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Published: March 29th 2009
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Footsteps
Walking along the deserted beach in Wooyung It has been awhile since I have motivated myself to write anything, but having resided in Australia now for almost 3 months, I thought it would be nice to update you on my perspective of life down under (and Melissa has been constantly nagging me to write something ever since she arrived here).
I guess my biggest hesitation to write something (other than my sheer laziness, and the fact that I actually work) is that Melissa has been writing such fabulous entries and I am not sure how I will produce anything even remotely close to hers... so with that being said, let us begin with: Byron Bay and Bribie Island - SIDD’S Perspective.
The Queensland coast is an absolutely fabulous area to live, consisting of beautiful coast lines and fertile inlands. There are white sandy beaches as far as the eye can see (interrupted only by the occasional European male sunbathing in his skimpy speedo). The ocean is a very pleasant temperature, and in certain areas, the visibility is incredible. And the most awesome part of all this is that Brisbane is only 45min from either the Sunshine Coast or Gold Coast.
To pick up where Melissa
Byron Bay
Spot the Europeans left off, several weekends ago, after working an arduous 2 days in a row, I had 4 days off. Deciding to take advantage of my mini-break, we rented a car, travelled to the local Kmart (yep, they really still do have Kmart here ....not sure how because I thought it went bankrupt...) and bought some camping supplies for our getaway to Byron Bay, a small hippie town about 3 hours south of Brisbane. Byron Bay has a very laid-back hippy, surfer-dude vibe and it is not an uncommon sight to see VW camper vans painted with interesting slogans such as, “I am not a chick, I am a breasted individual” and the “I need another man, I broke my last one”. Unfortunately, due to the Victoria bushfires down south and the floods up north, many people have been unable to continue travelling and Byron Bay was awash with many backpackers.
At any rate, although it was very crowded, we managed to snag a tiny camping spot (literally just enough space for a tiny tent, two stools, a mini table and our car) just a few hundred meters from the sandy beach. The beach here was probably one of the
Clarke's Beach Park
Just enough room for our SUV (ridiculous deal at $5/day) and our mini tent. nicest beaches I have seen, with crystal clear water and soft white sand. Also, much to Melissa’s delight, there were many topless females sunbathing, balancing out the overweight European males in their skimpy speedos.
Ever obsessed with our quest for good food, Melissa and I found a beautiful gourmet fish and chips restaurant, which was so good that I think Melissa was even licking the plate. After relaxing on the beach that afternoon, we indulged in more local delicacies and barbequed up some baby octopus and veggies...I must admit, however, that the baby octopi did look a bit like alien heads, but despite their appearance, they made for an appetizing dinner.
The next day, we were convinced that having taken 1 surfing lesson, we would now be able to manage the waves all by ourselves. In retrospect, this probably was not the best idea. We both spent more time being knocked around by the surf board or scraped up by the beach than looking cool riding the waves. I must admit that Melissa was able to stand several more times that I was, but in my mind, it is way easier for her as her whole body weighs
as much as one of my legs, and therefore it must be that much easier for her to balance. We did, however, manage to stand a few times on the admittedly tiny waves - next time we’ll be pros! All in all, the weekend in Byron Bay was a nice relaxing change for me (but for Melissa it literally was going from lounging by the pool in Brisbane to lounging at the beach in Byron Bay....tough life!!).
Only a few days after returning from Byron Bay, my parents came to visit us in Brisbane for several days. Opting to spend some time on the coast (again!), we headed north to Sunshine Coast and spent two nights on Bribie Island, a tiny island awash with retirees. Looking back, I think my parents must still be a little sore from our 3 full days of non-stop activities. As we tried again to surf, my dad rented a boogie board and cruised on the waves close to the shore (and don’t ask me how but he was still keen to keep on going after 2 hours while Melissa and I were dead tired) - It was like he was a kid again!!
Beware of the wildlife
Never mind bears, this 1.5m long lizard was roaming around the campsite, along with flocks of wild turkeys. Other highlights of our trip included an early morning round of golf (with my dad somehow consistently hitting the ball using a swing that more resembled something you would see on the cricket pitch), feasting on bbq lamb and kangaroo, playing cricket on the beach during sunset, sipping chilled moscato wine at dinner and kayaking on the ocean. Surprisingly my mom actually drank more than two glasses of moscato, claiming that it tasted like juice (it is probably a good thing that we had only 1 bottle otherwise it might have been a tipsy night for mom).
It was a great to spend the 4 days together, but I am sure that they were relieved to finally hop on the plane to Cairns after we had run them down with all the activities!
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Dioni
non-member comment
Sidd's turn to write travelblog
Dear Sidd, Enjoyed reading your blog..I can see that your parents had a wonderful time with you and Melissa. Way to go. Take care, your other Mom