HelpX Sally juures – I osa // HelpX at Sally's – Part I

Viimased n2dalad oleme me veetnud Sally kaunis talus, kahe tunni kaugusel Brisbane'ist. Sally on elav ja nooruslik 59-aastane naine, kes kolis siia tallu kolm aastat tagasi, et oma 90-aastase ema eest hoolt kanda (kes on muuseas Loch Lomondi l2hedalt p2rit shotlanna). Krunt on suur ja imekaunis – nende elamine, kaunis klassikalises Queenslandi stiilis ehitatud valge puumaja, on ymbritsetud laia muruv2ljaga kus leidub hiigelsuuri viigipuid, mis pakuvad imelisi varjulisi puhkekohtasid, palju teisi ilusaid 6itsevaid puusid ja p66said, lisaks ka juurviljaaed ja v2ikesed bambusesalud. Krunt oli aga paraku enne Sally tulekut t2iesti k2est 2ra l2inud, kuna ta ema oli liiga vana, et selle eest j6uda hoolt kanda. Et kohale j2lle elu sisse puhuda, on Sallyl olnud palju HelpX abilisi ning suur hulk t88d on juba 2ra tehtud, ent palju on veel ikka teha j22nud.

Peale Sally ja ta ema elab siin ka koer Brandy (kes, vaatamata oma 14-le eluaastale on uskumatult energiline), kaks kaunist ent enamasti peidus olevat kassi, lambad Buoy ja Baby (Baby on h2sti tubli tydruk ent Buoy kipub 2hmi t2is minema ja igasuguseid asju, eriti k2rusid, rammima), ning kolm paabulindu – kaks isast ja yks emane (k6ik kes hirmsasti armastavad meie aknast oma peegeldust imetleda).

Kui me siia saabusime, oli Sally juba yhte HelpX abilist v66rustamas – Justin, ameeriklane Baltimore'ist, Marylandist. Ning p2ev p2rast meie saabumist tulid siia veel kaks ameerika poissi – Kyle San Diegost, Californiast, ja Brett Denverist, Coloradost. K6ik kolm on Austraalias ringi reisinud ja nagu meiegi, kasutavad HelpXi et natuke maakanti uuristada. Seega on meil sel korral hoopis teistsugune kogemus kuna me ei ole ainukesed abilised. Ylimalt tore on olnud teistega aega veeta ja yhtlasi saame me ka tunduvalt rohkem t88d tehtud. Yhtlasi, kuna Sally on juba kogenud v66rustaja, on ta abilistele yles seadnud igasuguseid mugavusi. Meil on suure maja all korrusel oma eraldi vannituba, k88k ja elutuba/veranda, kus me enamus oma 6htuid veedame – syya tehes v6i grillides ning juttu ajades v6i niisama l66gastudes. Loomulikult on siin ka kyllaga ruumi kus abilised magada saavad – Justin magas suure maja vabas magamistoas ning Kyle ja Brett on end yles seadnud vanas lehmalaudas, kus nad oma minibussis magavad. Mina ja Paolo 88bime aga eraldi v2ikeses vanamoodsas majakeses, mis on yleni meie p2ralt. Siin on ilus, 6hurikas ja ylimalt mugav ning me oleme siin absurdselt h2sti maganud.

T88d teeme me viiel p2eval n2dalas, esmasp2evast reedeni, ning tavaliselt 2rkame me varakult yles, teeme 4-5 tundi t88d kuni l6unani, misj2rel on meil p2rastl6unad vabad. T88 on olnud peamiselt v2ikese majakese ja lehmalauda vaheliselt alalt lantana 2ra puhastamine – lantana on teatud tyypi okkaline p66sas, mis on hiigelsuure ala t2ielikult 2ra vallutanud. Paolo on yhtlasi ka k6iksuguseid asju parandanud, sh m88blit, t88riistasid, v2ravaid jms. Ma ise olen p2ris palju aiat88d ja rehimist teinud. Krunt on suur ja siin on alati midagi teha, seega hommikuti on meil k2ed-jalad t88d-tegemist t2is.

Seevastu on aga meie vabad p2rastl6unad uskumatult l66gastavad. Ma olen siin tundideviisi m6nusa tuuleiili k2es lugenud. Tihti oleme me l2hedalasuva j6e ja tammiga j2rve 22rde s6itnud et ujuda ja/v6i kalastada (seni pole aga midagi n2kanud :( ). P2rastl6unad on siin t2ielik paradiis!

N2dalavahetuseti me ei t88ta ja m88dunud puhkep2evad olid aktiivsed. Laup2eval l2ksime me ameerika poistega Noosa Headsi, mis on kaunis mere22rne linnake k6rvuti looduskaitsealaga, siit vaid tunni kaugusel. Linn ja sealne rand olid populaarsed ning puhkep2eva nautivat rahvast t2is. Me l2ksime looduskaitsealale, kaunist ranniku/kaljuteed m88da jalutama. Tagasiteel l2ksime me Paologa ka ookeani ujuma – vesi oli kristallpuhas, v2rskendav ja parajate lainetega kuhu oli tore sisse hypata – t2iuslik ujumiskoht. Ent retke absoluutne tipphetk oli t2itsa p2ris koaala looduses n2gemine! Ta oli pargi sissep22su l2hedal, suure eukalyptipuu otsas tukkumas. Tuli v2lja, et see koaala ongi alati enamus ajast selle puu otsas, ent sellegipoolest oli v2ga p6nev teda n2ha!

Pyhap2eval viis Sally minu, Paolo ja Justini Kondalilla Rahvusparki kylastama (teised poisid l2ksid hoopis kalale). Tegemist oli imekauni vihmametsapargiga ja me tegime pika jalutusk2igu, mille l6pus saime k6rge Kondalilla kose otsas olevas j2rvekeses ujuda. Tagasiteel peatusime me Sally poolt soovitatud pubis, kus saime 6lle juues imetleda imekaunist vaadet kaugele rannikule.

Esmasp2eval lahkus Justin, et oma reisi j2tkata ja praegu oleme me neljakesi. N2dala jooksul oleme me j2tkanud eelnevalt kirjeldatud t88dega. Yks p6nev seik juhtus aga kaks p2eva tagasi, kui siin oli t88mees ekskavaatoriga, kes aitas meil lantanat aida katuse otsast eemaldada. Seda tehes tuli v2lja, et katuse otsas lantana all oli peidus suur pyyton, kelle saime koheselt ka kinni pyytud ja kasti pandud. Me v6tsime kasti ja s6itsime koos ameeriklastega krundist kaugele j6e 22rde, kus me mao j2lle vabadusse lasime (aga mitte enne kui Kyle oli saanud temaga m2ngimisest isu t2is). Seekordne pyyton oli 'ainult' 1,5 meetrit pikk, seega mitte nagu too hiiglane keda me viimase HelpXi ajal Cooktowni l2histel n2gime, ent sellegipoolest oli ta muljetavaldav – eriti ta keskpaigas olev suur muhk, mille sees oli ilmselt pooleldi seeditud hiljuti kadumal2inud paabulinnupoeg. Me poleks Paologa osanud arvata, et saaksime veelkord pyytoni pyydmist ja lahtilaskmist kogeda – ilmselgelt pole tegu siinkandis just haruldase n2htusega! (Toim: Samal 6htul kui ma selle kirjutisega valmis sain, leidis Kyle tualetiust kinni panema minnes ukse pealt j2rjekordse pyytoni! Seekord j2tsime me ta rahule kuna tegelikult on tegemist rahumeelse loomaga ja pole vaja neid mujale viia, kui nad just liiga suured ei ole ja koduloomadele ohuks).

Hetkeseisuga oleme me Sally juures ylimalt rahul ja oleme otsustanud siin veeta ka kolmanda n2dala. J2rgmisel n2dalal yhinevad meiega veel paar abilist – yks poola paar, kes on varem juba siin olnud. Mida rohkem, seda uhkem – siin on see t6esti t6si!

//////////////////////////////////

We have spent the last weeks at Sally's beautiful homestead two hours north of Brisbane. Sally is a lively and energetic 59-year-old lady who moved to this farm three years ago to look after her 90-year-old mother (who, by the way, is a Scotswoman from near Loch Lomond). The homestead is large and absolutely gorgeous – the main house, a beautiful white wooden construction in the classic Queenslander style, is surrounded by a rolling hillside covered with grass, absolutely massive fig trees providing beautiful shady spots, lots of other gorgeous flowering trees, plus a vegetable garden and small groves of bamboo. However, it had gotten a bit out of hand up until Sally moved in, since her mother could no longer take care of the huge property due to her age. To help her get the place back up and running, Sally has had lots of HelpXers come here, and a huge amount of work has already been done, with lots more still to go.

Apart from Sally and her mum, the place is also home to Brandy the dog (who, despite her 14 years, is unbelievably energetic), two beautiful but elusive cats, Buoy and Baby the two sheep (Baby is a very good girl, but Buoy tends to want to headbutt stuff, especially wheelbarrows, when he gets too excited), and three peacocks – two boys and a girl (all of who just LOVE looking at their reflection in the window of our cabin).

When we arrived, there was already another HelpXer staying with Sally – Justin, an American guy from Baltimore, Maryland. And the day after we arrived, two more American guys showed up – Kyle, from San Diego, California, and Brett, from Denver, Colorado. All three have been travelling in Australia, like us, and are using HelpX to see a bit of the countryside. So this time we have had a very different experience since we are not the only ones here. It has been great having others around and we also get a lot more work done. Also, since Sally has had many volunteers before, she has built up brilliant facilities for the helpers. We have our own separate bathroom, kitchen and chillout area on the ground floor of the house, which is where we spend most of our evenings – cooking or barbecuing, chatting and chillaxing. There is also, obviously, lots of space for helpers to sleep in. Justin stayed in the spare bedroom in the main house, while Kyle and Brett have claimed the old dairy where they parked their van which they sleep in. Paolo and I stay in a rustic cabin separate from the main house, which we have all to ourselves. It is beautiful, breezy and extremely comfortable, we have been sleeping ridiculously well.

We work five days a week, Monday to Friday, and we usually get up early and work for 4-5 hours until lunchtime, after which we have our afternoons off. For work, the main job so far has been clearing lantana, a bushy, thorny plant that had taken over a huge area between the cabin and the dairy. Paolo has also been fixing all sorts of things, including furniture, gates and machinery. I have been doing some painting of various objects as well as quite a bit of gardening and raking. It's a big place and there is always stuff to do, so we are busy in the mornings.

Our free afternoons, on the contrary, have been exceedingly relaxing. I have spent hours just reading, and enjoying the lovely afternoon breeze. We have also done frequent trips to the nearby river and dammed lake for swimming and/or fishing (although we have yet to catch something :( ). The afternoons here are absolute paradise basically!

The weekends we have off, and the last one we had was very active. On Saturday we went with the American boys to Noosa Heads – a beautiful seaside town and wildlife reserve just an hour away from the homestead. It's a popular place with the town and beach full of people enjoying their day off. We went for a beach/cliff-side walk in the reserve, which was beautiful. Paolo and I also went for a swim in the ocean on our way back – the water was crystal clear, refreshing and with fun waves to jump into – a perfect swim. But the definite highlight was seeing an actual, real koala in the wild! It was just at the entrance to the reserve, in a tall Eucalyptus tree. Apparently the koala is a resident there and is found in that tree more often than not, but it was still very exciting!

On Sunday, Sally took Justin, Paolo and me to Kondalilla National Park (the two other guys stayed and went fishing instead). It was a beautiful rainforest park and we went for a long walk, followed by a swim in the rock pools on top of the Kondalilla waterfall. On the way back, we stopped for a pint at a pub which had an amazing view toward the coast far away.

On Monday, Justin left to continue his travels, and for now it's just us four remaining here. We have carried on working during the week doing the stuff that I described above. However, on one day there was a contractor here with an excavator who helped to get rid of the lantana growing on top of the dairy roof. While he was at it, it turned out that there was a python under the lantana and it was promptly caught and put inside a box. The Americans and we took the box and drove some way away to a creek where we released it back to the wild (but not before Kyle had his fill of playing around with it). This one was 'only' about 1.5 meters long, so not like the huge one we saw at our last HelpX near Cooktown, but it was still impressive – especially the big bump in the middle of its body in which he (or she) was probably digesting the late peacock chick. We wouldn't have guessed that we would get another chance to see and release a python – clearly it isn't that rare in this part of the world! (Edit: As I wrote this, Kyle found another python perched on the bathroom door, as he was going to close the door. This time we left it alone and let it go back to the garden because truthfully these are peaceful animals and needn't be moved unless they are big enough to be a threat to the animals of the house).

For now we are very happy at Sally's place, and we have decided to stay a third week. Next week we will be joined by some more helpers, a Polish couple that have already stayed here before. The more the merrier, it really rings true here!

Meie majake // Our wee cabin

Imelised vaated otse omast aiast // Gorgeous views straight from the garden

Mu lemmik lugemispaik, viigipuude all // My favourite reading spot, under the fig trees

Baby & Buoy

Sally kaunis maja - abiliste ala on alumisel korrusel // Sally's beautiful house - the helper area is downstairs

Kalal Borumba j2rve 22res // Fishing at lake Borumba

Tommy, hetked enne hypet mis lillepotid ymber ajas // Tommy, briefly before his jump that knocked over tons of flowerpots

Brandy :)

Koaala! Puu oli k6rge ja koaala v2ike, seega ei ole teda lihtne n2ha paraku // Koala! The tree was tall and the koala small, so unfortunately he is not that well visible

Noosa Heads

Kondalilla Rahvuspargis jalutamas // Trail at Kondalilla National Park

Meie ja (vasakult) Kyle, Brett ja Justin // Us and (from left) Kyle, Brett and Justin

Siin on hiigelsuured k2rnkonnad - tegemist on v66rliigiga kes on Austraaliasse toodud ja kes on kohalikule loodusele palju-palju paha teinud // Huge cane toads here! This is an invasive species that has taken over the continent and caused lots of havoc on the local ecosystems

Kaunid 6htupoolikud j2rve 22res // Beautiful sunsets on the lake

Pyytonit (peaaegu) vabastamas // (Almost) releasing the python

Leidsime veest tillukese kilpkonnapooja :) // Found a wee tiny baby turtle in the water :)

Meie ujumiskoht, hyppekaga ja puha // Our swimming hole, with a jumping rope and everything

Eesti tool! Sally oli alles hiljuti omale taaskasutusest uue antiiktooli muretsenud, ja tooli all on tootja m2rk - LUTERMA - MADE IN ESTONIA :) // Estonian chair! Sally had recently got a new antique chair, and under the chair is the maker's mark - LUTERMA, MADE IN ESTONIA :)

Cairns Vol 2 + Brisbane

Oma teiselt HelpX projektilt naasnuna oli meil plaanis enne l6unasse suundumist paar p2eva Cairnsis veeta. Seda kahel p6hjusel – esmalt, et saada natukene rahulikult omaette olla ja puhata, kuna olime yle kolme n2dala j2rjest iga p2ev HelpX v66rustajate juures olnud ja t88tanud; ja teiseks, et saaksime viimaks Suurt Vallrahu vaatamas k2ia.

Puhata ja omaette saime me olla kyll ja enam – nautisime taaskord Cairnsi Esplanaadi ja sealset basseini, ja muidu v6tsime viimast sellest, et paar p2eva ei tulnud koidu ajal yles 2rgata – kuigi teisel p2eval pidime me siiski 2ratuskellaga 2rkama ja kell pool seitse uksest v2lja minema, ent see meid ei heidutanud, kuna olime teel sadamasse, et laevaga Vallrahule s6ita. Olime ylirahul, et vaid kaks p2eva varem olime l6puks leidnud tuuri, mida me endale lubada saime. 99 Austraalia dollari (ca 63 eur) eest saime terve p2eva merel olla – sh peaaegu 4 tundi snorgeldamist, taustainfo Vallrahu kohta, rikkalik l6unas66k, ja klaas veini (tagasiteel – korraldajad ei olnud napsitanud turistide vette laskmisest huvitatud).

Nagu ma Gili saartest kirjutades mainisin, meeldib mulle hirmsasti snorgeldada. Ma naudiks ilmselt ka L22nemeres snorgeldamist, isegi kui seal suurt midagi n2ha pole. Aga maailma suurima ja rikkalikuma korallrahu kohal snorgeldamine oli midagi t2iesti erakordset. Suur Vallrahu on 2300 kilomeetrit pikk ning p6him6tteliselt on tegu maailma suurima elusa asjaga. Vallrahu koosneb tuhandetest v2iksematest korallriffidest ja saartest ning seal leidub yle 600 eri korallisordi, sh nii k6vad kui pehmed korallid. Suur Vallrahu on yhtlasi ka ylioluline 8kosysteem, olles elupaigaks tuhandetele loomaliikidele, mis omakorda toidavad paljusid teisi liike. Nagu k6ik muu eriline loodus maailmas, on ka Vallrahu vaikselt h2vinemas. J22me lootma, et ehk h2ving siiski peatub ning et ka tulevased p6lved saavad riffe imetleda. Meie aga saame olla rahul, et saime Vallrahu n2ha seni kuni teda veel on.

Riff on rannikust yldiselt p2ris kaugel, ja kuigi Cairns on hea koht tuuride jaoks kuna seal on riff v6rdlemisi l2hedal, v6ttis s6it aega siiski kuskil poolteist tundi. Kohale j6udes peatus meie laev kahes eri punktis – eri riffide juures (Hastings ja Norman riffid) misj2rel meid k6iki vette lasti. V6isime snorgeldada palju hing ihaldas, 80 meetri raadiuses laevast. Esimeses kohas oli vee n2htavus veidi kehv, ent snorgeldamine oli ikka meeldiv. Teine koht kus me peatusime oli aga ylimalt v2gev. N2htavus oli laitmatu, ja me saime nautida nii riffipealseid, meist meetri kaugusel ning t2is k6iksugu kirevat ja v2rvilist elu; ning ka sygavamaid kohtasid kus riff veep6hjast yles t6usis. Seal ujusid suuremad kalad ning v2ikeste kalade suured parved, veep6hjas olid meripurad, ringi hulpisid meduusid ja kalmaarid. Ja k6ikjal olid korallid – absoluutselt igas m66dus, igas kujus, igat v2rvi korallid. Justkui oleksime j2rsku kuhugi muule planeedile sattunud, k6ik oli nii kaunis ja kummaline. Meie tripi tipphetk oli aga siis, kui m2rkasime korallide ja kivide vahel ujuvat haikala! Tegemist oli kuskil meetrise noore valgeuimhaiga, teatud tyypi riffhai. Ta ujus niisama omi asju ajades ringi, ja lasi meid teda p2ris mitu minutit j2litada. Haid on muidu v2ga arad ja lasevad kiiresti jalga kui inimesi n2evad, seega oli meil 6nne, et saime teda n2ha. Minu kaameral ei ole veekindlat ymbrist, seega snorgeldamisest mul paraku pilte ei ole, kyll aga oli Paolol kaasas ta v2ike veekindel kaamera ning ta on haist juba video ka yles pannud. Tegelikult on ta meie reisi jooksul p2ris mitmeid videosid teinud ja sinna ylimalt h2id laule taustaks pannud – siin on link tema Vimeo kontole kus on ka muid videosid meie reisist.

Suur Vallrahu n2htud, oli meie missioon p6hja-Queenslandis t2idetud ning v6isime rahumeeli l6unasse s6ita. Cairnsist lendasime me Brisbane'i, mis on Queenslandi pealinn ning asub regiooni l6unaosas, Austraalia idaranniku keskpunktis. Brisbane on umbes 2 miljoni elanikuga modernne linn, mis asub rannikust veidike sisemaal, Brisbane'i j6e kallastel. Tegemist on Austraalia yhe vanima linnaga, synniaastaks on tal eelajalooline 1825.

Meie saabusime Brisbane'i hilis6htul ning plaanisime seal olla vaid yhe t2isp2eva, millele j2rgneval hommikul pidime juba sealt jalga laskma. Paraku aga olin mina endale mingi pisiku saanud, mist6ttu veetsin ma meie planeeritud ainsa p2eva Brisbane'is hostelis, palavikuga voodis olles. L6puks otsustasime siiski yhe p2eva rohkem linnas veeta, et j2rgmise HelpX v66rustaja juurde mitte haigena saabuda. 6nneks l2ks t6bi 2ra sama kiiresti kui tuli ning p2ev hiljem olin juba jalul ning saime l6puks minna linna uudistama. Brisbane on t6epoolest modernne linn – terve keskus on pilvel6hkujaid t2is. Ent samas on seal ka piisavalt rohelust – n2gime mitmeid meeldivaid parke ja rohelisi alasid. K6ige yllatavam oli aga see, et linn tundus pooltyhi olevat. Vaatamata sellele, et tegemist oli laup2evaga, oli linnas ringi jalutamine meeldiv, kuna rahvast oli imev2he. Kui aus olla, saime tunnise jalutusk2iguga kesklinna 2ra n2htud ning kuna seal ei tundunud suurt midagi teha olevat, otsustasime me kinno Deadpooli vaatama minna – film oli 2ge, ja otsus oli 6ige!

Brisbane'ist l2ksime me j2rgmisel hommikul rongi peale ja s6itsime kaks tundi p6hja suunas sellisesse v2iksesse kohta nagu Cooroy. Sealt v6ttis meid peale Sally, meie j2rgmine HelpX v66rustaja. Oleme tema juures nyyd juba kolmandat p2eva ja siin on t2ielik paradiis. Pikemalt kirjutan siinsest elust millalgi j2rgmise kahe n2dala jooksul. Meil oli plaanis siin kaks n2dalat olla, aga hetkel tundub siin niiv6rd m6nus, et v6ibolla j22me pikemakski. Eks n2is!

///////////////////////////////////////////

Having returned from our second HelpX project, we planned to spend a few days in Cairns before heading south. That for two reasons – firstly, we needed some time off to relax and just be by ourselves after having been with HelpX hosts and working nonstop every day for over three weeks. But more importantly, we wanted to finally go and see the Great Barrier Reef while we were still in the right area.

We got to rest and relax more than enough – once again we enjoyed the Esplanade and its pool, and we took the chance to enjoy not having to get up at the crack of dawn for a few days – even though on the second day we did have to wake up to an alarm and get up by 6.00am. But that didn't bother us at all, because we were heading to the harbour to catch a boat that would take us to the Great Barrier Reef. We were over the moon to have finally found a tour (just two days before) that we could afford. For 99 Australian dollars (ca 63 euros) we got to be out at sea the whole day – including nearly 4 hours of snorkelling time, background information on the Reef, a nice buffet lunch and a glass of wine (on the way back though – the crew were thoroughly uninterested in fishing out drunken snorkellers).

As I mentioned when I wrote about the Gilis, I absolutely love snorkelling. I would probably enjoy snorkelling even in the Baltic Sea. But to be able to snorkel above the world's largest and richest coral reef is something extraordinary. The Great Barrier Reef is 2,300 km long and is basically the largest living thing on the planet. The Reef is made up of thousands of smaller coral reef formations and islands and there are over 600 types of corals there, both hard and soft. The Great Barrier Reef is also a very important ecosystem, being home to thousands of species of animals, who in turn feed lots of other species in the ocean. Like everything unique and beautiful in nature today, the Reef is slowly disintegrating. We can hope that the destruction will stop and that future generations will be able to enjoy the spectacle that is the Reef. However, for the moment we were happy to have been able to see the Great Barrier Reef while it is still there.

The Reef is actually quite far away from the coast, and while Cairns is one of the best places for tours because of the relative closeness of the Reef, it still took us over an hour and a half on the speedboat to get there. Once there, our ship stopped at two locations, near two different reefs (Hastings and Norman reefs), and there we were all let out to sea to play. We could snorkel as much as we wanted, as long as we stayed within 80 meters of the ship. The first location, while still awesome, didn't have that great visibility. The second place however was absolutely stunning. The visibility was perfect and we could enjoy both the reef tops, just a meter away from our faces and teeming with all sorts of colourful life; at the same time we could also enjoy views of the deeper bits where the reef rose up from the seafloor. There we saw larger fish swimming around, and large schools of tiny fish hiding in the rocks. Sea cucumbers on the bottom and jellyfish floating around... And coral everywhere – in all sizes, shapes, forms and colours, magnificent! It felt as if we were suddenly on a different planet, it was all so beautiful and bizarre. However, the highlight of the trip was when we saw a shark swimming among the coral formations! It was a young white tipped reef shark, about a meter in length. It was just swimming around minding its own business and it let us follow it for a good few minutes. Sharks are generally shy creatures and will swim away when near to people, so we were really lucky to have seen one. My camera does not have a waterproof casing, so unfortunately I don't have any photos of what we saw underwater, however Paolo had his underwater camera with him and he has already uploaded the video with the shark. In fact, he has been making and uploading quite a number of little videos during our trip (and choosing excellent background songs for them) – here is his Vimeo channel.

Having seen the Great Barrier Reef, our mission in North Queensland was complete and we were free to go south. From Cairns we flew to Brisbane, which is the capital of Queensland and is located in the far south of the region, in the center of the Australian east coast. Brisbane is a modern city of 2 million people, and it is situated a wee bit inland from the coast, on the banks of river Brisbane (very inventive). It's also one of Australia's oldest cities, having been established in the prehistoric year of 1825.

We arrived to Brisbane late at night and were planning on spending one full day there, and leaving on the following morning. Unfortunately though, I had caught something and was not feeling that well, so I ended up spending what was meant to have been our only day in Brisbane in our hostel, in bed with a fever. In the end we decided to stay an extra day, to avoid arriving at our next HelpX host feeling ill. Luckily my illness went as quickly as it came and the next day I was up and exploring the city with Paolo. Brisbane is indeed a modern city – the whole center is packed with high-rise buildings. But at the same time there was quite a lot of greenery as well – we saw lots of lovely parks and green spaces. The most surprising thing was however that the city seemed nearly empty of people. Despite it being Saturday, we saw very few people and it was strangely pleasant to walk around town with no crowds. To be honest though, we felt like we saw most of the city center within an hour and since there didn't seem that there was a lot to do, we decided to go to the cinema to see Deadpool – great decision, the film was awesome!

The next morning we took a train to go two hours north to a tiny place called Cooroy. From there we were picked up by our next HelpX host Sally. By now we have spent three days at her place already and it's complete paradise here. I will write about what it's like here sometime in the next two weeks. We had planned to stay here for two weeks but at the moment it looks like we may stay longer. We'll see!

Teel Vallrahule // On the way to the Great Barrier Reef

Cairnsis Esplanaadi basseini nautimas // Enjoying the pool on the Esplanade in Cairns

P2ikeseloojang Austraalia kohal // Sunset above Australia

Lahe kuju Brisbane'is // Cool statue in Brisbane

Anzac park ja pilvel6hkujad // Anzac park and high-rises

Arhitektuuripopurii // Architectural potpourri

Sellised elukad igal pool parkides :) // These creatures all over the parks in Brisbane

 

Teine HelpX kogemus, keset metsikut loodust // Second HelpX experience, in the middle of the wilderness

Meie esimene HelpX v66rustajapere oli niiv6rd tore, et nad pakkusid meid meie j2rjekordsesse sihtpunkti, Cooktowni l2hedale j2rgmiste v66rustajate juurde 2ra viia. Nad ytlesid, et see on neile hea ettek22ne siinse kandi uudistamiseks. Selliselt me siia tulimegi, nende lahedas Land Roveris, s6ites kilomeetreid ja kilomeetreid l2bi Austraalia kuiva savanni. Natuke rohkem kui nelja tunni p2rast olimegi kohal. Ytlesime hyvasti oma esimestele v66rustajatele (keda me kindlasti igatsema j22me, nii toredad inimesed!) ja hyppasime kohe uue pere autosse.

Nende kodu oli metsik ja tsivilisatsioonist kaugel - pidime s6itma kolmveerand tundi m66da mudateed ja l2bi mitme v2ikese j6e enne kui j6udsime nende 24-hektari suurusele metsakrundile, mis asub keset aborigeenimaad (mis alles viimastel aastatel kohalikule aborigeenih6imule tagasi anti). L2him v2ike pood on 1,5-tunnise autos6idu kaugusel, telefonilevi seal ei ole, ning k6ikjal ymber on vaid kas vihmamets v6i savann. Koht on lahe!

Pereliikmed ise olid p6him6tteliselt hipid - pereisa r22kis vahetpidamata vanden6uteooriatest ja kuidas valitsus haub aina kurjasid plaane, ema oli rastapatsidega memm kellele meeldib syya teha, lapsed olid neli poissi vanuses 3 kuni 11 kes on t2iesti metsikud. Perele lisaks elas krundil ka yks noor tyyp, kes neid t88ga aitab. Neil oli ka kolm toredat mastiffi, kaks imekaunist kassi ning yks yksildane kukk (kelle endised naised olid kas r88vlindude v6i madude poolt nahka pandud).

Pere on seal elanud yle kolme aasta ning nad on oma ajutise elamise siin h2sti 2ra korraldanud. Kui nad krundi esmakordselt endale said, ei olnud siin midagi peale metsa, seega on nad ehitanud sinna kruusateed ja metsarajad, ning maja ja onnid, kasutades metallist katuseplaate. Nende plaan on endale l6puks ehitada korralik maja, kasutades kohalikke looduslikke materjale (muda, savi, puit) ning saada energia, toidu ja kytuse suhtes t2ielikult isemajandavaks. Hetkel kyll tuleb enamus toitu siiski supermarketist ning energiaks kasutavad nad bensiinil jooksvaid generaatoreid.

Meie oma elamispaigaks oli yks sealsetest onnidest - samuti metallplaatidest ehitatud, v2ga algeline, ent siiski mugav ja meeldiv. Meie onn asus j2rve 22res ning meil oli oma aed, l6kkekoht ning vihmaveetynn vee jaoks. K6ik, mida vajasime oli meil olemas ning 6htuti l6kke 22res istumine oli tihti meie p2evade parim osa.

T88 suhtes tegime v2heseid asju, ent need olid pikad ja rasked ylesanded. Peamiselt puhastasime ja laiendasime me maja ymbritsevat tulekahjurada - mille ylesandeks on metsatulekahju korral barj22riks olla (siinne pere on juba yhel korral metsatulekahjut kogenud, oma esimesel siinviibitud aastal, ent 6nneks midagi hullu ei juhtunud). Peale selle tegelesime me ka aianduse ja istutamisega, heinal6ikamisega, kyttepuude korjamisega ning Paolo aitas ka parandada paari katkist jalgratast.

Kui aus olla, siis ei tekkinud meil sealse perega eriliselt head kontakti ning seet6ttu polnud ka meie jaoks sealoldud aeg pooltki nii meeldiv olnud kui viimases kohas. 6ieti polnudki me perega palju aega koos veeta saanud - viimased neli p2eva olime me seal ainult koos selle noore tyybiga, kuna pere ise s6itis Cairnsi s6pradele kylla. Tegelikult oli p2ris m6nus seal suures metsikus kohas omaette olla. Ja seal oli ikka t6esti metsik - 88siti kuulsime me k6iksuguseid kummalisi ja huvitavaid loomah22li ning saime n2ha uskumatult suuri putukaid. Ent k6ige v6imsam kogemus juhtus kohe p2rast meie saabumist - esimesel 6htul kysisime me pereisalt ja -emalt siinsete ohtlike madude kohta, et osata neid v2ltida. Nad ytlesid, et nad pole seal myrgiseid madusid n2inud, kyll aga satub siia aeg-ajalt pyytoneid - mis juhul nad mao kinni pyyavad ja ta kodust kaugele viivad. J2rgmisel hommikul ilmnes, et kohe p2rast seda kui meie olime magama l2inud, olid nad maja juurest leidnud ja kinni pyydnud 4-meetrise pyytoni! Me saime madu l2hedalt n2ha ja ka nendega kaasa s6ita kui nad ta 10 kilomeetri kaugusel tagasi loodusesse lasksid. V2gev!

Igal juhul oli meil esialgu plaanis seal kaks n2dalat olla, aga me otsustasime veidi varem jalga lasta kuna meil sai seal olemisest kyllalt. T2na j6udsime tagasi Cairnsi, kuhu me j22me paariks p2evaks, misj2rel me p2rast tervet kuud p6hja-Queenslandis l6puks l6unapoole Brisbane'i s6idame.

///////////////////////////////////////////

Our first HelpX host family were so nice that they offered to drive us up north to near Cooktown to our rendezvous with our next host family. They said that it was a great excuse for them to go see that area of Queensland. So that is how we arrived at our next destination - in the cool Land Rover, driving across miles and miles of arid Australian savannah. Four and a bit hours later, we had arrived. We said our goodbyes to our first hosts (who we will definitely miss lots - such great people!) and hopped straight to the car of our next host family.

Their property was wilder and remote, and it took us over 45 minutes of driving on a dirt road through multiple creeks, before we finally reached their place - 60 acres of wild bush, in the middle of aboriginal land (given back to the local tribes not long ago). The nearest small supermarket was over 1,5h drive away, there was no phone reception, and everywhere around was just rainforest or savannah. The place was great!

The family themselves are best described as hippies - the dad talked constantly about conspiracy theories and how the government is out to get us, the mom was a dreadlocked lady who enjoyed her cooking, the children were four boys between 3 and 11 years and can only be described as feral. In addition to the family, a young guy also lived on the property and helps with the work. They also had three lovely mastiffs, two gorgeous cats and a lonely rooster (his wives having been eaten by raptors and snakes).

They had lived there for over three years and had a well established temporary living space. When they got the land, it was just forest, so they have built roads and tracks, and houses and cottages of corrugated iron sheets. Their plan is to build their proper house using local resources (mud, clay, timber) and to be completely self-sustainable for energy, fuel and food. For the time being though, most of the food still comes from the supermarket and energy is produced by generators.

Our living space there was one of the cottages  - also made from corrugated tin, very basic, but nonetheless comfortable and charming. Our little cottage was by one of the lakes, had its own little garden, a fireplace and a rainwater tank for water. It had all we needed and sitting by the fire during the evenings was usually the best part of our days there.

For work, we had but few things that we did, but these were hard and long. We mainly cleared up the firebreak track around the house - which is meant to act as a barrier against bush fires (which they had experienced once during their first year here, but managed to escape the worst). We also did some gardening and planting, brushcutting, firewood collecting, and Paolo helped fix some of the many broken bikes here.

To be honest, while we love the place, we did not manage to make a real connection with the family, and therefore did not enjoy our time there as much as we did with our last hosts. In fact, we didn't even spent that much time with them - the last four days it was just us and the young guy, since the family drove off to visit friends in Cairns. It was actually quite pleasant, being just us in this huge wild place. And it really was wild - during the night we could hear so many strange animal noises, and we saw some of the biggest insects that we have ever seen before. But the definite wildlife highlight happened just after we arrived. The first evening we were chatting with our hosts and asking about any dangerous snakes that we should look out for. They said that there haven't really been any venomous snakes there but that they do get pythons, and when they do, they usually catch them and release them far away from the house (since while not dangerous to adults, they could easily kill animals and children if they wanted to). Sure enough, the next morning it turned out that just after we had gone to bed, they had found and caught a 4-meter long Amethystine python! They took it out for us to see and we also went along when they released the animal back into the wild some 10 kilometres away. Amazing!

Anyway, we had originally intended to stay there for two weeks, but decided to leave earlier since we had enough. Today we arrived back to Cairns for a few nights before finally leaving North Queensland after a month here to go further south, to Brisbane.

Krundiga tutvumas // Getting a tour of the property

Pyyton esmakordselt vabaduses peale kahte p2eva tekikotis // Python liberated after two days inside a duvet cover

Ja minek! // And there it goes!

Herculese 88liblikas, maailma suurim // Hercules moth, the world's biggest moth species

Paolo oma v2rskelt istutatud banaanidega // Paolo with his freshly planted banana trees

Siin me oma 6htud veetsimegi // This is where we spent our evenings

Meie onn // Our cottage

L6putud metsarajad // Endless forest tracks

V66rustajate elamine // Hosts' own living space

Nunnu tilluke 2mblik // Itty bitty cute jumping spider

Kummaliselt kasvanud hundinuia-taoline taim // Strangely grown plant

Koki :)

K6ikjal ainult dzungel! // Jungle everywhere around!

Metsarada enne... // Firebreak track before...

...ja p2rast meie t88d // ...and after our work on it

Meie onn, ymbritsetud veeroosidest // Our cottage with the lilypads

Tagahoov :) // Backyard :)

Meie valvur, St Andrew risti2mblik, oli peaaegu kogu meie sealviibitud aja meie peegli kyljes // Our guardian, a St Andrew's Cross Spider, was on our mirror for nearly our whole stay

Aga siis tuli selline, umbes k2elabasuurune hall jahi2mblik kes meie s6bra 88 jooksul ilmselt nahka pistis :( // But then this roughly hand-sized Grey Huntsman Spider came and ate our friend :(

Kaunis kiisu // Pretty kitty

Eile oli mul synnip2ev, ja 6htu m88dus m6nusalt, l6kke 22res pudeli veiniga, ei saa kurta! // Yesterday was my birthday. and we spent the evening next to a fire with a bottle of wine, can't complain!

Esmamuljed Ozist - Cairns ning HelpX Ravenshoes // First impressions of Oz - Cairns and HelpX in Ravenshoe

Nagu ma viimase sissekande l6pus mainisin, oli Austraaliasse saabumine p2rast kahte kuud Aasias paras shokk. Esiteks oli kummaline, kui palju siinne kant Euroopat meenutab, ent samas on tegemist t2iesti teistsuguse kohaga ka. Esimesel p2eval oli meil tunne, justkui oleks me filmis, k6ik tundus lihtsalt nii syrreaalne. Kaineks tegev oli aga see, kuidas me yle88 rikkuritest puruvaeseks j2ime, liikudes Aasiast Austraaliasse.

Meie 8ine lend Balilt v6ttis aega neli tundi et j6uda Queenslandi, Cairnsi linna, ja me magasime terve lennu. Me lendasime esmakordselt JetStariga, Austraalia odavlennuliiniga, ning olime yllatunud kui suur nende istmetevaheline ala oli, jalgu sai ikka korralikult sirutada. Istmed ise tundusid ka suuremad, mist6ttu oligi lend nii mugav ja v6imaldas meil kohest uinumist.

Cairsi lennujaama j6udes olime me kyll immigratsioonipunkti kysitluseks valmis, ent ei osanud siiski oodata seda, mille osaliseks me saime. Passikontrolli l2bisime me yllatavalt kiiresti, ent seej2rel paluti meil pagasikontrolliks k6rvale astuda, n2itlikult suvalise valiku t6ttu. Sel ajal kui mina seisin ja j2lgisin, kuidas meie seljakotid tyhjendati ja p6hjalikult l2bi uuriti, tegi immigratsiooniametnik Paolole p6hjalikku intervjuud, kysides talt ta eelnevate passide kohta ning et kas ta on ka varem Austraaliasse proovinud siseneda. Paolo seletas, kuidas ta viimane pass talt 2008. aastal Barcelonas koos k6ige muuga 2ra r88viti, ning kinnitas, et ta polnud varem Austraaliasse tulemise peale isegi m6elnud - mille peale ametnik l6puks tunnistas, et tegu polnud siiski suvalise kontrolliga. Tuli v2lja, et Paolo oli juba enne Austraaliasse j6udmist 2ra m2rgitud, kuna millalgi v2hemalt viis aastat tagasi oli keegi yritanud tema passi kasutades Austraaliasse inimesi sisse smugeldada! Ilmselgelt oli Paolo sellest shokeeritud, esiteks kuna on 8udne m6elda, et keegi oli yritanud (ja ehk varem ka 6nnestunud) tema nime inimkaubanduseks kasutada, ning teiseks, kuna tegu oli esimese korraga millal ta sellest kuulnud on! V6iks ju arvata, et identiteedivarguse puhul v6taksid ametnikud varguse ohvriga yhendust, eriti kuna v6ib kindel olla, et ta hilisematel juhtudel seet6ttu piiridel kinni v6idaks pidada. Ja pole ju ennekuulmatu, et identiteedivarguse ohvreid ka ekslikult vangi pannakse. Seega oli meil 6nne, et smugeldamiskatse juhtus mitu aastat tagasi, et riik, kus see juhtus ei olnud kuskil kus inimesi esmalt vangi visatakse ja alles seej2rel neilt kysimusi kysitakse, ning et k6ik meie paberid ja dokumendid korras olid - kuna teistsuguses olukorras oleks meil v6inud tunduvalt halvemini minna. Ma pean kyll ytlema, et k6ik kontrollis osalenud t88tajad olid ylimalt viisakad ja rahulikud ning seletasid olukorda meile v2ga h2sti. Kuna me ise aga oleme reisimisega kaasnevate ebamugavustega harjunud, olime me koost88aldis ning kontrolliga v2ga kannatlikud (isegi kui mu kosmeetikakotikese iga ese eraldi v2lja v6eti ja uuriti :D). Seega lasti meil heade s6nadega minna ja k6ik oli l6pus ikka korras, ent sellised kogemused on ehmatavad kyll...

Igal juhul, olnud turvaliselt Austraalia maapinnale j6udnud, s6itsime me taksoga (kuna muud transpordiv6imalust ei olnud) Cairnsi kesklinna. Me olime otsustanud Cairnsi lennata kahel p6hjusel - esmalt, kuna me tahtsime Queenslandi minna ja Suurt Vallrahu n2ha (mida me pole kyll veel j6udnud teha), ent praktilisemal noodil kuna Balilt olid lennud Cairnsi tunduvalt odavamad kui yhtegi teise sihtpunkti (kummaliselt ka Darwinisse, mis on Balile palju l2hemal). Cairns, tagasihoidliku 142 000 elanikuga, on p6hja-Queenslandi teine suurim linn. Linna keskus on v2ike ja peamiselt koondunud ymber Esplanaadi, oma kauni ranniku22rse promenaadiga. Nagu paljud teised noored linnad endistes koloniaalriikides, on ka Cairnsi t2navad pikad, sirged ja ristuvad omavahel yhtlaste vahemaade j2rel 90-kraadiste nurkadega - yhes6naga on seal v6imatu 2ra eksida.

Meie hotell asus Esplanaadi p6hjapoolse osa l2hedal ning kesklinna keskus asus l6unapoolses osas, seega jalutasime me kahe Cairnsis veedetud p2eva jooksul kyllaga m88da rannikut. Jalutusk2ikude ajal yllatas meid avalike rajatiste kyllus ja kvaliteet - Esplanaadi 22res leidus mitu 2gedat laste m2nguv2ljakut, rulapark, kyllaga joogiveekaevusid, v2ike kaljuronimisekoht, mitu treeningupunkti jpm. K6ige rohkem avaldas meile muljet aga kaks asja - hiigelsuur ja ylimalt h2sti hoitud bassein Esplanaadi l6unapunktis, purskkaevude, liivaranna ja dushikabiinidega; ning kaetud grillimispunktid suurte ning lihtsalt kasutatavate gaasigrillidega. K6ige uskumatum asi basseini ja grillide juures - m6lemad on t2iesti tasuta ning kasutada saab neid iga p2ev! Paolo sai isegi grilli proovida kui me eelmise p2eva hiinakat yles soojendasime (r2mpstoit oli ainus toit mida me endale Cairnsis lubada saime, kuna hinnad olid p6rutavad).

Jalutades Esplanaadil, avastasime me veel yhe 2geda asja - tasuta kursused iga p2ev, sh nt jooga, aeroobika ja kaljuronimine. Kaljuronimise (v6i 6igemini boulderingi) kursus leidis aset meile sobival ajal ja otsustasime kohale minna. Kursus kestis tund aega, peale meie oli kohal umbes seitse algajat ronijat ning entusiastlik juhendaja kes varustas meid k6iki ronimisjalatsitega ja andis meile h2id nippe esmaseks ronimiseks. L6bu oli meil laialt ja olime ylimalt rahul, et saime t2iesti tasuta ronimist proovida.

P2rast kahte 88d Cairnsis v6tsid meid autoga peale meie esimesed HelpXi v66rustajad, et s6ita nende koju ja nendega kaks n2dalat koos elada. HelpX (ehk Help Exchange) on suurep2rane veebisait, mis viib kokku inimesi, kel on tarvis veidi abi oma kodus, aias v6i talus, ning vabatahtlikud (paljud neist turistid), kes on valmis seda abi pakkuma. 4-5 tunni t88 eest p2evas pakuvad v66rustajad vabatahtlikele majutust ja syya. Suur osa HelpX'i kogemusest on inimestevaheline suhtlus - see on hea viis inimestega tutvumiseks, ning koos elades on v6imalik teisi eriti h2sti tundma 6ppida. Meile kui reisijatele on tegu ka hea viisiga ymbruskonna avastamiseks, kohalikega tutvumiseks ning n2gemiseks, kuidas australlased elavad. Kui me potentsiaalseid v66rustajaid otsisime, valisime me peamiselt v2ikeseid 8kotalusid - kuna me tahtsime n2ha, kuidas v2ikese talu majandamine v2lja n2eb, ja kuidas loomade ja taimedega hakkama saada - lootuses, et yhel p2eval teeme me ehk sama.

Naljakal kombel oli meie esimene HelpX kogemus perega, kelle jaoks oli samuti tegemist esimese korraga HelpX v66rustaja olla. Nyydseks oleme me nende juures juba kaks toredat n2dalat veetnud. Pere koosneb pereisast Trevorist (kes r22gib vahetpidamata 2gedaid lugusid ja teeb k6vasti nalja), emast Shelleyst (kes hoiab hullumaja kontrolli all), viie-aastasest Mabelist (kes alati heameelega t88d aitab teha, ent samas ka meeleldi lolli m2ngib), kolme-aastasest Lorettast (kes on yliarmas ja ytleb alati eriti suvalisi ja naljakaid asju) ning v2ikesest Fredist, kes sai just eelmisel n2dalal yhe-aastaseks (ja kes teeb igasuguseid naljakaid beebiasju).

Nad elavad Ravenshoe nimelise koha l2hedal Tablelands'i platool, mis asub sisemaal ning meretasemest k6rgemal ning kus seega on veidi jahedam kui kuumal rannikul. Nende talu ei ole hiigelsuur, ent siin on k6ikidele rohkelt ruumi, sh nende mitmetele loomadele - yheksale ylis6bralikule koerale, hulgake kalkunitele, hobusele (Clydesdale'i sorti pakihobune Hercules) ning eesel Hectorile. Meie enda elamine siin on ylilahe - me magame 12-meetrise koolibussi sees!

Kuna pere on siin vaid kolm aastat elanud, on talus ja krundil kyllaga t88d teha ning viimaste n2dalate jooksul oleme me neid igasuguste asjadega aidaud - sh aia korrastamine, kulu p6letamine, bambuse l6ikamine ja transport, bambusest aia ehitamine, seemnete kylvamine, puude raiumine, majapidamise ja laste valvamisega aitamine jpm. Aga me oleme ka teistsugust t88d teinud, niisama l6buks. N2iteks tuli Paolo tydrukute rattaid remontides m6ttele ka Fredile ta esimene tasakaaluratas teha (ehk ilma pedaalideta ratas millega p6nnid saavad esmalt tasakaalu selgeks enne p2ris ratta proovimist). Trevor oli ideest samuti vaimustuses ning kaks p2eva hiljem, just Fredi synnip2evaks oli ratas valmis - ja tulemus oli super. Trevor ja Paolo on proovinud ka bambusest fl88te valmistada, vahelduva eduga :D

Ent ega me ka kogu aeg t88d pole ryganud - pea igal p2rastl6unal, kui v2jas on t88tamiseks liiga kuum, oleme me k6ik nende Land Roverisse hypanud ja ujuma s6itnud. Trevor ja Shelley tunnevad siinse kandi parimaid ujumiskohti ning on meid viinud uskumatult kaunitesse paikadesse. M6ned on olnud tavap2rasemad (nt ilus Eachami j2rv, mis on iidse vulkaanikraatri sees ning on populaarne ujumis- ja grillimiskoht), kuid paljud on olnud t2iesti metsikud, peidetud kohad ilma yhegi teise inimeseta (nt Vine Creeki kosed ja paar muud kohta kuhu j6udmiseks oleme pidanud veidi kaljuronimist tegema).

Yhel p2eval peatusime me ka metsloomade varjupaigas, mille omanikuks on yks Austria pension2r. Seal ravitakse vigastatuid metsloomi kuni nad tagasi loodusesse saab lasta, ning pysivalt hoitakse neid, kes ise vabaduses ellu ei j22ks. Seal n2gime me k2nguruid (kuigi me oleme neid ka vabas looduses n2inud - nad on siin t6epoolest igal pool), emusid, possumeid, dingosid, kohalikke lindusid nagu kookaburrad ja lorikeetid, ja muid Austraalia elukaid. Vabas looduses oleme me saanud n2ha hiigelsuurte puunahkhiirte parvesid (seda saime n2ha 8isel Esplanaadil Cairnsis), maastikke mis on silmapiirini kaetud suurte termiidipesadega, elu suurimaid ja v2rvilisemaid liblikaid, r22kimata paljudest kummalistest ja huvitavatest putukatest ja taimedest. Ringi vaadates on ilmselge, et Austraalia on miljoneid aastaid muust maailmast eraldi olnud, siinne loodus on lihtsalt nii teistsugune.

Kaks n2dalat on siin nagu niuhti m88da lennanud ning paari p2eva p2rast ongi meie aeg selle toreda perega l2bi. Laup2eval s6idame me p6hjapoole, et yhe teise v66rustajapere juures paar n2dalat olla. Siiani on meie HelpX kogemus olnud suurep2rane, ning ootame huviga selle j2tku juba uues kohas.

///////////////////////////////////////

So as I mentioned at the end of my last post, arriving in Australia was somewhat of a shock after nearly two months in Asia. Firstly, it's bizarre how it's very similar to Europe, but then at the same time also very different. The first day it really felt like we were in a film or something, everything seemed just so surreal. A more sobering experience is how we went from feeling rich to being positively dirt poor in just the short few hours that it took us to fly to Australia..

The flight we were on from Bali took four hours to reach Cairns in Queensland, and we slept through the whole thing, it was great! It was our first time flying JetStar, the Australian low-cost airline, and it was amazing how much more legroom you get on their flights. It also felt like the seats were bigger, so we got really comfortable very quickly and snoozed off in no time.

Arriving in Cairns airport, we were ready for being interrogated by Immigration, but were not prepared for the experience we received. We got through passport control in a breeze, which was surprising, but then we were taken aside to have all our luggage checked by what appeared as random selection. While I was standing by as our bags were meticulously emptied and thoroughly checked by a border guard, Paolo was aside being interviewed by an immigration agent, who asked him about how many previous passports he had had in the past and whether he had ever tried to enter Australia before. After Paolo told him how his last passport had been robbed from him (along with all of his other valuables) in 2008 in Barcelona, and that he had never even thought about traveling to Australia before, the agent finally revealed that the check was not random at all. Paolo's passport had come up with a red flag, since sometime five or more years ago someone using Paolo's passport had tried (and obviously failed) to smuggle people into Australia! Needless to say, Paolo was pretty shocked to learn of this - firstly, it's of course awful to think that someone had tried (and maybe previously succeeded) using his name for human trafficking. But also because this was the first time that he had heard of this! You would think that if identity theft happens, the authorities would make the real person aware of this, particularly as he or she will definitely have to suffer through additional checks due to that. And it is not unheard of of people being jailed because someone had used their identity for illegal activities. So we were lucky that the attempted smuggling had happened many years ago, that the country it happened in was not someplace where they would jail you first and ask questions later, and that we had all our documents and stuff all in place, because in another scenario we might have had much more trouble than that. I do have to say that the staff involved in the check were both very courteous and calm, and explained the situation to us very well. And since we are used to inconveniences during travel, we cooperated fully and were patient with the checks (even as my bag of toiletries was inspected one item at a time etc :D). So we were let go with kind words and all was well in the end, but these kinds of experiences are sobering to say the least.

Anyway, having safely arrived on Australian soil, we took a taxi (since there was no alternative) to Cairns city centre where our motel was. We had chosen to fly to Cairns for two reasons - firstly, because we wanted to visit Queensland, mainly to see the Great Barrier Reef (which we have yet to do). And more practically, because, from Bali, flights to Cairns were by far cheaper than to any other destination (strangely even to Darwin, which is much nearer to Bali - bizarre!). Cairns, even at its modest population of 142,000, is the second largest city in the northern part of Queensland. Its city centre is small, and mainly concentrated around the Esplanade, a beautiful promenade along the coastline. Like other young cities in most former colonial countries, the streets are long, straight, and cross each other in regular 90-degree angles - so it's pretty much impossible to get lost.

Our hotel was near the northern part of the Esplanade, and the proper centre of the city centre was at the south end, so during our two days in Cairns, we did a lot of walking along the coast. We were amazed at how good the public leisure facilities are - along the Esplanade, there were lots of awesome children's playgrounds, a skate park, tons of drinking fountains, a small rock climbing place, exercise stations etc. We were most impressed however by two things - the huge and extremely well-kept swimming pool at the south end of the Esplanade, which had fountains, a sandy bank on one side, and large shower and toilet facilities next to it. And the covered barbecue stations, which had big, easy to operate gas barbecues. The most amazing thing about the pool and the barbecues - completely free to use, open every day! Paolo even got to use one when he reheated some takeaway food that we had left over from the day before (takeaway food was the only food we were able to afford during our time in Cairns, since the prices are truly staggering).

During our walks along the Esplanade, marveling at the facilities, we also saw another awesome thing - free classes that are held daily, ranging from yoga and aerobics to rock climbing. The rock climbing (or to be exact, bouldering) class was held in the afternoon of the second day, and we decided to go. The class lasted one hour, had about seven attendees, and a great coach who provided us all with climbing shoes and gave us a good first lesson into rock climbing on boulders. We had a great time, and were stoked to be able to do something that cool for free!

After two nights in Cairns, we were picked up by our first HelpX host to go and spend two weeks living with them. HelpX (or Help Exchange) is a great initiative which brings together people who need some work done in their homes, gardens or farms, and volunteers (many of them travellers) who are keen to help. The hosts provide volunteers with accommodation and food, in return for about 4-5 hours of work per day. A big part of the HelpX experience is the social aspect - it's a great way to meet new people and you really get to know someone by living with them. For us as travellers, it is also a brilliant way to discover the country(side), meet locals and to see how people in Australia live. When looking for hosts, we looked up families who have small organic farms - since we would like to learn what it's like managing a small farm, having animals, gardening etc in the hopes of one day doing it ourselves.

Funnily enough, our first ever HelpX experience is with a family for whom it is also the first time to host with HelpX. By now we have already spent two weeks with them and it has been absolutely brilliant! The family consists of Trevor (who is constantly telling cool stories and making everyone laugh), Shelley (who does a brilliant job keeping the mayhem in check), five-year-old Mabel (who is a keen helper around the farm, but also just as keen to joke around), three-year-old Loretta (who is super sweet and constantly says the funniest, most random stuff) and wee Fred who just turned one last week (and does lots of absolutely hilarious baby stuff).

They live near Ravenshoe in the Tablelands, which are a bit inland and higher up and therefore not quite as hot as the coast. Their farm is not huge, but there is plenty of room for everyone, including all the animals - nine super friendly dogs, a bunch of turkeys, a horse (a Clydesdale named Hercules) and Hector the donkey. Our accommodation here is the coolest ever - we sleep inside of a 12-meter school bus, and it's just awesome.

Since they have only lived here for three years, there is still lots to do on the farm, and these last couple of weeks we have been busy helping them with tons of different stuff - tidying up the yard, building fires to burn up excess wood, going to cut bamboo for building, weaving bamboo fences, planting vegetable seeds, cutting down trees, helping with stuff around the house and looking after the kids etc. But we have also done other projects just for fun. For example, when Paolo was fixing the girls' bikes, he thought that it would be cool to make Fred his first bike as well - a balance bike (which has no pedals, and is great for toddlers to learn to balance before going on a real bike). Trevor was totally on board with the idea, and within two days, just in time for Fred's first birthday, the bike was finished, and it looks awesome. Trevor and Paolo have also tried to make flutes out of the bamboo we got, with mixed results :D

But it has not just been all about work - nearly every day after lunch, while it's too hot to work outside, we all hop on their Land Rover and drive for a swim. Trevor and Shelley know some of the most amazing swimming holes around here, and we have been in a number of absolutely gorgeous places. Some more traditional (e.g. the beautiful Lake Eacham, which is a lake inside of an ancient volcano crater, and a very popular spot for swimming and barbecues) and others completely wild, hidden and without anyone else nearby (like Vine Creek Falls and a few other spots where we had to do some fairly tricky rock climbing to reach the water).

One day we also stopped at a nearby wildlife sanctuary, run by a retired Austrian guy, where injured wild animals are treated and released, or kept in the sanctuary if they would not survive on their own in the wild. There we got to see kangaroos (we have seen them in the wild too though, they truly are everywhere here), emus, possums, dingoes, birds such as kookaburras and lorikeets and other Australian wildlife. In the wild, we have been impressed by swarms of huge fruit bats (who we saw during the night on the Esplanade in Cairns!), landscapes dotted with massive termite nests as far as the eye can see, the biggest and brightest butterflies either of us have ever seen, not to mention lots of strange and beautiful plants and insects. You can really tell that this part of the world has evolved separately from the rest for a long time, because of the bizarre and captivating endemic wildlife.

Two weeks have flown by here, and in a few days our time with this awesome family will come to an end. On Saturday, we drive further north to stay with another host family for a couple of weeks. So far, our HelpX experience has been amazing, and we are looking forward to continue seeing the country in this way.

Cairnsi Esplanaadil // On the Esplanade in Cairns

Leia puunahkhiir // Find the fruit bat

P2eval magasid niisama puu otsas // Just napping in the tree during the day

Paolo ronimist proovimas // Paolo trying out bouldering

Avalik bassein Esplanaadil // The public pool on the Esplanade

Tasuta grill! // Free barbecues!

Kaunis Eachami j2rv // Beautiful Lake Eacham

Kardin-viigipuu // Curtain fig tree

Tirtsu kest // Shell of a cicada

Meie elamine! // Our nest!

Elamine v2ljastpoolt // From the outside

V2ikesed abilised // Little helpers

Bambusaeda ehitamas // Building a bamboo fence

Truu Land Rover viib otse j2rve 22rde // Trusty Land Rover will take you straight to the lake

Paolo emuga s6brustamas // Paolo making friends with a suspicious emu

Kohustuslik k2ngurupilt // The token kangaroo pic

Sinna alla ronisimegi ujuma // We climbed all the way down to swim there

Rahulolu p2rast ujumist // Happy after a swim

Termiidipesad! // Termite nests!

Paolo ja Fred puhkehetkel // Paolo and Fred resting in the shade

Fredi ratast ehitamas // Building Fred's bike

Perepilt // Family picture

Hercules

Ava tahab et talle pulka visataks // Ava wanting you to throw the stick

Hector koos bambuseaiaga // Hector with the finished bamboo fence