Naughty Crocs and Tasty Roos...Crickey!

It’s been raining in Australia for over a week straight, some areas have even had to evacuate! We arrived in Brisbane to discover that the weather report is to be like the previous week; however, we were still determined to catch some waves and check out Australia’s iconic wildlife.

Australia has some of the most interesting, as well as, some of the most poisonous creatures in the world. From the box jellyfish who has killed more people in Australia than stonefish, sharks, and crocodiles combined to the inland taipan snake that could kill over 100 people with just 110 mg of venom! We braved the weather to get a first hand encounter with some other critters and drove out to the Australian Zoo, Home of the Crocodile Hunter, the late Steve Irwin. Not quite like the other zoos, we watched the Animal Planet Croc Show live at the Crocoseum and hand feed kangaroos.

Finally saturated with rain, we decided to get some dinner. Seemingly sacrilegious, especially after feeding them, we found a burger joint and had a Bushtucker Roo Burger; completing one of our last dares. It was kind of like a hamburger but gamier. Some Australians, mainly farmers, have come to find kangaroos a pest as they are overpopulated and destroy crops. To help keep the numbers in check the kangaroo meat industry has since developed. To help boost their selling potential they held a competition to find a culinary name for the meat, like venison for deer. With names like Roujoe, Kangasaurus, and Jumpmeat the companies have yet to make any changes.

Our last day we drove up the Sunshine Coast (don’t let the name fool you) to hang ten. But we were sorely disappointed when the swells were nothing more than baby waves. Pipe dreams down the drain. Since, it wasn’t raining we walked along the beach looking for blue ring octopus (without success) and had a little dip in the ocean.

Next stop Kaula Lumpur, Malaysia.