Cairns
Cairns came pretty highly recommended by most people I spoke with about Australia, so it was pretty disappointing that we arrived deep in the middle of one of the wettest wet seasons in recent memory. All those awesome beaches people spoke about? Not an option. The saving grace was our hostel, Globetrotter, which was definitely the nicest accommodations I’ve ever stayed in for under $30/pp per night. IT was originally going to be $29, but because we added a 3rd person, they dropped the price to $25. The room was clean with a hardwood floor (very nice, because carpets are almost always the dirtiest part of a hostel), air conditioning (essential in Cairns), a fridge and a TV. The place was also blanketed with free wifi, which was practically a miracle considering that most places charge a hefty sum by the hour and/or megabyte. The kitchen was pretty well appointed and had a bunch of freely available cookware, another plus. They even had a nice looking pool in the back yard, which we never used, but was pretty awesome to have in a hostel. Also, Brian, the guy who runs the place, was really nice and helpful. If you’re going to Cairns on a budget, you HAVE to stay at Globetrotter.
Alissa was awesome and found us a brewery in downtown Cairns where we could take a tour. Blue Sky Brewery is a young brewery, not even 3 years old. Their production capacity is extremely limited compared to an operation like Lagunitas, but they do a decent business out of their big brewpub and distribute throughout Australia. The tour was brief but interesting, particularly because it was conducted by their brew master, Hayden, who kindly answered all of my questions. The $10 cost was a disappointment, though, after being spoiled by Lagunitas’ free experience, particularly when we discovered that a tasting at the end would cost us an additional $12 for 6 beers. Their beer was, for the most part, to light and not hoppy enough for my tastes, with only a few Ales and mostly only lagers to choose from. Their smoked wheat ale was the most interesting/unique thing on tap, but its uniqueness was about the nicest thing I could say for it. IT really tasted smoky, like a campfire in your mouth. Yuck.
The other memorable part of Cairns, for me, was the amazing early birthday dinner Alissa treated me to at Ochre, a restaurant that specializes in locally-sourced sustainable cuisine. We ordered the “Taste of Australia, a four-course extravaganza (including a home baked bread course with peanut oil and some sort of tasty crushed nuts), which included crab, prawns, trout, emu, kangaroo and crocodile, among other things. The crocodile, in particular, vastly exceeded my expectations; it was perfectly prepared and not at all gamey. The emu was also notably delicious, and looked shockingly similar to beef for a bird. We were both sated and satisfied after the meal.
Unfortunately, we went from our amazing meal to the casino, where I intended to join Pat at the hold ‘em table, but because of a long waitlist I ended up playing pretty much the worst 8 hands of blackjack that anyone has ever played. Not a single winner. I left in a hurry, extremely dejected. It wasn’t the best way to end our last night in Cairns.
