A few months ago I packed my backpack and traveled to the other half of the world, Australia. I told you how you should/could visit the country in my previous post, this one will be my crazy experiences.
If you don’t like read, watch my Youtube video:
The roadtrip of a lifetime
Although every corner of Australia is interesting, the east side of the country attracts the most tourists. You can rent a car and go for a real adventure, but many backpackers travel by hop-on hop-off buses.
If you are interested in this solution then I recommend Stray Travel. They offer bus trips of various lengths, where the price of your ticket includes accommodation, meals, and amazing programs too. And how much time you spend at each stops is up to you!
Unfortunately, due to time and financial constraints, I missed out on a lot of exciting adventures. Here are some cool things that you should do!
Moving north from south, the first stop in Qweensland is the Gold Coast, south of Brisbane. The Gold Coast is one of the country’s largest tourist destinations due to its beaches, theme parks and vibrant nightlife.
When I planned my trip, I added Fraser Island on my bucket list. One of the greatest experiences here is cruising along the Beach Highway in a 4WD. Maybe next time!
People travel to the Whitsunday Islands from all over the world to see the 74 continental islands and white sands of Whitehaven Beach.
Cairns – The capital city of the Great Barrier Reef
My destination was Cairns, a central holiday paradise next to the Great Barrier Reef. Previously, it was a forgotten little oceanfront town full of sugar cane plantations, but thanks to divers and snorkelers, a new era began here a few years ago. A large number of tourists arrive here every year, so you can choose from a whole range of organized tours.
Since Cairns is a tourist destination, there are plenty of companies offering 1 day tours in the area. Take a walk in the Daintree Rainforest, the world’s oldest living rainforest, and bathe in waterfalls, springs or even the crater of an old volcano!
Learning to dive
The best way to see the Great Barrier Reef is in a diving suit! If you want to become a Certified Scuba Diver you had to get a certification. You need to learn the basic principles of scuba diving in a class room, you need to develop basic scuba skills in a pool, and have to make four open water dives with your instructor.
Everything is OK! 
Corals and several fish 
This is how it looks like from above 
It was so much fun
I started my diving course back in Hungary and finished it in Australia by making the 4 open water dives there. During the 3 days we spent on the ocean, we dived a total of 9 times. I saw clownfishes, a 145-year-old giant turtule swam before my eyes, and we even dived in the middle of the night! It was the best adventure of my life!
I am telling you, you have to try it! I was scared at first but the FOMO kicked in!
If you also want to learn to dive and if you are not a native English speaker I suggest you to start your diving course at home. A local instructor could teach you much more faster and you don’t waste your holidays in a class room.
Holding a Koala in the Kuranda Koala Gardens!
If you think of Australia, probably the kangaroos, and the koalas come to your mind. Luckily, I was able to see both from extremely close!
When I was in Australia, I’ve spent a few days with Amy, whom offered me her couch. We went up together to Kuranda, which is a hidden village near Cairns.
@mrdanielrowland #Travel #adventures in #australia #backpacking #koala #traveltiktok #travellife #travelbucketlist #memories ♬ original sound – Mr Daniel Rowland
Unfortunately, it is not possible to hold a koala in New South Wales, Victoria, Tasmania or the Northern Territory. Queensland offers the widest range of zoos and wildlife parks with hands on Koala encounters.
If you are in Cairns be sure to visit Kuranda Koala Gardens!
Getting here is an extraordinary journey through World Heritage rainforest whether you chose the Skyrail Rainforest Cableway or Kuranda Scenic Railway.
Sidenote: Many people think that koalas are bears, even though they are not. Like kangaroos, they are they’re marsupials and they exclusively eat eucalyptus leaves. As their diet is quite low in nutritional value, they sleep most of the time.
You can see kangaroos up close in several parts of the country. You can even feed them in the reservations, but don’t expect them to jump you around. They are mainly active at dawn and early in the morning, as well as in the late afternoon. However, in the heat of the southern sun, they are most often laying in the shade.
If you’re lucky, have a joint selfie and you can take them!
By the way, did you know that selfie is an Australian word? Australians cut everything short. Aussie means Australian, Barbie Barbecue, and Cigi means cigarette.
Uluru – the sight you might wanna skip
After Crains and the Great Barrier Reef, my journey led to the center of the country, to the Uluru.
Uluru is a witness mountain or island mountain and This UNESCO World Heritage Site and is one of Australia’s most recognisable natural landmarks.
Aboriginal Australia’s have been living on these lands since the beginning. For the Anangu people, It is a Sacred Site, it’s like temples to us, so if you are there, please don’t climb on it.
If you say in the middle of nowhere you probably think of this place. The nearest major city, Alice Springs is 460 km away, and there are really not many attractins so most of the tourists come here for 1 night.
When I landed, the guide was waiting for me in a SUV and took me to our camp site. I put my stuff in my tent – which was this one – we set off to explore the red mountains. After we discovered the Kata Tjuta rock formations in the evening, we watched the sunset with a glass of champagne, and then we had a 1,000-star dinner under the open sky.
It was a special experience, but I fully understand those who skip this part of the country.
The 20 days I spent in Australia were one of the most beautiful experiences of my life and it was worth all the money.
Are you safe in Australia?
When I told my friends that I went to Australia, they usually asked me and weren’t you scared? Indeed, the most dangerous animals live there. Everyone is terrified of shark attacks, snakes and spiders. Statistically speaking you’re pretty unlikely to be killed by an Apex predator here.
But which animals have killed the most people? The horses. Between 2008 and 2017, horses caused 77 deaths in Australia. And sharks killed 26 people. As of 2000, a total of 2,285 shark attacks have been registered worldwide, 443 of them off the coast of Australia. Most shark attacks took place in the United States, by the way.
And there are more than 10,000 beaches in Australia and almost 1,000 on its uninhabited islands. Yet in North Quensland you will find only a few where you can swim.
One of the main reasons for this is that swimming in the ocean is really dangerous here, because for example, the sting of a cube jellyfish can be fatal. In some places, for example, nets stretched in the water provide protection against this, but jellyfishes, which are also dangerous, are not kept away by the net. So if you want to swim, head to the pool!
What is the difference between an alligator and a crocodile? For example alligators prefer freshwater habitats, while crocodiles prefer to live in seawater. These reptiles have been seen as far away as 1,000 kilometers from the mainland.
But don’t worry, not only crocodiles eat humans, but humans also eat crocodiles! Or you can even taste emu or kangaroo meat.
