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Published: December 16th 2022
1. Ibis
We were joined for elevenses by a pair of IbisWe woke up very early today, partly due to the fact it was so light (the shutters don’t really block the light out!) and also due to the bed dipping in the middle so we were both perched on the very edge most of the night trying (and failing!) to get comfortable! Just goes to show you don’t always get what you pay for….. although the view is great, some parts of this apartment are quite tired. Our bedroom light has given up now too!
The good thing about being up early is you can make the most of the day. As we had our Aquaduck tour booked for today we needed to find the check in office so decided to venture out for an early walk. It was a bit chilly out (well it was still 22 degree’s, given the weather in the UK at the moment that’s probably considered a heatwave!) and there were some very black looking clouds on the horizon. After a bit of confusion, we located the office which was still closed – as were many places given the early hour! But at least we knew where to head later.
Returning to our apartment,
2. Gold Coast Harbour and Skyline
Gold coast harbour and Skyline from the Aquaduck we cooked ourselves a full Aussie/English – they have very odd bacon over here so I’m not sure we can class it as a proper English breakfast! After a bit of a rest to let it go down, Roy headed to the pool for a quick swim then we went out to walk it off a bit while visiting a few shops. On the way back we stopped off for a smoothie sitting at a table with a view of the sea. Whilst we were there we were joined by a pair of Ibis with massive beaks.
After dropping our shopping back at the room, we had to head back out to the Aquaduck office to check in for our 12:15 tour. We got there just before 12, checked in and headed to the meeting point. Not long after the duck pulled up and we climbed aboard. I should probably explain here in case anyone doesn’t know, the Aquaduck is basically a coach type vehicle that can drive on the road and also become a boat in the rivers and canals.
We set of for our city and river tour and enjoyed seeing the sights from the duck,
3. View from SkyPoint
Daytime view of Gold Coast from the SkyPoint the commentary was really interesting at times, but also contained a lot of ‘dad’ jokes. Roy’s favourite being just after we spotted a party boat alongside us….. “See that party boat over there? If that turned over I’d be able to put it on my head because it’s cap sized” (he probably laughs at cracker jokes too!)
Some of the houses backing onto these waterways are amazing, the prices they go for is astronomical – the same can be said for any plot of land around here though. There’s still loads of development taking place and high rises popping up all over the place.
Once the tour was over, we walked to the Skypoint Observation Tower as we’d bought a combo ticket to give us access and a $20 per person voucher for food. We walked down a town street so it was really busy and lots of road junctions to navigate, but you couldn’t miss the building and soon enough we got to the ticket office. We shot up to the 77
th floor on the fastest elevator in Australia, 77 floors in 41 seconds, and emerged to some really impressive views. The clouds had cleared by now
3a. Night view from SkyPoint
Nightime view of Gold Coast from the SkyPoint and it had turned into a lovely sunny day giving us clear views for miles around.
After getting a bite to eat and a beer and taking lots of pictures all around the 360 degree viewing deck, we headed back down to ground level. To make the return journey more pleasant, we headed for the beach and walked back along the edge of the surf (only getting caught out once – which made our flip flops wet!). It made the walk seem much shorter as it was such a nice stroll.
As we headed back up to the promenade, we noticed stalls being setup ready for a market tonight. We returned to the room and sat on the balcony drinking G&T’s…. not a bad way to spend a Friday afternoon!
About 40mins or so before sunset, we headed out again and strolled through the market. There were quite a few stalls and plenty of stuff to look at, we didn’t buy anything but there were a few tempting items along the way. There was also a guy playing the didgeridoo! We couldn’t name the tune, but it was better than bagpipes!
Our SkyPoint tickets were valid
4. Christmas on the beach
Even the lifeguards decorate their stations all day and we wanted to see the Gold Coast at night, so we continued down and headed up to the viewing deck again. We fought off another group to get a window seat, ordered a bottle of wine and sat enjoying the view of the market stalls and the waves. The deck closed at 8pm and we just had time to walk round taking some pictures of the nighttime views…. noticing towards the end that there appeared to be rain drops on the windows…..
We jumped in the lift down and exited the building to find it wasn’t just a few raindrops at this stage, it was a full on storm complete with thunder and lightning!
A lot of people had wussed out and taken refuge under various shelters… but being British and used to this sort of thing, we braved it and headed back. Obviously I’d been sensible and dressed with trousers and a jacket. Roy on the other hand, was dressed for a heatwave – although he did have a cap on and had replaced his flip flops with trainers, so didn’t look a complete idiot, quite...
It was only a 10min walk, but
5. Live Didgeridoo
Some live Digeridoo music at the market we were pretty soaked by the time we got back. Just after we got in the rain got even heavier and there was even more thunder and lightning!
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