Mena Creek - Paronella Park

768 KM4 September 2011

Firstly I would like to appoligise for the sheer wack of blog entries that will have just appeared.It has been surprisingly difficult to find wi-fi throughout Aus, and the internt is rather pricy when we have managed to find it.But rest assured, I am writing the blogs as I go along and will upload them at every possibly opportunity - my sincere appoligies that they aren't as regular as they have been.I find it incredible that throughout Asia the locals have continous phone singal and internet connection - yet here in Aus we are stuggling for both!

Due to the rain we decided to visit somewhere that wasn't a beach with some interest.An information centre aided us with our discovery of Paronella Park, and both Sam and I are delighted.For the ticket price we got a 'free' night in their campsite, with electricity (which is a first of this trip), a guided tour of the park both in the day and night, and a free pamflet and bookmark - What more could we want?!We also got another free gift which turned out to be a piece of rock from the building Jose built... we did wonder if this was a contributing factor to the buildings delapadated state, but I welcomed the idea attached - "Jose's dreams came true here, with this we hope yours come true too".

Jose Paronella's dream was to buld a castle.He spent a long time hunting out the pefect location and eventually he found and created Poronella Park.On 13 acres beside Mena Creek Falls he built his castel, picnic areas at the lakeside, tennis coursts, tunnels and bridges and wrapped it up in an amazing range of 7000 tropical plants and trees.

Jose arrived in nearby Innisail in 1913, he worked for 11 years to earn his fortune.He married a girl from back home and one year later in 1929 they were together developing Poronella Park. Jose completed the rendering on all buildings with his bear hands, so you can still see his hand prints over the buildings today.Jose was very excited about the new exciting thing called electricity!To show off the waterfall on his land, and this new exciting thing, he decided to light up the beautiful waterfall so the whole town could see it.He then moved on and developed the ballroom and the rest of the buildings.Even today although various cyclones have destroyed some of the buildings, you can still see the Spanish influences and the true beauty.Our guide really managed to paint a vivid picture of what the buildings were like.So much so, when we stood inside the delapadated, wall-less ballroom I could picture the live band on the stage and familes gathered together, some dining others dancing.And later on a film being projected through onto the wall behind the band.The thing that has appealed to me most in this enchanting place is the history.Without being offensive I find that Australia does miss a sense of history, with it being a fairly new land, although I am not refering to or dismissing the aboriginal cultures when I say this.I feel it misses the cultural and historical aspects that parts of Europe, and lands more familar to me, are so weathly of.

I am so pleased that Sam and I visted this place.At the end of our informative day tour we went to the river bank where we fed 10s of little turtles!Some of them even climbed out of the water to reach the food!I was encapsulated!Sam managed to feed a bush turkey the same goodies provided by the centre, from the palm of his hand!I then dropped food right into the mouth of a rather large eel!The waters were swarming with hungry little creatures knowing food was on its way!We have just returned from our night guide and I am full of energy.Our exuberant guide filled me with excitement telling me tales of Cassowaries and other creatures.We found some freshly laid turtle eggs, orange footed scrubfowl, other 4 legged possom like creatures and a rather large spider crawling down a fellow tourists neck! The park is lit up so beautifully in the evening, with the waterfall being the highlight.As we stood infront of the old Ballroom the building lit up and the most enchanting music began to play, pulling me into the mystial nature of this place.I could stay here for a week... if only the sun came out.....!!