Australia - Brisbane, The Sunshine & Gold Coasts

---

Noosa

So it’s off we go in the rain heading for the Sunshine Coast - 16 hours away due south on our trusty Greyhound bus. A tropical storm brewing is pretty apparent with all the lightning & thunder about though it vanishes after an hour or so thankfully. We make our way through MacKay - a large city, when we realise that like the US, every largish city in Oz looks the same with the same layout and same brand outlets and same styled inner city & outer city Malls - it’s as if you’ve been to one you’ve seen them all!

En route we are treated to 2 films: Nancy Drew - entertaining, about a girl sleuth and a bizarre film called Jumpers - totally meaningless Hollywood madness but the actors got to travel the world - good job if you can get it. We have a picnic supper then get some kip before being woken at 5 am - it’s already daylight - for breakfast. The driver needs to have a ½ hour break - Health & Safety is a big issue in Oz. We stop at Hervey bay, the gateway to Fraser Island - where 90% of the travellers (mainly backpackers) get off & we continue on to Noosa Heads a few miles away. However, rather than get us there early we have another 45 min stop!!. This time though it’s at a decent service station with various stalls & a pond with lots of birds etc & we indulge in a bacon & egg roll - lovely or what - with some good real coffee (second time around - not piping hot first time for M!!)

We arrive at NH on time and our Hostel - the YHA Halse Lodge hostel is a few metres up a hill. We book in and go off to orientate as the room is not ready. After a trip over to Noosa Junction, the IGA (supermarket) & an Irish (pricey pub) for a beer, we eventually get in at 1.30 pm and have some lunch.

Noosa Heads is an interesting and quaint little town. Very deceptive. It oozes charm and Hamilton Street by Main Beach (which is delightful & calm & good for swimming) is full of designer shops, Estate Agents selling $1m+ houses overlooking the sea, and expensive chic restaurants. It’s an area of waterways, lakes and inlets next to the ocean. It reminds M of Little Venice in LA but a much smaller version, however, more contained & cultured. One could easily settle here, it‘s got the Oz laid back feel about it. The weather is lovely - warm (about 28 C) but no humidity. Compared to the places we’ve been the sea is cold cold cold!! But hey in Brighton this would be summer! We spend a few hours here and the place is packed with local families & visitors. It’s clean, it’s warm & it’s safe fun in the sun. We see our first 711 in Oz run by an Indian family & it’s for sale. There are many trendy bars & restaurants here including a pizza bar, Indian etc & a Copenhagen ice cream parlour where we enjoy 2 for the price of one Macadamia Dream - gorgeous - thanks to the Hostel who have a deal here.

One impressive feature of our hostel is that it’s the only one which organises a newcomer’s welcome drink and we get a load of useful information & introduce ourselves to the other new arrivals - what a fabulous way to meet folk and everyone is chatting away for ages afterwards exchanging ideas, plans & getting to know each other. Well done Halse Lodge YHA - the only one to do this in our 13 months of travel.

We originally weren’t going to Fraser Island as it seemed to us to be for the younger set who camped out for 2 nights in the wild of this sandy island. We’d also seen a National Geographic film of it & it wasn’t inspiring enough to spend 3 days here. However, having got to Noosa we discover that there is a one day trip there via Rainbow Beach - this is a whole new ball game & we book to go the next day.

Fraser Island & Rainbow Beach

It’s an early start from the hostel - 6.30 am & the kitchen doesn’t open till 7 for some tea or even to get our cold water from the fridge - our fault we didn’t quite clock the ridiculous hostel rules. Which reminds us that Oz does seem to have some really old fashioned and outdated rules and operating practices - like no Sunday opening in many places, that boxed wine can’t be sold before 4 pm in the afternoon etc. Also most places tend to shut up shop by 8 or 9 pm - even a tourist town like Noosa!!

Anyway back to the trip - we set off via a cross country route as the tide is high & crossing may be difficult. The journey & scenery are amazing. We find that Noosaville, a nearby town, seems more down to earth and lovely - probably more working class & affordable with homes on the river - beautiful non the less. We see acres of forest that have replaced the sugar cane industry that has long gone with cattle ranches & horses. We come across a bunch of wild Kangaroos in the tall grass - having breakfast no doubt which we missed out on, & a small dingo. It’s onto dirt track next - this whole trip is in a 4x4 60 ton truck & it needs to be. We eventually hit Rainbow Beach village/town - quaint and lost in time but friendly. We get some croissants & tea for brekkie as they refer to it down under and with a cold spring water we set off for the Ferry crossing to Fraser Island. Once across, we hit the beach as the tide is rapidly coming in & our able driver/guide Ken (ex of Edinburgh, Scotland & via Adelaide) steers a mean course. The truck ahead of us runs aground pretty soon & has to be helped out.

We stop for tea at 9 am by a fresh water river discharging into the sea. Crazy or what. The tea & cookies are amazing even if we had to fight off some huge horse flies. No casualties reported thankfully. We see the famous White breasted Eagle but alas no more dingo’s - despite the area being famous for them. We do what seems like miles on the now sand tracks. Sorry we forgot to mention - Fraser Island is a World Heritage listed site. It is the largest sand Island in the world with a unique eco system formed before the ice age & has survived since. It’s essentially 8 sand dunes which has lots of foliage including a rain forest on it. It has about 400 permanent inhabitants the rest are pesky tourists who come here in the 1000s. One of it’s main attractions is Lake McKenzie, it’s biggest fresh water lake which is now slightly acidic - which they tell us is good for your hair & skin conditioning. They never spoke about acid rain in these terms before! It’s accessible by very deep sandy tracks which go up & down a fair bit - hence the 4X4. One couldn’t traverse the island without one - full stop!

Lake McKenzie is beautiful - a smaller version of White Haven beach but with a lot more day trippers - who spoil the view!. We get some beautiful pictures without the hordes. The water is a lovely 23 degrees in this 30 degree heat and feels refreshingly cool cool cool! We feel quite privileged to be here as the lake is a rain water collected on organic material - thanks to mother nature - over 1000s of years, it’s the leaves & debris that causes the membrane to hold the water up - a natural organic swimming pool with very little marine life. We have a beautiful swim/sunbathe for an hour before we rush off to the BBQ we have pre ordered - fish or steak. We have one of each with all & we mean all the trimmings. One thing about Oz - the day trips know how to feed their customers. This time round they include the drinks - beer for M & white wine for C as freebies!!

We are then whisked off to the old village location - Central station - where there is a creek walk (on a board walk) called Wanggoolba creek through some tropical rainforest. The vegetation is amazing & we see some lovely river eels in crystal clear creek water. We see a Jay killing it’s lunch (probably a lizard) before tucking in. At the end of the walk we meet a colourful monitor. It’s then time to make tracks for home. However, as the tide has now gone out - there is a huge expanse of beach to speed down on the 4X4s. We also spot a group of dolphin in the shallow coastal waters nearby which creates great excitement - they make up for us not spotting a Dingo. It’s lovely and one can suddenly realise why so many folk settle here or make Oz their home. Something to think about perhaps - this whole area has been a revelation and a lovely one at that - given that this was a fill in till we got to Brisbane!

We take the river crossing back to the mainland but at a different point so we can get to Rainbow Beach where we initially stop for some cookies, cake & tea. Rainbow Beach gets it’s name from the impact that various minerals has on the cliffs by the beach. The aboriginal version of why this occurs is more complex and involves a woman spirit called Rainbow. The bottom line is that the colours of the hill side are amazing and varied - ranging from white to deep yellow to deep pink. It’s pretty impressive and we stop over for a photo opportunity & come away with some lovely shots. We then join the 40 mile beach most of which is National Park land protected & we notice that many places along the beach have people pitching tents & Caravans already in time for Christmas. A popular thing to do - many families were fishing off the shore.

We get all the way to Noosaville on the beach where we get another ferry - a winched crossing this time across the river, and we are dropped off at the hostel at 6pm - a good day all in all. We did however wonder what the folks who go for 3 days & 2 night do on Fraser Island - it’s a popular trip - however, we’re not sure it needs that long.

We do our own dinner - chicken with aubergine & sweet corn with bread rolls - washed down with red wine - a backpacker’s dream. C does the honours & comes up trumps again - what a star!! As usual the air is filled with the sounds of Lorikeets & Parakeets making a racket at sunset. They have their nests in the eucalyptus trees outside the hostel.

Brisbane

We leave Noosa on the 10.25 Express Greyhound - this means no stops - to Brisbane. They show a stupid picture - How to Lose a Lover in 10 days - which is embarrassing in parts though we make such good time we don’t have to see the end as we get in half an hour early. After picking up information about things to do & travel arrangements for the Xmas period we ring Evonne who is on her way to pick us up. It’s great to see her again - she hasn’t changed & is a bundle of energy. We meet Greg for the first time & he drives us to their lovely home in a modern housing estate in Mitchelton - a suburb about 20 mins from the centre. It has it’s own shopping area & Mall (called Brookside) with suburban train that runs regularly into the city.

We share a few beers & catch up while Greg is desperately trying to get us WiFi’ed to his system & Evonne is desperately repacking to get the weight of her luggage down for the flight. They shoot off to catch their plane to NZ & we go scouting the area & get some food for dinner. The shops are pretty handy as is the Mall - where M has a quick Barber haircut for $14 & C books in for cut for early the next day.

It seems hard to comprehend that Brisbane is in Queensland - it seems a million miles from Cairns. The houses around are either traditional Queenslanders or modern. It’s amazing how a brick built house looks so out of place in Oz. Property prices here seem more reasonable - about £250K for a 3 bed place with garage & land etc. Rentals are better - about $330 per week (£125) - it’s cheaper than some of the hostels we’ve stayed it. The local suburban train gets us into Central station - it’s very efficient, clean, cool (air con), cheap and on time always. It takes about 20 minutes to get to the city centre & we explore the delights of Brisbane on a hot & slightly humid day. It’s a very clean city where the old historic buildings tend to blend in well with the new skyscrapers. The centre - called the CBD (central business district) is lively with many folks doing their Xmas shopping or others dressed up in Santa or Elf costumes going for their Xmas party. The river Brisbane runs through the city, the main shopping area is Queens Street and on the other side of the river is the South Bank - quite like London’s with theatres and the Flyer (London eye equivalent) with cabins air conned but running very empty. There is an artificial beach here (similar to the Lagoons in Cairns & Airlie) which is very popular - just by the river with an area of bars & cafes with a good feel. We go to Govinda’s for lunch which is a vegetarian Indian eatery which is connected to the Hare Krishna movement & the food is superb. We have a the buffet which is for $10 - rice, daal, chole with spinach, vegetable koftas, & papadoms - best value meal in Oz by a mile & delicious.

We decide to go for a Bus Tour of the city. It’s a single Decker air conditioned bus which seems to zoom around. So it’s not as quite a good as the open top tours buses in other countries/cities. What it does give is a sense of the sprawl Brisbane is. It has the biggest cemetery we have seen in any country
just on the outskirts & is still in use. The city area where the first convicts arrived is very well developed with modern buildings, a marina etc all near Storey Bridge which is one of the city’s landmarks. We pop along to see China Town which is not much to write home about. It’s in the Valley area where all (132 they claim) the clubs are. We go there for dinner on Saturday to the Tibetan Kitchen having tasted good Indian food. The food is not as good as Govinda’s, their Nepalese soup is more like a Thai Soup. The vegetarian & lamb Dhat Bhats however, are much better. The night life by the time we leave is pretty quiet. One observation about fashion here - the women here seem more comfortable with their bodies and dress for summer with plenty of skin on show & don’t feel shy about it.

B is keen to establish it’s environmental credentials (as is Oz generally) & we are impressed by the fact that soon all the city buses will be run on gas - about 80% are currently. Also the regional government provide grants to help people have water tanks that will reuse rain water - how about that then Gordon?.

Some observations about life in this part of Oz - TV is pretty dull if it’s a local production. There are a host of English programmes or copies of some - Ready Steady Cook etc, the best programmes are UK or US imports. From the adverts we notice two things - one that Oz is into supporting many charities - World Vision etc & more surprisingly a government advert which is quite graphic about skin cancer, trying to persuade people not to go out in the sun to sunbathe. We are also lucky enough to see sessions of the first two test matches between Oz & South Africa - which SA won against the odds. Gripping stuff! What is interesting is how Aussies are the mid point between Americans & the English. The cities are US design, some of the style is US but the mannerisms are more English - but with more humour & friendliness. The Customer Service approach is great but needs some more feeling and heart (smile folks). They are just as obsessed by celebrity as the UK or US (sad really) - given the number of crap mags on the subject. Gordon Ramsey is in trouble for his extra marital “cooking”. Jamie is big here as well. They love Cookery & Travel programmes as do the English. Credit where credit is due we notice that folks aren’t as obsessed with their mobiles here. On the suburban train in, there’s plenty of folk with MP3 players & ipods but no one on the mobile or texting. Amazing!! We do notice a lot of urban art by the railways but little graffiti. They have Housing Associations here as well (good to have options!!) The big cuisine here is Thai, Korean, Japanese, Indian, Greek, Vietnamese, etc all except Oz cuisine (whatever that is). B is a very ethnically diverse city. The fast food stores are - KFC, McDonalds, Subways, Happy Jacks (like Burger King) + ice cream & frozen yogurt parlours. Perhaps it’s not surprising that they have now apparently got the greatest obesity problems in the world.

It’s quite noticeable that they make a big effort in the last few days leading up to Christmas & there are plenty of events lined up - free movies on a big screen for kids/families in front of the South Bank Halls, there are food tents (a bit disappointing), Ragas by the Nepalese Peace pagoda, and fireworks at 8 pm for 10 mins for 3 days over the river which are fab - the UK can learn from them.

Byron Bay

We have heard so much about this place we decide we have to go there. So we get the 8 am Express bus for a day return trip on the aptly named Brisbane 2 Byron Express. It’s a lovely drive on the motorway - fast but nothing much like hurtling down any M way in the UK. We make it to BB in 2 hours, with the last 5 minutes a crawl into town as it’s holiday season & the traffic is heavy. BB is a cute little town & very into alternative therapies and lifestyles - C describes it as a warm/hot Totnes by sea & she is correct. They do have more people visit here though. The bays are huge & beautiful. Many people surfing but plenty of swimmers and sun bathers as well. The weather starts off cloudy so we make our way to the oldest Lighthouse in Oz at the Eastern most point of Oz. We witness hand gliders going off the cliff which looks amazing & M is very tempted to try it but C is shit scared. Instead we head back to town for lunch - fish & chips at a local + falafel & salad with hummus in a pitta bread at an Israeli café - awesome. We do some sun bathing & then try a Baskins & Robbins before catching the bus back to Brisbane.

Surfers Paradise - The Gold Coast

For something different to do for Christmas eve we hire a car & decide to check out the Gold coast we have heard so much about. Getting there is pretty straightforward. As we approach we see the skyline with many sky scrapers. Surfers Paradise is surprisingly nice & less crowded than we expected. It’s a blend of Florida, Miami and LA. This is Oz definitely trying to be American. The beach goes on forever, and the waves are great for surfing. We do some exploring & have lunch at a bar which does a mean Seafood Chowder. We also try a Nando’s - the first we’ve seen in Oz & it’s a bit of a disappointment. We meet the interesting and scantily clad “meter maids” fund raising - a curious phenomenon here, apparently they try & avoid folks getting a parking ticket by putting money in an expiring meter. It‘s all voluntary & based on fund raising. Can’t quite get why they wear next to nothing though?!. The sun shines most of the day & we make our way back when it starts to cloud over as thunderstorms are predicted. We get home & a hour or so later the rain arrives - it helps cool the place down.

Caloundra - The Sunshine Coast

It’s Christmas day & we’ve decided to try Caloundra on the Sunshine Coast for the big day & if we are lucky we will have a BBQ on the beach, if not we’ll sit in the car & have a picnic. However, half way there we end up in a traffic jam because of an accident on the highway. It’s wall to wall cars crawling for about an hour - not a great start for the big day. Eventually we get past it & it’s a clear run the rest of the way getting there at about 1.30 pm. Caloundra gets a goodish write up in the LP guide though we‘re not sure why. Everything is closed - it’s a small seaside town and seems pretty sad (a bit like Paignton for C) with the Glass House Mountains (Karsts - volcanic not limestone) in the far distance. The park area by the sea is full with many families having either a Picnic or BBQ. However, it seems a lot quieter & genteel than we’d expected. There are folks of all nationalities getting into the spirit - Aussies, Japanese, Chinese, Indians, Arabs. The sea side is not brilliant - some swimming & more surfing. We have our picnic with food warmed on the public BBQ. As we are driving it’s only a tinnie or two. As we have to get the car back to Abel (car company), we decide to leave early just in case - we go back on the Scenic route - via the mountains. We get back at about 4.30 pm & after a slight panic because the petrol station is out of unleaded, we find another one - thanks to google - & we fill up to return the car. We then catch the train back home. What’s different here is that many folks are out & about, the trains & buses run, people are walking around in the city in the evening - almost business as usual (Sunday times still, with shops closed).

We have a great webcam session with the girls as it works well but with C’s Mum & Pete & Romi & John, they can see us but we don’t get to see them, but the link is great for talking. It’s Lamb roast with Banana prawns & trimmings (wedges & Aubergine roasted). So this is Christmas as someone famous once said!

We are up early on Boxing day to clean up & get ready to leave Evonne & Greg’s lovely 3 bed pad - which has been a real luxury for us & we can’t thank them enough for this amazing generosity. We catch the train to the city to get on the last leg of our Greyhound journey overnight to Sydney leaving Roma Street Transit Centre at 4.30 pm & getting to Sydney at 10.25 am the next day. It will be a long journey but needs must ………………………………...... See you there.

---