Me.You.Hullabaloo: I'm Just Counting Time Zones

Christmas Day night.

Another late night arrival. We slept in the parking lot of a strip mall just outside Brisbane. Scotty rolled his t-shirts into the windows and covered the windshield with our towels so we would have a little privacy the next morning when the shop employees arrived to work.

TOOTHPASTE SPLOT RIGHT BEHIND THE CAR. YOU CAN CAGE THIS ANIMAL, BUT I'LL ALWAYS BE WILD.

On our way in, we drove past the Australia Zoo- owned and adored by the late Steve Irwin. The next morning we went to one of the memorials, and I totally surprised myself by how choked up I got. Anyone who knows me at all knows I am a hopeless animal maniac. Someone who had such a passion for all living things, who never could contain his excitement when he found a lizard, snake or crocodile and would gush about how much of a "beaut" said creature was... to lose him was a loss for the human race, but it was an even greater loss for those who can't speak for themselves... aaaaannnddd I'm getting choked up again.

THE ROADWAY THAT THE ZOO SITS ON WAS NAMED AFTER STEVE IRWIN. I WAS ALL CHOKEY AND TEARY.

The world could use a few more giant-hearted lunatics like him.

Sadly, we only got to the gates of this zoo (which means I'll have to come back with my lunatic animal adoring friend who rescues every dog and cat she looks at)- if I went in, I would be there til closing, and we didn't have a full day to spare, but seeing that memorial was huge for me. Totally unexpected. Sparked a little something in my heart maybe?

SECURITY THOUGHT I WAS MAD IN MY PJS AND BARE FEET AT 7AM. LADY- THE ZOO DOESN'T OPEN TIL 9:30, YOU'VE GOT TIME TO PUT ON REAL CLOTHES AND RUN A COMB THROUGH YOUR HAIR

We tend to live in a continual state of time zone counting, but Boxing Day down here meant it was Christmas at home- so throughout the day we kept track of what people at home might be doing ("it's 6pm at home, I bet everyone is sitting down to Christmas Dinner" *stares at rumpled piece of bread*)

By 9 am we were gazing at the Glass House Mountains- a group of 11 hills that rise abruptly from the landscape. Access to the peaks is restricted as they are of significant spiritual meaning to the Gubbi Gubbi people. In Dreamtime, Mount Beerwah (the tallest mountain) is the Mother mountain- the giver of life.

We walked through the eucalyptus trees and kept our eyes peeled for 'roos and koalas, but all we found were the source of all the loud buzzing noises above our head: a beetle the size of a june bug- how they can make such a racket is a mystery to me.

After swooning til our swooners were sore, we headed to Redcliffe to see Moreton Bay. While Moreton Island and its abundance of wild dolphins sounds like a total dream (accessible by ferry, but can only get around the island by 4-wheel hire), the mainland side of the bay wasn't as spectacular. Moreton Bay is a sanctuary to dolphins, whales, sharks and boasts the largest Loggerhead turtle population in the country. I presume the water is normally quite calm, but the Christmas swells were still churning up the water on boxing day. If there were turtles, there was no way we would be able to see them.

BEACH GYMS- I AM FAR TOO AWKWARD TO USE THEM

YOU'RE CUTE. I'LL KEEP YOU AROUND.

STILL A LOT OF GROUND TO COVER BEFORE NEW YEARS EVE.

So it was on to the David Fleay Wildlife Park to see a real live Platypus.

"Established by Australian naturalist David Fleay in 1952, the Park today is home to many native animals, which are displayed in surroundings similar to their natural habitats. Managed by the Environmental Protection Agency, the Park aims to raise community awareness about the need to protect native animals, especially rare and threatened species. The Park has a long tradition of breeding native animals and also includes an animal hospital for sick, injured and orphaned animals."- wikipedia

What a peculiar little creature- like a duck, beaver and otter rolled up into one seriously adorable animal. Pictures were tough, as they were in a noctournal house and they just wouldn't sit still. They were so much smaller than I had expected- maybe 10 inches bill to tail. I think we watched them for 30 mins straight. I got a serious kick out of the little lady-platypus who loved to climb up into the waterfall and then belly slide down it into the bigger tank. The keeper said he was pretty sure she enjoyed it because the other girl couldn't figure it out, so it was more of a "look what I can do" than anything. He also told us that the Platypus is the only venomous mammal (males have a spur on their hind leg)- some interesting trivia (you can put that in your back pocket for the next time there's a lull in the conversation).

EXHAUSTED FROM EATING AND "BEING KOALA"

Koalas are what does it for me. Living, breathing, lazy-as-anything teddybears that spend their days eating, sleeping and thinking about sleeping. Rumour is that Koalas are lazy because they get stoned off the eucalyptus leaves. It's a lie (they are very laid back due to their low energy diet), but they do look like little happy stoner teddy bears.

OH PLEASE, JUST ANOTHER GOOGLY-EYED TOURIST... TOO BAD THE BEARS IN YOUR COUNTRY WILL MAUL YOUR FACE OFF.

And then we saw an animal I didn't even know existed: the tree kangaroo. He actually came down his tree while we were watching him and hopped along a beam just like a kangaroo, and then he got fought his friend away from the food like a boss.

POCKET-SIZED WALLABY ON THE LEFT AND THE TREE KANGAROO ON THE RIGHT

It was probably around then that I realized we were the only two people in the park. I got a bit giddy at the thought of being locked in for the night (I'm totally climbing in to the koala enclosure). Instead of leaving, we went back to watch those batty little Platypuses again (it's happening, I'm gonna spend the entire night in a tender embrace with a koala). Those blasted exit doors were still unlocked when we tried them, completely killing my dream.

EVEN THOUGH I'M IMPRESSED, I'M STILL SCARED OF YOU

Surfer's Paradise isn't a surfer's idea of paradise- it's more for people who love to spend money... it felt like the Vegas of Australia. Definitely a lively spot. I imagine a lot of backpackers and caravaners plan on spending one day here, but wake up 4 days later in a ditch. It is full of glitz and glamour and you can hear the voices urging you to pretend you're not sleeping in a car and go out and spend big. We settled on $5 pizza, people watched and wandered through the shops (I've been to Vegas. Twice. I know how to enjoy without spending much).