Great Barrier Reef

After an early morning (breakfast was 6:15) we walked down to the marina to board the Passions of Paradise, a 25 meter (that’s 82 feet) long catamaran, for the two hour trip out to the Great Barrier Reef. It was a bit chilly, and the wind didn’t help, but the best place to be was still right out on the bow (or between the two bows, as it were).

Our first stop was Green Island, a very small sand island surrounded by reef (parts of it have green sand). On the boat I learned that we had the opportunity to not just snorkel but scuba dive as well -- I took the opportunity. We were given a quick lesson in how to use the equipment (put mouthpiece in mouth, breathe normally… nothing too complicated) and then split into groups of three or four with a leader from the crew of the boat guiding us around the reef. We dove for half an hour, and saw some amazing stuff -- giant brain coral the size of a car, sea cucumbers, all kinds of colorful fish, and a giant clam that was about as big as my torso. The guide invited us to put our hands in the clamshell and feel it close on them -- it didn’t close hard, don’t worry -- it was an odd feeling. Once the dive was over we headed back to the boat and then I went over to the island and snorkeled back to the boat through a different area of coral. Then it was time for lunch (shrimp, rice, some kind of beef ratatouille -- all excellent) and a short trip over to the next site, which was a more isolated bit of reef in deeper water with more fish. We snorkeled around there a bit more. Someone in the group saw a shark (don’t worry -- not Jaws, just a small white-tip about the size of a baseball bat, only a threat to little fish). Apparently last week’s group was very lucky, because they saw a whale with a newborn calf, which the guides commented was a very rare sight.

On the trip back to Cairns, the wind had picked up and the sea was becoming much more choppy. A bunch of us stood up in the bow riding the swells and getting soaked; it was a ton of fun. Even though we were out all day, I somehow managed to not get sunburned (at least not that I can tell yet).

Once we got back, it was time for our final briefing with Australearn, where they told us about plans to get us to our universities tomorrow. I fly out of here at 10:50 on QF 5955, arriving in Sydney at 1:45 that afternoon, where the other UTS students in this group (there’s about 13 of us) and I will meet up with our contact there for the bus ride to the university, where we’ll settle into our accommodations and get ready for the semester...