QUEENSLAND

Yesterday was, again, a boring day.  Loved it.  Did virtually nothing but eat and sleep.  

We are now in the Coral Sea, and will cruise for two days.  I thought the internet would be non-existent.  Works well.  Yes, I continue to be very happy.

What is particularly nice is not to have to do anything.  Well, maybe this blog is a bit time-consuming.  But some tell me they love to live vicariously through my postings.  Not sure if humdrum appeals, but  I nevertheless continue.

Well, anyway, we were in the state of Queensland (5.3 million people) for the past few days, where we ported in Townsville (181,668), Cairns (153,951), and smaller towns, Airlie Beach and Moreton Island.  Still wondering why we bypassed Brisbane, which has a population of 2.5 million. 

Queensland has more area than all but 15 countries--about the size of Mexico and Indonesia--and different from previous visited states in that there are rainforests and coral reefs.  Yet, this area experienced a temperature of 121 F in 1972.  Texas easily fits into this state.

• 
  Aboriginal occupation predates 50,000 BC.  
• Dutch, French and Spanish explorers came here first, but somehow, then Lieutenant James Cook in 1770 claimed this portion of the continent.  
• They brought small pox, which decimated the Aboriginal population.  Seems to be a pattern here in the Pacific, including Hawaii.  

• 
  Interestingly enough, when Ireland suffered their Great Famine in the mid 1850's, orphan girls were sent to live to this Queensland region.  
• With half a million people, this state joined the Federation of Australia in 1901.  Qantas originally was founded here in 1920.

• 
  In 1935 cane toads from Hawaii were introduced to eat cane beetles, and have remained as environmental pests since then.  Hawaii had done the same in 1932 from Puerto Rico, which imported theirs from South America.  These Bufos are still a pest, but now rarely seen, except on certain golf courses.

• 
  The end of the White Australia Policy was in 1973, and waves of immigrants arrived in this region.
• The highest religious affiliation is NONE at 46%, with Christianity at 41%.
• Brisbane will host the 2032 Summer Olympics.

• 
  The koala is the state animal, anemone is the fish and sapphire the gem.
• Their color is maroon.
• 
  As we're leaving Australia, one final note is that you can drive around the continent on Highway 1, a trip of 9200 miles, called the Big Lap.  How long?  At least 3 months.  The record was set in 2017:  6 days, 8 hours and 52 minutes.  Actually, shouldn't take 3 months of normal driving, for a travel itinerary from Los Angeles to Seattle to Montreal to Miami to Mexico City to Los Angeles, about the same distance, surely can be comfortably completed in a month.

Breakfast in Cairns was not much, and lunch was light.

The highlight of the day was a rainbow over Cairns.

Dinner was supposed to be on our veranda to watch the departure.  However, things got delayed, we left in darkness, so had dinner in our room.  Just caviar and steak.

We watched Scotch:  A Golden Dream, a story about James McEwen, scotch master who brought this beverage to the world.  Probably had a lot to do with Japan, Taiwan and Tasmania becoming competing wine steeples. Rotten Tomatoes reviewers only gave it a 67 rating, but audiences said 81%, and I agreed with them.

I was particularly interested in this production because on Wednesday I will attend a whisky tasting on the Odyssey.  Seven of them ranging from the traditional Macallan, Lagavulin, Highland Park and Johnny Walker Blue Label, to even a bourbon, Blanton's Single Barrel, and Irish Greenspot.

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