Forgive my lack of updates lately, but we just returned from a week at North Stradbroke Island. We were able to rent a house from Monday through Friday for only A$300! Plus it had a very thoughtfully stocked kitchen, so with a little food that we bought at the super market, we were able to keep our trip very low budget. The island was amazing and because it was off-season, the beaches were almost completely empty. It rained on Tuesday, but otherwise it was a beautiful week. We were able to see whales and dolphins as well as our new favorite bird, the kookaburra. I had heard of these birds before, but had no idea what they sounded like – imagine what you think monkeys in the jungle sound like and that’s what a pair of kookaburras sound like together – ooh-ooh, ooh-ooh, ah-ah, ah-ah – crazy! Again we took advantage of the public transportation system to get us there and back, the return trip included a bus, a ferry, a bus, a train and another ferry.
The weekend before we left we took a drive through some of the food factories of the Sunshine Coast, including the Big Pineapple pineapple orchard, the Ginger Factory (like a mini ginger-themed amusement park – I know, but its true!) and we just missed the Super Bee honey farm.
Last Saturday night was the big kickoff of the Riverfest which included two flybys from a supersonic jet complete with flaming afterburners and 1/2 hour firework spectacular – and I don’t use that word lightly – OMG! The firework show was called Riverfire and apparently it is super popular with the locals. There were people converging on the riverbanks by the thousands. Although we didn’t make it to the front row seating for the show we had a pretty good vantage point from the second story balcony of a building close by. We were actually there for the test screening of a movie that our friend had co-produced. But fortunately we got to watch both, something we hadn’t expected on being able to do.
B’s Cappuccino count: 7
Things we realized about Australia:
People love to go barefoot, including while hiking and working
You actually see the wild animals from the zoo out and about
"I would like a round trip ticket downtown, please" = "I would like a return ticket to the city, please."
You can actually request not to have junk mail delivered.
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I totally remember the Big Pineapple and the Super Bee honey farm! (I bought girl scout-like patches from both of those places when I was there.) Speaking of the girl scouts, wasn't there a cookie named "Kookaburra" way back when? I remember those birds as well - crazy! And go Brad with those caps! He may be disappointed when he comes back to the States (although Cafe Italia in Little Italy apparently has pretty good espresso). Whirly and I were just discussing how we haven't heard from you for a while - I'm glad you had a great time on the island (and what a deal.)
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