Trip to Australia
- January 7-16 (2004), Australia
| Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 |
|
|
|
| Our guide took us on a couple of short hikes through the jungle. I like the tranquility (difficult word) of the above picture. It would be a nice place for a Starbucks. | Another great location for a new Starbucks. Luckily, Australia seems to be taking environmental protection somewhat seriously. Since tourism is one of the biggest industries in the country, and is only likely to expand, it is probably an economically sound decision. |
 |
 |
| This is apparently the second biggest butterfly in Australia, though I can not remember the name of it. Yuka was lucky to see these two butterflies engaged in some advanced gymnastics, and we were able to take some great pictures. | A big tree that is slowly being eaten by termites. Ian Clayton told us a very interesting story about why this happens, and he is probably right. Then again, he may made something up to make fun of us, as two fools from Tokyo are likely to believe anything. |
 |
 |
| Australians generally are not as fat as Americans, but they are certainly making an effort to "expand". A regular meal in Australia could probably feed a small family in Japan. I would assume many Australians are more active than Americans, that is why many manage to stay slim. This picture is from a restaurant in Townsville that served gigantic, relatively cheap meals. | One of Billabong Sanctuary's main attractions is to offer visitors a chance to hold and touch various animals. I suspect that the human visitors enjoy this more than the animals themselves. The sanctuary refers to this as "Australia's best interactive wildlife experience". |
 |
 |
| Here I am pictured with a koala bear. I can confirm that they smell quite a bit, and they have somewhat mean claws. How they taste, however, I do not know. Koala bear steaks anyone? | Finally, here I am with my new crocodile friend. Being eaten by a crocodile does not look as a fun way to leave this world, a fact that was convincingly illustrated to me during the crocodile feeding time. I learned a similar lesson during my trip to Kuching last year. |