Cuddling Kangaroos, Koalas & Crocs

B and I awoke for our first full day in Australia at 5 am, which meant we were up and ready to face the day by 7, a rare blessing. We headed downstairs, to the ground floor of the hostel, where there was the cutest little coffee shop serving the tiniest, most expensive teas and coffees. The waitresses, however, were not nearly as sweet as the atmosphere and by the time our drinks arrived we were both feeling very put off by Brisbane. And while we know that  it isn't fair to judge a city by 2 waitresses, it is a reminder to how fast first impressions are formed.

After our morning drinks, we caught a bus to Lone Pine, a Koala Sanctuary. The bus drove by some scenic views but I didn’t bring my car sickness bracelets - I haven’t made that mistake in years - and so, by the time we arrived, I was car sick, still bummed by the rude waitresses, and wishing I could just be back in Northern California on the river… 

As we entered the sanctuary we passed tons of koala bears hanging out in trees. There were no cages, although there was a low fence to keep people back, and so the impression was much more of walking through a eucalyptus grove with koala sleeping all around you and much less like a zoo. As we continued walking, we reached the koala cuddling area and there we received an adorable little koala who cuddled right up to my boobs, she even felt me up a bit, and promptly fell asleep.

Next, B was handed a baby crocodile with its mouth taped shut and as he “cuddled” the croc I took a picture. B did not appreciate this picture, stating that "holding a baby croc with it mouth taped shut is one of the least manliest things ever done, an insult to men". I respected this opinion, but kept the picture. 

After these photo ops we were momentarily stumped. We had cuddled a koala and a croc, what was left? Hadn't we just 'completed Australia' in a matter of hours?

We continued down the path through the sanctuary. Soon we hit a large fence. Packets of food were piled by the entrance and we grabbed some assuming we were going to feed some animals through the fence. Instead we entered a large, empty field. Suddenly, a kangaroo hopped from behind a tree, he was right beside us. He then promptly curled up on the ground and went to sleep. We walked right up and the kangaroo didn’t bat an eye. Full of new purpose and courage, we continued through the field. 

We met tons of short red kangaroos, which we later learned were actually wallabies. They loved the food and loved to hop. They would hop right up and nuzzle our hands… we were enthralled. We continued walking and eventually came across legitimate kangaroos. These large, gray marsupials lounged in the sun, looking like sunbathers on a beach. We quickly discovered that they would come when called, if promised a treat. B was even able to lay down with a group of them in the grass, as if he too was just a sunbathing kangaroo. They were the best ever. We spent so long hanging with the kangaroos, it was impossible to leave.

Finally, we tore ourselves away and walked the rest of the park. We watched the birds of prey show, whose stars were these barking owls that did the coolest tricks. We met 3 tasmanian devils, Stripy, Sparky and Midnight. We saw parrots and cockatoos, big, fat wombats, a little echidna - which I am still not positive I actually saw - and tons of snakes, I even had a gray python wrap around my arm. 

Although, the kangaroos were the best by far, all of it was interesting, and the funniest moment of the day, actually happened as we stumbled across an emu in the kangaroo field. B was super impressed with the bird and went forward to have a picture with it. However, as he got close, he swore the bird gave him an “evil, attack eye” and so, without a backward glance, he tore off running from the bird and back toward me. To add insult to injury, minutes later I was able to walk up and pet the bird, but, to this day, B still swears there was evil in that creature.

Does he look evil?