Arrived to Darwin I have greeted the companions of trip and I settled in the hostel of the Y.H.A.,
it was the better than I found in the whole Australia because it was inaugurated in the June 1996.
In the 2 following days I would have visited the Kakadu National park, one of the big Australian wonder; this time the group was composed by 9 persons.
Arrived in proximity of the park we stopped there on the shores of the Adelaide River for a small cruise to assist to the
'Jumping crocodile', I will
try to explain of what is treated: not as soon as the boat was approached to some crocodiles (this draws of the river
is infested by the saltwaters) an employee used a fishing rod with a piece of meat, the crocodile jumped taking it out of water for the whole
of his length.
Arrived in the Kakadu, I discovered that my tour didn't include the trip
with the boat on the Yellow Waters that is the more beautiful and interesting thing
that can be done the park considering the possibility to see a big number of animals. In the afternoon we
went to Jabiru to admire a series of aboriginal rock paintings.
In the park I had the pleasure to meet some nice "friends": the flies!! If their presence in the desert were annoying, in the Kakadu it was even unbearable, after a walk with a heat and a
tremendous humidity
and with the face covered literally by these small creatures I reentered in the
bus to refresh with the air condition but the cabin was completely invaded.
We slept in the camping of the park, fortunately the curtains were endowed with
mosquito-net so we were able to eat and to sleep in holy peace.
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Inside the park there are various courses of water and very suggestive little ponds: the Twin Falls (that however are attainable only with 4WD jeep) or Waterfall Creek (the little pond where it was turned Mr. Crocodile Dundee), our guides have chosen the Barramundi Gorge that according to them is one of the most beautiful place. |
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The path was decidedly impervious especially in the last line but so much work comes decidedly repaid. We have reached first the superior part of the gorge where a brook is inserted in the mean of the rocks forming some very deep puddles, me and my companions of trip ventured in very reckless dives from the surrounding rocks. The brook is thrown then with a small fall in a little pond that we have reached after another half hour of walk and where we had another bath. |
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Ended the tour in the Kakadu, I moved (by airplane) to Cairns, small town on the west coast (around 2000
Km north in Sydney). The city is nothing of special, but it's a good base of departure for excursions toward the coral
reef, the hinterland and the pluvial forest to north. I decided to stop me 4
days to rest and because there were a lot of things to see. After made the laundry (I had some really need considering that my suits had become red!!),
I made a walk for the city. Every 10 meters are found travel agencies that sell
various excursions so I made hoarding of brochure; the waterfront (the Esplanade)
is full of restaurants, some Italians had very funny names like Pizzaria or
Fettuccini. Between the varied possibilities I choose the Meeting Place where
it's possible to taste varied types of cuisine for an expense of 10-15 A$, I have been 2 times eating Thai and Chinese. In evening while I walked after
dinner I met Ian a Canadian boy which I had traveled from Perth to Ayers Rock, we are granted there for seeing us to the Wool Shed that
is a disco-pub where every evening parties is organized for backpackers, for the entry in fact is necessary to exhibit a ticket (free) that
it is distributed in the hostels and that besides it is worth like I discount for the
dinner. It was a funny evening, the beer flowed to rivers and all they were launched in mad dance on the tables!!!
For booking of the tours I entrusted me to the agency of the hostel that for the members of the Y.H.A. practice excellent discounts. I
choose a tour in the pluvial forest and a tour on the coral reef.
With the first one I visited the forest (that the Australians call Rain Forest) around Cape Tribulation, in
the morning we made a tour by boat between the mangroves and a walk in the middle of the forest, in the afternoon we
went beyond the Daintree River. In this zone, the plantations of sugar reed and tropical fruit are very
common; another particularity is that the forest arrives directly on the sea creating some very suggestive landscapes. We stopped in a kiosk to taste some tropical fruits before returning to Cairns,
I liked particularly what they call south-America apple of the , to say the truth
for me has well little to do with the apple considering that and is bigger and the pulp it has the consistence of the ice cream with very big seeds and a particular taste.
