If it's one thing you have to do at the beach is wake up early to catch the sunrise. The whole group woke up at 5am today to catch the sunrise above Byron Bay lighthouse. We piled into vans and headed towards the lighthouse. Sunrise was at 6:08 am so by the time we arrived the sky was just starting to brighten. It was a short walk to the lighthouse where a crowd was beginning to gather. The sky was already blue with hues of gold and pink closer to where the sun would rise. The lighthouse was already lit up with the morning glow. Further down the path to the east was another lookout point. Here you could see the landscape of the cliffs and waves crashing against the rocks. There were even several surfers and kayakers trying to catch sight of the first light.
At exactly 6:08 the red ball of fire peeped above the skyline lightning up the whole sky. Everyone's camera was out looking at the sun through the lens of the camera since we couldn't stare directly at it. It was so breezy without the sun up, but now that the day was beginning and it would soon heat up. To get back to the hostel we took the scenic path home. It was beautiful to walk as the sun rose, lighting up everything in its path. We were walking above the cliffs so we could see all the surfers below catching waves this early in the morning before work or it got too hot.
We checked out of Byron Bay and headed to Noosa which was about 4 hours away. We stopped at a farm to table restaurant called The Farm for breakfast. This restaurant was a commercial farm meaning that everything they grew and cultivated was eventually cooked up and served in the restaurant. I ate a pita with hummus, avocado, and egg. The avocado was well done and different than I was used to so I enjoyed it. It was a very healthy and hearty meal to start our bus journey. We wandered the farm for a little to see the different animals. The farm is free roam meaning the animals are free to go wherever they please. Little pigs ran all around and the kids on the farm were going crazy over them. There was a big mother pig who the piglets were glued to constantly following her around. I, of course, was after the cows. Most were far off but I was able to spot a small brown and white calf. It was as if he was waiting for me.
The drive took us to Queensland which was our next state.The region is called Queensland in honor of the Queen herself. Queensland is the next largest state after Western Australia. It is double the size of Texas and is considered a resource state dependent on mining and agriculture. Australia is the largest iron ore exporter in the world! In terms of agriculture, they grow a lot of sugarcane which is completely self-sufficient.
We were staying at Noosa Habitat which is an eco-lodge situated in the middle of a forest and is home to the famous Australian animal - the kangaroo! As soon as we arrived we could see the kangaroos grazing on the meadow from the bus. All of us piled out just to gape at these amazing creations. Since they are wild animals, it is advised to keep some distance. So no kangaroo selfies this time. The kangaroos were smaller than I imagined and if you got too close, they tended to shy away. It was so cool to finally be able to see the animal I had heard so much about! The kangaroos varied in size and you could clearly distinguish male from female as the female ones had a pouch. It was amazing to see the way they hopped from place to place so swiftly.
I could spend all day admiring the kangaroos. A bunch of us sat on the grass in front of the meadow just admiring them grazing in the grass. The smallest kangaroos were my personal favorite. They were just hopping about their merry lives.
Noosa Everglade is home to one of two Everglades in the world. The other one is Florida and you cannot swim in the water since it is infested with alligators. An everglade is simply a swampy grassland that is surrounded by slow moving water. We were staying right next to the Noosa Everglade and could even go for a swim in it. The water was very shallow and was red in color. The red color came from the surrounding tea tree plants. The water was surprisingly very warm and so shallow you have to sit down to be fully covered in it. It was almost like a bath! There were a couple girls there whom I waded in the water with until it was dinnertime.
Dinner was a group dinner and I really like when they have included meals as everyone is together. I was so hungry I could not even tell you what I ate. I remember there were the sweet potatoes and chickpeas; it was very very sweet. I crashed almost immediately after as we had to get up at 5 am. There was also a time difference as Queenstown was an hour behind New South Wales. So while it may have looked like I was sleeping at 8:30 pm, it was technically 9:30pm.
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