“Practically,” Wendy said. “It’s well over a thousand miles long and in area it’s larger than Britain. But we’re going here, to Hamilton Island.” Wendy poked her finger halfway up the peninsula. “It’s part of the Whitsunday Island group.”

“Are you sure I’m going to like this?” Marissa said. She wasn’t as big on diving as her friend.

“You’re going to love it!” Wendy said. “Hamilton Island is a good choice because it’s got an airport that takes regular jets. We can fly directly from Brisbane with Ansett Airlines. Usually they’re pretty well booked, but it turns out that April is off-season.”

“Even that doesn’t sound so good to me,” Marissa said. “If it’s off-season, there’s usually a good reason, like it’s not a good time to go.”

“I was told that we may have a thunderstorm or two, but that’s the only negative,” Wendy said.

“Is diving on this reef dangerous?” Marissa asked.

“Don’t worry! We’ll have a dive master with us,” Wendy assured her. “We’ll charter a boat and head out to the outer reef. That’s where there are the most fish and the clearest water.”

“What about sharks?” Marissa asked.

“They didn’t say anything about sharks,” Wendy said. “But sharks stay out in deep water. We’ll be diving on the reef itself. I’m telling you, you’ll love it. Trust me.”

“Well, I have some tamer information,” Marissa said. “The concierge recommended we take a city bus tour. At first she said to walk around, but when I told her we’d just flown in, she told me about the buses. She said we should be sure to visit the Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary.”

“Wonderful!” Wendy said with glee. “I love koalas.”

The bus tour was their first order of business. They were driven around in air-conditioned comfort and viewed such sights as the French Renaissance-style Parliament House and the Italian Renaissance-style Treasury building. The streets were loaded with sidewalk cafés. Marissa couldn’t get over how relaxed and casual everyone looked.

Fatigue eventually took over again. During the second hour both Marissa and Wendy nodded off as the bus slowed for a viewing of the new Queensland Cultural Center. They roused a bit for the visit to the Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary. Not only were there more koala bears than they could have imagined, there were dingos, kookaburras, kangaroos, and even a platypus. They were able to walk among the kangaroos and feed them by hand. The strength of the animals’ curled front paws came as a surprise.

The most appealing creatures by far were the koala bears. Wendy was ecstatic when she learned she could hold one, but when she did, her enthusiasm waned. They had a peculiar odor that she found unpleasant.

“It’s because of their eucalyptus diet,” one of the keepers explained.