Far North Queensland greeted me with gorgeous blue skies and a big yellow sun; I am really looking forward to getting my adventure along the East Coast of Australia started.

Cairns is extremely touristy, buzzing with hostels, tour agencies and cheap restaurants-come-nightclubs. Although it's the gateway for many day trips, another attraction has to be it's Lagoon. A huge street beach/swimming pool, that is free for public use and enjoyment, surrounded by sand and grass with barbeque and picnic areas; it really is great! However, although I wanted to spend all of my time here I felt I had to partake in some form of sight seeing activity so I booked myself onto a couple of trips including one to the rainforest village of Kuranda and another to Cape Tribulation a few hours up the coast.

The trip to Kuranda included a visit to the local Aboriginal centre Tjapukai. Here, I was given a history lesson about the Aboriginies who once lived in the area and this included learning about their creation story whereby they believe it to have all begun from a man's leg from which a child was born. I was also shown Aboriginie medicine practices as well as how to play and make a didgeridoo. After a very informative morning at the cultural centre I took the World's longest Skyrail up and over the rainforest to Kuranada - a small village full of shops, market stalls and cafes. To make my way back down I jumped aboard the Scenic Railway and scenic it was... The tracks wound their way down, around and through the rainforest-covered mountains passing waterfalls and various lookout points along the way.

My second day out was a coach guided tour up the coast to Cape Tribulation - where the rainforest meets the reef. The tight, winding coastal roads did not agree with my hangover. Note to self, do not mix the consumption of cider, champagne, vodka and jagermeisters together in one night. Everytime the bus stopped at a place of interest, my stomach turned and I couldn't hold down the night before. However, despite my state, the trip was great. There were some amazing views along the way and the final stop at Cape Trib was well worth the horendous journey - green rainforest meeting white sands meeting clear waters meeting the coral reef (that I couldn't actually see but knew was there). On the way back down I was put on a boat to cruise along the Daintree River; I saw four wild crocodiles bathing on the banks in the heat of the sun - it made a change from seeing them in a zoo.

So, Cairns and the surrounding area was completed in four days. Now I join a number of Greyhound buses as I work my way down towards Brisbane.