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Published: April 21st 2008
Hello,
Been relaxing in Brisbane and a side trip to the beach! We completely changed our Whitsunday plans after realising that spending 100pounds just to get there on a 18hour bus probably wasn't worth it for this short amount of time, i guess i'll just have to come back and do the north later on in life!
So Tuesday we decided to have a day in, something that's a complete novelty so after a nice lie in we watched some tv, used the internet and explored the local area- there arent any shops etc in walking distance so instead I went for a walk down to the lighthouse to scout out my running route! the running career got off to a hot start as the evenings are always busy and there's no chance of me getting up early so instead it was the heat of the day!! I have to say sitting on a bench looking at the sea to cool off afterwards was much more enjoyable and the length of the run wasn't exactly the marathon but at least its a start!! Tuesday night i decided to use the opportunity of Skype to speak to people from back
home which obviously means stayin up late for the time difference.
Wednesday morning we were awoken early to head to Australian Zoo aka Steve Irwin's zoo. It took about 2hours to get there and we finally cracked out the internation student cards for a discount before heading in to see the crocs et al. We wondered around taking in the tasmanian devils, dingo's but the highlight was the really cute baby piglets at the petting zoo! Lots of classic australian animals like the kuala's and we visited Roo Heaven to have the chance to pat the kangaroo's with their suprisingly soft fur!! After a bite to eat we went to see a show with the crocodiles, snakes and birds! I've never heard anything so disgusting as the crocodile shutting its massive jaw as it jumps around for the meat! There are reminders everywhere of Steve Irwin, unsuprisingly! Wednesday held some local culture in the form of the RSL, aka the suburban brisbane version of the British Legion (enough said) with Trivia Night!! Libby and I coped well, both offering correct answers, but we arrived too late to help the team who were already lagging behind! apparently the thing to
do here after the RSL is to head down to 'The Alex' which is part of the Alexander Hills Hotel (again enough said) it's the aussie version of a bar but just made us miss London more, we have high hopes for Sydney or the City!! Anyway apparently wednesday night is Karaokee Night so after a few glasses of wine we got up and performed Grease to much acclaim i like to think! Luckily we couldn't hear ourselves and shortly afterwards called it a night after tasting a very different life!!
Thursday morning we woke early (clearly adjusting to life here!) and rested for most the day, doing our last bit of washing and then went out to a local harbour for fish and chips for lunch for me and Steak and Guiness Pie for Libby! To work off lunch we went for a walk along the beach to this island, quickly before the tide came in, very devon! Returning late afternoon we prolonged packing even more and more before having the Last Supper here and then cracking out the baby video's of Libby and Ross, who were born a few hours apart!
Friday morning we awoke having
still not packed up yet and headed down to Surfer's Paradise sadly in the pouring rain! we we're confident throughout our 2 trains and a bus (all of which were timed to perfection) that by the time we actually got there it would be sunny and paradise! Alas, still pouring it looked like blackpool! We checked into a hostel- with pool and sauna!! Into a 10 bed female dorm, for $15 which was cheaper than expected so i was happy! Due to cleaning we couldn't actually come back to the room until 3 so headed out with umbrella to find some food, stumbling upon a cheapish and supposedly value for money place we went in to discover School Dinner style food! We then popped down to Woolworth's aka sainsbury's to buy dinner and lunch and breakfast etc- totally embracing the cheap lifestyle of using the kitchens to cook for yourself! Armed with our shopping in a cool bag we went for coffee and cake before a wonder down to the beach ( it was still raining) to see people still surfing despite the weather! Back to the hostel to compete for control of the TV, we managed to catch our
Australian Soaps before coming up to the Kitchen to cook (aka cut up) the salad, feta and bread we'd brought alongside a lovely (cheap) bottle of wine! A last check of the internet and then off to sample the local nightlife! Ended up having a relatively reserved night in an Irish Bar as we came to the harsh realisation that we can't afford to go out everynight in Oz, still made our way through enough sparkling wine though! we returned to chat outside our room as everyone inside was still asleep, there sooo quiet!
Saturday morning after dozing from 6 onwards when the sunlight shone in and people started getting up and moving around, optimistic about the weather i was then disappointed do discover the rain when we got up and went to make our breakfast- finally sampling marmite after 11 hard weeks!! We wondered out in the rain but again got too cold so decided to buy dinner- mexican tortiallas, beef etc before coming back for lunch- with bad weather we revolve (more than usually) around food so after lunch it was tea and cake (again) before coming to use the internet and write our journals! The hardest
thing about Oz is having to drink the tap water which tastes like drinking plant water its too like soil!! Sadly while using the internet we were victims to one of the worst crime's to be comitted against us- we went along at 7 to cook our dinner to discover our ENTIRE bag of food had been stolen out of the fridge! There were about 50 bags in there -most the cheap green ones our's the blue chilled bag with zip and full of not only dinner but stuff to last us throughout Oz aka oil, pepper etc about 40dollars of stuff. We were not happy about this so marched down to reception to hand in our crockery needing the deposit money to fund the new dinner when we were reminded all supermarkets would be closed. Reception offered us free breakfast the next day which eased the pain slightly but not enough for our liking so off we went to a posh restaurant and spent a literal fortune on steak and a few bottles of sparkling wine- as we returned to make use of the free entry to the bar and club we got from eating there! We loved them
even more when half way through the night they came around with platters of free food- a nice touch i think! Our first night out in heels in 11weeks so we made the most of it returning to our dorm in the early hours of the morning!
Sunday we awoke to make use of our free breakfast which was your typical all you can eat fatty food before packing up and checking out. We made use of internet happy hour before getting the bus and train back to the city, we stopped for lunch in the city. Sidenote- the weather today was bright and sunny and warm- the perfect kind of day for the beach!! We were returning to Brisbane to stay with Lynette and her family- an old friend of Kate's- after one more train journey we arrived in Indooroopilly(yes really!!) at about half three! They have 2 kids, aged 13 and 15 and 2 very excitable puppies with an abundance of energy which we experienced upon going for a walk with them!! There was time to unpack and relax before dinner- South African Sausage (it's where there originally from) and roast chicken complimented by roast potatoes, they
had a couple of friends over too who managed to connect us with some people in Melbourne! After dinner we used the internet and tv before going up to a comfortable and clean bed!!
This morning we awoke, showered (not for too long with a Brisbane drought) ate a very healthy breakfast of fruit and yoghurt before heading into the City, Lynette showed us the way on the bus as she was also going in to town before we were left to our own devices! Libby went to meet Maria for a drink while i explored the town and all the old buildings e.g. town hall and cathedral before meeting libby in the Botanic Gardens which put our parks to shame- it was like walking through a Jungle!! We then went for a coffee on the riverfront before mastering the bus home- i'm pleased to say we successfully made it without any errors! Tonight we're joining Lynette and Mike at the Regatta Hotel for a drink before another lovely dinner no doubt!!
Our plans for the rest of Oz are looking like heading south down to Byron Bay, tomorrow the Blue Mountains, Melbourne (for the set of
neighbours!!) then on to Sydney for our last week!!
Hope everythings well
love xxxxx
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Dad
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The Biggest Sin of all
Is stealing your food. Money, phone, you can bear their loss. But food! Lass those aussies have hit you where it hurts. Death to the food thief!