Sunday 20 and Monday 21

Return of the van and two nights in a real bed

In high 20s heat and 78% humidity we cleaned the van from top to toe – it was cleaner when we gave it back than when we received it. Handing the campervan over to the camp man at Apollo was straightforward – no charges for damage and surprisingly no speeding fines.

Having already deposited our luggage at the hotel before returning the van, we headed off into town for a mooch around the marina, lagoon and shops. Cairns is a small town, with its main activity being a base from which to take the many 100s of tours on offer to the Great Barrier Reef, Rainforest, Table Lands etc. As we had already done most of these, we chose to spend the days relaxing. Cairns beachfront is now mainly mud flats once the tide goes out and home to many different species of sea birds and waders. Before the 2nd world war the beach was soft sand and sand dunes but the constant dredging to keep the shipping channels open changed the environment for ever.

Cairns has a wonderful lagoon which is like a massive open air swimming pool near to the beach. Many families were starting their xmas celebrations with big family gatherings around the public bbq areas, which they had decorated with tinsel – very amusing for us.
We enjoyed learning more about the aboriginal art work at the many galleries along the front.
The night life around the marina was very lively, with many xmas parties in full swing. Cairns is a vibrant town, with many street entertainers – we enjoyed watching an orb juggler and a fire show. The town seems to come alive once the heat of the day has dissipated.

On Monday evening we enjoyed some more scrummy fish at the Raw Prawn restaurant and at dusk watched as thousands of massive bats took off across the bay to the island opposite.

love & xmas hugs

jeff & janet