Cairns - the first impressions

The Arrival

On September 3, 2016, at 7 a.m., we arrived at the airport in Cairns. And now I have to laugh out loud because we pronounced Cairns as Kearns but the pilot said Käyns in an announcement, and Jasmin and I suddenly weren't sure anymore if we were on the right plane. First, we had to queue for the entry permit, where we answered a few questions, and the nice lady at the counter stamped a green smiley on our immigration card and wished us a pleasant stay in Australia. With all our belongings, we continued to the baggage check, where a cute little beagle sniffed our backpacks for sausage and other forbidden souvenirs. Then we grabbed a taxi and went to the Caravella Backpackers Hostel. Since we indicated that we wouldn't check in before 2 p.m., the lady at the reception asked us to come back after 1 ½ hours until our room was ready. The hostel is 50 meters from the sea, so we decided to take a walk along the promenade and finally put our feet up.

The first impressions

Green areas, playgrounds, training islands, palm trees, and the sea on both sides of us. The first impressions were breathtaking and even better than anything we had imagined. Cairns feels like a holiday town in California. Since we hadn't seen a shower since we left, we thought it would be nice to at least dip our feet in the cool water, but a sign explicitly warning of crocodiles prevented us from doing so. Not 500 meters further, as compensation, we discovered a public pool that was almost adjacent to the sea and supposed to represent an artificial lagoon.

Locals, pubs, restaurants, and markets

There are many establishments along the promenade and in the city that are not only suitable for morning coffee but also serve small delicacies for lunch and are a great place to have a drink in the evening. Since going out can quickly cost a lot of money, we asked for tips on which days which venues have happy hour. Gilligans, the typical backpacker meeting point, Salthouse where you can get mixed drinks for $4 on Mondays, and P.J. O'Brien, an Irish pub that offers a $9 meal deal, are just a few examples. Since we mainly cooked for ourselves, we bought cheap fruits and vegetables at Rusty's Market and rarely ate out, and you can find everything else at the supermarket chain Woolworths.

The mentality and the atmosphere

What really surprises me is the casual way Australians deal with dangers and warnings. That is understandable when you grow up in a country where almost anything imaginable could kill you. When you hear about tourists in Australia being dragged under water and killed by crocodiles, any Australian will say that it is not the best idea to swim in a river that is not signposted, just from common sense. *chirpchirp*, my first thought was, "What? If crocodiles are so dangerous, why aren't they banned?" No, joking aside, in Austria, you grow up in a very sheltered way, and what we didn't find out quite so gently is the fact that in Australia, everyone is left to their own devices in terms of how far they go, and a healthy self-assessment is key to avoiding trouble.

On our first day, we made acquaintances. Cairns is really small, and I don't know how many people we already knew after 3 days there. We even ran into four people we saw on the plane regularly. The city has its own rhythm because mainly young travelers meet each other, and even the basic attitude of the locals seems very easygoing and open-minded to me. As soon as you enter a store or even just encounter someone, you are not only warmly greeted but also asked how you are doing. And then there's a small talk genius like me who still doesn't know how to respond after 2 weeks down under. I have no idea if it's just a greeting or if you simply ask if the other person is doing well, although you usually just get puzzled looks. A native German has assured us that a quick "Good, thanks!" is enough. According to the first impressions, I personally find Australians down-to-earth, honest, and loyal. And yes, people from Queensland are crazy, but I'll get to that in another blog about the Outback.

Smoking, really that expensive?

Smoking in Australia is EXTREMELY expensive! When I wanted to order cigarettes right away, I was almost shocked when I paid over €16 per pack, and now please hold on. If someone had told me that I would eventually roll my own cigarettes, I probably would have laughed at them. And now there she is rolling her own cigarettes... Yeah, in that case, you probably wouldn't order a new pack because you're too lazy to lean over to the end of the table to reach the half-full box. (Excerpt from the last celebration in Wolfsberg).

Important Encounters

In Cairns, we had a really good start and immediately made connections and friendships. Our Italian friend Davide, who was also staying at the hostel, cooked us some Italian food right away, and everyone at the hostel assured us that once you've been to the Caravella Hostel, you will come back because it has a really homely atmosphere, and we haven't met a single person who couldn't confirm that and hasn't come back before. On the first day, we met Becca, who has been traveling around Australia for half a year and has helped us with probably the most important contact address. There are plenty of booking guides that book expensive trips to the main attractions, and then there's Ezzy, a tough but caring surrogate mother for all backpackers. I can't give you exact numbers of how many desperate young girls came to her shop when we first went there because they had problems with money, their employer, or whatever, and Ezzy made phone calls all the way to Melbourne to help them out of the shit. Yeah, we really felt well taken care of and planned a 20-day tour in the rainforest of Cairns with her. So, from September 7th to September 26th, we will be on our way in the Outback, and one thing is for sure, Ezzy will also save our lives :D