Regrettably Relinquishing the Rainforest for Jobs

It's a sad day when you decide to leave a tropical paradise in search of jobs. But to ward off depression, I'll share some of the wonders that we left.

First, there's the waterfalls... While we didn't get to see them just after a heavy rain, they still maintained there beauty. Pictured here you will see Milla Milla Falls located in the Atherton Tablelands, Queensland. This is the wettest region of Australia, and is home to dozens of waterfalls. For the most part waterfalls like Milla Milla are accessible only by foot, and are surrounded by dense tropical forests.

Second is... you guessed it, tropical rainforest. While Jessie and I had been traveling inside the Tropic of Capricorn, we had yet to see the "wet tropics" until we got north of Townsville. Now, the area around Cairns (including the Atherton Tablelands) is home to the oldest continual rainforests in the world. Aside from containing 1,000s of plant species (most of which are endemic to this region of Australia, and therefore the world), these forest are also home to rare fauna like the almost mythical cassowary, the rambunctious tree kangaroo, and the timid platypus. Although we didn't see any of these animals, we often had the opportunity to get a photo with life-size fiber glass replicas.

Third, and perhaps the most important, when traveling on a budget, is the free food! Farmers in and around Cairns have taken advantage of the rich volcanic soils and the tropical climate (full of sun and rain) to grow almost everything that you can imagine. However, many farmers have not done a great job at constructing fences high/sharp/shocking enough to keep hungry backpackers out of their paddocks. While they grow coffee, tea, sugar cane, mangoes, rumbutans, lychees, mangoes, avocados, grapes, etc. etc., Jessie and I were particularly pleased to find a tree loaded with ripe starfruit. Needless to say, we loaded our "esky" (cooler) to the brim and took advantage of the bounty.

Finally, there's the reef... or should I say THE GREAT BARRIER REEF. Ultimately, the GBR is everything that you could ever imagine. Twenty meter high walls of coral swarming with tropical fish. I mean everything looks as though it had been dipped in neon paint. From the littlest nudibranch (colorful slug-like creature) to the giant brain coral, to the snippity giant clams, to the majestic grey whaler and white tip reef sharks; EVERYTHING is breath taking. I will work on getting photos uploaded, but for now you'll just have to watch "Blue Planet."

So we left this place... but hey, we're only heading to Coolangatta, home to beautiful right-hand point breaks (perfect for my surfing), clear and warm water, and hopefully, plenty of jobs and apartments.