We knew we were going to miss Thailand as we had grown to love it but we were ready to leave at that point as we were permanently grubby and sick of asian food and the lack of the English language.

Australia was as refeshing as we thought- to hear the receptionist at Gilligans Backpackers hostel was like music to our ears!!! We'd heard of Gilligans via word of mouth and we could kiss the person who recommended it, it was an absolute gem! When we went to our room we knew from now on it would be dorms but we werent expecting to find only boys clothes on the other beds.... bit of a shocker!! After doing some much needed laundry we soon settled in with everything we needed under our own roof. The boys turned out to be lovely- 3 German guys and an English guy Richard and we hung out together. We soon discovered we liked having guys in the room- no fighting over the mirror or cattiness!

The hostel had its own pool and a backpackers meal deal for $3 which included an alcoholic beverage. It had a bar and club that was always bustling and the happy hour was very much appreciated! The first night we took it easy as we had a jam packed day ahead of us....

The Great Barrier Reef....

This was definitely a huge highlight in our trip so far. Now newly certified divers we had top priority on the gorgeous 'Tusa' boat with gear and getting briefed. We chose a more classy company because we were advised it would take us to the best places and we'd be looked after the most.. and we weren't disappointed one bit. The staff were so friendly and the food was amazing (had a buffet lunch inbetween dives of pasta/ tuna salads and what nots) but most of all the diving.... it was fantastic.

After being used to visibility of between 6-8 metres in Thailand just imagine our delight as we plunged to the bottom of the ocean and could see ahead of us for up to 30 metres!!!! It was incredible and completely indescribable!!! It felt completely different to our Thailand dives as we were no longer learners having to complete skills on the sea bed, we were free to roam far and wide and discover some of the awesome local inhabitants.... to name but a few of the sea life that we encountered.... baracuda, angel fish, bat fish, mooray eel (normally only seen at night and absolutely massive!!!), nemo, star fish, sting ray, amazing coral and saving the best two until last....Two metre long REEF SHARK and HUGE GORGEOUS TURTLES!!!!!!!!! After being lucky enough to squueze three dives in during the day you can believe that we came off that boat with huge grins plastered accross our faces raring to dive again and again!!!

Ok so back to our new home that was the wonderful Gilligans and true to form it was 'LADIES NIGHT'. $2 dollars and all the champagne you can drink for an hour, us classy totty were in our element and we even let the boys down a glass or two during the many drinking games we played that night. 'Ring of fire' 'bulls***' and '21's' to name but a few!!

The next day we were ready to chill and soak up some Ozzy rays, so we headed to the local lagoon which was lush. The perfect setting over looking the sea and with greenery all around it is kept in immaculate condition and perfect for a lazy cheap day!

Sadly we had come to our final evening in Cairns and we wanted to go out with a bang! We ventured out of Gilligans and to the infamous 'Woolshed' which we had heard so many great stories about. $10 meal deal for our dinner which was immense!! The best dinner yet being able to choose from such delights as roast lamb, veg and mash, a real taste of home and huge portions with a glass of vino and bowl of ice cream to wash it all down with...perfect!! So feeling a little full we continued to sip wine and gin throughout the evening until yep you guessed it we were up dancing on the tables! Its an intimate environment with a great atmosphere where everyone enjoys dancing the night away on the benches even having shelves near the roof to store your drinks.....a bloody brilliant night and a great way to end our fantastic time in Cairns!! We didnt even mind strolling in at 4am knowing we had to get up for the bus at 6:30am...worth every yawn!!!!