If you're visiting Kuranda you there are various places you can go to learn more about the rainforests and its inhabitants. We visited a place called the RainforeStation, a nature park where they offer a wide range of activities to their visitors.
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The first part of our tour at the RainforeStation consisted of a trip into the rainforest with an Army Duck from World War II. This is the RainForeStation's oldest attraction, and while you're in the vehicle you'll be guided through the rainforest both on land and in the water.
During the trip our guide told us about the different vegetation and plants that could be found in the rainforest.
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Unfortunately we didn't really see many animals during the trip exept for a small turtle and a lizard, but there are also other creatures lurking in the water such as eels, water dragons and pythons.
The next part of the rainforest tour included an Aboriginal Experience where some people from an indigenous tribe called the Pamagirri demonstrated their local dances in a 60-minutes show. They showed us dances for every type of occasion, such as celebration dances or fighting dances.
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| A woman seemed to be pretty scared of the snake dance performed by one of the Pamagirri guides. |
After the show was over it was time to experience their "Dreamtime Walk" where we got to try throwing boomerangs. One of the Pamagirri guides also demonstrated the aboriginal instrument didgeridoo for us. It was amazing how he managed to imitate the sound of various animals just using the instrument.
The last part of our stay at the RainForeStation included a visit to their little wildlife park, where you could see animals such as wallabies, crocodiles, Tasmanian devils and koalas. The wallabies were all used to humans, and could move around in the park freely. They didn't mind being petted either, and I used the opportunity to feed one of them with some grass.
In the park you could also see some less friendly animals. Their largest crocodile was about five meters long, and he had to stay separated from other crocodiles because of his tendency to kill other crocodiles (he had apparently killed 12 of his girlfriends). This had earned him the nickname "Jack the Ripper".
The park also had a number of cute koalas one could look at.
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If you pay 17 dollars in addition, you could get a photo of yourself holding a koala. This was however the biggest disappointment about our visit to the RainForeStation. My stepmother and I wanted to get our photos taken with a koala, but neither of us were happy with our shots. It was simply a conveyer belt experience. Although there were no other tourists waiting we were just lined up, handed over the koala, taken one photo of, and it was over just like that. The photographer did not take more than one picture so there was no photos to choose from. It also seemed like the koala got pretty stressed by being handed from one to the other in a matter of seconds, and you can see on the picture above how the koala is trying to escape. Poor animal..
Holding a koala was the dream of my stepmother, but it was clear that this experience had ruined her day. I would not recommend anyone paying a single dollar at the RainForeStation to get their photos taken with the koalas.
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About Anette
Anette came to Japan as an exchange student in 2010, met the love of her life and got stuck. From her base in Tokyo she writes about her experiences as a full-time worker in Tokyo and about her travels in Japan and abroad. She's a free-spirited adventurer who enjoys both the great outdoors and her urban lifestyle.
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