Brisbane

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I have been in Brisbane for the last two weeks and just can't get enough of this city. It is really beautiful, nice tempo and it is full of things to do and see. The weather is also very nice though it can get very humid at times. I guess part of the reason why I have stayed here so long is that I was also a bit out of juice. I have been recharging my batteries (well, not really). This coming up weekend, Jan 26, is also Australia day and there have events happening all over the city. I am staying at a part of town call gratitude valley and it is the epicenter of all the action. Needless to say it's been a lot of fun.

The city itself is beautiful. It is full of public art and from what I can tell, it is booming. There are buildings going up all over the city. The core of the city is Queen st mall which is an open mall with pubs and cafes where everyone meets for a drink, coffee or just to window shop. The casino, an impressive Victorian building, is right at the end of it. Then across the Brisbane river there is the arts precinct where most of the museums and performing art centres are. Really cool. On this south bank, there is even an artificial beach for everyone to enjoy in hot days.

Yesterday I went to surfer's paradise, about a two hour train ride and spent the day there. I was not keen on it. In my opinion, the whole gold coast is just one giant tourist trap with nothing really interesting to do or see except for going to the beach. But even then, the beaches are not the best for swimming, there are too many rip tides.

Right now all of Australia is going crazy about the Melbourne tennis grand slam so all the pubs and bars have their tellies turned to the games all day long. I watched a couple of games already. BTW: most pubs and bars have happy hour from 12-1 and 5-7. How can you not like this wonderful city?

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Photos

Uhm...
Luis the bus driver.

South Bank
Artificial Beach that gets pretty crowded on hot days.

Australia Day
Pub on the South Bank on January 26.

Queen Street Mall
This is the news stand where I used to buy my paper every day.

Surfer's Paradise
About 2 hrs away from Brisbane is SP. I was not too keen on it. It seemed rather plastic to me and the beach is not that great for swimming. Anyway, that's just IMHO...

Museum of Contemporary Art
I went to see a really good Andy Warhol exhibit here.

Centenary Park
Had lunch here many times...

Hostel
Bunk Hostel in Gratitude Valley. The tall building is the actual hostel, second is the bar and swimming pool, and where it saids EAT is the common dinning room.

Public Art
Brisbane has public art all over the city. I just loved it!

Gallery of Modern Art
Andy Warhol exhibit.

Gallery of Modern Art
Comtemporary Aboriginal painting.