Crikey!

After I left Surfers Paradise I headed to a small town called Noosa. I stayed at a hostel that was a little out of town, which proved to be a little annoying BUT I got my own room for 3 nights in a shared apartment for $25/night so it was worth it. When you're on the road and staying in dorms most nights, having your own room feels like a little bit of luxury. The property was right on the beach so I spent some time laying in the sun and relaxing but the main reason I came to Noosa was to go to the Zoo which was about an hour away.

The Australian Zoo was started by Steve Irwin's Dad and later taken over by Steve. There are a ton of pictures and videos and dedications to him all over the zoo. Kind of made to feel sad to be honest. He really made a difference when it came to trying to protect and educate people about animals and he is somewhat of a hero at the Zoo. There was a lovely memorial statue of him and his family at the entrance...

One of the coolest things about the OZ Zoo is that there are many animals that you are allowed to walk right up to and touch and feed. The Kangaroo area was open to everyone and they roamed freely and were very used to people. Here's a pic of a few of them just chillin' in the grass...

Here's a few pics of me getting up close and personal...

Awww sleepy Roo!

Well hello there!

This crazy lady was in the Lion cage playing with them like they were domestic kittens...

Red Koala. Looks much different then the normal Koalas but it sleeps just as much (20-22hours/day!)

Clever girl indeed!

Tasmanian Devil.

I got to touch a Koala. They are soooooooooo soft.

If you're sick of seeing pics of Koalas in my blog, too bad. I still can' get enough of them. They are the cutest animals I have ever seen.

He's asleep...like that!

Wombat!

Biggest...turtle...ever!

and of course..a Croc. There were quite a few crocs at the Zoo. Steve's passion.

There was even a croc show where these dudes coaxed the croc out of the water with food and it would run and snap at them. Pretty scary stuff!

Does anyone else find it disturbing that they have Bindi (Steve Irwin's daughter) talking dolls for sale in the gift shop?

As well as Bindi beer coolers...

Bindi Adventure packs (whatever that is)

and Bindi Bingo???

There are also some Ninga Turtles at the Zoo. No wait, that was just the girls who were staying in my room in Surfers and decided to dress up one night to go on a pub crawl...

Next stop: A dairy farm in Biggenden (small town inland about 2 hours) where I will most likely make a fool of myself since I am such a city girl...