John Baird: Canada's freedom agenda - Diplomat Magazine

DELIGHTS|destinationsAustralian odyssey: reefs and rainforestsAn overview of the beach at Port Douglas, a surfing mecca.By Jessie ReynoldsCairns: Days 1-6As a natural spectacle, NorthQueensland is comparable to theRockies in Canada or Death Valleyin the U.S. It offers, in other words, aunique experience. On my 14-day tour, Imade sure to visit Cairns and Port Douglasbefore heading south to Sydney.Cairns (pronounced ‘cannes’) has thetowel and postcard stores of many oceansidetowns, but also offers fine dining,a well-maintained boardwalk and variouspublic parks, including a children’splayground straight out of Tim Burton’simagination.The Hilton Cairns is an ideal base foryour North Queensland visit. It’s close toocean, city and esplanade. The restaurant,Hanuman, provides a great breakfast buffet.(Once we worked through the differencebetween tomato sauce and ketchup— there is none — and the differencebetween a latte and flat white — again,they’re the same thing — I very muchenjoyed my early morning meals.) Bynight, Hanuman transforms into a fineIndian restaurant with dishes of amazingvariety. When it comes to wine, be readyanywhere in Australia for pages of menuslisting only Australian wine by region,and rightly so. (Aside from a slightlyacidic edge, the house wines are generallyquite good.) Hanuman has a winner in anAustralian Sauvignon Blanc, Salitage Treehouse(2008).The Hilton offers fantastic service, bothin terms of dining and front desk andconcierge staff. They are incredibly knowledgeable,friendly and happy to direct youto off-the-beaten-track dining, shoppingand bar options. They also will accommodaterequests, no matter how unusual.Harder pillow? Not a problem. Storeyour bags for a day, three days after youchecked out? Of course. Still, if you wantwater with lunch, or a morning coffee, beready to ask at least two different people88 WINTER 2012 | JAN-FEB-MAR