A few years ago, my then-boyfriend and I braved a chilly night at the stunning and surreal Hotel de Glace in Quebec, Canada. And while it was one of the coolest (no pun intended) experiences I’ve ever had, it was also the worst night of my life. Damp, cold, and with a pressing bladder demanding my attention, I spent the entire night in a semi-asleep state, praying for total unconsciousness.
And yet, I would do it again in a heartbeat.
I fell in love with Cape Tribulation unexpectedly.
In all fairness, my friends and I didn’t know much about it before we went. For some reason, I had researched every stop on our big Girls’ Australian Adventure (a month-long trip with my sister and two of our girlfriends) weeks before departure, but Cape Trib had slipped my mind. So that’s why I first ignored its attempts to woo me.
I was cranky and hungover, the result of our previous night in the backpacker-central booze fest that is Cairns, when the van we were riding in pulled a quick u-y and came to an abrupt halt, kicking up a cloud of dust behind it. The driver motioned to us that it was our stop.
Peering out the window, I was met with only a dense wall of towering trees. There was no traffic, no people, no sound, except for the buzzing of flies and an occasional squawking bird. The heat was sweltering, and I suddenly felt like a cast member on Survivor, dropped in the middle of the jungle with nothing but my bikini and flip-flops, and the faint promise that someone would be back to pick us up.
Anywhere & Here 