Spaniard's dream

Travelling north from Townsville to Cairns we did a detour to Mena Creek to visit Paronella's Park, which is a beautiful castle built in the rainforest by Jose Paronella in 1914. He purchased it in 1929 for 120 pounds and started to build his pleasure gardens and reception centre for the enjoyment of the public.
The earliest structure, the Grand Staircase, was built to facilitate the carrying of the river sand to make the concrete. First they built a house to live in, then they started on the Castle itself. Apart from the house, which is made of stone, all of the structures were constructed poured reinforced concrete, the reinforcing being old railway track. The concrete was covered with a plaster made from clay and cement, which they put on by hand, leaving behind the prints of their fingers as a reminder of the work they had done. The Theatre showed movies every Saturday night. In addition, with canvas chairs removed, the Hall was a favourite venue for dances and parties. The creek is lined with rocks and traversed by small bridges. Some parts have cascades built out of rocks, so the sound of water is always there. The Hydro Electric generating plant, commissioned in 1933, was the earliest in North Queensland, and supplied power to the entire Park.
The park has an amazing variety of birds, butterflies, fish and plants and trees.

Click on the photo to see the slide show

Paronella Park, Queensland