Cairns
Here I am, sitting in my flat in Cairns on my night off from my new job, brooding over all that has transpired in the less than two weeks since arriving. Well, here is how it all happened…
I arrived in Cairns around 7:30 pm on Friday, June 29th. Driving through the city, I almost couldn’t believe I had made it to Cairns, finally! I checked into my hotel, the Palm Regis Quay, just a few blocks from the waterfront and, after a long shower, mustered my strength to go out on the town. I walked a few blocks from my hotel on a path I had poured over on Google maps weeks before. On a mission to meet people and make friends (and hopefully not pay for all my drinks), my ears perked up when I heard the music, hustle and bustle of PJ’s Irish Pub. By this time of night the pub was full of people and after making a lap around the bar to check things out, I squeezed myself in to grab a beer. Luckily, a local bloke named Mick offered to buy me a pint and I happily obliged. Mick chatted me up for a while and convinced me to stay for another round, but was unsuccessful in getting me to dance and soon after I politely excused myself to continue exploring the town.
From there, I had a drink at a place called Society, where all the girls were dressed in these skin tight, super short dresses (not exclusive to Society, but they all seemed to be drawn there like a moth to a flame). Not a soul talked to me and I got a drink spilled down the front of me, so I moved on to seek out a place I had looked up before coming, Salt House. I navigated my way down to the pier and found Salt packed with people. Once again, I bellied up to the bar but couldn’t get a bartender’s attention. The guy next to me had ordered a whole slew of drinks, so I piped up and told him that if he could get me a drink I’d love him forever! Jason (who is now my flatmate/landlord) willingly added a fourth espresso martini to his order and we chatted for the twenty minutes or so it took the bartender to make them. Jason introduced me to his party, including his friend Blake. As most people have been, they seemed very impressed that I was traveling alone and had just made the drive from Brisbane. I chatted with Blake for the remainder of the evening/morning before making plans to meet up again the next day.
Saturday morning was beautiful when I woke up, so I grabbed a coffee on my way out of Cairns in search of a beach. I wandered into Trinity beach before 9:00 am and was so tickled just to be there, listening to the ocean and watching beachgoers, boats, swimmers, and dogs. I finished my coffee on the beach, feeling very lucky. Unfortunately, I had to return my rental car that day by noon, so I reluctantly gathered my things and headed back to Cairns.
Saturday night was a bit of a doozy. Before meeting up with Blake at Lilo Wetbar, I took it upon myself to check out Gilligan’s (a very well known Backpacker Hostel and Bar/Club), which I had heard mixed reviews of. I had a few drinks (paid for all of them) with a Stag party (Aussie version of a bachelor party) who had lost their stag earlier that day but were keeping the spirit of the evening alive with sombreros, singing, and what I can only describe as “interpretive dance.” Pretty sure I ended up back at Society after Lilo, but it’s hard to remember now. The next morning, groggy and disheveled, I walked down to a car show on the mall where Blake and his company were displaying their handiwork. Jason was there and after chatting with him and Blake, he mentioned that he had a room at his place where I could stay. I went with Blake that evening to Jason’s to check it out, where I met Jason’s girlfriend Natalie and their friend, Terry. It was obvious that they were good people and the room had everything I needed to be comfortable, so the next morning after checking out of my hotel, I moved in.
On Tuesday, after cleaning and unpacking all my belongings, I decided to get some dinner at Salt, since it had seemed like a good place to meet people. Indeed, I was correct and I ended up chatting with a trio of people who were sitting next to me, Nick, Fabian, and Jody. It was an interesting small world scenario as they explained how they all knew each other. The gents were both from Vanuatu (look it up if you don’t know) and had known each other from home. Fabian, a dead ringer for Orlando Bloom, is a tattoo artist who was in Cairns as a guest artist of a local shop and earlier that evening had tattooed Jody, who is flatmates with Nick. It was all happenstance that they knew each other. They treated me to another glass of wine before convincing me to join them at the Woolshed for another round (or two?).
I nursed a wine hangover from the previous evening’s festivities on Wednesday morning and got myself prepared for the State of Origin game, which Jason, Natalie, and I had been invited to watch at Blake’s place that evening. I was so surprised when we arrived and they had gotten red, white, and blue sprinkled cupcakes with little American flags on them for Independence Day! It was so sweet and thoughtful. About ten of us ate pizza, drank beer and watched the game, which was a very close scoring match, even to the last seconds.
I gotta say…I think I’m in love with Rugby. They have fights like hockey, wear shorts and tees like soccer, and hit like football. It is hard to fathoms that the same guys play the entire game. These men are SERIOUSLY TOUGH, which I imagine comes from years of being knocked around. There seems to be a debate on requiring headgear to reduce concussions, the younger players are required to wear it but it looks so ridiculous, like water polo players. While it does happen, I am constantly surprised by the lack of injury. Mostly commonly I see plenty of bloody noses, unconscious players, dislocated shoulders, and twisted knees. Regardless, it is a heck of a lot of fun to watch.
Since the 4th, I’ve had trips to Palm Cove and Port Douglas, although the weather hasn’t been cooperating for the past few days so I wasn’t able to enjoy them quite as much as I would have liked to. I also got my internet situation sorted out, which has been a big relief. I found an ad for waitressing at Dundees Restaurant and jumped on it, calling, e-mailing, and popping in to introduce myself. I got an informal interview on Monday and they asked me to try out on Tuesday night. They hired me after my try out and I am on the roster for the rest of the week. I’m delighted to not be only spending money and feel pretty lucky at how quickly I was able to get employed (three weeks, not too shabby!).
In all, I think Cairns is a very interesting spot because of all the travelers coming and going. I have met Aussies, Kiwis, Brits, Dutch, South Africans, Canadians, and Italians. Pretty much everyone I meet has something to say about me being American, which I was pretty prepared for before I came. I take pride in bucking the loud, rude stereotype. Surprisingly, most people are curious about the upcoming elections. Unlike the US, Australians are required by law to vote. My comprehension of their political system is limited, but their parties sound similar to ours, as does the seething rhetoric between them. So far, in any social situation I am generally the least cultured and least traveled of anyone in the group. I hope to change that though and considering the relatively inexpensive cost to travel from Australia to Asia and New Zealand, it seems like a very real possibility. I’m not sure how long I will be in Cairns yet, but there is still so much to do and see in the area. I haven’t made it out to the reef yet or into the Daintree rainforest, but I’m sure it is just a matter of time.