Were tired, and laze in til 9am. This hostel has yet another pool we've not found time to use - it all seems such a waste. The most we see of hostels is the bed - were usually in late at night to early morning only. We see so many people lounging round hostels we wonder whether they're actually seeing anything, or whether were just doing an extreme itinerary. In Kakadu we met a couple of English guys who arrived in Australia the day after us. So far they'd seen Sydney only. They had to leave a couple of weeks after us, and were stunned when we told them what wed accomplished. Most people seem to be incredulous. I'm proud of what we've achieved. I think we've seen a lot - albeit briefly, without exhausting ourselves. The final section of the trip, however, may be different - there's a lot to see and not much time.

We're aiming for a day off today, but we have to plan the final leg of out trip first. Usually we do this at the prior airport, but this time we didn't - partly due to lack of time, and partly as the trip segment is so long - two weeks. Additionally, we have more things we want to see than we have time for - some prioritising is required. We take into account what other people have said, and what the Rough Guide says - its been pretty effective so far.

Checking out of our hostel is first priority, though - they've no doubles or twins available for three weeks, and we don't want to sleep in dorms unless were desperate - its usually only a few dollars more to get a double. The YHA doesn't work on commission to book trips, so we organise the next two days excursions. Having sat down with a notebook we have a rough idea of what we can do and when. Sadly were having to miss out some stuff here - the rest of the trip had higher priorities and this was always going to be the problematic section. I'd like to spend the whole two weeks on the Great Barrier Reef, but there are other things to see. Some of the islands are going to have to be missed, as there are about five we want to visit. If we can book day coach trips, we see more (though it's expensive; at least $200 per day), and we can do a few days heavy driving to compensate. Originally I envisaged meandering down the coast taking in islands en route; this isn't going to happen. Brisbane is 1700km drive from Cairns - were going to do it in three days, to maximise our time off the road. So much for relaxation! We have a couple of days to chill out on aeroplanes, and when we get back, so that'll have to do.

We call another hostel (using our very handy mobiles, which are actually quite cheap for calling inside Australia), picking on the basis of proximity to our current location, and on the Rough Guide not panning it. They pick us up a few minutes later, which is helpful, and we drive a short distance - too far to walk if avoidable with the amount of stuff were now carrying.

An American called Michelin greets us. She's incredibly enthusiastic, energetic (manic might be a better description) and helpful. When we've sorted out our room, we go back to reception. Michelin spends an hour with us, helping plan our itinerary and book trips. She's a bit thrown by our priorities - usually backpackers come to Cairns for the Reef, and for extreme sports; white water rafting, bungee, and paragliding are popular here. We want to see wildlife, scenery and culture. She does well, though, and by lunchtime were sorted, and know roughly what were doing until we get to Brisbane in about ten days.

[Cairns]

We walk into Cairns for lunch. Its small enough to walk across in fifteen minutes, though we have to navigate across a railway line. Its on the coast but doesn't have a beach - one is being built. We later find out the beach was dredged from the early 20th century to allow ships through to the port. Cairns is very touristy, in a quiet way. It reminds me of the Costa Del Sol fifteen years ago. Its colourful and cheery, but you cant get away from the tourism. Apparently it used to rely on sugar cane and shipping, but now relies on the Reef bringing in tourists. Cairns is, according to backpackers we've spoken to, the place to base yourself for visits elsewhere - people don't seem to spend any time in Cairns, except for eating - it has myriad restaurants.

Lunch is at The Red Ochre Grill. Its the sister restaurant of the one in Alice Springs. It only uses ingredients indigenous to Australia. Back at the hostel we read, sleep and spod - nice to rest for a change. Incidentally we check our bank statements on-line and note were getting $2.84 to the 1ukp for Visa transactions - this is extremely good.

[Reef Teach]

At 6pm we head out to Reef Teach, a two-hour lecture given by a marine biologist, about the ecosystems on the reef. Its fantastic, really well-presented by a hyper-active American, really informative, and useful. I can now identify at least the family of the vast majority of coral and fish well see. Apparently 2% of everyone coming to the reef attends this talk. There were around 100 people there - thats a lot of people visiting the reef! The reef was getting decimated by tourists - now groups are only allowed into certain areas, which they wreck a little. Far more damage is being done by the excess nutrients being released into the ocean by agriculture, and the loss of mangrove creeks, which filter it out.

We buy fish identification cards, and a book. We've already got an underwater disposable camera - we couldn't find a case for ours. The talk finishes at 8.30pm, and we find a nice little Mexican restaurant. Iain's stomach is starting to recover from the curry the other day. The owner/waiter talks to us about Aborigines - he's of the opinion that they're too heavily subsidised by the government, and in general don't want to work. He thinks there'll be a huge backlash one day culminating in racial violence and the eradication of indigenous people. He's British, and been here for thirty years. I've heard even more vociferous opinions from Australians.

Back to the hostel by 10pm, we read for a while, then sleep, as we have a 7.30am pick-up tomorrow.