To the far Antipodes – 330.5

Well, I’m away for the next month. I will be returning home to unemployment, but I still intend to have a good trip.

I hope to be able to upload a few comments and pictures from the road, but I don’t know if it will be possible, so here is a breakdown of the schedule.

9/11 and 9/12 – flying to Australia. We lose a day, so arrive…
9/13 – land in Cairns and bus to Port Douglas. Check in to the Port Douglas Motel. We are two blocks from the beach.
9/14 – The Rainforest Habitat. Here we will enjoy breakfast with the birds, and get photo opportunities with koalas.
9/15 – Daintree Rainforest and Cape Tribulation Exotic Fruit Farm. We will NOT be tree-surfing, but we should still have a good time. We will have to head straight back to Cairns when we get in that night.
9/16 – Snorkeling on the Great Barrier Reef, then the afternoon on Green Island. Yes, this is the Green Island mentioned in “A Town Like Alice”, although it is a lot more touristy now.
9/17 – Fly to Ayers Rock and check out the area.
9/18 – Camel Express Tour in the morning, and Mt. Connor Safari in the afternoon.
9/19 – Fly to Sydney.
9/20 – Taronga Zoo and a symphony at the Sydney Opera House.
9/21 – Sydney Harbor Bridge Climb, and we hope to make it over to Bondi Beach.
9/22 – Fly into Hobart. We will actually be staying in Seven Mile Beach, right on the beach.
9/23 – We will head to Port Arthur, staying overnight so we can take the ghost tour.
9/24 – We will take a cruise around the rocks, then get back into Hobart.
9/25 – Tour of Hobart, including the Cadbury factory, Bonorong Wild Animal Park, and the town of Richmond.
9/26 – Fly to Adelaide early, and explore the town on foot.
9/27 – Start a 5-day bus tour along the Great Ocean Road. The first night we will go to Kangaroo Island.
9/28 – We will go by the Remarkable Rocks, Admiral’s Arch, and Stokes Bay.
9/29—The Grampians, MacKenzie Falls, and The Balconies.
9/30—The Pinnacle and the Twelve Apostles
10/1 – Last day of this tour. We go through Otway Fly, Torquay, and land in Melbourne.
10/2 – Phillip Island via Wildlife Up Close park. We will get to see the penguin parade.
10/3 – Leave for Auckland. We hope to make it to Sharon Finn’s gallery, but it is a late flight.
10/4 – Cruise of the Bay of Islands
10/5 – Kelly Tarlton’s Antarctic Adventure and explore the Dominion after church.
10/6 – Travel to Rotorua by bus, stopping to take a tour of the Waitomo Glowworm Caves.
10/7 – Hobbiton Movie Set tour and Sheep Farm Experience
10/8 – Kiwi Encounter at Rainbow Springs Nature Park, and hangi at Tamaki Maori Village that night.
10/9 –Fly to Queenstown on the South Island, and transfer by ground to Te Anau.
10/10 – Kayaking on Milford Sound.
10/11 –transfer to Dunedin, where we will visit Larnach Castle and the Royal Albatross colony.
10/12 – Mainly a quiet day in Dunedin, but we will visit the local Cadbury factory.
10/13 – Scenic route back to Queenstown, via Otago and the Remarkables. There is a farewell barbecue that night.
10/14 – Fly home. We don’t exactly gain a day, but despite many hours in the air, we arrive here on the 14th.

See you then.