Author Archives: TarHeelGirl

Day 5 – Great Barrier Reef Cruise

This morning I had the first opportunity to appreciate the beautiful tropical landscape of our resort. The beach was just a five-minute walk away.


View from my bungalow at the Kewarra Beach Resort

After breakfast, we headed to the Port Douglas Reef Marina for our 90-minute cruise to the Great Barrier Reef. Upon our arrival at the anchored platform, we had our choice of activities on/off the platform in addition to a buffet lunch. I rode the semi-submersible and walked in the underwater observatory and took pictures, while other folks chose snorkeling and scuba diving. I also had the opportunity to watch a wonderfully made video, “Ribbon of Life”, featuring the sea life of the ribbon reefs.

Views of the Great Barrier Reef from the semisubmersible:

We managed to squeeze in a little souvenir shopping at the Marina before our return to our resort, where we were greeted by one of the several wallabies that freely wander the grounds.


Wallaby grazing on the Kewarra Beach resort grounds

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Day 4 – Uluru and the Outback

Our morning tour around the base of Uluru was lead by a lively Outback guide who told wonderful stories about aboriginal life and traditions and the significance of paintings and places on and around Uluru. We also visited the Anangu Cultural Centre and had the opportunity to purchase beautiful aboriginal paintings and wood carvings.


Uluru at the base of the walking trail

On the Uluru guided tour

Aboriginal cave paintings on Uluru

An atypical view of Uluru

After a drover’s lunch back at our hotel, we were back in the air and arrived at Cairns in the early evening, checking in at the Kewarra Beach Resort where we spotted three wallabies on the grounds. We enjoyed a group dinner outdoors before retiring to our bungalows.

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Uluru Base Tour

Day 3 – Alice Springs and Ayers Rock

I got up at 5:15 AM (!) to get ready for our flight to Alice Springs in the heart of the Outback. From the airport we drove to Alice Springs for a brief lunch and shopping stop at the Mbantua Gallery, a gallery featuring aboriginal art and an aboriginal cultural museum.


Mbantua Art Gallery, Alice Springs

We then departed for Yulara, the resort area near Uluru (Ayer’s Rock), and checked into Sails in the Desert before leaving for Uluru. We watched the sunset and Uluru’s color changes while we enjoyed champagne and canapes. My first taste of the exotic was at dinner – kangaroo ragout – not too bad.


View from my room at Sails in the Desert Resort

Sunset at Uluru (Ayer’s Rock)

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Day 2 – Touring Melbourne

I had a chance for an early morning walk on the promenade before our bus tour of the city, making it down and back from Federation Square without being run over by rather aggressive cyclists. We went through the Central Business District, stopped to visit the Shrine of Remembrance and walked through a section of the Royal Botanic Gardens.


Shrine of Remembrance

Royal Botanic Gardens

Our afternoon was at leisure, and I visited the Immigration Museum and resumed my promenade walk down to the Convention Centre. The day was overcast and somewhat windy, and it started to rain about mid-afternoon. I tried to wait out the rain in the Crown Entertainment Complex, which houses a casino and upscale stores and restaurants, but as there was no sign of it stopping anytime soon and the restaurants were closed, I decided to return to my hotel and get ready for tomorrow’s busy day.


Immigration Museum, Melbourne

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Day 1 – Arrival in Melbourne

After 21 hours in the air followed by a short drive from the airport, I arrived at my hotel, but it wasn’t until after a four-hour nap and walking behind my hotel for my first real view of Melbourne that the reality of my vacation finally sank in. This is the view of the Melbourne skyline from my room at The Langham. The promenade along the Yarra River is just behind the hotel, so I had the opportunity to take a short walk before our Welcome Dinner.


Melbourne Skyline

Yarra River Promenade

The members of our tour group met for the first time at the Welcome Reception and Dinner, which was a buffet consisting of five stations with seafood, salads, made-to-order dishes and dessert (a sure sign of a Tauck tour!). These are views from the lobby and second (restaurant) levels of The Langham. Our tour director gave us our only order – “be on time” – and our itinerary for Australia.


The Langham, Melbourne, Lobby Level

The Langham, Melbourne, Restaurant Level

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Yarra River Promenade