Kuranda and Cairns

Rainforest Boardwalk
Aboriginal Mural
Rainbow Lorikeets
Croc Warning Sign
Mangrove Swamp Walk

Our first day we decided to stroll with Keila around Kuranda to get our bearings. She took us to the famous Kuranda Scenic Railway, closed until May 16 because of a landslide. We won’t be able to take this famous train. However, they also have the Skyrail Rainforest Cableway, one of the world’s longest gondola cableways that glides over the valley that we will take down to Cairns and back if we have time.

We spent the day strolling through the shops and galleries in this pretty town visiting Bird World and the Koala Park and enjoying a delicious lunch at colourful Vibes Cafe on the main street. We took a long walk back through the rainforest and along the river back to the train station and up to their house. In the evening we enjoyed a chicken dinner followed by the film Samson and Delilah that had been recommended by Jack and Sue in Melbourne. It was a film about the relationship between two young Aboriginal adolescents. It was very moving though difficult to watch. The plight of the young reminded me of the sad stories of the Inuit youth at Davis Inlet in Canada.

The next day we toured Cairns with Keila. We began by walking along a boardwalk in a mangrove swamp near the airport. I was somewhat disconcerted by the Croc warning signs at the entrance to the boardwalk. Two jokers sitting on a bench warned us to look out for the crocs, because there had been an 8 metre croc sighted in the area! It was hot, humid and primeval with plenty of mosquitos. We saw mudcrabs and read about how mangroves survive. Next we took a long walk along the sea to the lagoon saltwater pool. We had lunch with a former colleague of Keila’s, Kia, and her mate at a restaurant overlooking the water. Kia and I had arranged for our special education students to be pen pals for a few months in the year 2000. It was fun to meet her face to face and hear about the students. We swapped information and compared the special education systems in N. Queensland and Toronto. The frustrations for professionals and our students are similar in both countries.

We finished our day with a steamy walk in the Botanical Gardens followed by a visit to the dam at Barron Falls. It was too late to visit the interpretive centre so we headed back up the windy road to Kuranda. Henri served drinks and snacks before a dinner of rack of lamb. Then we watched another Rolf de Heer film The Tracker that was excellent.