Australia

There is so much I want to say about Australia, and sitting here in the airport, waiting to leave, I am genuinely trying hard not to cry.

I feel like I am part of this country now, and I'm leaving before I'm ready. I have had such an incredible time (keep your eyes peeled for my last blog post which I forgot to upload, concerning my last trip to Queensland) and I have spent seven amazing months with wonderful people. 

Since I've been here, a lot of things have changed back home, and I'm anxious to get back and work out what I'm going to do with my life, but looking out the window at this great big Australian sky, there's nowhere I'd rather be. The feeling of Australia, as many travellers will tell you, is contagious. There are so many beautiful things and fantastic people and amazing places that even after seven months, I feel like I haven't done enough.

The past few weeks, since I've somewhat run out of money, I haven't been doing more than hanging out with my favourite people (and horses), but even that has left me content and happy. Leaving here is breaking my heart.

From here, I'll be travelling to Singapore, and will undoubtedly have a wonderful couple of weeks seeing the sights with Tom, so for that reason, I am staying positive. I am also looking forward to getting home to my family - seven months is a long time!

Still, it was so hard saying goodbye to Courtney and her gorgeous dog, Diesel, my lovely friend Lauren, and of course, my aunt and uncle, who have put up with me all this time. On top of that, Thursday was my last day riding, which meant I had to say a difficult goodbye to my wonderful riding teacher, the lovely people I've been riding with, and last but definitely not least, the beautiful quarter horse, Bailey, who I have fallen completely in love with.

In a way, this was my hardest goodbye. Bailey and I spent several weeks working together, fixing each other's problems. She is an underworked, naughty young mare, and she spent at least half her time trying to buck me off. But she never had me off, and leaving her, knowing she's for sale for far too much money was a real worry for me. I'm not sure where she'll end up, and while I know I can always come back to my friends and family here, Bailey probably won't be around when I get back.

So, in short, although I'm excited for the adventures ahead of me, I'd still like to stay a little longer and spend some more time with the lovely friends I've made. I'm not ready to say goodbye.

Last day of Summer

Ever feel like you're being watched?

 

Somehow, we've got to the end of Australia's summer season. I can't believe I've been here for over four months now, and I've only got two left to go. February has gone by in a bit of a blur; I've been so busy this month. Before Christmas, I was usually up to something maybe three days in a week. Now, I look forward to just getting one day to sleep in.

This month has been most notable because Tom's been here, which has actually worked out great for both of us. Even though we drive each other crazy sometimes, we're also pretty likeminded, so we've made good travel partners. Most recently, we took a trip to Brisbane.

I was so happy to be back in Queensland! The heat hits you like trapped steam waiting outside the plane doors, and it's so much greener up there. Although Victoria possibly has more variety of wildlife, Queensland has a higher abundance. On the way back to the complex from the airport, we found some awesome looking orb spiders, and in the centre of Brisbane, we spotted a pair of gorgeous Curlews (a bird Tom and I have grown fond of) and tons of little water dragons running about the place. We also kept an eye on the river for Bull Sharks, since they're happy in rivers and creeks as well as the sea, but we didn't spot any.

I was in Brisbane for a couple of nights, and my main reason for going was, of course, Australia Zoo. Steve Irwin has been an idol of mine ever since I first watched The Crocodile Hunter. The man was incredible, and I was truly heart broken when he died. I'm a fierce defender of his, and of what he stood for, and I think the world is a little bit worse off without him. Because of this, I would have been so disappointed if I hadn't made it up to his beautiful zoo.

And it was beautiful. What a wonderful place! It's unlike any other zoo I've visited, and I've been to a lot of zoos. There is so much love and devotion to the animals there, and although it is of course somewhat commercial, it isn't over the top and the animals aren't treated like commodities. The enclosures are fantastic, and the bonds between keepers and animals are incredible.

Tom holding a baby Alligator and getting nicknamed Batman. Best day of his life.

The attention to detail in every corner of this zoo was amazing, and I really enjoyed the tributes to Steve, dotted around all over the place. Near the crocoseum, there were walls and walls of newspaper clippings, photographs and condolences from fans. Behind one glass cabinet, there were books laid out with heartfelt messages of sympathy, as well as bits and pieces from Steve's life. I pretty much had to walk away at this point, because it really was making me tearful.

On a slightly more positive note, there were also great sections dedicated to education; teaching visitors that predators like crocs and sharks aren't our enemies and we don't have to attack them the whole time.

The croc show itself was really great. I was excited to hear names that I recognised from back when Steve was still around; notably, Grahame, Aggro, Charlie and Murray. Murray was the croc we saw in action, and he was a rockstar out there.

Murray backing his keeper into a corner.

Although it was a bit short, it was everything I'd expected it to be; an awesome spectacle, with the crocs stealing the show, as it should be. However, we couldn't help thinking how amazing it would have been if Steve had been there, still doing what he loved to do.

That seemed to be the theme of the day; the place was incredible and the animals were truly wonderful, but we were just a little bit sad the whole way round. Then we found the Tigers.

Don't get me wrong, I loved the crocs; they are amazing animals and they're so beautiful and intelligent, but the tigers completely blew us away.

They had a beautiful enclosure; nice and big with plenty to entertain them, and we were told they rotated them, so they weren't all on display the whole time. When we arrived, the tiger on display was so chilled out, which was nice to see, since at Melbourne zoo, they spend their whole time hiding. Shortly after we got there, two keepers came into the enclosure, sat down and had a chat. Yep. Just sat there, in the tiger enclosure.

After chilling with the tiger for a while, they took her out. So basically, they walked over to her, put a leash on her and she walked out with them, chill as anything. Like an overgrown dog. Then they brought Kaitlyn in.

I think I fell in love with this girl before I even saw her. Kaitlyn gave birth to two tiger cubs six months ago, and the keepers told her that, because of the bond they've had with her ever since she arrived, they were able to take care of her throughout her entire pregnancy without once sedating her. We're talking about an apex predator here, one that most people would run as fast as they could away from her, and even when she was pregnant, territorial and moody, they never needed to put her to sleep.

Like the crocs, she put on a great show, but this was less of a predator vs prey spectacle. This was a big cat out with her friend, chasing him around because he had a carton of milk, not because he looked tasty. The only thing that let this show down was the people crowding around the glass and ruining my shots! I'll let the pictures speak for themselves, because really, there are no words to describe how fantastic the Tiger Show at Australia zoo was.

Kaitlyn and her keeper.

An awesome show of what Kaitlyn can do, slightly ruined by reflections on the glass.

Checking Kaitlyn over while she's distracted by milk.



Waiting for someone to throw her 'stick', the hoof of an antelope or deer.

During the show, they didn't bring the baby tigers out, but near the end, the keepers advised us to come back near the end of the day. We spent the next couple of hours revisiting some of our favourite areas, like the Kangaroo and Koala close encounter walk through, as well as making our way to the few enclosures we missed - the zoo was huge!

Then, at about 4pm, we came back and we weren't disappointed. These 'babies' were as big as my dog, but they were adorable. If I hadn't run out of room on my memory card, I'd have spent the rest of the day there, but I can at least share the photos I did get.

Playtime

Complete adoration.

Bad Kitty.

Playtime!

I don't know what more there is to say, except that I am one hundred per cent going back to Australia Zoo. What a wonderful experience it was. I know it's cheesy, but this place was filled with love and passion. The animals were comfortable, happy and well cared for. I didn't get the overcrowded vibe I find at most zoos, and I didn't feel like the animals were constantly being gawked at. It was relaxed, well organised and well managed, and absolutely worth the trip to Brisbane.

In a few weeks, Courtney and I are taking a trip to the Gold Coast, and I believe Australia Zoo is somewhere in between there and Brisbane, so I'm taking her back there. Any animal lover or Steve Irwin family should go, no doubt about it.

Even if it's just to see these little guys. Everywhere.

A tiny water dragon, just chillin'.

Brisbane was so awesome, and I can't wait to get back to Queensland. It's not Cairns, but it's still beautiful and well worth a visit. Until then, I'll enjoy the last few days of summer and look forward to March.

Take care and thanks for reading,

Em