We awoke early, unnecessarily. Got everything ready – a plastic bag to cover my Outback-initiated boots.
Another crisp, clear sunrise through the restaurant window..
where we were alone after the hikers leave, free to order off of the menu – me with a clever and very tasty Eggs Benedict (had to wait a little for the hollandaise sauce – worth it).
We hung out in the lounge area, interrupted only by my using our $100 deposit to buy the didgeridoo guy’s CD and a book for Alex, and Dana buying Tshirts for our dear neighbors, the Martins. The general manager drove us, with another couple, to the Ayers Rock resort/town airport. Surprisingly large jet, and equally surprisingly long flight.
This is a big country – larger than the lower 48 US.
We had a delightful greeting in Cairns, from retired Romanian engineer, Christian (now a chauffeur, after being forced to retire without a pension from Aramco in Saudi Arabia because he was not a Saudi citizen).
First time I’ve seen my name in the original German – with the umlaut. Christian’s been studying German – speaks several languages. His intelligence, knowledge, experience, and educated English made for a very interesting drive to Silky Oaks.
In addition to the immediate humid heat, the transition we just made from dry desert reds, oranges, and sand, to moist, lush tropical flora was stark. We drove on a coast road similar (except for the palm trees) to 101 on the Oregon coast, right down to the shoulder and lane closures for hillside slumping.
And then we came to Silky Oaks, where we (👍👍👍👍👍) will spend the next 4 nights. After telling our ATJ guru, Eric Kareus, that Longitude 131 was the best place I’d stayed in my 83 countries and 83 years I had to amend that and place it second to Silky Oaks, even though we’d only been here a couple of hours.
Started with the Daintree rainforest we arrived through – the oldest surviving rainforest in the world (135-180 million years old) – then through a locked gate to a little parking area where we were greeted by Dan, a young host, and escorted to the lodge…
I commented to Dana that the forest was so perfect that it almost felt like a movie set. And then, set (and indeed almost woven) within the forest, the lodge…
which will undoubtedly be the subject of far too many pics and videos – an extreme version of our philosophy of the lodging being part of the adventure.
The sincere, friendly deference of the staff compares well with other luxury (let’s face it – this place is luxurious, our kind of luxury: intelligently functional) higher end places we’ve stayed , from Dan who greeted us, to the woman who did the checkin with us seated in the lounge area with our welcome lemonade, to everyone on the huge staff we’ve encountered with. They knew we were abstainers, that Dana was allergic to oysters, and that I had left hip and left knee osteoarthritis, and they are accommodating those things to the point of not having wine glasses at our meal tables, having the wait staff know our names and our special needs, and giving us a chalet quite close to the lodge.
As we were waiting for our checkin hostess in the lounge area that overlooks the Mossman River…
I saw a spectacular large blue butterfly that was so iridescent it seemed electrified. Hope to get video and pics of it soon.
Our chalet also faces the river…
and has the very best of every imaginable amenity.
We did a little walk along the river, using supplied umbrellas for a little shower, while I did some laundry in the complementary washers and dryers. Unimaginable – I’ve never seen that in travel lodging anywhere.
We cleaned up in the very appropriate rainforest style showers and had our included dinner in the restaurant, attended by the absolutely delightful Camila (from Buenas Aires).
Unsurprisingly perhaps, the dinner was every bit as good and creative as at Longitude 131. I couldn’t resist snapping photos.
And note the crowning point: no bugs. The restaurant, lounge, and lobby area are totally open-air and for all the time we spent there (in fact on the walk!) I never felt or saw an insect.
and the wifi is top notch.
Dana and Roger Travels 