Crikey, what a beauty!

What good luck! We were 1 hour away and the Australia Zoo was celebrating Steve Irwin Day. The ride to the zoo featured a documentary about Steve's younger days that brought a tear or 2 to the eyes of a certain wife of mine. Five minutes later, after entering the zoo, it was all smiles. What a fantastic place. Evidence of just how much the Crocodile Hunter loved his animals. We met all the stars, from the cuddly Koalas to the even cuddlier Wombats and the crazy Cassowaries to the even crazier Tasmanian Devils. A hugely interactive place, brilliant for kids (even big ones).

At 10:30 we'd seated ourselves in 2 of the 5000 seats of the Crocoseum. The stadium was packed, mostly with Australians, the majority in Khaki. Festivities included songs by Steve's daughter Bindi, a few numbers by Olivia Newton-John and a croc show hosted by Terri and Wes (Steve's wife and his best mate). The day was full of a lot of things but there was no emotion whatsoever. The main focus was on wildlife and conservation. It seems that the Irwin's have moved on and are carrying his work into the future. The day ended with a lively performance by an aussie rock legend named Jimmy Barnes that got the crowd going and even caused a few out of control twists from the pensioners in the audience.