TOO CUTE!!!

7 month-old joey who was abandoned by his mother. He is being raised at Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary, Australia.

I've actually been to this place, once upon a time. We took a boat down the Brisbane River, passing an enclave of enormous and frightening fruitbats, to get to the sanctuary. I watched koalas scamper between trees, making very unpleasant grunting noises. It seems wrong that such cute and furry creatures should sound so bizarre! I snapped several close-up photos of these sleepy (being nocturnal) critters, and even held one in my arms (fur is super soft; claws are super sharp.) We also got to feed the kangaroos. Or rather, we TRIED to feed the kangaroos. The kangas were fat, disinterested and already stuffed from the free pellets handed out by the tourists. It took a good half hour before one even looked in my direction. Fortunately, my friend managed to snap a photo of this brief and fleeting moment.

Outside of the sanctuary, koalas and kangaroos are abound in the Brisbane area. Walks by the beach inevitably lead to a koala siting and hikes through the rainforest just an hour north of the "city" lead past groups of kangaroos hopping about. Many of the Australians I met were as disinterested in the local fauna as the fauna was in them. In fact, the kangaroos were generally regarded as somewhat parasitic, having overrun the area, not unlike the raccoon equivalent in the United States.

Despite the obvious embarrassment of having an American constantly cooing and oggling just about every species that crossed my path, my friends were relatively tolerant. And even if they wouldn't pose WITH the koala, kangaroo or goanna, they would at least pause a minute while I snapped a photo without them. After all, that's what friendship's for...

~flutterbyblue