rainforest Station has six, I believe, and spare parts from many others. They have more or less the same appearance they had back in WWII, though they probably did not have the name 'Rainforest Station' stenciled on. They have all been converted to run on propane, too.
The rains returned for our Army Duck tour of the rainforest, but our driver passed around ponchos, so we were all fine. And seeing the rain forest while it's raining makes a point, too, as one can watch what the water does on its way down. The tour is a short one in terms of distance covered -- they run these Ducks in low gears and make a lot of stops. But it is informative; the guides always seem to be knowledgeable about the plants, and there is a lot to see. We were probably the only non-Asian tourists at Rainforest Station in the afternoon. Cairns has become a popular destination for large tour groups from Japan, China, and Korea. David estimates that about 75% of the tourist business he sees comes from those three countries. The rest are mostly Europeans, with a very few Canadians and even fewer Americans.
The students took their third quiz after we returned to the hotel; they did quite well, by and large. After that, we all got involved in our evening activities and got a good night's rest for tomorrow's tour of the Daintree.
A Free Day
May 10
Cairns
Cloudy, then partly sunny. Warm.
I realized that I failed to post my May 7th journal entry. I'll post that before this one.
Today was a wash day for me, so I did not get away from the Queenslander until almost 11am. The washers and dryers here are only $2/load, but it seems that every dryer I encounter in Australia turns wet clothes into damp clothes. Once in awhile, I find one that works well.
There was not much new for me today: taking a few more photos, getting some developed, a few other errands. My underwater photos are only OK; you can see the better ones at Flickr. They are not as blue-green as the ones I've had in the past -- they're just grainy. The camera has a 28mm wide-angle lens, with fixed aperture of f/8 and 1/100 sec shutter speed. So the flash sort of does the work, although with preloaded 800 ISO film, there's plenty of light without. I think that it leads to an overexposed shot with some fuzziness. Preloading it with 800 ISO makes it the right thing for divers, as things will be darker farther down. Since I cannot dive, I'm snorkeling up at the top where all the light is. Next year, I'll try it with 200 ISO film and see if things look a little better.
The purpose of the flash in this case is less about making the objects brighter, and more about restoring some color balance. The water absorbs the reddish end of the spectrum, hence the blue-green tinge to a lot of underwater photos. I suppose a red fliter might do the trick as well. Since the underwater camera is really a regular camera in an underwater housing, there\'s no reason I couldn't just fit a bit of red filter material in front of the lens. Maybe I'll try both next year.
I did manage to get what I hope,is a nice photo of a willie wagtail, a small perching bird with clack feathers and a white underside. The pronounced tail wags back and forth along with the bird's head as it moves about while foraging. Some years ago, an Aborigine told me that for his people, willie wagtail is the watcher for the departed elders, keeping an eye on the people and making sure that they follow the law.
I ran into a few students as I walked around today. They are having wonderful adventures: one group went horseback riding on the beach at Port Douglas, another group went whitewater rafting on the Barron River. The 13th is our last free day in Cairns, and several have told me tghat they are planning additional reef cruises and fishing tours for the day. I'm glad that they keepme in the loop. Not only does it help to know ehere folks are, but also as they learn more about the place4, so do I.
For example: the group of students who went horseback riding needed to take a trip of about an hour or so up to Port Douglas, and were faced with the problem of how to get there. The outfitg that they were riding with arranged for a coach transfer, done by a local man who makes his living shuttling tourists between the two cities. He was especially kind to the students when their tour ran late, making sure to wait fo0r them. The students got his business card and gave it to me -- so now I know tyhe name of a good coach driver who works the Cairns-Port Douglas run.
The only other task for the day was making the 3rd quiz, which the students take tomorrow. It has been a challenge to get these quizzes together this year, though I suppose that means that it will be much easier next year. For the current quiz, I could find no copier service open on Saturday anywhere in Cairns, until I walked pastv the library and realized that, of course, they would have one! So, that's done.
====
It is the morning of the 11th, and we've just had a power failure in the building. I seem to recall that this would happen from time to time here in Cairns. Since I'm on batteries on the handheld computer, it really does not affect me.
Today we will head up the mountain via Sky Rail to Kuranda, where we will visit Rainforest Station, a wildlife and cultural theme park.
Cairns
Cloudy, then partly sunny. Warm.
I realized that I failed to post my May 7th journal entry. I'll post that before this one.
Today was a wash day for me, so I did not get away from the Queenslander until almost 11am. The washers and dryers here are only $2/load, but it seems that every dryer I encounter in Australia turns wet clothes into damp clothes. Once in awhile, I find one that works well.
There was not much new for me today: taking a few more photos, getting some developed, a few other errands. My underwater photos are only OK; you can see the better ones at Flickr. They are not as blue-green as the ones I've had in the past -- they're just grainy. The camera has a 28mm wide-angle lens, with fixed aperture of f/8 and 1/100 sec shutter speed. So the flash sort of does the work, although with preloaded 800 ISO film, there's plenty of light without. I think that it leads to an overexposed shot with some fuzziness. Preloading it with 800 ISO makes it the right thing for divers, as things will be darker farther down. Since I cannot dive, I'm snorkeling up at the top where all the light is. Next year, I'll try it with 200 ISO film and see if things look a little better.
The purpose of the flash in this case is less about making the objects brighter, and more about restoring some color balance. The water absorbs the reddish end of the spectrum, hence the blue-green tinge to a lot of underwater photos. I suppose a red fliter might do the trick as well. Since the underwater camera is really a regular camera in an underwater housing, there\'s no reason I couldn't just fit a bit of red filter material in front of the lens. Maybe I'll try both next year.
I did manage to get what I hope,is a nice photo of a willie wagtail, a small perching bird with clack feathers and a white underside. The pronounced tail wags back and forth along with the bird's head as it moves about while foraging. Some years ago, an Aborigine told me that for his people, willie wagtail is the watcher for the departed elders, keeping an eye on the people and making sure that they follow the law.
I ran into a few students as I walked around today. They are having wonderful adventures: one group went horseback riding on the beach at Port Douglas, another group went whitewater rafting on the Barron River. The 13th is our last free day in Cairns, and several have told me tghat they are planning additional reef cruises and fishing tours for the day. I'm glad that they keepme in the loop. Not only does it help to know ehere folks are, but also as they learn more about the place4, so do I.
For example: the group of students who went horseback riding needed to take a trip of about an hour or so up to Port Douglas, and were faced with the problem of how to get there. The outfitg that they were riding with arranged for a coach transfer, done by a local man who makes his living shuttling tourists between the two cities. He was especially kind to the students when their tour ran late, making sure to wait fo0r them. The students got his business card and gave it to me -- so now I know tyhe name of a good coach driver who works the Cairns-Port Douglas run.
The only other task for the day was making the 3rd quiz, which the students take tomorrow. It has been a challenge to get these quizzes together this year, though I suppose that means that it will be much easier next year. For the current quiz, I could find no copier service open on Saturday anywhere in Cairns, until I walked pastv the library and realized that, of course, they would have one! So, that's done.
====
It is the morning of the 11th, and we've just had a power failure in the building. I seem to recall that this would happen from time to time here in Cairns. Since I'm on batteries on the handheld computer, it really does not affect me.
Today we will head up the mountain via Sky Rail to Kuranda, where we will visit Rainforest Station, a wildlife and cultural theme park.
The forgotten post!
May 7
Cairns
Sunny, pleasant
This is not in the correct order! Sorry about that; I never posted this one. What follows was written when we arrived in Cairns.
It is now the evening; we've been in Cairns a few hours. I have now once more had my very favorite meal in Australia: coral trout, blackened, at Barnacle Bill's on the Esplanade. It has become a bit of a joke on the course that I've planned the entire experience just so that I can get back to Cairns and eat here. I missed it last year, of course, as we did not go in 2007, so it's been two years. It is still a very good meal, cooked exactly right with a wonderful Cajun coating with jerk overtones. If ever you're in Cairns ...
The remainder of our trip north on the train was uneventful. We passed through field after field of crops; mostly sugar cane, but there are banana, pineapple, and pulpwood plantations, along with some citrus orchards. There are a number of sheep and cattle stations along the way, too, as well as open scrubland. I only saw a few kangaroos, but some of the students tell me they saw many.
It is typical to see kangaroos wherever one finds grazing animals, as the conditions favorable for the one are also good for the other. Add to that the fact that the kangaroo is a 'dawn and dusk' animal, just like our deer, and the right times and places for watching for 'skippy' are pretty easy to figure out. I get up very early while in Australia anyway, so I go to the buffet car or the club car and gaze out the window right around dawn just in case.
This far north, the main Bruce Highway has become just one lane in each direction, with rail stops blocking it in some towns. As we passed through Innisfail, one such town, I was struck by how well it has rebounded from the hammering it took from Tropical Cyclone Larry a few years ago. The cyclone had charged ashore with winds around 120 mph, ripping off roofs and flattening cane fields and banana plantations. The estimates at the time were that 80% of the crop was destroyed. Of course, they replanted right away, and the stuff grows very fast, so in 9 months time the fields were full once more.
The land is flat for several hundred kilometers along the rail route, punctuated here and there on the east by hills and small mountains that just rise out of the ground for no apparent reason. Off to the west lie the Great Dividing Range. As the train moves closer to Cairns these two converge, so that by the time the train moves north of Innisfail on the last couple of hours of the trip, the land has become rolling, with high hills on both sides.
Cairns is the place where at least three ecosystems meet: the mountainous tropical rainforest, the Atherton Tablelands, and the Great Barrier Reef. The Tablelands serve as one of the breadbaskets of Australia; there is a lot of cultivated land throughout. Together with the coastal plantations, this entire region sees huge agricultural activity. Runoff from these finds it way into coastal waters and eventually into the ocean, where it has an impact on the Reef. We will no doubt hear more about that tomorrow night at Reef Teach.
We actually arrived a little ahead of schedule. Our driver was waiting nevertheless, and we arrived at the Cairns Queenslander without any problems. All our rooms are on the first floor (you and I would call it the second floor) -- the students were a little grumpy about that, but we should get less patio noise higher up.
After getting settled in, we all met for a few minutes by the pool so that we could go over the lodging rules and the schedule for the next few days. It was pretty clear that the students were already thrilled with the place, and particularly interested in the patio BBQ. Some of the students left with my colleague and me for a guided walk down the Esplanade, while others took off for the nearby IGA for provisions for an evening meal.
After dinner, my colleague and I walked back, stopping to buy a few things for the next couple of days. And a note to my lovely wife: I am able to get back on my healthy diet for awhile.
Cairns
Sunny, pleasant
This is not in the correct order! Sorry about that; I never posted this one. What follows was written when we arrived in Cairns.
It is now the evening; we've been in Cairns a few hours. I have now once more had my very favorite meal in Australia: coral trout, blackened, at Barnacle Bill's on the Esplanade. It has become a bit of a joke on the course that I've planned the entire experience just so that I can get back to Cairns and eat here. I missed it last year, of course, as we did not go in 2007, so it's been two years. It is still a very good meal, cooked exactly right with a wonderful Cajun coating with jerk overtones. If ever you're in Cairns ...
The remainder of our trip north on the train was uneventful. We passed through field after field of crops; mostly sugar cane, but there are banana, pineapple, and pulpwood plantations, along with some citrus orchards. There are a number of sheep and cattle stations along the way, too, as well as open scrubland. I only saw a few kangaroos, but some of the students tell me they saw many.
It is typical to see kangaroos wherever one finds grazing animals, as the conditions favorable for the one are also good for the other. Add to that the fact that the kangaroo is a 'dawn and dusk' animal, just like our deer, and the right times and places for watching for 'skippy' are pretty easy to figure out. I get up very early while in Australia anyway, so I go to the buffet car or the club car and gaze out the window right around dawn just in case.
This far north, the main Bruce Highway has become just one lane in each direction, with rail stops blocking it in some towns. As we passed through Innisfail, one such town, I was struck by how well it has rebounded from the hammering it took from Tropical Cyclone Larry a few years ago. The cyclone had charged ashore with winds around 120 mph, ripping off roofs and flattening cane fields and banana plantations. The estimates at the time were that 80% of the crop was destroyed. Of course, they replanted right away, and the stuff grows very fast, so in 9 months time the fields were full once more.
The land is flat for several hundred kilometers along the rail route, punctuated here and there on the east by hills and small mountains that just rise out of the ground for no apparent reason. Off to the west lie the Great Dividing Range. As the train moves closer to Cairns these two converge, so that by the time the train moves north of Innisfail on the last couple of hours of the trip, the land has become rolling, with high hills on both sides.
Cairns is the place where at least three ecosystems meet: the mountainous tropical rainforest, the Atherton Tablelands, and the Great Barrier Reef. The Tablelands serve as one of the breadbaskets of Australia; there is a lot of cultivated land throughout. Together with the coastal plantations, this entire region sees huge agricultural activity. Runoff from these finds it way into coastal waters and eventually into the ocean, where it has an impact on the Reef. We will no doubt hear more about that tomorrow night at Reef Teach.
We actually arrived a little ahead of schedule. Our driver was waiting nevertheless, and we arrived at the Cairns Queenslander without any problems. All our rooms are on the first floor (you and I would call it the second floor) -- the students were a little grumpy about that, but we should get less patio noise higher up.
After getting settled in, we all met for a few minutes by the pool so that we could go over the lodging rules and the schedule for the next few days. It was pretty clear that the students were already thrilled with the place, and particularly interested in the patio BBQ. Some of the students left with my colleague and me for a guided walk down the Esplanade, while others took off for the nearby IGA for provisions for an evening meal.
After dinner, my colleague and I walked back, stopping to buy a few things for the next couple of days. And a note to my lovely wife: I am able to get back on my healthy diet for awhile.
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