Ears in Townsville

27/10/2012
  I have to own up to  slight miscalculation as our journey up from Airlie Beach to Townsville took much longer than anticipated. Probably due to the fact it was over 100K’s further than what I had added up from the mileage on the map. Good job we set off early and missed our usual morning  skype session with the family.
 Airlie beach is definitely a place we would go back to, even if it is a backpackers Mecca, but we would have to do the WhitSundays. It would also be nice to see it when the town centre refurbishment  is complete.
 So here we are in Townsville again, a city we know very well (still get lost in it tho!) killing time until my appointment with the ear wizard on Monday. It was here we came when Jane had her cancer scare some months ago. Between us we are working our way through the medical professionals here. Hope this is the last one.

 28/110/2012
  One thing about Townsville, at least they arn’t digging it up. Good old Dan is still in the same place and no trouble to get to for essential supplies. The Promenade/ esplanade or Strand as it is called is just the same as always, with lots of parking but quite busy.  We spent some time in the sea but we notice the stinger nets are about to be put out, probably this week. Stinger nets plus crocodile warning signs means we are back in the tropical north………we love it!

  29/10/2012
  Today I had my ears pressure washed, rodded  and pulled through, all for $390 and can hear marginally better than before. . My super, all singing and dancing hearing aids have gone away for a 10,000K service at God knows what cost and will be sent back to me in Cairns. After that I will have to drive back 400 K’s to Townsville to have them recalibrated by this mornings ear wizard. Oh to win the lottery!!
 We were an hour with the Audiologist which meant we left Townsville late morning to mooch most of the way up the Bruce Highway as far as Mission Beach. It is nearly two years since cyclone Yasi hit the coast around here and the damage is still evident.
 Driving through Cardwell, which copped it really badly, we could see that all the damaged properties have now got new roofs on , they were covered by tarps the last time we came through. The forestry which was partly demolished is sprouting green and the trees that were snapped off half way up are surviving. Dunk Island, which is just off the coast from Mission Beach was a boutique resort and is still not open for business. It’s hard to imagine the devastation caused by Yasi.
 Anyway we are on our last leg of our journey back to Cairns, which in an odd way feels like coming home, a couple of hours driving tomorrow and we will be there.
 So, we are sort of celebrating…….I can nearly hear, we are nearly back in Cairns and there is a fish and chip shop right outside the caravan park gate. No bloody fink pizz though!