Hey all, well i hope you have a while, because i have a story and a half for you.

Erm, when did i last write one of these? I'm going to assume you know all about Uluru tour and stuff now cos i know i put pictures up of that. So we'll start in Cairns! Got there late and it was raining sometime last week, monday maybe? might have even been this week - WHO KNOWS. So yeah, rainy, very humid, not very fun weather-wise. So the morning after i got there i was booked on a tour, but the company had changed to make up numbers so wasnt sure what to expect after booking on the amazing tour package! So i was very pleased to have an awesome day in the Atherton Tablelands, going to a waterfall where they film all the Timotea(?) adverts, the shampoo, i cant spell it. And saw some rather massive spiders, went to a rainforesty bit, did a walk thru, went to curtain fig tree, which is pretty impressive. i did try to upload pics of this TWICE but it hasnt worked yet so await them. And had a very nice fish and chips lunch and amazing cheesecake desert and also scones and local tea for morning tea... it was a pretty good day foodwise and sights wise, a change from hotcrossbuns and noodles thats for sure. Got back to Cairns and realised i didnt have any camping gas and was going camping in afew days and its easter weekend so everything is closed. So the next morning was spent manically trying to find a camping shop with some very unhelpful YHA staff who barely managed to find a map to tell me that it wasnt on the map at all, thankfully anotehr traveller told me there was a shop round the corner! So i got that, all sorted. Only to later find i wouldnt need it.

So i got the bus down to Mission beach the same day, said goodbye to hideous touristy drunk-people city of Cairns, but with a nice lagoon bit i suppose. Checked in at a rubbish hostel called 'Scotty's' who seemed to have alot of useless british staff and one person who could use a computer to check in the 12people waiting while the others stood and watched. That was rubbish and it rained all night there, the beach wasnt very good either. So it was alright cos i was booked on a boat to Dunk Island in the morning, which i had checked, 3 times, would be running on Easter Monday, and the woman assured me it would be, unless there was a cyclone... No there wasnt a cyclone - dont panic. In the morning i had alot of stuff with me so id asked the shuttle bus people to drop me at the water taxi place on the way to the bus, cos its right near it and i didnt want to risk the rain and the 15min walk in the heat! So that was all sorted and 10.30 arrives, and i have to be there about that time to be ready for the boat at 11. The people then refuse to take me to the water taxi place so after they do abit of shouting, i do abit of shouting back, i end up walking there pretty fast cos i'll be late now ive had to walk. Well i got there 10mins later, and waited. Waited til 11.20 and no boat, no people, nothing turned up. So then i went and checked in at the campsite for 2 nights which turned out to be cheaper than the boat and the camping on the island, which i fortunately hadnt paid for yet! But i wasnt very happy. THEN the rain began. I couldnt stay in the tent in the day due to the intense heat, and there was nothing to do in this rubbish little place, cos not only was it easter, but there werent any shops anyway. So i watched the sea for a fair few hours, when it wasnt raining quite as much. even saw afew dolphins in the waves, but thats as exciting as it got really. So yeah, managed to survive one and a half nights in my little tent. And was getting a fair way through my new patricia cornwell book, when i realised my shoulder was wet, and then i realised i was effectively ON A WATER BED. that 'good 5 inches before it gets near the tent' had happened RATHER faster than i had anticipated. And now the water was level with all the mesh sides of the tent! so i did have a small water-related panic, but mostly i stayed calm,,, sort of. in a OOH MY GOD I HAVE TO GET OUT OF THIS TENT kinda way. I managed to get all my bags, sleeping bag, rucksack and food out of the tent and to a small area near a slightly raised tree... to safety while i removed all the tent pegs from under the 4 inches of water.. my shoes total soaked, i was IN water, there was no way they would stay dry. so i then walked to the camp kitchen and began organising all the wet belongings i had. They still arent dry. I slept on a wooden bench thing that night, got no sleep cos the lights dont turn off and some people came in at 5am to make abit of noise for me, which was nice. Oh and that evening is the same evening capital one decided my card was probably a fraud target (or probably not, but the woman couldnt really tell me either way so i thought i should be sensible and take her "advice").. and cancelled my credit card to send a new one home where i wont be able to get it. I left mission beach the next morning to spend 9 hours on a bus to Airlie Beach. Which was also rubbish.

Moved my bus forward this morning so i didnt have to stay there any longer cos i was so bored. So now I'm in a place called Mackay (actually said 'mackai'), and i like it here cos its sunny and people seem nicer, no ones been particularly rude to me yet, and i got some money back from a tour cos its cancelled, and although i wont get to see any platypuses i am kinda pleased that i might get some money to pay for accommodation. Also treated myself to an apple and cinnamon muffin and iced coffee today, and as im doing nothing tomorrow and it was so good i might just have to go back! But i probably wont. It feels like my story isnt as bad as i remember it being... still got afew days til i get to Brisbane, left in OZ, so im sure its got the potential to get really bad before i leave. I hope this was some good entertainment, otherwise there really wasnt anypoint in me retelling my rubbish week.