Wildlife in Australia

The wildlife in Australia is stunning. Having lived in South Africa we are used to be able to drive a couple of miles to a nature reserve to see Rhino, Hippos, Zebras and Giraffes, but we rarely saw any wildlife outside of the nature reserves. We did have some interesting Rain spiders and Park Town Prawns and Geckos were common. Dual was similar but with Oryx and Camels in the desert and the odd Gecko in the house. Back now in the UK, it's been Spiders, Ants, Woodlice, Bees, Butterflies and Moths and fields of sheep and cows.

Many people have told us they wouldn't visit Australia because of the Spiders and Snakes and we've always been under the impression that to see them you needed to live in the outback, however we came across this beauty in the tree above the footpath walking in Manly just 35 minutes outside Sydney at a busy seaside resort.

A Diamond Python.

We also saw this one in Airlie up near the Great Barrier Reef, also on a coastal path in a busy seaside resort.

A Collared Whip Snake (mildly venomous)

Peter was starting to think that Kangaroos were a figment of our imagination and finally on his second trip to Australia he saw one and then several hundred more.

We saw a lot of Wallabies also which were really friendly.

The birds are stunning, such pretty colours and so friendly.

Rainbow Lorikeet.

The Pelicans are huge.

The cockatoos in volume are similar in numbers to the amount of pigeons we have in the UK.

Kookaburra visit.

There are random Turkeys walking on the beaches.

Herons just wandering around.

Galahs.

And Bin Chickens in the streets. Or the Australian Ibis.

The sea is crystal clear and we were fortunate enough to visit The Great Barrier Reef to go scuba diving and snorkelling.

We also saw an abundance of Whales and Dolphins from boat trips and out on coastal walks.

My favourites are the Koalas and Penguins that we visited in Philip Island near Melbourne.

Unfortunately it is rare to see Koalas outside of sanctuaries which aren't netted so the Koala can move around. Like the Penguins, the conservation fee you pay to visit them and The Great Barrier Reef also, helps to protect their habitat.

Animals on my UK travels

I spent 3 weeks in the UK in spring, every where I visited there were pets, farm animals and birds.

Living in Dubai, one doesn't see cows, horses and sheep in fields, although there are birds, other than a few doves, pigeons in the garden and the occasional parrot, one needs to go to Al Quada Lakes or to Ras Al Khor bird sanctuary to see swans, ducks and even flamingoes.

It was really weird to be able to make and eat a cheese or ham sandwich and take the lid off a yogurt without the cat and dog morphing into the room.

My Aunts cat kept a close eye on me when I drank my tea and my sisters 2 cats were keen to help me eat my dinner.

Dubai isn't very dog friendly and there are few places I can take Bob. I just hope Bob can move back to the UK with us one day and we can take him to the pub and into coffee shops after long walks.

There were woodland walks with my friend and her dogs. 

And entertainment from Morgan who sat and stared a stick, no matter how small until it was thrown for them to fetch.

 Dexter, my niece's dog treated me like a long lost friend.

I've not seen bees yet in Dubai, my friends had a bug house in their garden and I was fortunate to have spotted this bee in a field and not to have stepped on it.

I'll be back in the UK in 2 weeks time and look forward to visiting some summer shows and fairs in and around Monmouth, Malvern and Gloucester, so if you know of any or you're happy for me to join you for a dog walk or a visit to a farm, just give me a yell.

Woodland walk in the Forest of Dean with Animal Tales

There are no photo's of birds in this post because the 2 men in the hide with their massive cameras were occupying the available space and made it quite clear they were not tolerating amateurs, with a camera and lens that could fit into an over sized coat pocket. However I worked my way onto to the bench and to the open window and sat for a few minutes, just to wind them up.

I'm really hoping that we can back to the UK with Bob while he can still enjoy life. We adopted him in South Africa and he now lives with us in Dubai. I'd love him to experience the freedom of woodland walks, something he never does in Dubai and in South Africa, they were infrequent due to personal safety and snakes etc.

This must be the noisiest door in the world, no wonder the twitchers/birders/photographers weren't happy with my arrival.

My question is what do you do if the bat comes home when you want to leave the hide?

We lived in the Forest of Dean for 8 years and I've never stopped off at The Nagshead Reserve, although I have visited most other places and I plan to spend more time in this area when I'm back in the summer. Maybe you could join me for a walk, picnic or coffee.

The Green Planet, City Walk. Tropical Rainforest in Dubai with AnimalTales and HDYGG

The Green Planet at City Walk is home to a tropical rainforest, a standalone bio-dome that is home to over 3000 plants and animals.

While I was very impressed with my first view of The Green Planet, I was slightly disappointed to it's size. Everything in Dubai starts with 'The worlds first/biggest/largest....' and whilst not meaning to put down the efforts of their Tropical Rainforest in the middle of the desert, from the hype and media advertising I just assumed it was going to be bigger and better than what it actually was. So with high expectations, based on previous experiences I was a little disappointed when I visited.

I did have the option to fill in a customer survey at the end of the visit and had the pleasure to meet the project manager, who has invited me back as the project continues to grow for a walk round to hopefully impress me some more.

This isn't meant as a negative review, because once I put my initial thoughts to one side, I could see the effort and work that has gone into the planning, design and construction of this project and the more I read on The Green Planet, the more I appreciate the mammoth taks they undertook to build a rainforest in the desert.

So I'll leave you with these photos and tell you that the entry price was worth every single dirham, you can also visit using the Entertainer App. There are restaurants, cafes and shops and plenty of parking at City Walk and you can access the area by the number 93 or number 8 bus along the Al Wasl Road.

 There was lots of information on the animals inside the dome and educational and interactive areas, but I was disappointed by the lack of information on the plants and it would've been handy to have had a printed guide to carry around with the names of the birds and butterflies, seen throughout the visit as most of the information was on the top floor, where you start the tour.

You can read more about The Green Planet on their website.