I hustled and bustled and managed to not miss my flight. Let’s just say it was the taxi driver’s mistake. So, I was off to Australia. Queensland it is. Whenever I travel long distances I make sure to get ample rest on the flight. And it was long 20 hours.
Heard about Daintree Rain forest?
Fact Check: It is the oldest rain forest in the world.
“The world is a book and those who do not travel read only one page.” – Augustine of Hippo
The world has gone urban. Skyscrapers ruling the skies and people crowding on the surface. It takes a vacation and miles of distances to find a place secluded from all this. Australia is one country I always wanted to visit because of its immense wildlife and natural beauty.
Daintree rainforest is just one page of that book. But that sure makes a great page. I was really excited about this trip. Forests are something that really excites me. For a person who has lived in New York all his life, nature is something that I am not accustomed to.
From the busy streets of the city to the depths of the forest. Oh! It is a feeling you get nowhere else. It is like a kick you always wanted in your life. When nature is the only one making noise. No horns, no tire scratching the roads, no people talking on the phone. Just nature and me. To some travel is medication, to me its meditation.
Walk through the jungle you find a beach. Cape Tribulation Beach. I found a beach house just next to the beach hidden among long trees and overgrown plantations of the forest. I used that as my base to explore the Cape Tribulation region.
Kept my bag in the room and went for an afternoon stroll. I have been to my share of beaches and this sure was one of the best. The waves were hustling the shore and wind hurling the trees, it felt like they were having a conversation among themselves. Ah… this is nature. The meditation I was looking for.
Beauty in abundance
The rainforest is like none other. With natural beauty and wildlife, it is an experience to remember. The first day I spent at the beach exploring the nearby spots. The second day, I began my journey into the depths of the forest. I had a guide with me to trek along.
After walking through the dense forest for 4 hours we set up our camp for the day. Some areas are so dark, you can never tell if it’s daytime or nighttime. From snakes to spiders, the guide creeped me with all the animals he could. But then again, it is Australia.
It is just so peaceful. Words aren’t enough to describe what you feel. The guided lighted the bonfire as the Sun had set his coarse beyond the ocean horizon. It was all dark. With just the light of the bonfire, the world looked so much better. I lay down in my sleeping bag and felt all the stresses in my life just melting away. There is a moment in your trip which you remember for a lifetime. This was that moment. For this exact moment I had travelled 9000 miles across oceans.
Life is not that long. You may live to be a hundred or loose your breathe this next second. So, why not turn the page of the book now. Why stay at one place when the world is too big to explore. Get on. Pack your bags and make your route to the meditation you need in your life. Traveling is an ecstacy, the people who have tasted, can never go back. But it is the good kind.
In the end, I would like to quote Anthony Bourdain, a travel documentarian-
“Travel isn’t always pretty. It isn’t always comfortable. Sometimes it hurts, it even breaks your heart. But that’s okay. The journey changes you; it should change you. It leaves marks on your memory, on your consciousness, on your heart, and on your body. You take something with you. Hopefully, you leave something good behind.”