Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary (My Maiden Australia Backpack 2011 part 8)

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susah giler nak snap foto burung tengah terbang arah aku, siap kena elak lagi.



Australia is a great place for those who are fascinated by animals. Lots of zoos and locations to observe species of all kinds.
One of them is tuck away in Brisbane. Not as glamorous as other animal attractions, with the vicinity of Brisbane also being inclusive of the famous Steve Irwin Zoo among others, but I think Lone Pine Sanctuary is certainly a very unique experience for me.
I have the time and budget to choose one animal attraction location in Brisbane, and I think I made the fabulous choice.

Pembukaan Lone Pine Sanctuary ni ialah 0830 sampai 1700hrs.
Cara2 nak pergi ialah dua cara, kalo korang macam aku jimat belanja
This is the way to go to Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary by cheap public transport.
1) Brisbane City Council Bus No 445 dari Stop 40 Adelaide Street
( this bus dont run on Sunday - take note )
2) Brisbane City Council Bus No 430 dari Platform B4, Queen Street Bus Station. This is inside at the basement of one of the shopping mall in Brisbane city itself.
Tambang bas ialah seorang $4.20 per trip.
Travel Time sikit lebih kurang 30minit gitu.
Aku pun terkejut ramai orang asing naik bas awam ni, dari Jepun, dari German. Semua nak pergi tempat Lone Pine ni.
Macam aku cakap tempat ni tak glamer, tak ramai orang nak pergi kot, tapi kalo sapa tahu pasal tempat ni, mesti rasa nak pergi, pasal memang lain dari yang lain. Satu2 nye tempat kat dunia macam gini. Bukan zoo biasa.

This sanctuary I believed was hit hard by the the destructive Queensland Flood that happen at the start of this year. This sanctuary do need the support of the public and animal lovers especially with the conditions that faced. Hopefully things do get better for them.

As usual, a proper visit to this type of place needs a study of their timetable of attractions and shows in advance. So I make sure I am there for the BIRD OF PREY SHOW which is held twice daily.

A beautiful setting for the Birds Of Prey show.
You have all these huge birds, Falcons etc which fly and brought near to the audience.

Giler kuku dia, kena cakar sekali abis...
You have some of the birds literally flying at you and just above you..
Some interesting flying and feeding display
Really worth it to catch this show especially as the birds are huge, fearsome and very the Battle Hymn cover haha.


Then I continue to walk and come across this sort of a Jurassic Park enclosure..with fences and double gates...


Ooo first time ever in my life, I come into contact with a Kangaroo Mother and her Joey Baby Kangaroo.



Mak dia korang nak pegang, usap2 belakang semua boleh, si anak dia kangaroo kecik tu baik jangan usik, mau kang mak dia mengamuk, sekali dia boxing , rabak nanti.
Then aku nampak dekni, toing toing toing depan aku, so aku ikut pergi arah dia lompat2 gitu..


Siak ah... Best giler!!! Kawan2 dia punye ramai ngah lepak kat belakang..











Burung emu, dorang lepaskan gitu je siak kat tempat Kangaroo ni, giler babi besar siot burung ni, mau kang dia mengamuk... lepas tu kan dia ikut2 orang yang kasi dia makan tau..haha.
Ooo lupa, korang bleh beli makanan binatang dari sanctuary ni, then korang kasi kangaroo makan la apa la, tapi paling bagus pagi la korang pegi, kalo petang, kangaroo dah kenyang dorang tak mau makan dah. Aku tahu zoo Singapore pun ada open space boleh main ngan kangaroo tapi tak bleh fight la, sini besar giler area dia, kangaroo banyak. Havoc, korang nak baring2 golek2 peluk2 ngan kangaroo lantak la , tapi kalo korang apa2 kena tendang ke, kena boxing ke, korang pandai2 la settle haha.




Being Australia, this koala sanctuary also have the venomous and poisonous snakes on display and some weird creatures which I think I saw appearing on the movie RANGO.

Suka giler aku tengok Rango, part yang mexican band tu 4 ekor burung hantu, tiba2 gitaris dia pakai gitar karen. Best giler tu part. Lain dari lain la Rango.. Jonny Depp lawak la.



But the main reason people came here is to catch the koalas...
Lone Pine ensure a proper habitat, feeding, and caring for koalas of all ages.
It is nice how they split up the sanctuary to ensure we can differentiate and appreciate different passages of a koala's life.
Baby, young, adult, mature even old age.

This is one of those places where Koala lovers from all over the world will come so they can cuddle koalas to their hearts delight provided they paid for it of course to support the sanctuary. A bit too gay for me haha. So I skip that part.

dekni kenyit mata Like I say, its quite a humble place, using a just a whiteboard for what I think are some great infos.

Observing them, you realise they are just like humans too. This koala was literally chasing and clinging on the leg of one staff because he or she just want to be carried and cuddled. Unlike other koalas who are 'bochap'.
Before I forget, this place actually plant eucalyptus trees to feed the koalas and ensure constant supply of the only food koalas consume.

I come across the old retired koalas section where basically the koalas are spending the last days of their lifes. This is exactly like we humans, you can see the koalas, whom we know are mostly not really active, are even less active among the old ones.

But unlike in the wild, the koalas here are properly taken care off and they could end up living much longer.

This couple are an old romantic pair it seems haha. Just being with each other all the while.

The best was this pair which seems are from the younger lot. The lower one was actually being helped and hugged by the upper one as he or she was climbing up.

But you have to be patient to see all these. You have to be silent and just enjoy the scene. I know its not for everyone, but I like it.

So now, is there a Meerkat Sanctuary... out there? haha. The only place that I know can see Meerkats for us in Malaysia and Singapore is still the Mandai Zoo. I tell you they are the best of the best if you get to know about them.

I actually took lots of photos, I just need time to upload everything on deafeningforever.blogspot for those who enjoy these things...

wait a bit.