There weren’t a lot of things I had to do while in Brisbane.

Sure, I wanted to try the local cuisine and walk across Story Bridge. But the one thing I was most excited about — and it wasn’t eating Vegemite — was seeing the Australian wildlife, particularly the koalas and kangaroos.

So we headed to the Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary in Brisbane, the world’s first and largest koala sanctuary, with more 130 koalas and other animals, to up close and personal with the country’s iconic animals.

I couldn’t wait!

My goal: to cuddle a koala.

Here’s what our day trip to the sanctuary — and what we ate after — looked like:

Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary

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All I wanted to do on this trip was cuddle a koala — and it was actually in our itinerary on Friday. Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary is the world's first and largest koala sanctuary with more than 130 koalas. And it's one of the only places that allows you to handle these marsupials. We're so there!