Walkies around "BrisVegas"

Our hotel had a lovely private terrace at the back of our room (accessible by a back door in the room) so we made breakfast and chilled outside for a little while, having a coffee/tea and a chat. We were starting to get excited about moving onto the farm, because it would actually be the first place Nicola and I would have as our own house – a dairy farm in Queensland! We had originally booked just one night in our current hotel but we were so happy with it that we wanted to see if we could book another two nights (on the internet only one night was available). At reception I asked if there were any reservations but to my surprise, and pleasure, I was told that due to a booking error we had been booked in for two nights not one and that a third night was available…sorted. I bought a Castlemaine XXXX (4X) and a Bundaberg Rum and cola for Nicola for later on as we were continuing to try the local drinks, and we headed towards the city to explore.

We were amazed by how nice, and how many green areas there were in Brisbane. We came across Roma Parklands, which is a really nice park in the centre of Brisbane or “Bris-Vegas” as it is apparently known (apparently because it is tacky, but we didn’t think so…maybe that says a lot about us?!). We spotted quite a few lizards (and pretty big ones too) in the park and stopped by a waterfall installation which was really refreshing in the current heat. I think the heat here is more manageable/tolerable than in Thailand, because the heat here lacks the humidity of Thailand. After our stroll through the park we came into the city and stumbled into a Malaysian festival, where stage performers were dancing what looked like Bollywood style dances (and a cheeky Gangnam Style dance to finish off). It was a good laugh and we stopped off for an ice cream (Dipping Dots, which was strange but nice - google it - lots of tiny ice balls (like millions) but when you ate them they turned creamy, like ice cream) before heading towards the CBD.

  

                                                     

Central BrisVegas was nice, it didn’t seem too built up. It was a large city but it didn’t really feel overwhelming, or too “full on” like some cities we have been to. We were feeling better and better about Brisbane, and then we came upon the Southbank. What a lovely place. We went into the Cultural Centre buildings (which included a museum, science centre – like a techniquest – performing art centre and two art galleries) and headed towards the Queensland Art Gallery and took a look around (free admission, always nice). It was significantly better than the last art gallery we went to, the ACCA in Melbourne. After looking around the gallery for maybe an hour we left and headed towards the beach on Southbank. There is actually a man-made beach 
in the centre of Brisbane! On the way we passed an open air cinema (sponsored by Ben & Jerry’s), huge ferris wheel and a load of lovely little cafes. We were really impressed. After a few hours chilling on the Southbank, we were feeling pretty tired and decided to head back towards our hotel. We had had a lovely day, enjoyed the sunshine, enjoyed the Southbank, and enjoyed exploring Brisbane.

We also spoke to the owners of the dairy farm (Chris and Stan) and we arranged a date for us to start work – 29 October. After confirming start dates Nicola and I got down to planning the week ahead. We agreed on a road trip (but then cancelled due to the extortionate amount they charged because of our age (approx. $30 per day extra!)) and opted instead to travel up the coast by train and bus. Stopping first at a place called Nambour for two days (so we could spend one day in the Sunshine Coast and another at Australia Zoo – Steve Irwin’s Zoo), then move onto Noosa (for another day by the beach), before moving on to Hervey Bay (for one day by the beach and another on Fraser Island – basically a huge beach). The last day we would spend in Bundaberg before being picked up on the Sunday by Chris and Stan to start work on the farm. With all that booked and planned out we spent the evening chilling out and dreaming about the week ahead…