Bar Hopping and Cairns day 2

On Tuesday night I met up with some people to hit up a bar. As we were walking to our destination, the Rook, I was showed Uncle Ming's. We didn't stop by, but it was suggested I go there for dinner. We then walked by Stitch Bar. Here's where we took a little detour. It had a sewing motif, complete with old Singer sewing machines. I had one of their special whiskey-based drinks (similar to an old fashioned). Came with an almost tennis ball sized ball of ice. Fancy.

 

We then made it to the Rook. Here I had a beer (Little Creatures IPA, not bad) and enjoyed a tasty lamb burger. I thought that was going to be it, but because it is my last full week, they said they had to take me to another bar. So we went to Rabbit Hole. I decided to splurge and ordered another cocktail. This one was also described like an old fashion, but not really. Had several types of whiskys and scotches, including Laphroaig (that really smoky one). It came complete with a torched cinnamon stick. You're supposed to take a whiff of the smoke and then take a sip. Quite the presentation. The preparation was fun to watch, too.

 

Wisely included a glass of water to dunk the stick in

But that wasn't the end. They had one more bar to take me to. It was Palmer & Co and had a 1920s US feel to it (I've noticed a lot of flapper style bars and events here in Sydney...). I had a tasty Manhattan here and then finally called it a weekday night. Good time and fun bars.

 

Moving back to Cairns, we woke up around 6:30am for our tour. We also had to pack up and check out of our hostel. We took the Ocean Free tour. It was a 2 hour boat ride out to Green Island, our snorkeling destination. It was a gorgeous day. In the 80s. I made sure to diligently apply sunscreen (although I ended up getting a little burned on my back and back of my arms).

 

Note: This isn't Green Island

Skipper navigating with his feet

The dingy we towed behind us

The water and weather was so beautiful. And the 3 guides were great. We had a good breakfast and lunch, along with some snacks and drinks.

 

Because it was 2 hours to the island, it gave me a chance to enjoy some sun.

 

 

The ride also gave us time to get to know some people on the boat. One lady was in Cairns for work that week and another was this girl in college who was studying abroad in Sydney. Her life long dream was to see the Great Barrier Reef. Her excitement and energy was fun. She also went scuba diving. I may have mentioned it before, but we couldn't go scuba diving because we had a flight that evening (gotta wait at least 18 hours for the nitrogen bubbles to work out of your system).

 

When we finally got to the island/Great Barrier Reef, I was worried the water would be cold. After all, I spent half of Saturday freezing. But nope! The water was just as awesome as the weather. I got in and snorkeled for about 45 minutes. It's so beautiful. All the colors and fish swimming around. Some vibrant colors, but also just cool looking dull purples, blues, and greens.

 

Gotta get a water proof camera...

 

After the first round of snorkeling, we caught a ride on the dingy to Green Island. It's basically a resort island that seems to heavily cater towards Asians. There's also a random crocodile park/zoo.

 

 

Apparently the guy that owns this place used to catch problem crocs for people. He'd get paid in tribal art, and this random place had crocs and this art everywhere. Bizarre place.

 

 

 

But it was also home to the largest crocodile in captivity. 5.5 meters long (almost 17 feet).

 

Cassius - 5.5 M

 

This baby was huge! And there were crocs everywhere! It was pretty sweet seeming them growl at each other and move around (although they don't always move around that much...).

 

After having a tasty mojito at one of the bars on the island, a couple of us relaxed on the beautiful beach before catching a ride back to the Ocean Free.

 

 

 

 

Once I got back to the boat, it was another 30 minutes or so of snorkeling. I found a shallower area this time. It was so cool. I was just a few feet above the coral! (may have bumped it with my flipper once... um, oops). So pretty. It's also just fun swimming freely in the middle of the ocean (no life jacket or anything). The water is so warm and clear, yet there's clearly a current that can take you away. There was a shark in the water just before I got in, but by the time I got my flippers on, it was gone. I thought that would have been cool to see from the water (don't worry. not a scary shark).

 

It was then another 2 hour ride back to shore. We tried sailing (no motor) but it wasn't windy enough.

 

Sun starting to set on my trip to Cairns

 

Once back ashore, the 2 of us caught a cab to the airport and it was back to Sydney! The rain forest and Great Barrier Reef. You gotta see these if you're ever in Australia!