Australia Vacation -- Day 4

What Australian visit would be complete without visiting the Great Barrier Reef? Of course, how do you accomplish this with two little girls in tow? Well, we had an excellent manager of the hotel serve as our tour guide/booking agent. She found an awesome deal through a company called Reef Magic that allowed the girls to come with us. They even threw in a helicopter ride for free! The day consisted of an early morning rise to catch our tour bus. They took us to the pier, where we hopped on a huge, two story catamaran ship. We took about a 45 minute ride out to the reef (quite choppy) to an anchored “dock” – Marine World.

Mark took the first plunge into diving while Courtney took the girls on a semi-submersible vessel around the reef. Mark managed to see 3 sharks, an eel, lots of fish, gorgeous coral cliffs, colorful sea squirts, bumpy sea cucumbers, star fish, giant clams, and a jellyfish (that he touched). The only thing missing was Courtney.

When Mark returned (and warmed up), we all headed over to a waiting helicopter. We hopped on the helicopter and did a quick (5 minute) tour around the reef. From the air, we caught a sight of sea turtles swimming, the reef itself, and Marine World. Afterward, we all enjoyed lunch on the boat.

Then, it was Courtney’s turn to dive while Mark took the girls on the submersible again. While Courtney missed any sharks, she saw some huge parrot fish, lots of coral, a sea anemone, and a sea pen (looked like an old quill pen). When she returned, it was time to head back to the pier and home. Unfortunately, the girls didn’t get to really play in the water or snorkel because it was so cold and choppy, but they still seemed to enjoy the boat ride. What a full day!!!