We survived our last long journey in 'The Beast' which took us to Cairns, the capital of the tropical far north of Queensland and the major city closest to the Great Barrier Reef. We had come here to dive and after bidding a tearful farewell to our trusty companion of the last 3 months, 'the Beast' we went out to the reef. We went to live on a boat for 4 days to do as much diving as we could. To make sure our brains could still function - its been a while - we decided to work towards our advanced diving certification. A good idea at the time, but having to read a meaty book before we even got on board was a bit of a struggle. It didnt end there though. Once on board, our daily routine was dive, eat, study, dive, eat, study etc. Still, there are worse places to be! Still, it was good, and the studying was actually interesting. The only problem experienced was due to the boat not remaining still. Whilst the water was fairly calm, the boat still rocked. True to form, on the first day, Lisa's breakfast ended up being that of the fishes before the first dive of the day but as soon as the tablets had kicked in, the rest of the day went without a hitch. All was well until the next morning. By this time, the tablets had worn off and the fish couldnt believe their luck! Anyway, a stack of dives later, and we had passed our course, becoming advanced divers. The diving was, as we had been told, incredible. We were there amongst some amazing coral systems, seeing (sometimes at heart stoppingly close range) sharks, moray eels, green turtles, and the deadly lionfish. Of course in addition to the big stuff we saw plenty of colourful fish including lots of clown anenome fish (aka Nemo). My highlight was the nightdiving. Pitch black with only a torch to find your way around. It was incredibly relaxing, although my heart rate stepped up a notch or two when the beam met the eyes of a shark. Lisa wasn't too keen, she was convinced that the monster of the deep was going to creep up behind her and bite her on the bum! The dive sites we experienced here were quite technical requiring forward planning and navigation. Even underwater we found we were at times having arguements just like we do in the car about directions. It's funny, whilst we couldn't speak, it was pretty obvious what Lisa's glare from inside the mask meant. Anyway, I gave in the first couple of times, but after we surfaced a long swim back from the boat each time, she soon realised that her navigational skills and sense of direction were even worse underwater, and was content to follow. Once back on dry land after some great diving we hired a car (with air-con!) and headed up North for a couple of days to the World Heritage Listed Daintree Rainforest and then further on to Cape Tribulation. This place is where the rainforest meets the beach. The weather wasn't great, but we didn't notice as Lisa had me spotting out for spiders, crocs, lizards and snakes. We didn't see the crocs but had an encounter with everything else. We both really enjoyed it but Lisa was on edge and jumping at the slightest thing all the time. She didn't relax until we were on the river ferry heading out of the rainforest and back towards Cairns. Lisa's Mum and stepdad are due to arrive soon and she is getting all excited. I have booked a trip to the outback for 12 days to escape the Mother in Law (only joking Chris) and Lisa is going to stay with her Mum. In the last 7 months, the longest we have been apart is when one of us goes for a shower, so it will be a bit odd. S When Simon left me to it, I had a good time with Mum and Paul, and acted as their tour guide. In return, I got to stay with them in a nice hotel and didnt come across another smelly backpacker the whole time! Simon returned 2 days ago and we fly all fly to Perth in Western Australia tonight (20th March). Will add a few more words later. Lisa