The end is nigh...

Ello Mates-
Can't believe I've been away for over 2 months, it seems like yesterday I was hopping off the plane into New Zealand. This entire experience has been amazing. It's going to take a while for me to process all that's occurred. Lady Elliott was incredible. Studied a lot about Great Barrier Reefs. Went snorkeling in clear blue waters with fish of all sorts of colors and many venomous and poisonous creatures. Saw a shark, a sting ray, lots of turtles and so much more. Earth hour occurred while we were on the island, which started in Sydney a few years ago ands has spread to thousands of places since. All power is turned off for an hour to raise awareness about the am mount of electricity we all use. During earth hour we went out to the beach and watched freshly hatched sea turtles make their way into the ocean- then sat in the candlelit old island bar listening to Billy Joel ( there was a generator running in that one place). The birds were crazy at Lady Elliott, there can be over 170,000 of them at one time on the little island- let's just say good sleep was not to be had- these birds cried like baby monkeys the whole night through. It's necessary though, as most of the coral gets it's nutrients from their waste ( a few of us got a few nutrients on our clothes as well...)An interesting concept we've discussed has been that of shifting baselines...or the failure to notice change as it occurs slowly over time. For example, I wasn't disappointed by going to the GBR and seeing 1 shark and lots of turtles. But if I had known how many more their used to be I might have been. I recommend everyone checking out the website . Pretty amazing info that we could all take something from.
I'm sad to be leaving soon, as I could stay here happily for a while longer, but so thankful for the experiences I've had. I'll be updating more as I continue to have time to reflect!

Cheers

OZ!!!

Sorry I have not been able to update my blog properly. I will most likely further expound on my travels oncve I have a spare moment to really sit and reflect Have spent many a days in the bush! Just got back from Binna Burra/Lamington National Park. It's surrounded by rain forests with lots of little pademelons hopping around at night.
A lot of the trees there are over 2000 years old., and they've got over 200 species of birds in this one area. Went for a long hike through the forest and got to see some Blue Lamington crayfish, which are rare and endangered.
One of the best parts about Australia is the wildlife. We've seen snakes, so many different kinds of lizards, spiders, marsupials etc. Off to Hervey Bay tomrrow and then to Lady Elliott Island!