hola/adios Noosa!

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Getting from Fraser Island to Noosa just a 45 minute ferry ride and 2 hours drive away was the first little blip in the itinerary.Nothing had been arranged and nothing seemed to coordinate. The ferry arrived after the greyhound bus had left and the only other way was to take bus /taxi to the train station in a different small town from the ferry port, train it to another town, and then a further bus , it would have taken all day for 200 kms in the heat- not good. So the resort booked me a taxi at vast expense and I mean vast expense , I could have hired a car for a week on what it was going to cost!

Every day life here is very expensive food, travel, drink eating out etc .I don't really understand why that should be since they produce vast amounts of wine , grow and have access to fruits ,wheat and meat. So resigned i was to taking out a small mortgage for the taxi ride. However on the ferry i got chatting to a lovely young English woman who had been staying with her mother and younger sister in the same resort as i was and who was driving back to Brisbane where she lived, while her mum went off else where for a few days. Noosa is exactly half way to brissy and she very kindly offered to give me a lift and take me there. !The only issue , i had to cancel the taxi with very little notice - they were not best pleased understandably and called me a few names as only aussies know how!

Any way as two strangers we spent a couple of happy hours chatting away and exchanging our life stories ! I had a spot of panic when Alex suggested i map read while she drove , the Perth experience came to mind and I wondered whether we would make it to Noosa if the directing was left wholly to me!

I took her out to lunch to thank her , Alex knew a splendid bistro on the beach where we had a gorgeous meal overlooking the beach and the bluest of seas So thanks Alex it was good to get to know you and have a wonderful Christmas

my apartment in a complex is way out of town which is a bit of a disappointment.It is walkable about an hour and a quarter which while OK during the day, would not be good after a few drinks at night. Still the ferry runs along the Noosa river but only during the day. So taxis back have been the norm.

Noosa is where the trendy and rich come to play on the sunshine coast , the main drag is full of boutiques restaurants and bars where all the beautiful people meet up . It was really bazaar seeing women dressed to the nines strolling the street during the day - not quite what I expected.

So i have walked along the river into town had a couple of lovely meals , bought just a little more jewellery ( the shop just beckoned me!) taken the 30 minute ferry in the late afternoon sunshine which was splendid. And today i went on a wine and food trail with a small group of people which was great. We visited an organic tomatoe farm, an exotic fruit farm where we tasted olives in ginger and lemon grass , chillied preserves and the farms jams on homemade scones. We were lead to two small family wineries had lunch in one of them and tasted some great local wines and ports. Finally a trip to a fresh water crawfish farm helped us understand how they are reared . We were able to taste the finished product and very good they were too!

So tomorrow I make my way by greyhound to north Brisbane - not a very long journey a couple of hours.mark and or tans will be there to meet me and then its the run up to Christmas. and the arrival of Jules , Sue and Hannah. I still cant get my head round Christmas in the heat particularly since i have just skyped/spoken to jenny and seen the snow outside her house!!!!

Well my dear friends and family a very very happy Xmas to you all, I am missing you l ,Nick and Ros , Tanya and Steve, Lucy, Kate and Ollie , all my lovely kiddlies my siblings and of course Al and my close amigos. It is stange not to be home at this time, I have always prepared Chritmas for family and friends for as long as I can remember and i feel a little bereft. Though I must admit , missing the current snow is not on my radar! - take care-

caro
xxxxxx

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Comments

[Jeannette]

Hi!
The adventure continues... Merry Christmas, have a wonderful time. It is very cold here in Forna, snow on the surrounding mountains and apparently more to come!!! So enjoy all that wonderful sunshine. Lots of love, J xx

[Vicky]

Fabulous
It all looks absolutely idyllic! You won't be wanting to come home - it will be a bit of a shock in February. I am sure you will have a great time over Christmas - although you are probably missing cooking and entertaining a bit. I always do when I am away, and can't wait to get back into the kitchen when home again! The time must be going really quickly. Make the most of it - will really look forward to catching up!! Love from us both. Vicky x

[Lesley Vernon]

Happy Christmas
Hola Caroline, Well aren't you having the time of your life! Catching up with you on your travels is such fun and so interesting. I'm amazed that you find the time to post so many pictures and you write so well. Well apart from the odd hiccough. I can understand you feleing a little nostalgic and bereft, missing friends and family at this time of year Caroline, but don't be. It's only one year and you really wouldn't want to be here now, it's horrible. I had hoped to travel northfor Christmas with Andrea, Daniel and David and the little'uns tomorrow, but listening to the wEATHER REPORTS AND LOOKING OUT OF THE WINDOW, I doubt it. Snowing again, lets hope things improve soon otherwise I'll be spending the hols, with two cats a chicken fillett and lots of gin and tonic! Anyway the wedding last week was fabulous. We had a great time, Andrea looked stunning and we laughed a lot, as well as shedding the odd tear, but that's to be expected. Have a great Christmas, enjoy the moment and catch up with you soon. Love Lesley