Days 4 and 5 - Moreton Island

We had to get to the ferry bright and early for the hour's ride from Brisbane to Morton Island. Eeew! I have never seen such a big beetle in my life. It was on its back on the floor of the loo since last night and it couldn't right itself and I wasn't about the touch it to help it out. Next morning, it was still wiggling its legs. They sure have long deaths. On the drive to the ferry Stephen was talking about a big UV. I wasn't sure if I heard him correctly and then I realized he was talking about an RV. We all got a laugh out of that. The ferry ride was so warm and it was nice basking in the sun. As we approached the island I took alot of pictures. It was very beautiful. When we arrived, our attentive taxi driver, Jim, was waiting for us in the Mitsubishi (Missy) 4-wheel drive. It was a huge bus-type vehicle that had very good suspension. The ride to our cabins was more fun than an amusement ride. I was sitting in the back of the truck and it was very bouncy - not such a good thing you have to pee. Good thing we were wearing seat belts! Sometimes the vehicle rocked back and forth so much I was afraid it was going to tip, but I was amazed how it never did. I was laughing out loud because it was so much fun. When we arrived at the cabin we all claimed our beds and went to the beach for about an hour before we started our adventures. We all hopped in Missy and Jim took us to the most northern point of the island, where there's a lighthouse and lots of whales and turtles. The whales were too far out to get a picture of them though. Sure Ellen, you're thinking - twice now you've been too far away from the whales to take pictures!!! Believe me, if I could swim with them, I would. After spending time watching the whales, or at least their spouting, we went to another beach where we walked to a wall of rocks to watch the water break. Water splashed every where, including onto Yolanda's camera. Now she can't take pictures, but hopefully, it will dry out enough to start working again. The sand here has alot of silica in it so it squeaks when you walk. Next destination, Blue Lagoon - no, not from the movie. Blue Lagoon is a fresh water lake with tea tree and eucalyptus in the water. After I swam in it for awhile, I was healed of all my ailments. We had a long, hot day and retreated back to our cabins for dinner, but not before we checked out the sunset at the nearest western beach. When you're on a small island, any beach isn't far away. The sun sets very fast. Last night's dinner was Risotto. I'm eating better than when I'm at home. It's really too bad there are no kangaroos in Canada; it is very tasty. After dinner the boys decided to play a game of beer pong. It's a game where you bounce a ping pong ball off the table and try to make it land in the opponent's cup which is full of beer. When it lands, one person on the opposing team drinks that glass and whoever drinks all their glasses first loses. It was a lot of fun; although, I didn't partake in this particular activity because I don't drink beer Yuk!

I went to bed before 10 pm and had a great sleep - one of the few I've had since I've been here. Must be because I was in a bed and not on an inflatable mattress. We leave here at 3 pm Friday (today) and we have alot to do before then. First thing's first - breakfast - cereal and yogurt. We only take the gear we need today - water, flip flops, swim suit, cameras (the cameras have been stored in plastic bags because of the very fine sand), sunnies (sun glasses) and sunscreen. The rest of our gear was left on the beach in a truck so we wouldn't have to haul it around. Then we made lunch. I had to make a sandwich with white bread. White bread? White bread is a foreign substance. This isn't right, but you have to work with the cards that are dealt. It didn't even feel right making a sandwich with it. The first thing we did was climb Mount Tempest, the highest point on Moreton Island. I dare you to try hiking up a mountain in flip flops in sand. My calves were killing me. The sand was way too hot to walk in bare feet. Okay, we're here now. Snap,snap, let's go. I'm hot. I need air conditioning, at least until we get to the desert to go sand boarding - laying on a waxed board face down and riding down a sand dune. I thought there was alot of sand in places where sand shouldn't be after surfing, but let me tell you, sand boarding in the desert is way sandier. We could hardly wait to get to the sea to rinse off while we waited for the ferry to come and pick us up. Now we've checked into our next campground and pitched our tent, showered, ate and caught up with my blogging and e-mails. Tomorrow we're going to the Australia Zoo, Steve Irwin's zoo. You've all heard of Steve Irwin - he's the Australian crocodile hunter who was killed by a stingray. I wasn't really interested in going because I went to the Taronga Zoo in Sydney, but I have been told that "You have to go, it's an Australian icon." There are rhinos and I can feed the elephants whoo hoo! More later.