Lizzin' the life!

Since leaving Cairns, we've had amazing weather. We got lucky because it is the wet season right now, and usually there are cyclones all around Australia, which is exactly what bid us adieu from Cairns. We returned just in time for the Mardi Gras parade--which people travel from all over the world to attend--and we just happened to be here!! What great timing. But before that happened, we made time to go to Toronga zoo, which overlooks the entire city and the harbor. Every animal picture we took was backed with the Sydney skyline. We saw kangaroos, koalas and baby gorillas-loved every minute of it. 

That night we attended the Mardi Gras--it was insane!! The entire day the people of Sydney prepared for it by setting up barricades and rails on the street sides. The parade was filled with the most flamboyant of people. To say the least, it was very entertaining. 

The next day it poured and we had a bit of a movie day. It was good to spend a day relaxing. Yesterday we spent the day at the Sydney botanical gardens. We made a picnic lunch and fed the exotic birds, only later to read signs that instructed against feeding the birds because they would bite...whoops. It's crazy because where we would have pigeons and geese they have lorikeets and cockatoos--and bats, oh my! That night we gave ourself a tour of Darling harbor. When we got back to Coogee later that night we decided to take a dip. Rachel and Beth came out of the water with the stings of a jelly fish--but they both decided that it's not quite as bad as one would expect. 

We decided to go out with a bang in true aussie style by attending surf camp all day. One of the girls who lives in the house we are staying in, from Jesuit no less, is teaching surf camps and private lessons here, so we went out with her crew. It was the best way to go out. Today was a gorgeous day. All of us were able to stand at least once and will probably be surfing with the locals soon...We've had amazing hosts--Sydney would not have been the same without them.

Tomorrow we're off to Thailand... ready for our next adventures! 

If you think you Cairn you Cairns...

So alot has happened since our last post, sorry they are so few and far between, but we have been busy. We've been in Cairns since the first of March and have loved every minute of it. In Sydney, before we left, we went to Bondi beach, which was beautiful. Everything here has postcard picture potential. On the taxi ride home from Bondi, Rachel suggested to the taxi driver that she should try driving. He was down. Just to remind you, they drive on the left hand side of the road, so this was somewhat of an adventure. The next day we went to the Future Music Fest, which was basically an 8 hour dance party with Macy Gray, to name one of the featured artists. After exhausting ourselves on the dance floor all day in the sun, it was not an easy feat to make our six am flight to Cairns the next morning--but luckily we managed.

Cairns is paradise-we have a feeling we'll be saying that a lot. We spent our first day basking beside the huge salt water public pool that looks out over the ocean. Our hostel is a mix of people our age from everywhere other than the U.S. It's crazy because there are so many backpackers here that when we mention the trip that we're on, it's just a normal conversation piece. No big deal.

The next day Rachel and Molly jumped out of a plane at 14,000 feet right over the great barrier reef and rainforests. Words can't even describe the feeling. The whole ride back to the skydiving shop from our landing point, we were asking how we could go about getting certified to be divers...a new hobby for sure.

Yesterday we went snorkling off of a sailboat over the great barrier reef. We pulled up to a white sandy beach that was covered in roughly 20,000 birds and water straight out of a Planet Earth episode. Today Rachel, Beth, and Molly are headed to Cape Tribulation to check out the Australian rainforest, swim in some waterfalls and hopefully see some crocs.

More to come.

We miss you all!!