The candy guy in Cairns Night Market recommended the swimming hole Babinda Boulders to us when we told him we were going on an undetermined road trip the day after. It was his hometown, he said, and I swear I could see the twinkle in his eyes when he told us about it.
I tried to rack my brain for a swimming hole memory. The closest was in Sembahe, Medan ━ , more than twenty years ago. I went there with the whole family. Swimming with a t-shirt and pants, ignoring my Amma’s repeated shout to “not go too far/too deep/too…” and eating a plethora of food packed by my aunts had become core memories.
Twenty years. It has been too long of a time for another swimming hole memory. Maybe Babinda Boulders could remedy the longing I didn’t know I had. The only way to find out is to check it out, so off we went the following day to Babinda Boulders.
Only halfway later, I realized that we were ill-prepared for this outing. We didn’t bring a towel or change of clothes, nor food or drinks. It had been raining all day, and I only got my one-person tiny teeny flat Japanese umbrella. Also, Fafa was wearing his sneakers.
Thankfully, we found a convenience store on the Miriwinni General Store map. The friendly owner helped us pick towels, pants and slippers for Fafa. He also let me try every crystal ring on the display – sadly, everything is too big for my finger.
The next stop was the famous Babinda Bakery. We each had our breakfast bread – mine was sausage roll – and shared the renowned Chilli Pie. The Chilli Pie, made with Carolina Reaper chilli, was perfect for cold, rainy mornings. If you visit Babinda Boulders, I 100% recommend getting the Chilli Pie on your way there.
It was still raining when we reached Babinda Boulders’ swimming hole. But, even then, I understood all the fuss about this particular place.
We were surrounded by greenery everywhere, blanketed by nature sounds and serene vibes. And despite the heavy rain, the water was warm and inviting. The whole thing shouted whispered zen to me. Then and there, I was ready to retire near the Babinda Boulders.
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