Rainforestation

Another full day today!

First stop: Rainforestation - it's like a tiny zoo with some Aboriginal elements, a fruit garden, and a patch of rainforest.

I started my activities there with a Duck Army tour — basically a big amphibious vehicle — and off we went into the rainforest. We even drove through water, which was pretty cool. Our guide taught us about indigenous plants; he’d learnt from Aboriginal elders and clearly knew his stuff.

After the tour, I went to the mini zoo with free-roaming kangaroos. Actually, I think they were wallaroos — too big to be wallabies, too small to be full kangaroos. You could buy kangaroo feed and offer it to them, and you were allowed to pet them.

Since it was full of tourists, naturally the roos’ appetite wasn’t exactly ravenous, and most of them barely ate. Fair enough. What really bothered me, though: people are getting more and more relentless. All they cared about was getting the perfect photo for social media. They poked and prodded the roos, and even when the animals tried to move away, people followed them. Maddening. 😠

I stayed respectful around the animals and let them come to me. One actually came really close, nudged me, and practically asked me to stroke its head — then presented its chest so I could scratch it. The roo genuinely seemed to love it. After a few seconds, people began gathering around, trying to get a piece of the action. The roo moved closer to me, which was sweet… until a Russian guy bumped into me with an entitled “Excuse me,” grabbed the roo, and posed for a photo his wife took. Damn, that was sad to watch — and sad that none of the staff seemed to care.

I wasn’t in the mood to keep exploring after that (though I did have the chance to touch a water python - fun!), so I went to catch my shuttle bus.
All in all, this stop wasn’t worth the money for me. You’re always wiser afterwards. 🤷‍♀️Read more