Alyssa Lai, 2011 North Queensland student blogger, writes:
G’day from Port Douglas!
It’s good to be back in civilization! We spent three days in Tyrconnell after we said a tearful goodbye to Yungaburra and On the Wallaby. Tyrconnell is basically in the middle of nowhere—the true Outback. And Outback it was—I actually spotted a kangaroo outside our tents, pictured left, right when I woke up. I was a deer caught in the headlights, though, and I didn’t even have time to react and get my camera out to take a picture before it hopped away.
During our stay there, we learned a lot about the challenges of living in the Outback, like seclusion, communication, and unpredictable weather conditions. It’s really a beautiful place, though, as the picture at right shows, and we had plenty of time to relax and get fed! We ate five tim
es a day: breakfast, morning tea, lunch, afternoon tea (or smoko, as they call it here), and dinner. It’s definitely a tradition that I’ll be bringing back home with me to the States! We also got the chance to taste pavlova, which is a traditional Australian Christmas dessert. It’s sort of a pie filled with yummy meringue goodness and berries on top.
Now, we’re in Port Douglas, which is an absolutely gorgeous city. Yesterday, we went to the Wildlife Habitat where we fed kangar
oos and got to hold a koala(that’s me pictured holding one)! Today, we went out on the reef, and it’s completely amazing, as you can tell from my underwater picture. We snorkeled in two locations, collecting some data for our research project. (It’s not ALL fun and games here…) We had to tally up a certain species of fish to determine the health of the reef. Many reefs all around the 
world are threatened from climate change, human activity, and natural disasters. Because all life on the planet is connected and dependent on each other, it’s important that we save our reefs before it’s too late!
Tomorrow is another day at the reef and then we’re off to Cape Tribulation for some fun Daintree Rainforest exploration!
Cheers!
