Tropical Rainstorms & Luxury Apartments.
Townsville -> Carins, 13th February 2002
We woke up early so we could get going nice and early. But when we
looked outside, we could see rain. Not just normal rain, but a
tropical storm, it was absolutely tipping it down! We debated
whether to wait until tomorrow before leaving for Cairns. Josh &
Stinge wanted to go today, Em & Nat wanted to stay, and I wasn't
sure.
I went outside to look, armed with an umbrella. After 3 paces, I was
soaked, even with the umbrella. I quickly turned round. I asked the
man at reception about the weather. He said that this was the first
rain they'd had for 12 months, so the locals were very happy.
Unfortunately, he didn't know how long it would last, it could last
an hour, a day or a week. But if it rained like this for a couple of
hours, the road north to Cairns would be flooded & closed. It would
then take 3 or 4 days to clear. So we either had to leave soon, and
get very wet, or stay for the day and risk being stuck here for
ages.
We decided that we'd leave today. We'd wait until 11 o'clock (about
an hour). If the rain stopped, even briefly, we'd load the van & get
going. Otherwise, we'd run out at 11 and load up the van, trying to
stay as dry as possible. Luckily, the rain began to ease off, so we
quickly loaded up the van and drove off in the direction of Cairns.
The drive was quick & quiet. We were all hot, sticky and a bit wet,
so we were a bit disgruntled. As the hours passed, we dried out and
grew a bit calmer. We were soon in Cairns and, once again, on the
hunt for accommodation. The people we'd spoken to, had called Cairns
'a mud flat' and that it was a really nasty place. We drove around
the city and thought it was quite nice!
The accommodation hunting was more of a challenge this time. The
girls wanted to stay in a motel, so they could get a TV and a fancy
room. So we checked the few motels in the city centre. They were all
too expensive. So the girls suggested heading back out of town and
checking the other motels. Stinge, Josh and I wanted somewhere in
the city centre, so we could get to the shops & interesting places
easily. It would be annoying to be too far out of town. But the
girls really didn't want to stay in a hostel, the only other option
in the city centre.
In between hot weather, sweating, and our differing opinions on
where to stay, we were all getting quite hot and annoyed. We didn't
want to argue with the girls, so we turned round and started to
drive back out of the city centre. Just as we were heading out, we
saw one option we hadn't previously considered. A holiday apartment.
A complete, self-contained, multi-room apartment with full private
facilities. Just like a normal apartment, just short-term.
The first 2 were very expensive, then we saw 'Koala Apartments'.
When we went in, the lady working there was very friendly & chatty.
After talking for a while, Josh & I managed to barter her down to
$105 for the night, if we stayed at least 2 nights. When we actually
looked at the apartment, we took it without a second thought. It
seemed like each night we were getting a better place to stay than
the previous night!
For $105 (about 40 pounds) we got: 2 bedrooms, a bathroom with full
laundry facilities, a huge living room with a sofa bed, a lovely
fully-equipped kitchen and a balcony! It was fantastic! We didn't
think it could any better, then we saw the pool. A beautiful pool
(with a little spa in the corner) surrounded by foliage.
First we'd emptied the van completely, it had got us to Cairns, so
now we had to think about selling it. Then we all got changed and
jumped into the pool. Ahhhhhhhh, now that was relaxing. After being
hot, sweaty and annoyed for a couple of hours, the pool washed it
all away. I was calm & refreshed.
We had a quiet evening. We walked around town, looked for an
Internet cafe and enjoyed the slightly cooler evening weather.
Tomorrow, we'll have a proper look around the city of Cairns. But
now, we're going to sleep in our fantastic apartment. Night!
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