Gyoo

It’s 14h30. I’ve just arrived in Cairns after a long trip from Japan. During the flight, I’ve got plenty of time to read lonely planet and to work out plan for my vacation.

During my connection in Brisbane, I’ve meet Asumi and Yuko, two nice Japanese students who are planing exactly the same itinerary than me in Australia and Hong Kong. One difference: they have already booked everything from Japan, on my side nothing… But I’ve been talked that Australia is a backpacker friendly country, so it should be ok. I hope I will meet again Asumi and Yuko, but Australia is a so huge country.

Very sunny and hot for this afternoon. I’m going in a travel agency to book some tours in Cairns and Alice Springs. You have a lot of choices of travel agencies in Cairns, probably the tourism is the first industry of this city and backpackers are welcome everywhere.

I’m spending the rest of the day to visit Cairns. The sea side in very beautiful, especially at the sunset. People look friendly, even if it’s quite difficult to understand Aussie English the first hours… Everything is going well until it starts raining ! I was about to forget that I’m in the monsoon belt and that from January to March it is the hot and wet season.

I’m spending the night at Captain Cook backpacker hostel, I’ve selected from the information tourism office at the airport. This hostel is on Sheridan St, a 15 minutes walk from the center of Cairns. Quite good. I’m sharing the room with an Australian guy and two Dutchmen. But I’m too much tired to join them into night club, and the hard rain outside definitely convainced myself to go to bed early today.