Cairns: Kuranda trip

   Good morning again!! Today is the day that we go to the reef. . .  I am so excited. We talked to a young couple yesterday while riding in a cable car as they'd just been to the reef the day before. They got me even more excited! But that'll be the post for tomorrow. . .
   Yesterday we went to a village called Kuranda, up in the rain forest. We took a train up there that was built by 1500 men over a period of 23 years. An incredible feat once you see what must have been involved. It was started in 1882 and all the men had to build it with were axes and picks and there were 15 tunnels involved! They had to move 2.3 million cubic metres of earth, another amazing feat given that they only had mules to help them. But I digress. . .
   We took the train up with beautiful scenic views all around. More than half-way there we stopped at the Barron Falls, the highest waterfall in Oz. It was amazing - well worth the trip. But what was to come was even more exciting for me. Once at the village, we headed over to the Koala Park and Bird World. We paid extra so I could hold one of the koalas - his name was Fred - and I was amazed at how much the little guy weighed! They don't move much at all and the trainer places him in your arms. They don't let you really pet them or anything but I asked if I could once she took him back from me. They have to have the lowest metabolisms in the world because they always look like they want to go to sleep. There were 2 others nearby, both sleeping, and they are just adorable. My first reaction was how heavy Fred was.
   After Fred, we walked around to see the wombats, fed a wallaby, saw Squirrel Gliders, crocs, water dragons, and kangaroos. My kind of place!! Connected to the Park was Bird World, which also exceeded my expectations. It's a huge, covered (netted) dome with all kind of exotics and local birds flying all around you, some landing on people's heads and shoulders. I had to take off my earrings and necklace because the parrots like to take those things! We took tons of pictures because they have feeders all around the walkways right in front of you so you can just stand there and the birds fly in to eat. They had just introduced a new cassowary to the area but she was still acclimatizing and stayed under a bush.
   When we came down from Kuranda, we took the SkyRail which skimmed the tops of the rain forest. Really pretty but not as awe-inspiring as the train. We got back around 5:30 so the day was gone. We headed back to the Esplanade to find a smallish meal as neither of us were very hungry. We started talking to a couple next to us, from NSW, and they gave us several suggestions for places to stop as we drive along the southern coast.
(Pictures are loading veeeeery slowly from this website - will post them later!)