Fun in Kuranda

The train to Kuranda.

Me trying a didgeridoo.

Today, we woke up at 6:50am and cought a bus at the entrance of our little hotel.  The bus brought us to a train station that was built more than 100 years ago to get to the top of a mountain where someone found gold (go figure!).  The train ride was about two hours, counting stops.  From the train, we could see beautiful views of waterfalls, cliffs, and places where the first tries at building tunnels and passages collapsed.  (Not very comforting.)  After the train to the tiny town of Kuranda, we shopped at the heritage makets.  My brother and I bought a didgeridoo, a traditional Indigenous (Aboriginal) Australian instrument.  It may be the oldest musical instrument in the world, besides clapping sticks, which are also Aboriginal.  I learned from Jimmy, our teacher, how to circular breathe and make various "animal noises."  It was a very interesting experience.

To get back to our hotel, we took a sky rail, which is like a gondola, from Kuranda.  We got to see beautiful views of the rain forest from the perspective of a bird.  It was amazing!  After writing this blog, I'll practice the didgeridoo a bit more, go for a quick swim, and then go to bed.

One of the sky rail capsules over the rain forest.