A Land Down Under

My heart is filled with joy and the reason for this is that we're leaving for Brisbane on Sunday.  The last time I saw these particular Australians was two years ago and they were starting off at a new school.

On that visit we had a glorious time discovering all the sights with the grandkids - they lived in Melbourne before moving to Brisbane so it was fun to explore everything with them.

We did the O'Reilly's Tree Top Walk and fed the parrots afterwards.

Slightly nervous at  the privilege of having an exotic bird perched on our head.

Marvelling at the flocks of jewel coloured rosellas covering tree branches and feeding stations.

 

 Living in South Africa, I'm used to seeing "the Big Five" but it was fascinating to see animals which Australians take for granted, not only in a sanctuary or zoo setting, but in the suburbs as well;  Koalas in the eucalyptus trees in front of my daughter's home, night visits from possums and great flocks of sulphur-crested cockatoos flying over the park.  On our first night in Brisbane blood-curdling screams outside the house convinced us that someone was being attacked.  It took some persuading for us to believe that the source of the screams was fruit bats swooping through the warm evening air.

We visited some interesting shops, such as this one in Canungra where you could buy biker gear, get a tattoo or body jewellery or even go the whole hog and purchase a motorbike. The boys were greatly intrigued by shop and customers.

 

 A day at the  beach right in the centre of the city.  How unusual is that?

Catching a water taxi to visit the Queensland Art Gallery and Museum on the South Bank  was something I really enjoyed.  We don't have a particularly good public transport system in Cape Town, so hopping on and off water taxis, buses and trains was quite a novelty and what a pleasure not to have to look for parking space. 

Strolling along the river walk after spending a day in the tranquil City Botanic Gardens.  I love how the three cities I've visited in Australia, Sydney, Melbourne and now Brisbane, are all built around the rivers twining through them.

 Yachts at anchor in the Cleveland Marina

Cleveland Lighthouse

Memories of childhood playgrounds.

So, at the moment it's the usual scramble whenever one is going away - juggling the demands of work, especially with our time away coinciding with the end of one month and the beginning of the next.  Invoices to be emailed, VAT returns and payments to be made, shopping to be done for ourselves and for the younger daughter who's going to take care of house and garden.  In between that, the more enjoyable consulting of books and compiling lists of all the things we wanted to on our last visit and didn't have time to get to.  Roll on Sunday.