Kens

Trip Start Sep 03, 2004

Trip End Dec 22, 2004

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Where I stayed

Calypso Inn Backpackers Resort Cairns

Flag of Australia Cairns, Australia
Saturday, October 23, 2004

Finally, we arrived in Cairns on Friday afternoon and greeted by the sun. Although we were slightly unsure if we'd arrived at the right destination. Andrew and Jillian were already quibbling over the prononciation "Curns" or "Caaaairns" - work it out for yourselves who said what! :-) However, the bloody Aussies had to come in and add confusion by announcing we would arrive in "Kens" in 2 1/2 hours! Then again it'd be a boring world if we all spoke the same way.

As soon as we landed the first thing to come into our minds was... "Spiders!" We were in for a shock a few days later!
Our first night in Cairns was spent in the Calypso Inn, which was like a mini rainforest with absolutely enormous Fruitbats flying overhead. God knows what the first Irish and Scottish settlers, or convicts more appropriately :-) thought of Australia. The Calypso was to be our return base for the next few nights. Cairns itself was like a big Bangor really, the bay being the main focal point, with just one or two shopping centres and a few shopping streets. It certainly felt more like the Australia you think of, a few of the bars and restaurants were like wild-west saloons full of locals with sun-damaged skin drinking to excess, a bit like us paddies when we go to Majorca for 2 weeks :-)

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