Steve’s Travel Blog

Hello all,

I am sorry there are no pics with this blog but where I am at it is taking hours to get one pic on the site.  When I get to someplace better I will add the pics, should be in about a week.

Last time I bloged I had just got to Brisbane which was about 10 days ago and I have lots to catch up on.  I wanted to say thanks to my 2 aunts and their note to me, it is great to get these notes from home and I enjoy them, so keep them coming.

I got into Brisbane heading into a weekend and this city has tons to do.  I needed to get up to date on all that was going on and so I spent quite a bit of time at the State Library on my computer.  I had a planned Skype call with mom and dad but ended up running into some more computer problems and it took me 2 days to figure it out.  Once I got it figured it was so easy to fix, as usual and was able to have a great conversation with them.  In the mean time I tried to get some touring done around the city but always ended up in the area called Southback and by the beach.  It is a man made beach but that was all right and a great place to just hang out.  On Saturday night they had a “dancing in the streets” festival and I went with 2 people from my dorm room.  I put a bottle of wine into my black water bottle and off we went.  We thought it was professionals that were supposed to do the dancing but they would put on a short show and then teach everyone how to do their dance.  There was everything from hip hop to salsa.  The more I drank the more I danced and by the end of the night I am sure I was a hip hop star even though I have no idea what I was doing.  I think I will stick to salsa and jive, it is more my style.  I got up a little later on Sunday and had a pretty lazy day.  I went to the library to try to fix my computer and almost fell asleep while I was typing.  I laughed at myself and packed up my stuff and started back to the hostel with a stop at the muesum for a quick look, but I needed to get back and have a nap.  The rest of the day just drifted away because when I look at my journal to remind me of what I did there is nothing there.  Monday morning is when I figured out the computer problem and had the chat with mom and dad.  I also had a chat with Daryl (work buddy) and a couple of Facebook chats with Cathy and others.  By the time I got out of the library most of the day was gone and I still had not seen a lot of Brisbane.  I had met up with Kim again (met her in Agnes Waters/1770 and Hervey Bay) and we ended up making some plans for Tuesday.  The rest of Monday was spent reading and chilling out, I seem to be doing a lot of that but damn it is good.  I am guessing that everyone should have this opportunity to chill for a few hours every day.  It would make for such peaceful people although I am sure that some would go stir crazy.

On Tuesday I picked up Kim in my car and we drove to Mount Coot-tha.  We went to the lookout first and had a great view of the city.  It is a lot bigger than I thought (1.5 million people) and really spread out.  We did a 1 hour hike around the lookout area before hopping back into the car and going to the botanical gardens.  We walked around the gardens and it was in really good shape.  The last few gardens I have been to have left to grow out because it is winter here.  This one was neatly trimmed and lots of flowers blooming.  They also have a lot of Bearded Dragons (large lizard) around the gardens as well, which ended up been a problem.  We found a really big one when crossing a bridge that was below, I pulled out my camera to get a picture and it slipped and fell.  It almost hit the dragon in the head and then took a big bounce into the pond next to the dragon.  I just stood there looking at my camera bubbling away thinking “shit there goes another one”, my other camera that I sent home has been fixed and mom and dad are sending it to me but I will not get it until I get to Melbourne.  I got one of the workers to retrieve the camera and took out the batteries and picture card right away.  The pic card was okay and I did not loose any pictures but the camera was soaked.  No big deal because Kim was taking lots of pics and I could just get hers.  We left the area at around 4 and headed back to the city.  My plan was to take apart my camera and dry it out right away but when I got back there was a bbq starting and some of the others (Tim, James, James 2, Breandan and Rob) forced (like it was hard) me to join them.  We ended up in some party games and of course we (James, who was a dorm mate & I) won.  We won a jug of beer, a shot each and a t-shirt.  We ended up having 5 jugs between the 2 of us and then it was time to go to the pub where more cheap beer and rum were consumed.  I ended up talking with a girl (Kelly) for about an hour, got here email and said I would send her a facebook note the next day. It was a fun night and I did not get to bed until about 3am, gotta love Tuesdays!!!.

Everyone slept in on Wednesday and then the group of us walked to the library to check on email and whatever else.  Kim also met us there.  I got online and checked my emails and then went onto facebook to send a note to Kelly who it turns out gave me a fake email and obviously was not that impressed with me.  We all got a good laugh about it but I think the young guys felt better because they went home with nothing.  We all went for lunch and then chilled in Southbank again for a while till we went back to the hostel to chill.  I finally found time to take my camera apart, it was still very wet inside once I got it apart and the viewing screen was busted up pretty bad.  Not much chance of it working again but I am not giving up on it and put all the pieces in the room to put back together later.  It was looking as though it would be a very quiet evening because no one wanted to spend money and most were still tired.  I was sitting and talking with Tim after supper when I saw another girl (Esther)and knew that I had to talk with her. She went into the TV room and I followed.  We ended up having a short chat and then decided to watch a movie (Bourne Ultimatum).  After the movie we had another short chat and decided to meet up the next day and tour around the city.

Esther was traveling with another girl from Finland (Sanna) and we all met up after breakfast, around 9:30.  They had just got in the night before so they had not seen any of Brisbane yet.  We started our walk with the Southbank area (I love this area) and then the Botanical Gardens and along Queen Street in the CBD.  We stopped at food court and had some lunch and then we continued walking to 2 cathedrals (St. Stephen’s – catholic & St. John’s – anglican).  St. Stephen’s was really nice but the face of it was under construction.  St. John’s was nice as well but the stain glass was not as good and it was different to see a childs playground in the middle of the church.  I had to go in and start playing with the toys, I am more like a 4 year old than a 40 year old.  After I was done playing we went to ANZAC Square and looked around and then sat and relaxed for a while.  We decided that it would be a good idea to go to a jazz club that evening and picked the one that must have been the furthest away.  We went back to the hostel and got ready to go out and then went to an Indian restaurant which was about 2 blocks away from the hostel.  We decided that walking to the jazz club would be a good idea because we ate too much and started on our way.  It should have taken about 45 minutes to get but we took a wrong turn and it ended up taking about 2 hours and with all the luck we had going it as closed.  We had a good laugh at ourselves and then saw the ferry that goes along the river that if we would have taken it in the first place we would have been there in about 20 minutes.  We all wanted a drink and ended up at a pub called the Rumpus Room that was right across the street from the Indian restaurant that we started at.  After 3 hours of walking that beer tasted great. My plan was to leave to go to Surfers Paradise and Coolangatta the next day and they were planning on taking a bus to Byron Bay which is a little further down the coast.  We decided it would be great to travel together all the way to Byron Bay and then they could headed back north and I could continue south.  We had the one beer and headed back to the hostel as we were all very tired from a very long walking day.

We met up for breakfast in the morning (fruit salad & toast with peanut butter) and then continued our walking tour from the day before.  We went to city hall and up the tower for a great view of the city and then toured the Brisbane Museum which was pretty dull.  We then went to the Queensland Museum and I left Esther and Sanna to tour around and I went to the library to do some quick internet stuff.  We then walked back to the hostel and had lunch and started to make our way to Surfers Paradise.  I was told by everyone that Surfers was way over rated and just a bunch of big buildings and tourists and it would be best to get out as soon as possible.  When we made it to Surfers it was just that and we never stopped to get out of the car and left as quick as we got there and made our way to a much cooler place down the coast called Coolangatta.  The hostel was more expensive than most I have been staying at but it was really nice.  It had a big patio outside our room with nice loungers and chairs and we just sat back and relaxed.  We ended up having supper at the same spot even though the rules said no food in the rooms we figured we were okay because we were on the patio. Sanna was not feeling that well and went to bed early and Esther & I took a nice bottle of red wine down to the beach and chatted.  It felt like it was about an hour but 4 hours later we were both shaking from the cold and finally decided to head back to the hostel.  Instead of being smart and going to bed we ended up looking at pictures until 3:30 in the morning.

Our check out was at 10am and we used every minute of it to wake up and get organized.  We drove to the store to get some groceries and then ate breakfast/lunch on the beach.  From there we walked along the beach and ocean front to Danger Point and then to the beach on the other side.  We sat at the beach for a few hours relaxing and talking.  I thought about throwing both of them in the ocean and did get them to the waters edge and thought better of it.  We then walked back to the car and made our way to a town called Nimbim.  This is supposed to be the pot (marihjuana) capital of Australia.  Since none of us smoke it it was pretty funny walking around.  The whole town is locked in the 70’s, it reminded me of Nelson BC.  The first guy we walked by wreeked of pot, actually the whole town did and the hours they work were funny.  We strolled through the shops for a while and then got back in the car and made our way to Byron Bay.  On the way we stopped at a roadside fruit stand and picked up some fresh fruit and vegetables.  The last 1/2 of the drive was in the dark but we made it to the YHA hostel with no problems. I made supper (pan fried fish with potatoes, peppers, onions and a salad.  With it been Saturday night we decided to head for a night club and took in some music.  Esther and I were still really tired from staying up so late the night before so we left after about an hour and went back to the hostel.  The plan was to go to sleep but we ended up talking for another 4 hours and going to sleep around 2am. 

Sunday ended up been a big time chill day in Byron Bay.  I got on the internet and did a few emails and had a couple of conversations but got tired of that real quick.  We had plans to walk on the beach but the big beanbag chairs were to comfortable to get out of.  Esther & I talked for quite a while and Sanna actually was productive and got a few things done.  In the afternoon Sanna went for a surf lesson and Esther & I picked up some groceries and then finally walked along the beach to where Sanna was taking her lesson.  We got there just as they were finishing so we sat back on the beach and watched the sunset.  The sunset was amazing and the only word to describe it is the slang word “MEJ”, I know it sounds different but it means “better than perfect”  and that was exactly it. 

We walked back to the hostel and then had made mexican food for supper.  After relaxing for a while we had chocolate fondue for dessert with strawberries, bananas and apples. Now that we were extremely full we made it back to the beanbag chairs and relaxed until they made us leave the area at 11:30 because they were closing.  We finally made it to bed at a decent time for once but it did not make much difference for waking up the next morning.  We slept in until 10am again and did not accomplish very much in the morning.  Sanna made us breakfast/lunch (eggs, ham,peppers and cheese on toast) and then off and running around the city.  She rented a bike and spent most of the day out and about.  Esther and I planned to go for a walk along the beach again but ended up just chilling in the room looking at pictures and talking.  Sanna came back and made supper for us but would not let us help at all.  We were not allowed anywhere near the kitchen so we stayed in the room until Sanna came and got us.  She made a remarkable meal of chicken breast wrapped in prosciutto and sage (wow,wow,wow) along with ravioli and salad.  She also had 2 bottles of wine to drink.  After supper she took us to a restuarant for dessert.  We did not know what to expect and it was definetly MEJ.  The waiter came out with 3 glasses of champagne for us and then 3 incredible desserts, one was a chocolate log another a blood orange tort and finally a carameliaed banana and ice cream.   I was so full after I could barely move and we decided that it would be a good idea to go for a walk to work some of it off.  When we got back to the hostel everyone was very sleepy and we went to bed.  As I get to know Esther and Sanna better I am learning some German and Finnish plus they both have some very cool sayings.  Now that I have travelled with them for a few days you need to know a little more about them.  Esther is 33 and a  teacher in Endingen, Germany which is in the south west part close to the Black Forest.  She is amazingly nice and we have been getting quite close over the last few days.  She has also done lots of travelling and has been to more countries than I have but I will catch up quickly as she has to go back to Germany on Sept. 7th for the school year. As we have got to know each other better Esther has had assorted saying that are really cool and mean a lot to me.  Esther always says that there are “no coincidences” and that there is a reason for everything, which I truely believe.  They obviously know my story at this point and what I am doing, or at least what I think I am doing.  Esther says that  I suffer from “Fernweh” which is a Greman word and is the exact opposite of homesickness, I am not sure if there is an English word for it but I will go with the German one.  Another saying that really stands out to me and really explains me is “all who wander are not lost” which was writen by JR Tolkien.  I seem to be learning a lot about myself and having a great time with them. Sanna is 34 and a doctor in Finland, she studied in Helsinki but now lives in a smaller town north.  Sanna has been taking english lessons from Esther & I and is doing great, but still makes us laugh a lot.  The last 4 days with them has been MEJ, so much so that I decided to continue to travel with them even though they are going in the opposite direction I was going and to places I have already seen.  I figure I am having this much fun and really I do not have any time limits like they do.  So the next day after breakfast, laundry and some time to chill we were headed back toward Brisbane but passed it on the outside and went to a place called Rainbow Beach.  I actually have not been here and so this was good.  We took it pretty easy for the rest of the day and did not get a lot accomplished except for another good supper and great conversation, but really what else do you need.

I got up in the morning around 7:30 and then went on the internet from 8 – 8:30 for a quick update.  We had breakfast (our usual of fruit salad with yogurt and toast with peanut butter.  I started to write this blog in the morning and by noon we were all ready for a our along the beach.  We walked along the area called the coloured sands which were similar to waht I saw in HerveyBay.  We got back to the hostel in time to catch a bus up to a lookout and a sand blow.  We brought a bottle of wine and a few beers with us and watched the sunset, hich was absolelutely MEJ.  We walked back to the hostel and made spaghetti and sauce and then listened to the one man band playing for the hostel.  He was really good and we bought a CD but onece we put in the car his music just dod not seem to be as good.  We sat around and talked about funny stories about each other and even some serious ones.  Nothing to deep and we had a ton of fun.

Now we had to decide on how we were going to get to Fraser Island (guided like I had done before or self drive with a group of teenagers) and it came real easy and we decided to go with a guided tour.  We called the operator and found out the earliest to start was on Saturday and come back on Monday which will work great since Sanna has to be back in Brisbane for Tuesday and a flight to New Zealand.  It was still a long drive to Hervey Bay from here so we decided to backtrack a little and go from Noosa.  We left Rainbow beach at around noon and stopped once for a break and then again at a lookout oint with a 45 minute hike.  The hike was real easy and then made our way to the store for groceries and finally to the hostel.  We sat around just catching the atmosphere of the place and then cooked a supper of Salmon done in Yogurt sauce, potatoes in rosemary and spianch with onion ahd herbs.We had  bottle of red wine with supper and chilled after with some more great conversation. 

I am headed back to Fraser Island for the 2nd time to see the sights with Esther and Sanna and then after 3 days there it will be back to Brisbane and Sanna heads to New Zealand and Esther is supposed to go on to Uluru where I have been as well.  I am still not sure what I am going to do but I guess I will figure it out over the next few days.  I have so much fun the last week I wish it would never end.

Esther and Sanna are such a big part of this blog they have both decided to write a note to whoever can read it or take the time to translate it: Esther’s is in German and Sanna’s is in Finnish, good luck to all who take the time to figure out what they said.  If you do let me know because they won’t tell me.

“ES SIND DIE BEGEGNUNGEN MIT MENSCHEN, DIE DAS LEBEN LEBENSWERT MACHEN.” GUY DE MONTPASSANT
Was fuer ein Glueck, einen Menschen wie Stephen zu kennen und als Freund haben zu duerfen – ich kann komplett verstehen, wie sehr ihr ihn alle vermissen muesst. Das einzige Wort was diese paar Tage, die wir zusammen verbracht haben beschreiben koennte ist MEJ…
ESTHER

LAhtiessAni matkaan pelkAsin eniten yksinAisyyttA, mutta tultuani Australiaan en ole ollut pAivAAkAAn yksin. Tapasin Estherin ja Stevenin, ja olemme matkustaneet yhdessA yli viikon ajan pitkin Australian itArannikkoa. Me sovimme hyvin yhteen, jokin ihmeellinen tasapaino meidAn vAlillAmme on. Olemme nAhneet paljon ja syOneet joka ilta (liiankin!) hyvin…MinA olen oppinut, etta elAmAssA on paljon asioita, mistA voi iloita. EikA aina tarvitse elAA varjossa.

MinA en ymmarrA sitten millAAn, miksi Australiasta katsottuna tAhdet ovat taivaalla yloOsalaisin…? Ja mita loytyy siita pisteesta, missa ruusulinja (0 pituuspiiri) ja paivantasaaja leikkaavat?

SANNA

Well I guess that is all for this time, I hope you all take care and here is one last thought to leave you with “Getting old is mandatory, growing up is optional”

Till next time, love ya all

Steve

PS:2 Happy Birthday wishes go out this time, first is my nephew Emerson who has his bday on Friday the 21st of August, I think he turns 12.  I am sure he will have a great party with his friends and get ay to much stuff but the little shit probably deserves it.  2nd is my cousin Denise who is turning ????, I know but I am just being nice and not saying, on August 23rd.

Hello all again, it has been 2 weeks since my last blog and the adventures continue!!!

In the last blog I told you that I was going fishing off the beach which I did and I caught absolutely nothing, well that is not totally true I got some seaweed, trees and rocks but nothing I could eat. 

I left Agnes Waters and made my way to the town of Bundaberg.  This is where they make the local Australian rum by the same name.   I did a quick tour around town and then made my way to the plant.  I did the plant tour which was a bit disappointing compared to the Bacardi plant in Puerto Rico but it was still fun.  At the end we got 2 free samples and they tasted pretty good.  The Bundaberg rum is not the best rum that is for sure but it is usually pretty cheap compared to Appletons or other quality rums.  I decided to buy one of there top rums since it was about the same price as the regular stuff in the shops and I was also disappointed with that as well.  It is okay mixed with some cola but not real good to sip on its own.  From Bundaburg I made my way to Hervey Bay where I checked into a backpackers called The Friendly Backpackers and it was as its name states.  I was given a twin share room at a dorm price and then had no roommates for the first 2 days, sweet, best sleep I have had in a long time.

My first morning in Hervey Bay I was just chilling out reading about what there is to do and decided to spend the afternoon on a whale watching tour.  The humpback whales migrate from the antarctic to Hervey bay and this is where most will give birth to their calves.  The migration is just starting to come but they had been seeing whales so I thought why not.  It was a fantastic trip and we saw 3 huge whales up close.  After about 2 hours of cruising around we saw them and then the whales came up right beside the boat.  It was like they were playing with us and they were as interested in us as we were with them.  There was a group of young kids on the boat who were a pain in the ass most of the time but when the whales came we were told to make lots of noise and cheer and they really did there part.  I talked with the skipper for a bit and he said that it was real early into the season but it’s usually the best time because it is the younger whales now and they are inquizative while the older whales go a little slower and have seen all the people before and can sometimes avoid them and do not get as close as the young ones.  Whatever the timing I had a great day with the whales.

The next morning I was up early to make a call to Cathleens house and talk with everyone that had showed up for the Dietrich Family weekend.  It was great to be able to hear all their voices and talk about what is going on here and there.  It sounded like a great day with extreme heat and time in the pool.  The rest of my day entailed chilling at the beach and touring around Hervey Bay.  I also got ready to go to Fraser Island.

Fraser Island is known as the largest sand island in the world.  There are 2 ways to see the island, 1 is self drive with a rented 4wd and about 11 others in it and camping or 2 is a guided tour and seeing all the important sights.  I decided on the guided tour mostly because the self drive is mostly young kids and a lot of drinking and little touring.  I am glad I decided on that way because the 4wd tracks are very tough to drive and I am sure you would get stuck a lot.  We had a group of 18 on our tour and it was a great group of people (8 of which were Irish). We were picked up at 7:30am at the hostel and taken to the boat across to Fraser Island.  Once on the island we met our tour guide (Ash) and he looked exactly like Kurt Russell the actor.  He did an awesome job for the entire tour and was full of all kinds of facts and information.  We started the tour with a drive to a fresh water lake called Basin Lake.  It is not very big so we walked around it but it is protected so we could not swim in it.  From there we did a few short walks around central station, pile valley and a rainforest.  We finished up with a very cold swim at Lake McKenzie.  Most of us did not last very long in the water and some did not even go in.  It was very refreshing but when the sun went away it got pretty damn cold.  We then made our way to the backpacker accommodation  at the King Fisher Resort.  We were served a fantastic supper and chilled for the evening, as a matter of fact all the meals on the trip were great and way more than I ever expected.  The 2nd day of the tour started with a drive on 75 mile beach (it is so cool driving down a beach) to Eli Creek.  A group of us walked on the boardwalk to the end of the creek and then decided that it was a good idea to walk back in the creek.  The water ended up been about waist deep and we all got wetter than we were expecting but it was a lot of fun. 

Back on to the bus and our next stop was a place called the coloured sands.  Lots of deep red and orange colors in the sands and interesting formations.  We then stopped at the Meheno Shipwreck along the beach where we looked at the wreck and then waited for a few that took a flight around the island and then did a beach landing of the plane.  Our next stop was one of the highlights of the trip with a stop at what they call the Champagne Pools.  This is a group of swimming holes on the edge of the ocean surrounded by big rocks.  The waves come over the rocks and splash into the pools and look like bubbling champagne. 

The water was still pretty cold but we all had a lot of fun.  After drying off we made our way to a cliff called Indian Head. The views were great and we could see whales, dolphins and turtles from the top.  This place is very sacred to the aboriginies and they never actually go there.  When the English decided to take over the island and wanted them off they took a bunch to this spot and then just pushed them off.  Hundreds died there but there is nothing there that tells the visitors about this, we found out because of our guide.  Our last stop of the day was to Hammerstone Sandblow which was a big sand dune in a very open area.  Now as I said this is the biggest sand island but you would be amazed at the amount of vegetation on the island.  Most of the sand is covered by trees and brush but there are a few open part just like this sandblow. Another evening of fun with the group with a few drinks along the way. Our last day started with an hour drive which we needed so that it warmed up before we got to Lake Birrabeen and another swim.  Only a few of us went in and I was one of them even though I did not do a lot of swimming and more just standing, we did get in a decent game of frisbee on the beach.  From there we made our way to Eurong Resort and an early lunch.  Then we did a good hike to Lake Wabby, where half way there we walked into a sand dune and walked along that to the lake which was at the bottom of the dune.  It looked real appealing to run into but we asked not to because to many people have broken there necks doing it.  Everyone went for a swim here and some swam across the lake and back, I took a more restful approach and dog paddled around the shallow parts.  We dried off again and then made our way to the boat that was going to take us back to Hervey Bay.  We got in about 6 and a bunch of us met up for drinks later that evening.  We had one good last night before everyone moved on. 

I stayed in Hervey Bay and met up with Stacey who I had met in Vanuatu while watching the land diving at Pentecost.  We met up for a smoothie and exchanged some pics and videos from the land diving.  The rest of the day was spent catching up on laundry and other stops I needed to do.

My plan from here was to get to Brisbane and meet up with Russell who I also met in Vanuatu and he was going to take me fishing.  After a phone call to Russell I found out that he was not available for about 5 days so I could take my time getting to Brisbane.  After getting this info I decided to go to a place called Noosa.  The town is split up into different areas and has hundereds of traffic circles.  I thought I knew where I was going and got so turned around with the traffic circles I ended up having to call the hostel and get some help getting there.  I was only a few blocks away but just could not find the right street.  One of the big highlights of the area is the Eumundi Markets on Saturdays and I went there.  The market was huge and full of all kinds of Aussie stuff and food.  They had everything from $2 cheap souvenirs all the way up to $10,000 paintings.  I ended up buying a t-shirt that had a picture of Cournal Saunders (KFC) and one chicken talking to another chicken with the saying “so this guy killed your dad”.  I was funny and I liked it so now I have another tshirt to wear and I can get rid of one of my old ones. Noosa is also known for it hikes and the next day I did some hiking.  The main hike is called the coastal track from Sunshine Beach where I was and Noosa Heads which is the town center.  It started with a walk along Sunshine Beach and then into the rocky cliffs of Devil Kitchen where hang gliders were flying around. 

From the cliffs it went down to Alexanderia Beach which is a clothing optional beach.  This place was very messed up and more of a hang out of gay men or very elderly couples.  Can some please tell me why there are never good looking women frolicking in the sand??? this is what I expect at a nude beach not an 80 grandma with her boobs at her knees and grandpa (well I will that one alone).  I walked by this beach really fast and got to the next rock cliff area that included Hells Gate, Winch Cove and Dolphin Point.  You can really tell that I have gone from the snorkeling and diving area to the north and now into the surfers area.  The surfers are everywhere and they are young and old.  There were also a few koalas on the walk and great scenery out to the ocean and surfers.  Once I got to the main beach I chilled for a while before making my way back to the hostel.

From Noosa I made my way into the Sunshine Coast hinterland and some cool little towns.  I drove thru Mapleton and to Kondalilla National Park where I did a 6.5km hike through the forest with some waterfalls.  From there i drove to Montville and then Gardners falls which was a pretty disappointing stop and there was not much of a waterfall.  Then I went to the Mary Cairncross Park and saw a bunch of wildlife through the rainforest walk.  Lots of different birds, pademeloms (type of wallaby) and other stuff. 

There is not much in the area for accommodation so I decided to sleep in my car for the night in a small town called Landsborough.  I stayed in the train station parking lot which was good except for the train that came through at 12 and 2 and 4, but I did sleep pretty well.  The next morning I got and drove the 10 minutes to the Australia Zoo.  This is the zoo that Steve Irwin (crocodile Hunter) has made famous and I was told by many that it was a must stop.  It was hard to pay the $54 entry fee and in the long run I was disappointed.  Most of the animals are native to Australia and the main feature is the crocs.  The tigers were pretty cool and i got to feed an elephant but that was about it for foreign animals.  The birds of prey show was pretty cool as well.  I liked the zoo I just don’t think it was worth $54 since I had seen most of the animals already in the wild.  I left the zoo and made my way to the Glass House Mountains and stayed in a camp ground for the night. 

The next day I toured around the Glass House Mountains with some spectacular scenery and then made my way into a town called Caboolture.  I called Russell from there and set up fishing for the next day and since he did not live in Brisbane and close to where I was I ended up finding a caravan park to stay in at Beechmere.    I packed up early the next morning and made my way to Russells house.  We were in the water by 8:30 but the waves were pretty big in the open water so we fished in the river channels in the area.  We caught lots of little fish that we had to throw back and only had 2 keepers by the time we were done.  It was still a great day on the water and I had a ton of fun.  After getting everything cleaned up and showing him my pics from Vanuatu I made my way into Brisbane.

Brisbane is where I am now and will spend a few days here before moving on to the Gold Coast and then Sydney.  I drove most of this part on my own but it has been good and I have been meeting up with lots of others that I have known.  I should be able to get someone to ride with me to Sydney.

That is all for now, everyone take care.

Steve

PS:you can tell we come from farming country because it is the start of August and no birthdays to report, farmers never have kids in the summer as they are to busy, I think maybe sometimes they may just push them back in and tell them they have to wait till fall or winter.  How do I come up with this shit???  My mind is very different but I like the way it works.