Birthday in Cairns

Sunday, 19 July 2015

It is now over two months since we left home – the time is flying!

Saturday was a very important day – my birthday.  I didn’t get breakfast in bed, but I did get an extra hour of “me” time as someone thought it was only 7 o’clock when he woke up.  The glorious weather was just perfect for relaxing, talking on the phone and reading emails – thank you to all those who contacted me.  I decided on a birthday lunch and ended up choosing Barnacle Bill’s lunch menu – the grilled barramundi and salad was just right.  Naturally, it would be impossible to have a birthday without an ice cream for dessert, and Movenpick just happens to be right next to Barnacle Bill!

Today has been a bit overcast, but still very warm.  The morning was spent catching up on the little housework jobs and after lunch we set out for a walk along the creek, clutching our little plastic bag of bread for the fish.  Unfortunately, our usual bridge was occupied by half a dozen teenage boys trying to catch our well-fed fish, so we continued to the next bridge and spent a pleasant time tossing bread into the water and talking to a local couple.  At this stage, two teenage boys arrived on a motorbike and buggy affair and became quite vocal when the buggy wouldn’t fit between the barriers across the bike/walking track (they did have a very limited vocabulary!) and while we all pointed out the no motorbikes sign to them, three young children (3/4, 5/6, 7/8) on a scooter and bikes moved past us to the middle of bridge and waited for their grandmother to catch up.  Suddenly, one of the teenagers yelled, “He’s gone off the bridge!”  Les and the other man turned and ran, the man went straight through the railings into the water, I keyed in 000 on the phone (just in case) and then realised that the grandmother was in the water with the little boy as well.  Lots of adrenalin and lots of yelling happening at this stage, with the three in the water making their way to the bank and back onto the bridge.  Evidently, the little boy had surfaced and started dog paddling by the time his grandmother went over the side.  I think it would take some time for heart rates to return to normal.