After flying from Sydney to the Gold Coast for a wonderful week at Aboriginal Camp, I made my way to Adelaide and then to Kangaroo Island on a miniature jumper plane to meet up with my family for my Independent Study Week. Kangaroo Island, a dry summer grassland with marvelous wines and cheeses, has preserved close to fifty percent of its original wildlife habitats in its sprawling national parks and private properties. You can find these Grey Kangaroos, tammar wallabies and Australian and New Zealand fur seals all year round. On our trip we even saw some fur seal pups. Freakin’ adorable.
We made our way around the Island in an old white off-road Land Rover on the second day to “Remarkable Rocks.” One of “nature’s wonders,” as described by Kangaroo Islands attractions brochure and our lovely host, Mandy, Remarkable Rocks hold true to their name. The VERY LARGE granite rocks were laid down about 500 Million years ago, and have varying size and shape. One even looks like Ms. Piggy, much to the amusement of American Tourists who enjoy looking at rocks.
Afterwards, we went into a nature conservation site across the Island, hoping to see Koalas (and avoid the legend of the Drop Bear). Along the way our car came across a Black Tiger Snake (one of Australia’s deadliest) in the middle of the road (don’t worry we stayed in the car so we were never THAT close to death). As we learned in class, most snakes are more scared of you then you are of them.
Once in the sanctuary, we craned our necks upward in search of the sleepy Koalas. They were introduced to the Island in case anything happened to the species on the mainland. Unfortunately, they overfilled their little tummies with eucalyptus leaves, destroying the trees in certain parts of the Island. To address this problem, scientists have taken some of these animals and moved them to different areas, not knowing that Koalas do in fact communicate with each other and become distressed and saddened when away from their close friends. Much like cows, whom also have best friends (fun fact!).
After Kangaroo Island, my family and I flew to Melbourne, the tropical cousin of Portland’s hipster paradise, enjoying a fantastic four days of Italian food and the Great Ocean Road before I bid them adieu and journeyed back to Brisbane to explore this sunny modernist Queensland hub.
*My really cool iPhone pic*