Blogs from Noosa Heads, Queensland, Australia, Oceania

Outside our house in Noosa Springs there is an abundance of birds, some of which provide a melodic symphony of songs in the morning (around 5:30 am) and in the evening at sunset. One species in particular has a very unique sound. The Kookaburra sounds like a tree full of laughing monkies! If you go to Wikipedia ( website attached) you can hear the sound. Australia has such a broad array of birds that are unique, colourful and interesting so it’s understandable the attraction by amateur birders and professional ornithologists. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kookaburra Also in the ponds around the golf course there is a family of Black Swans. These are a rare species (i.e therefore the meaning of a Black Swan event). At the Dragon Fire Golf Course in Carlisle (just north of Burlington, Ontario), they imported a ... read more

We return to Australia for the 2019 ”winter getaway” and to the same house in Noosa Heads that we rented in 2017. Noosa Heads is on the Sunshine Coast about 1 1/2 hours drive north of Brisbane. Our last stay at the Noosa Springs Golf Community was very enjoyable and included in our rental is full access to the championship golf course, fitness membership and the use of 3 pools. The facilities suits our lifestyle and we look forward getting full use of them. The flight on Dec 31st to Brisbane was through Vancouver as opposed to a route taken through Hong Kong in 2017. Total travel time was about 25 hours, which is less than the previous flight to “down under”, but still a bit challenging. With the time zone change, we actually arrived on ... read more

We're now back in Noosa Heads to settle in for a few games of golf and try to get back on an exercise regime. Roger and Linda headed out for a 2 day tour of Fraser Island which is the largest sand island in the World and a Heritage listed site. They thoroughly enjoyed the experience which required touring in a special vehicle as most of the journey was on beaches and sand dunes. We may book the same tour later in our stay. On February 24th, Linda and Roger head home after 3 weeks "down under" and we hope they had a great experience. Our plans over the next couple of weeks is to explore more deeply the Sunshine Coast and to take full advantage of the facilities at the resort and golf course. In ... read more

Another early start and Wayne picks us up for our final day of this trip. Once again we get in the back of the 4x4 and make our way to McKenzie Island. Wayne is keen to get us to the lake before anyone else arrives.It is simply stunning, I had no idea that a lake could be so crystal clear but apparently this is what a healthy ecological balance can give you. It is too amazing for words - thank you Wayne, we forgive you for making us get up early ... read more

2015 may have been less than a month old, but the new year had swooped me up like a hurricane, and I had been riding the storm. All about me was non-stop change and activity. The Australia Day long weekend was an opportunity to take a breath, so I took myself on a chilled out solo retreat to Noosa. I had never been before and heard rave reviews from others. It only took me a few hours to fall in love with the place too. My accommodation (very nice, but vastly overpriced) was nestled up on the hill on the outskirts of the main street and surrounded by National Park. I arrived on a Friday night after work and went for a wander up the main street, Hastings Street. Being a sucker for sparkly things I ... read more