Paradise Bay, Whitsundays, Queensland

17 to 22 Aug 08

The weather in Melbourne turned pretty cold and wet recently so we thought we'd escape to sunny Queensland and booked into Paradise Bay in the Whitsundays. We had 5 nice days in the sun, eating lots, going sailing, snorkeling, reading, drawing, kayaking or just doing nothing much in particular. There were cold bits but they were "bits"... :)

Jeremy was pretty pleased... enjoying a glass of wine in a hammock on the verandah of our bungalow.

Seen too many movies...

The nite before we left for our holiday, my silly mind wondered if the resort would let me enter. LOL. I've seen too many movies. After all they are a smart sort of place and having someone around with crutches might kinda lower the tone... and the type of people who goes to resorts in the middle of nowhere in the Whitsundays must want to go on cruises, snorkeling, walking and lots of other exciting activities. I recalled a movie I saw (Hot Fuzz) about a city cop going to a little town where the neighbourhood watch or committee killed those who did not meet a certain standard and the troublemakers, so that the town will be judged a good town and be given an award! So having to use crutches would be pretty unfashionable and hence, I will be at risk of being killed.

Anyway, at the time of composing this, I was at the verandah of our bungalow, where the resort is preparing a candlelit dinner. Dinner was not yet ready, but the table was laid and it was rather nice :) (pictured left). The bungalow faced the sea so we could hear waves lapping... And I was very much alive... and my leg was doing well, despite having walked a lot at the airports, and even climbed onto a helicopter from Hamilton Island to get to the resort!

My first helicopter ride

... and it was sensational, especially the lift-off. I took the front seat and felt my heart sink seeing the ground pulled away from us as we ascended... In my amazement, I had forgotten about the camera in my hand! Most images from the helicopter were taken by Jeremy on our return trip to Hamilton Island to catch our flight back to Melbourne.

I love this photo (above) which shows how expansive the ocean is. (LOL, you can see my reflection in the photo)

The above is Hamilton Island from the helicopter

And finally, us standing by the helicopter (left) and me in it...

The resort has a catamaran, and we were out most days on it.

We'd leave after breakfast and by lunch, arrive on a nice deserted beach for our packed lunch and some sun... then we'd snorkel and head back to the resort. I did not cope well with snorkeling. I don't like the sea or swimming pools and having a bad leg didn't help. Jeremy had to swim for me and dragged me along in the water...

That's me reflected in Jeremy's glasses! You can see my crutches on the left!

Spotted 2 humpback whales!!

Spotting two humpback whales within close proximity was definitely a highlight. They were up and out of the water showing their white front, and were flapping their gigantic tails in the air. The spectacle lasted quite long, possibly 5 minutes, from when we saw them in front of us, then on the side of the boat as we passed them, until they were behind the boat and out of sight.

Other animals we met

The were lots of birds at night having conversations and keeping me awake some nights. There were 3 curlews (one pictured on the left) which lived in the resort. They were all named Edgar (don't know why) and they were rather scary looking... and would come around especially during meal times.

We saw some eagles, some wild goats too, some dolphins in a distance (I could barely make them out as dolphins) and some turtles poking their heads above water.

Here's are pictures of Edwina and me. Edwina is one of the resident wallabies. She had a piece of banana in her hands.She would take the food from the hand of the resort staff but was quite wary of the guests. I had to leave a piece of banana on the ground, and then move away before she would take the food. She has a joey (baby wallaby) in her pouch.