OT - bucket list trip - all food eaten will be shown.

Sea2Ski

I love traveling. I love it when people share their adventures on here, because you get some of everything. Activities, history, pictures, and of course food.  When @YukonRon was in France - loved it.  Same with everyone else's trip posts!  I am on a pretty cool trip, so I will do the same. 

So lets get started...  Started in Philly.  3:00 pm flight to Dallas Friday night.  Landed at 6 PM Dallas time.

Took off from Dallas at 9:00 pm and had a 17 hr flight to Sydney.  Landed at 6:15 AM Sunday morning.
Was hungry, so I grabbed a pesto chicken sandwich:


2 hr layover and flew 2.5 hrs north to a town called Carins



28 hours from takeoff in philly, we checked in at the hotel.  Gonna grab a shower and then head to the beach. Have to swim in the netted area. I was told you can swim outside it, but you would be daring as there is a there is a healthy population of sharks and saltwater crocodiles around.  We were told not to walk within 10 yards of the waters edge other than in the netted area. This is going to be an interesting trip!!

12:50 pm Sunday now and need an adult beverage now that the flights are over!  More updates to come....

theyolksonyou

Definitely following this!

TTC

As a guy who has spent way too many hours on 15+ hour flights, cheers. It's a mindset to get through it. Hope you have a great trip and look forward to further details.

blasting

@Sea2Ski   Have a great trip.  Will be following.  

I would need to be medicated to travel that far.

nolaegghead

Box jellyfish are probably the main reason for the netting.  Sounds like fun!

jabam

Can't wait for more pics!

Sea2Ski

Finally!!  

Got a "small" order of "chips" to go with it too. Needed a small snack.  

Sea2Ski

We went out for basics, and thought I might grill something since they have a grill here.   Nooooo.....   It was very slim pickings, like this "porterhouse" steak, which I think was the best thing there to choose from:



So we went out for dinner. 

Had a beer:


Traditional bruschetta:


Then some Wild Barramundi & King Prawn Hollandaise - pan fried fillet of ocean fresh wild Barramundi set upon a king prawn & coconut risotto, crispy summer salad & topped with asparagus spears & a wild lime hollandaise sauce  it was indeed delicious, and did not taste like any other barramundi I ever had before!

Interesting fact: all barramundi start out male, then change over to female 2-3 years after becoming sexually mature. It is against the law to keep a male fish. 

Okay off to bed.  Tomorrow should be a busy day to remember!

NPHuskerFL

Looks like a great time so far. Good foodie Pic. Any others of trip events would be cool also. 

lousubcap

Does your adventure include heading north to Port Douglas and out to the Great Barrier Reef?   Great trip-enjoy the experience and the definitely different eats.

pescadorzih

Doing any fishing?

Sea2Ski

@lousubcap   Yes that is the plan for Tuesday, and I can not wait to get there.  

@NPHuskerFL okay, I will add cool/interesting pictures as they come and wi-fi access allows.  I am finding there are not that many spots out there. 

It it is currently Monday morning @8 am. Just got back from a morning walk.  Saw dozens of wallabies in a field which caught us off guard.  Everything is cooler when you see things in the wild.  Pictures were taken with the better camera and will be transferred later. Seeing them run - well really hop - for a fair distance, you can see how fast they really are. Those things can cover some ground!!

 In the meantime, a simple cheap breakfast where we are staying before we get the bus for our tour. Personally, I think the name is horrible, but it tastes good.

Sea2Ski

Full day today:

Wild wallabies: this was my favorite picture. On the way back from the walk, got drenched in a rainstorm.  We laughed the whole way home. We also must have seen four or five dead bats hanging on electrical wires and barbed wire.  At first I thought they were shirts, but then upon closer look, noticed the wings.  They have big bats down here!!


A gondola ride over the rainforest:


Ate steak that although looked blah, was delicious, kangaroo skewers, and sausage.  Also put some of those vegetable things on the plate.  


Went to to a rescue zoo.  Injured or rescued animals only. Never thought I would pet kangaroos, even though I did have to bribe them with food. 


What trip "down under" would it be if you did not see a Kawala.  I did hold one, but it is kind of a cheesy picture, so this one goes up instead.  Is there anyone in the world that does not think they are cute? 


For dinner, grilled octopus, followed by lamb loin over a pea purée and a side of parmigiana potatoes. The lamb was overdone, but was juicy and delicious.  If it was dry, I would have said something, but since it tasted great, I did not say a word. 




So far, this trip has been great.   Time for bed, as we have another all-day adventure tomorrow. 

Mickey

Outstanding post. Hell, I would be happy to read your post going to the local market. 

Foghorn

Mickey said:

Outstanding post. Hell, I would be happy to read your post going to the local market. 

Coming from most folks that would be a powerful statement.  But coming from an old retired guy who has nothing else to do like @Mickey that doesn't mean as much - so don't get the big head.

He spends most of his days counting his warts because he knows that if he finds a new one he can go to the dermatologist and as least he will have something to do that day...

That being said, great post.  Keep the pics coming.

Mickey

@Foghorn I just joined a Sig and HK forums. Saw a Foghorn. That be you?
VI and I have been doing some shooting of late, most target some at each other. 

Foghorn

@Mickey, I am not on the Sig or HK forums.  In fact, at first I thought HK referred to Harmon Kardon as I've bought some of their stuff over the years.

Sea2Ski, sorry for the thread hijack.  Get us back on track with a pic of a crocodile or something.

Sea2Ski

Foghorn said:

Sea2Ski, sorry for the thread hijack.  Get us back on track with a pic of a crocodile or something.

No worries mate!  No crocs either. We have not had a go at any.

Did get this guy on a branch outside our hotel.  Later learned that it is poisonous. It feeds on the nector of a plant that has arsenic, and it stores it in their system. When it opens its wings, the color pattern is red and yellow, but I missed that shot.  


And a random shot of a sign outside the butcher

GATraveller

Ask them if a hot dog is a sandwich...

Trip looks amazing.  Definitely on my bucket list.  Hope you have a blast and keep the pics coming.

Tinyfish

Just amazing. 

Sea2Ski

Good Wednesday morning mates!  
Simply put: the best boxed juice I ever had:


Yesterday was scuba diving the Great Barrier Reef. Incredible, stunning, overwhelming, magical and awesome in the true definition of the word.  Underwater visibility was 23 meters.  It was like what you see in pictures and tv.  Tons of corals, fish and other sea life.  

We left from the camera icon just above the route button on the bottom of the screen and dove at the red triangle 


This is shows the topography under the water, you can see we swam along a shelf wall.  It was just incredible!!


Sorry for the mostly eaten lunch picture. I was to excited, and forgot till it was mostly gone. 


Dinner:

bgebrent

That fish & chips looks killer as does ALL the rest!  Great post!!!

GATraveller

Thanks for the update.  Looks and sounds like you're having a blast.  Safe travels!!

YEMTrey

Damn that fish looks good!  Keep the posts coming.

gdenby

Good series. I know this is a food forum, but I'd love to see some shots of the great barrier reef.

Haven't the faintest idea what a coral trout is, but your meal from it looks delish.

Sea2Ski

@gdenby my pictures are not good. First, it was raining, so there goes the green and blues. Second, my GoPro footage stinks compared to the pros without the right filters on and accessory lighting.  All I can say is that in person, the reef is alive with coral and fish just as you see on tv and magazines.  Visibility was just insane.  

Sea2Ski

Breakfast before the sunrise walk:


Then the walk. It was cloudy again.  The weather changes here by the minute though.  


Took a bus tour.  Stopped several places.  One was a zoo of only animals found in Carins ( one for @Foghorn)

Then we went to the Dantree rainforest which we were told is the oldest rainforest in the world. Additionally it is the only place in the world where two world heritage sites meet and are side by side. One is the reef, the other is the rainforest.  Additionally, it was only made accessible by roads in the 1930's, so this place is an infant compared to many other locations. 

First we we had lunch. Mine was a "spicy tree kangaroo" dish that was great. The spice on it was mildly flavored, but complimented the roo.  Honestly, all I was thinking was that I would love to get some on the egg with some dizzy pig red eye express, and it would be out of the world awesome.



Once we ate, we went around the corner and saw the following sign. Apparently 2 jellyfish were found on the beach this week. One is able to kill you in 50 seconds, and the other can do you in, in 2 hours.  So they set up this emergency station:

Sea2Ski

Then you go a bit farther, go out on the beach and you look left:


Then right:


And you think you found our own paradise except that there may be some animals that want to eat or kill you. So we sat there and just took in the view for about an hour.  While sitting there, a bird landed not far at all, and I think I got the best wildlife picture I ever took:


We we then headed back to our hotel.

First things first - an adult beverage:

For dinner, garlic bread, a pork risotto with bacon and apples:



Tomorrow, more adventure awaits!!

DMW

Thanks for continuing to post, gread to catch up on in the morning. Victoria Bitter is great, don't bother orsering a Foster's. Its been 15 years since I've been down under, you're making me want to visit again.

DoubleEgger

This thread is gonna cost me some serious cash soon! Enjoy the trip buddy! 

theyolksonyou

I'm so freaking jealous right now!  Keep it coming.