Day 74- Sat 22nd

We left our hostel and got back on the Greyhound which was taking us up to Noosa. We got stuck in traffic because it was Easter weekend so it took us over 3 hours to get there. Noosa is a lovely town, it looks posh and has lots of restaurants and cafes aimed at the wealthy who have holiday homes here. There's not much to do in the backpackers price range but it is still a nice town and one of our favorites. We were staying at the YHA which was in a listed building and near to the bus station and main high street. They had said we would be in a 14 share dorm but luckily they put us in a 4 bed dorm. It is an old building but the rooms are clean and the facilities are fine, it's a YHA after all. We went straight into town, had some lunch and then sunbathed on the beach. It was a nice beach and the waves weren't big so children were learning to surf. I haven't been brave enough to try it yet. We made a nice healthy dinner and chilled out in our room and on the decking.

Day 75- Sun 23rd (Easter Sunday)

We checked out of the YHA and got on the shuttle bus to our next hostel called Noosa Backpackers. It was a bit out of the way but it was next to the river which was just as nice as the beach. There were lots of expensive resorts and apartments lining the river as it had some amazing views. We tried to find a place that sold roast dinners in town but we couldn't find any so we had a Mexican instead. Just as we had settled into our meal it tipped it down and didn't stop raining all day. We went back to the hostel and didn't do a lot except plan a few more days of Australia. Lisa and I stayed up to watch Manchester Utd vs. Liverpool as we were missing football.

Day 76- Mon 24th

We were up early to catch the bus to Australia Zoo. Along the way they played videos of one of Steve Irwin's shows, he was playing with scary snakes! We got to the zoo and it was raining so we bought some very attractive ponchos which we had to wear pretty much all day. First we saw the otters and the giant tortoises. We then queued up so we were able to feed the elephants. They had 3 elephants that lined up and you were allowed to take a piece of fruit and hold it out for them. Our elephant was called Bimbo and she was the smallest of the three. The trunk felt weird and it left your hand muddy. It was an amazing experience and the zoo was really into getting interactive with the animals so there were lots of opportunities to touch the animals and learn about them. We had a quick look at the crocs and alligators before it was time for the main show. We watched a show about birds and snakes and then it was the crocodile's turn. Terri Irwin (Steve's wife) came out and did the talk about the crocs. She was brilliant and I couldn't believe it was her, she is a legend over here. We had a quick lunch and then went to see the talk on koalas. A keeper called Natasha was really informative about them and she made them wake up so that we could see them moving around and eating. Even she was surprised how lively they were today! We got the little train to the other side of the zoo where the tigers and elephants live. On the train was a boy who I think was on work experience but he sounded like he was 30 years old giving a talk about all the animals. It was funny I promise. We went to see the tigers and we were lucky as the keepers were giving a talk about them which only happens when they are in a good mood. We saw the tiger climb a tree and swim in the pool which just shows that some cats do like water. We waited around after the show as they said they would bring out tiger cubs. We were so lucky to see them, they were three of them and the keepers had fed them bits of fresh meat. They were the size of a small dog but still cute. We tried to get photos holding a koala but we were too late and had to get back on the bus back to Noosa. It was an amazing day and one of my favourite things I have done so far.