Cairns, Day One

5/19 - I arrived in Cairns on the northeast coast of Australia early Saturday morning and hired a shuttle bus to Gilligan’s—the Ritz of all hostels—to check my bags and hit the town. I had a day to kill before my friend Chelsea’s arrival and my first stop was Fusion Organics, whose brew could “rouse even the weariest of bodies,” according to my beloved Lonely Planet. After my 4am wake-up call, mine was fairly weary. The coffee was delicious, and sufficiently roused, I headed to the beach to check out the famed Cairns Foreshore Promenade.


I didn’t find the sandy oasis I expected, but a boggy, crocodile-infested marsh. Fortunately, the town compensated by building an impressive, 4800-sq-m (3 mile) saltwater swimming lagoon which was lined by hundreds of scantily clad, bronzed bodies. The public BBQs were fired up, boys were tossing Frisbees and rugby balls across the lawn, and a live band filled the air with happy tunes. After an hour in the sun, I headed back to Gilligan’s to check into my room, a 6-person dorm with a private bathroom. Four of the beds were occupied, the last 2 reserved for Chelsea and myself. She wasn’t due to arrive until just before midnight, so I donned my running gear and headed back to the promenade to run along the 3km esplanade.


After a mild bout of heat stroke, I stopped by the cinema to buy a ticket to Zodiac later that evening (I was crazing popcorn for dinner). When I got back to Gilligan’s, my roommates were home, three incredibly sweet, younger German boys. They’d taken a year off before heading to University to travel around Australia and they were three months into their journey. We exchanged stories for a while, and then I showered and headed back to the cinema. After watching a film featuring a notorious, and yet at-large serial killer, I headed back along the dark streets to the hostel to chill out and wait for Chelsea’s arrival.


Part of Gilligan’s notoriety comes from the 1,000 capacity beer hall on the ground floor that turns into a raging night club on the weekend. Just past midnight, Chelsea had to fight her way through hundreds of sweaty bodies to find reception. The club vibrations filled our dorm until the early morning hours, and needless to say, we didn’t sleep much that night.