Well, no early bird special last night! Rested up from the previous night’s 6:30pm bedtime, we decided to take the front desk agent up on his recommendation and give the Woolshed a try. After something as awesome as a day swimming at the Great Barrier Reef, we were both utterly mellow, just taking it all in, which was exactly the atmosphere of Woolshed around 8:00pm. We ventured upstairs to the lounge/bar/restaurant area, grabbed ourselves a drink and headed to the open air deck that overlooked the street. This place was decked out in wood and bamboo, and the canopy from the massive trees outside made it feel like we were in an aborigine hut out in the jungle…complete with a thatched roof.
That fateful game of pool changed the course of the night. For one, it was the longest game, ever. And no, not due to any craziness like a lack of pool skills, but the table was so cramped in the room! We had to maneuver around people’s legs, tables, walls etc. etc. in order to get a shot, yet somehow we managed, even with the smaller balls. Big difference from American pool, there were no numbers or range of colors, but just red and yellow. 2 choices. We ambled through this obstacle course until Robby, a guy camped out on a nearby stool, introduced himself. It’s really amazing sometimes how small the world can be! This guy was an American, and the fact that we were American travelers (something he had found very few of on his escapades) prompted the intro. He is starting med school at USC in the fall, but before he signs up for the next 10 years of school he’s on a travelling blow out, hitting all the spots of New Zealand, Australia, Dubai, Singapore… Cairns really is the mecca for travelers and backpackers.
If this was Transfomers, here is where we morphed from a semi and a camaro into Optimus Prime and Bumblebee. After Robby took off, we headed to the bathroom with the idea that we would call it an early night and head back to our hotel. But the place had other plans for us. Apparently, it was Ladies Night and by the time we came out of the bathroom, the music was pumpin, the black lights flashin, and Kir Royale was flowin into the plastic flute we found in our hands. After getting an intro into the backpacking realm, we bumped into two locals: Mitch and Davidy, two airplane mechanics/mango farmers. These two kept us cracking up the entire night with their random quips and pretty sweet dance moves. Gloria Estefan was right: the rhythm IS gonna get you. When Boom Boom Pow came blasting over the speakers, Sabrina and I busted out the moves girls break out in their rooms when the door is locked and blinds are closed. Oh yes, we brought back the robot, the hustle, Greased Lightnin and just random all out, go for it moves. Sabrina’s thought really echoed it all: “I wish these people would move so I could have more space. I need space to DANCE!!!!” Later that night, we could not care less about our ringing ears or hoarse throats- we had enough laughs from all that dancing to take us on home! Honestly, we should have known what the night would bring when Jamiroquai kicked it all off.
It was a pretty terrific night, and awesome getting to meet some other travelers and of course local mango farmers. Waking up today, I still can’t get enough of our view. I know when we finally post our pictures you’ll probably think, “Wait, didn’t I see that view before?” But outside our window and the walk down to town, I just completely understand Monet trying to capture Cathedrals and Parliament in absolutely every shade of light the time of day offers. It’s a tremendous view no matter the color of the sky.
Today though was our day to relax, explore and enjoy what Cairns had to offer. After another fantastic brekkie, we walked along the water down to the pool that is the center of the town. This is no suburban community pool, mind you. This thing is huge, open in the middle of town, and it looks like it just falls off into the ocean. We grabbed our towels, LC News, and camped out alongside ~75 others in the surrounding grass. Everyone is so relaxed, enjoying the view and just taking it all in. My favorite was this nearby Jack Johnson-esque guitarist who unintentionally entertained the crowd. That was literally our entire day. We had all these notions of running around and doing this and that, but that so quickly went out the window. That is local life- spending time with friends and enjoying the outdoors…all day long.
It was just a gorgeous, perfectly relaxing day. Heading back as the sun began to set, we stopped at a street café and enjoyed some more fanastically fresh food. It’s amazing, every time plates are set in front of us with all sorts of vegetables adorning them, Sabrina and I look at each other and say, “Okay, I’ll talk to you in 15 minutes.” It’s THAT good!
In other news, our pictures will be posted on Picasa soon and we’ll link y’all up. There are some pretty sweet ones! We’ve got a day in nature for tomorrow, but hope everyone has a wonderful Sabbath!
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