Queensland - the Gold Coast to Brisbane

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Russell - We woke up in Byron Bay on a mission. We were going to out of NSW today no questions. We had a nearly full tank of fuel which should get us to the Queensland border where we can take advantage of the Queensland governments generous fuel subsidy. Back on the Pacific Highway we were making good time though the fuel wasn’t quite as full as I remembered it. We should have enough fuel to get to the border but only just! Then the fuel light came on. Not knowing how much warning I was gong to get I decided to pick up fuel at the next stop no matter which state it was in. Eventually a fuel stop sign came up so we headed of the freeway. Now in the UK petrol stations advertised on the motorway are always just there on the side of the road. But this is not the UK. We got on a small road and saw yet another sign enticing us to fuel. In Murillumbah 30 km (about 20 miles) away! This was not good and we pleaded to Petunia to drink slowly until we could reach it. Finally we reached a fuel station on the outskirts of town and filled up. That was a close call. We headed the 30 kms back to the highway and I have to say I was a bit peeved to find that we were only about 10km from the border and cheap fuel! You can’t win them all.

We crossed the border and the sun was shining even brighter it seemed. We headed straight for our Gold Coast destination, Surfers Paradise. In the fifties this was a sleepy tourist town which although it had a nice beach was largely overlooked. Then the town came on the great idea to rename itself Surfers Paradise and it all took off from there. Today Surfers sole purpose is hedonistic pleasure - if you like that kind of thing (Lins - How old are you again?). It is going high-rise in a big way and is quite ‘in your face’. The beach is undeniably long and gorgeous but the town itself was just too much for us. I think it is best demonstrated by a visit to the loo we had at the end of the beach. We entered the loo where the door closed behind you and a disembodied voice requested we lock the door. After the door was locked you are informed that you have maximum of 10 minutes before the door will automatically reopen again. This is followed by some easy listening music while you do your business. I was tempted to wait the full 10 minutes to see if they would really open the door onto the street whilst you had your pants down, but resisted. I unlocked the door at which point I was reminded of the washing facilities available and then thanked for my custom and “Have a nice day”. Really too much (Lins - I feel I should also point out that this fancy toilet didn’t have any soap or anything to dry your hands with, a grotty basin and a box on the wall for used needles).

We spent a grand total of 2 hours in Surfers before we decided it was time to move on. Brisbane was just around the corner and we were keen after travelling most of the week to settle down for a few days. Besides our friends Marc and Tania had suggested an outing to Wagamamas to use up our ‘frequent noodler’ points so how could we not?! We checked into a campsite close to the city and then got the bus into town to meet M & T. After a lovely meal and some good company we were happy and ready to tackle Queensland’s capital.

Our guide book suggested a walking tour to familiarise ourselves with the city which seemed a good idea. It started at the town hall. Brisbane is in the middle of a plan (actually at the beginning but who’s counting) to grow itself to the size of Melbourne by 2020. It doesn’t say whether that is the same size as Melbourne now or Melbourne in 2020 but there you go. Currently Melbourne has about 4 million residents and Brisbane about 1.5 million. It is an ambitious plan that will require a lot of new infrastructure and building work (including an underground bus expressway across the city) - which has started. Brisbane is currently one large building site. The plaza outside the Town Hall is part of that building so doesn’t look all that good at the moment. We were instead enticed into the Town Hall to check out their Museum of Brisbane. It sounds dull but this little town and it’s state politicians have had a colourful past. The exhibition goes through the period of the 60’s, 70’s and 80’s where many civil rights issues were fought against the now discredited State Government. The Premier of Queensland at the time, Joh Bjelke-Peterson, incredibly sat in office for almost 20 years under an infamous gerrymandering system, until he finally caved in under the pressure of the corruption rife in his government. It was a time when minority rights, be they aboriginal, gay, whatever, were curtailed by the increasingly paranoid government. At one point the police were given powers to purchase illegal drugs “for evidence purposes”. These drugs were then taken to suspects houses and if ‘found’ on site you would be prosecuted for possession - even if the police had brought it with them! Even the right to demonstrate or even associate with people considered anti-government was outlawed, and basically any organisation not set up by the government was considered anti-government. This in a country that likes to believe itself to be the most democratic in the world! Just to confirm how crazy this guy and his government was he had a plan drawn up to purchase atomic weapons in order to blow up areas of the Great Barrier Reef in order to allow larger ships safe passage! The exhibition is excellent making use of newspaper cuttings, video clips and artefacts to tell the story of civil rights in Queensland.

After the museum we took the lift up a few floors to catch the lift up to the top of the Town Hall tower. When we arrived at the lift we called to go up and cogs whirred into life. It is one of those really old elevators with an iron safety gate. When it arrived we were a little startled to see there was a person operating the lift. He opened the gates for us and we ushered in. “Information on the lift and tower is on that poster” the man said without looking up from his book. And he was right with all the basic dimensions and year of construction etc written up - presumably so the guy doesn’t actually get asked any questions. We rode in silence until light suddenly filled the lift and all the working of the clock and the clock face were in front of us. “That’s the clock face and workings” the guy muttered disinterestedly, and rather unnecessarily. A couple of seconds later we were at the top and we went to grab the view. To be honest it isn’t that spectacular but it does give you a bit of an understanding of the city layout. Although when it was constructed the city hall was the tallest building in the city it is nowhere near anymore so you can’t see all that far. Still the lift ride was worth it and I have to say it is a bit of shame it rushes past the clock face, made of a single sheet of white opal, so quick. Back down on the ground the lift gate was opened “Have a nice day” - that guy really is bored with his job - if not life.

We headed back out and followed the walking tour. It takes you around most of the important municipal buildings in town, through the shopping parts and out to the botanic gardens, which are nice and quiet though not as impressive as those in Sydney. We carried on following the map and it became increasingly obvious that it wasn’t exactly accurate. Whether the building in Brisbane has gone as far as changing the streets layout or whether the author was drawing the map from memory we’re not sure but if you are going to draw a walking route at least ensure there is a footpath rather than just a busy road! After some head scratching and car dodging we got back on the route and arrived at the ferry stop to take us across the river. What the book doesn’t tell you is that the ferry doesn’t actually operate between the points suggested. Seriously, they need to look at that map. We instead caught the ferry to the next nearest jetty and walked back along the south bank to Streets Beach. That’s right they have a beach right in the middle of the city. Well sort of. It’s man made with a kind of swimming area and sand instead of a poolside. Still in the summer I bet it is lovely. Our walk went back across the bridge at the end of the south bank park and through the city back to City Hall. At which point we kind of felt we had done Brisbane! Well at least there is a river cruise to go.

Well I say river cruise - such things do exist but they are expensive - especially when your all day travel card allows you to hop on and off all the ferries. For just $5! So that’s what we did the next day after a lovely evening letting Mark and Tania do the cooking (spag bol, garlic bread and few Bruce-skis - excellent). The ferries criss-cross the river allowing you to get off and explore wherever they take you. You get all the river based views of the sky-scraper cityscape and some lovely views of the Storey Bridge. Storey Bridge is Brisbane’s answer to the Sydney Harbour Bridge. Brisbaners are very proud of it and you can even do a bridge climb.

We finally came off the ferry near the city skyscrapers and walked back through the city to the centre again. We did feel we had seen everything. I think in 2020 Brisbane will be lovely but at the moment there is just too much construction going on. It was time to move on - especially as it was Fraser Island next.

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Photos

Surfer's Paradise
That is one lovely Beach - pity about the town behind it

Surfer's Paradise 2
Still just paddling but it is warmer

Brisbane 1
View from the top of the City Hall

Brisbane 2
St Stephen's Cathedral

Brisbane 3
A posh building!

Brisbane 4
The botanic Gardens

Brisbane 5
Streets Beach - Ice cream anyone?

Brisbane 6
The Brisbane Skyline

Brisbane 7
The Storey Bridge - The Harbour bridge it is not!