1 week to the snow

Hey all,

I'm sure no one's reading this (it's been awhile since I've posted anything) but what the hey. Been in Aussieland for about 7.5 months and it's been great. Some highlights:

Beaches beaches beaches! Proximity of Brisbane to the Gold & Sunshine Coasts means a day trip is both easy and inevitable. Since I've started the job haven't been going out as much as before, but now that summer's back will definitely hit it up when I get back from Canada.

Best sand: Surfer's Paradise, Byron Bay
Most tourists: Surfer's Paradise, Byron Bay (see above)
Best waves: Surfer's Paradise, Kirra/Coulangatta, Byron Bay (the days I was there anyhow)
Best supporting townsite: Noosa (laidback with a lot of variety, and not as crowded as Surfer's), Byron Bay (lots of little artsy shops, decent restaurants)
Other interesting sites: Point Danger, south of Coulangatta, and Coff's Harbour NSW - has a rocky spit you can walk out onto, into the middle of the sea (got splashed by a huge wave in Coffs :P)

Weather - in the fall/spring/summer, it's a balmy 15-30 degrees. This year has been a good one for rain, although sometimes you get these torrential downpours that feels like it's going to strip your skin off. Even got hail one day. It was insanely hot a couple days ago and super muggy, but it was all good after a big rain. Winter is fairly chilly, and without central heating you actually need a heater to keep warm at night! I'm still talking about 5-10 degrees though, nothing like Canada.

Food - there's a strong Southeast Asia influence here due to its proximity, and you can see it in the variety of Malaysian/Indonesian/Vietnamese/Thai restaurants and grocery stores around here. Have gotten addicted to Mi Goreng, the Malaysian version of instant noodles (a lo mein, and fairly spicy). Haven't tried this one with cheese yet though. :P A restaurant called Little Singapore in Sunnybank and downtown serves up decent portions with pretty good taste. There's also a little Thai hole-in-the-wall just down the block from the apartment, which serves up a great red curry.

People - For some reason I only met Canadians in the first few months, we're even living with Canadian roommates! :) The Australians I've met so far have an interesting sense of humour and are generally pretty outspoken, friendly and like to take a drink once in awhile (okay a lot pretty often).

Scenery - I think that Australia has some of the most impressive scenery in the world. Just the sheer scale of some of the sights takes your breath away. A wispy waterfall dropping a hundred metres down the side of a sheer cliff, miles of blue-tinged eucalyptus trees undulating over the mountains, massive gum trees spiralling up into the sky and rainforests thick with vegetation occasionally opening up into serene lagoons. And this is only from one national park (Blue Mountains). I'll be going up to Cairns at the end of December and see a little more of what Aussieland has to offer.

Wildlife - So bizarre! The strangest creatures run around the sidewalks. I work next to the City Botanical Gardens and you can wander through tripping over water dragons, dusky moorhens, ibises and possums. Not to mention the other things in the wild like kangaroos, koalas, echidnas, wombats, wallabies, tasmanian devils, crocodiles, emus, cassowaries, lorikeets, kookaburras, lyrebirds, dingos, etc etc... the only thing I don't like about them is that because sunrise is at 3 am or so the birds start making their racket at an ungodly hour... being woken up by a monkey-like cackling is slightly disturbing.

Public ferry - okay this probably only applies to Brisbane, but I love taking the ferry to work and back every day. Takes you through the heart of downtown, and most of the river is lined with these beautiful purple flowering trees. Even though locals say the river is disgustingly polluted, it looks pretty nice and blue to me (coming from Winnipeg with its "muddy waters").

Public markets - probably due to the temperate climate, there are tons of vegetable and fruit farmers who bring their produce to a variety of open-air markets every weekend. Not only do you get to grocery shop out in the park, you can also browse the various crafts, clothing and stall foods available too. I usually go to the West End markets, which are a mix of hippies buying organics and Asian students looking for cheap veggies (you can get pretty much all the varieties you are looking for for a decent price).

On the other hand, Brisbane isn't really known for its restaurant food price value (meager portions and so-so taste for extremely high prices) and haven't found a decent bar yet (I miss the Black Dog), and drivers are insane here. Plus they have "tasty" cheddar cheese, which is a white tangy cheese that falls somewhere in between mozarella and Canadian cheddar, but in my opinion falls short of both.

Overall though it's been an enjoyable stay, and pending their questionable immigration processing times I may stay here another year!

cheers, Ange