Trecand in viteza pe langa plantatii de trestie de zahar ochii ni se opresc pe o lighioana moarta la margine de drum: un mare si cenusiu sarpe. Bine ati venit in Australia. La 100 de km trecem pe langa un cangur mort.

As we zip past sugar cane plantations we see roadkill on the side of the motorway. It’s a large, grey snake. Welcome to Australia. 100km past we pass a dead, large kangoroo.

Si daca tot vorbim despre animalele prietenoasa ale Australiei, iata inca unul pe care l-am vazut acum 2 zile.
And speaking of Australia’s friendly animals, here’s one more that we saw 2 days ago.

Filmul e dintr-una din primele scufundari in Marea Bariera de Corali. Rechinul ala prietenos era undeva la 15m de noi. Si mai interesanta a fost seara cand am facut o scufundare de noapte. Marea era foarte agitata si asteptand sa incepem sa luam adancime mi-am indreptat lanterna spre fundul marii. Am inghtat cand am vazut o silueta grabita dedesubt; semana cu el:
This was from one of our first dives in the Great Barier Reef. That friendly shark was maybe 15 meters away. Things got even better in the evening when we did a night dive. The sea was very rough and while we were waiting to get lower I turned my torchlight toward the bottom of the sea. I saw a darting figure underneath, something resembling this:

In restul scufundari am mai vazut 2 sau 3 rechini apropiindu-se nervosi de noi si apoi schimband brusc directia. Pentru mine a fost o experienta extraordinara. Rechinii nu erau periculosi dar sa vad un predator de dimensiunile astea venind cu viteza spre mine si apoi virand brusc spre alta directie e ceva pe ce nu voi uit curand. In plus, dupa scufundare, am putut admira inca 5 sau 6 rechini vanand in jurul barcii.

During the rest of the dive we saw 2 or 3 more sharks hunting, getting close to us and nervously going away. For me it was a terrific experience. These sharks are not dangerous but the sight of this huge predator coming full speed towards me and suddenly veering away is something I won’t forget for a long time. On top of this, after the dive, we saw 5 or 6 sharks just circling the boat and hunting around it. Just awesome.

In afara de rechini am explorat reciful, am vazut tot felul de animale acvatice si ne-am bucurat de Frank:
Besides sharks we explored the corals, saw some marine life and enjoyed the company of Frank the local Maori Groper:

 

 

 

 

 
Vizibilitatea a fost proasta, marea era agitata dar ne-am bucurat de cele 6 scufundari. Speram la mai multe pe masura ce continuam spre sud. Extrem de trist este ca reciful moare si se vede.

Visibility was poor, the see was rough but we enjoyed our 6 dives. Hoping to do more and see more as we head south. Extremly sad is that it is obvious the reef is dying.