Skyrail and Kuranda

We drove in to Cairns again today and dropped Chip off at another doggie day care so we could spend the day sightseeing. 

We rode the Skyrail Rainforest Cableway - this is 7.5 km long and runs above the rainforest canopy.  There are two stations to stop off at for sightseeing.  Red Peak station has a boardwalk over the rainforest canopy and guided tours talking about all the plants etc.  Barron Falls has gorgeous views of the Barron Gorge and Barron Falls.  It also has an interpretive centre which provides info on the rainforest and its inhabitants etc. 

At the end is the village of Kuranda.  This is a quaint kind of hippie village well set up for tourists with lots of markets and trendy nick nacks.  We had a lovely lunch there, got some yummy fudge and (of course) some mango wine and liquer (very nice). 

Now little Chip is fast asleep on dads knee....not sure he got much rest from the other dogs at the daycare.....

Sightseeing

We got one of the other caravanners to look after Chip for us today so we could go and do some sightseeing. 

We went to Paraonella Park which is a 13 acre property set by Mena Creek Falls just outside of Innisfail where a spanish guy called Jose Paronella built a home and entertainment area complete with castles, waterfalls, a hydro electric plant, tennis courts, movie theatre, ballroom etc  in the early 1900s all for his wife.  It has been damaged by fire, floods, and cyclones since but is now being rebuilt.  The plants etc are really lovely and the building work is amazing given it was all originally done by hand.   Here are some photos (you can click on the photos if you want to see them bigger) :
There is a huge row of pines and the view goes right to the waterfall at the end

This is one of the castles...this used to have refreshment rooms, changing cubicles, a raised stand for the band to play on...behind me is the fountain and in front of that used to be the tennis courts

This is the waterfall which feeds the hydro dam.  They used to swim in the lake there and have row boats on it.  There is seating around the area too.

The swing bridge that the army built for access - castles behind and the waterfall below

Australia...this is where your bananas come from...or should I say will start coming from shortly.  You can't appreciate from this photo just how big this banana plantation is....

and that was our day's outing.....

The metropolis of Tully

We went for a drive today - were hoping to go to some spectacular waterfalls close by but unfortunately they are in a national park and there was a big sign saying no dogs....bugger it!  Got to see one of the aboriginal communities out here anyway...had been told it was a bit of an eye opener however I have seen far worse in state housing areas in NZ!! 

Went in to Tully and took some photos instead so here is a run down...

This is Tully Hospital - front entrance to outpatients and A&E

This is Tully's famous gumboot....beat that Taihape!!!!  See the next photo which shows that the actual height of the gumboot depicts the highest rain fall Tully has had in one year!

This is the Tully Sugar mill....goes 24/7.....Mal reckons I like ozzie towns with big chimneys shooting out smoke (Port Pirie in SA has the smelter)

Cairns & back

Arrived at work for a PM shift yesterday and was herded straight in to an ambulance to do a transfer to Cairns hospital with an elderly man with a fractured NOF.  Long drive there and back but quite interesting all in all - love the location of Cairns hospital right on the esplanade there....might have to get a job there some time in another winter season.

Mal has been exploring around Mission Beach while I have been at work...he and Chip on the scooter amusing all the locals.  He found a resort up the beach called The Elandra - a mere $630 per night....think he can go chop some bananas for a while and save up for that.

The weather remains gorgeous here - beautiful blue skies and around 25 degrees during the day.  Cools down a bit at night which is good for sleeping.  Mal and Chip usually go for a plunge in the sea every day - great life.

Our satellite TV system is working a treat.  We are still waiting for our annexe and can't wait till that arrives.  I have been very good this week and not made any more internet purchases - oh apart from my cover for my kindle of course.

Ahh night duty - how do we survive it?

Phew my run of night shifts is over ...that is till Sunday when we start all over again.  Ahh the life of a contractor...crap shifts but good money.....just have to keep focused on the benefits.....

Last nights shift was flat out...had one of our inpatients in severe respiratory distress who we ended up putting on CPAP - he really needed to be in an ICU in a big hospital - hopefully thats where he was sent today.  Another patient who for her own good we had to imprison on her bed...she was screaming blue murder all night, another elderly patient (now palliative) on her way out, another patient who was in for severe constipation and had been given all sorts the day before who spent the shift exploding all over the room (and I mean that literally)....just to name a few.....gotta hand it to the nursing staff here who are fantastic and work bloody hard.

I saw an array of wildlife on my way to work over the last few nights - quite a few small kangeroos just on the side of the road..very cute.

My recent internet purchases are slowly finding their way to our campsite. We have our satellite tv system now but we are still waiting for it to be enabled as its currently scrambled.  The dish wasn't too hard to set up (despite Mal being totally confused with the whole thing initially) and despite some helpful (not) camper coming and telling us how he got rid of his because he could never find the satellite (idiot I say).  Am very much looking forward to watching Home and Away again as we haven't been able to get channel 7 for a week!!! 

It is the most beautiful sunny day today after a few days of rain (which was great for me sleeping during the day).  Chip is finding it a bit hot so he will be going for a swim and having a shower and wash this afternoon with Mal down the beach. 

Mal has been scouting around to see if there is any casual work available over the last few days while I have been sleeping.  He has spoken to some local electricians but they aren't too busy yet as so many insurance claims haven't been sorted yet - the work will come but who knows when and if we will still be here.  He went to an employment agency in Tully today and there will be banana work coming up soon....I'm not too keen on the idea after hearing about the high incidence of leptosporosis and dehanding injuries that come in to the hospital from the banana plantations.....

I saw a cassowary!

We moved back to Wongaling Beach yesterday - have a much better and roomier van site and once again we are across the road from the beach and general civilisation so we are very happy.  Some of my new purchases have arrived so Mal is busy sorting them out....

I finally spotted a cassowary on the way to work yesterday avo...was driving along Mission Beach Road and low and behold it was just on the side of the road.  There are a heap of signs out saying to be careful as they cross the road but I never actually thought I would see one...when we were up in Port Douglas a few years ago we went on this nature walk and the guy kept going on and on about the cassowary...we thought it was all a bit of a joke...but there you go.  Here's a pic of exactly what it looked like. 

Work was again very busy last night but at least I wasn't working the night before when they had an electrical fire in the roof at 2330 and had to evacuate all the patients!!  Now we have a huge piece of ceiling panel off in the area the fire was so that was freaking me out all shift as I kept imagining a huge python slivering down it....me and one of the other girls who is english reckoned we would be climbing over each other to get out of the hospital if that happened...I reckoned that I would beat her!!!

Its a bit of a rainy day today..but works well for me as I start a run of night shifts tonight...my body is going to be in shock as I haven't done one for 12 months - good news is its pay day this week..the first in 4 months - hmm what else can I find to buy on the internet???

Confessions of an internet shopaholic

Mal thinks I am going crazy but it is all legitimate stuff that I am buying to make our new caravan life more comfy....for instance

- an annexe for the awning....this means we double our living space, have privacy, little Chip doesn't have to stay tied up all the time, we can keep the flies out....I could go on....

- a digital satellite dish set up for the TV...so we can watch all the TV channels no hassle in 99% of Ozzie....hate watching fuzzy Home and Away..its not the same!

- a really ingenious arm so that I can put the table back in place that came with the caravan but can swing it right out of the way when its not needed - why aren't they standard with a caravan?

- soft matting for the annexe....we all like something soft underfoot don't we

- a blow up couch for the annexe....its a groovy double seater and looks very comfy..even comes with its own pump...and weighs next to nothing

- extendable wardrobe rails....how I am supposed to be able to reach my clothes at the back when the rail is stuck in place is beyond me....these should come standard with the caravan too

well thats my list for now....until I come up with another bright idea (think I should send all these innovations on to Jayco - perhaps there is another career there for me as a caravan designer??)

Trip to Cairns

Another city in Oz to tick off the list - we have now officially been to Cairns.  We thought it was a very nice city and doesn't feel too big but has good shopping and the esplanade is lovely.  We got all the items on our list while the DMax was in having its service and then went to lunch at a restaurant on the esplanade.  Lots of tourists around and the pool down there was really busy. Went and had a look at the hospital - boy thats in prime real estate. 

Had to laugh when we were in Bunnings - they sell toad spray....can't see how that would be more humane than whacking them with a cricket bat. Was talking about toads and dogs with the girls at work and found out that if dogs lick them they get a high - however if the toad gets annoyed with the dog and squirts out the poisonous stuff from behind their ears they could kill them.  Apparently teenagers up the line used to have toad licking parties rather than sniffing glue or petrol - dunno whats worse.

I came home with more horror stories of creepies for Mal and have now put him off banana picking too (not that there is any banana picking going on up here yet).  One of the girls at work used to do that and was telling me about the huge rats that come running out at you and the snakes that sliver up your arm....gross!

Had a really busy morning shift at work on Sunday - A&E was really busy and ended up taking 2 staff rather than one which left only two staff on the ward which was already reasonably busy and had 4 admissions while also trying to organise a transfer of a very sick 8 year old up to Cairns - thank god we didn't get a girl in in labour!!  To make matters worse the four of us on had all done a PM shift the day before so were stuffed when we started - I really do need to win lotto!!!

Chip had his day at daycare today - don't think he got much rest from the other dogs so is now absolutely stuffed.  When I picked him up they had done a laminated calendar with his photo on it - reminded me of kindy days picking up the kids and being presented with their artwork to take home....hahahaha.

Don't think I have mentioned the couple we have met here at the camp who come from our own home town in NZ.  I thought they looked familiar and funnily enough they have exactly the same caravan as us - we got chatting and it all fell in to place.  Boy its a small world!

One more day here and then we move back to Mission Beach which we are both really looking forward to. 

Have also ordered an annexe for the caravan which we should get in about 3 weeks, a satellite dish for the TV as reception around these parts is crap and we miss our programmes, and a new table leg for the van which allows you to swing the table right out of the way...Mal is going to be very busy sorting those all out when they arrive.