Travels: A Morning in Cairns and Back to Sydney

We left Mission Beach early, and after a two-hour drive, said goodbye to our dear friends David and Sarah (a bit tearfully) in Cairns. Cairns is north of Mission Beach, right on the coast, and one of its sister cities is our very own Scottsdale, AZ!

Our flight south was several hours after theirs, so on David's recommendation, we walked the beachfront promenade. We passed a gorgeous heritage building turned into a shopping mall and conference center called Bolands. How could that not be fabulous??? (Shout out to all Marg's Boland family!) This little jaunt was much nicer than an airport sit, and we saw shore birds, more incredible FREE community pools and landed at Prawn Stars. Yes, you read that right. Prawn Stars. Several fishing boats tied together in the harbor formed a floating restaurant with fresh seafood. We shared some cold sauv blanc and a dozen salty, sweet oysters and said good-bye to Australia's tropics.