#30 Townsville

First and foremost, we visited Townsville to sell our car Karlchen. This is certainly easier in a slightly larger city than somewhere in the middle of nowhere, where we usually stay.

Two days before arrival, a woman assured us that she would buy it at an above-average price. However, we didn't have a good feeling about her and she would have taken too long to come up with the money.

Therefore, we spontaneously decided to drive to Cairns to increase our chances of selling. In Cairns, there are many backpackers and our car is perfectly equipped for traveling. We sold the refrigerator, tent, dishes, and other camping equipment.

Actually, the car sale went better than expected. The sale, including registration transfer, was completed within two days. By the way, selling a vehicle in a different state, where it is registered, is not so easy in Australia. We filled out a few forms that we didn't quite understand and hope that everything will go smoothly.

With pockets full of money, we rented a camper van and drove back towards Townsville. JUCY is now our new home for the next few weeks:

Since we hadn't seen any sharks during our time in Australia, we went to the aquarium in Townsville. It is known for having the largest coral reef exhibition in the world.

Among other things, we saw corals, starfish, moray eels, water snakes, sharks, and of course other exotic marine creatures.

What fascinated us were the leopard sharks. They lay eggs in which their offspring grow.

Aside from the aquarium, Townsville has some other beautiful spots, such as the well-designed promenade. There are small swimming areas in the sea that are secured against dangerous jellyfish with nets.

Just like in Yeppoon, there is a public lagoon, which is filled with seawater, which is why it doesn't look as paradisiacal.

And even in the lagoon, there are warning signs that jellyfish might get lost there.

Apart from that, there are playgrounds and exercise areas for adults on the promenade, where we also had fun. Sports are much more enjoyable with a view of the sea.

The next day, we visited the (as far as I know, unique in Australia) Ninja Warrior training course.

Meykel was much more skillful than me, but I could score with my pole dance skills.

On the next day, we planned to watch the sunrise from Castle Hill. We got up at 5.00 am specifically for that. Unfortunately, our camper decided not to start. The battery had given up. After a short phone call with the rental company, the breakdown service came and replaced it. Although everything went very quickly, the sun had already risen in the meantime.

By the way, this was not the first battery problem. The day before, we had to visit a workshop that had to change the second auxiliary battery.

Due to the refrigerator (which should of course run when we are not driving) and all the lights, the camper has two batteries. Now that both have been replaced, there should be no more electrical problems.

Despite the small car dilemma, we drove to the lookout, albeit with a delay. We didn't see the direct sunrise, but it was still worth going up. Yes, WE drove up, while all the other visitors walked or jogged. Respect! At the top, we were rewarded with a great view of Townsville and the sea. You could even see the mountains on the horizon.

Afterwards, the journey continued south in the hope of soon meeting Engelbert and Angelika.

>>> Follow me on Instagram for more information: annikatailor