Weeks 3 and 4 in Brisbane

Things have been so busy here, I simply forgot to blog last week, and as a result cannot remember what order everything happened in. But here goes...

Planning my travels.

So after last weeks blog, I decided I needed to come up with some rough plans as to how to spend my time in Australia. So, I went to the local Mall and spent the day there, shopping for various bits that I needed, looking around the shops, and investing in a very large world map to blu tac to my wall and scribble all over. I also spent a good few hours researching what is worth seeing/doing around Brisbane and made a to-do list of all the things I wanted to do before I leave. The list is a page and  half long on A4 paper and ranges from Museums and Parks to a Bridge Climb and Kayaking down the river.

A beautiful and very customised old Holden

I visited the Queensland Museum as the first spot to be ticked off my list. It had really interesting exhibitions about Brisbane specifically, about everything from it's architecture, history of farming, and wildlife, to the roles Brisbane citizens played in the Second World War. I particularly loved a very small foyer exhibition about a local Brisbane character who drove around a beautiful old car and contributed greatly to the rock and roll lifestyle in the area during the 60's. I went to the State Library in the afternoon, and read some Wuthering Heights in a little glass box protruding from the building so that it is directly above the river- a beautiful place to sit and read, with a grand piano being played beautifully in the background. In the evening, I taught Lolly to bake and we made cute flower cupcakes.

A view from the River.

Learning to bake.

On Valentines day, I went to babysit 2 little girls for a couple going out for a meal. I went to spend the day with them, and we went to a park beside the river, before taking a boat trip down the river on a CityCat to see more of the city. I was staying in a room underneath the house (which was built on stilts as is common to most older Queensland houses) and was pretty unsure about this until they told me that it had been cleared of spiders recently. Dan (the dad) loved brewing beer as a hobby, and had an amateur Brewery under the house with actual beer taps which I found pretty cool. The houses here are pretty large, and the design of them leaves a lot of room under the house for the families to use as they please which is pretty cool. They could turn it into extra rooms, a dance studio, a workshop, an office, a brewery, a play room... endless possibilities! The girls were put to bed before the parents even left, so I spent the evening watching Valentines Day (a dreadful idea that left me sulking for 24 hours) on TV and eating chocolate in bed- a nice relaxing night!

The audience seating at the play.

On the Sunday, I went to see(?) a play at the Brisbane Powerhouse on the Riverside. We went to New Farm Park before the play for a picnic. I found it absolutely adorable that they were having large children's birthday parties in the park, complete with a buffet, decorations, chairs, tables- how fantastic to have weather so reliable that you can plan such an event outside! The play I had booked to see was 'Äll That Fall". I had not researched the play prior to the performance, and only knew that it was written by Samuel Beckett. I was pretty surprised when the play began and it was actually a radio play, accompanied by a setting and special lighting. I left there 80 minutes a bit bemused and completely fascinated by what I had seen/heard, though I am still unsure as to whether I liked it and what the message or intention is behind it (if, indeed, there is one at all!). I made yet another Sunday Dinner that evening, after a trip to the supermarket and a very interesting Chinese Supermarket!

This week, I spent 2 days home with Parker as he was not well. I had a surprising amount of fun home with him, and even found the time to work on his new room- he now has his own therapy room! On Wednesday, I went to the South Bank for the day to swim and enjoy the weather. However, wearing factor 50 waterproof suncream did not prevent me getting sunburnt just about everywhere that isn't covered by a bikini! So, the rest of the week has been spent predominantly indoors to cover my sunburn and moisturise frequently, in order to recover as quickly as possible and carry on with my to do list. On Friday, I went to Parker's playgroup and met a lot more children with Downs Syndrome. I am learning so much about Downs Syndrome, the therapies, the effects it has on everyday living- it is truly inspiring. The family hosting the playgroup also have an au pair, and we have been put in touch via fb to meet up next week. It will be nie to spend some more time with people my own age.

Cuddles with Parker.

Today was undoubtedly the highlight of the week. Kat, Parker and Myself went on a day trip to Mount Tamborine. It took an hour by car to get there, and the Mountain is very big. I was surprised to see so many people living there after driving so far through the countryside to get there. We went to the Glow worm caves (yes, glow worms actually exist) and until I looked up close with a torch, I genuinely believed the whole thing to be faked using a lot of LED lights. It genuinely looks like a cave full of tiny stars- completely breathtaking and very surreal! After the caves we went for lunch at a small family run restaurant, went to a local Sunday market (where I resolved to buy myself a pair of brightly coloured baggy trousers whilst in Australia) and went for a walk down the main street to look at the adorable shops and buy some locally made fudge. On our way home, we took a little detour to see some of the best views from the Mountain and drove down through the rainforest- a visually stunning end to a truly fantastic day!

Parker at lunch.

The New Mt Tamborine Rainforest.

The Mt Tamborine Rainforest

The Mt Tamborine Rainforest.

At a viewing spot on Mt Tamborine.

A view from Mt Tamborine.

A view from Mt Tamborine

A view from Mount Tamborine, the Gold Coast is visible in the distance.

A stolen picture of the glow worms as cameras were not allowed.

This week, I plan on looking for a job locally, ideally in a cafe, shop or restaurant. It'll be a great way to save up money, as I'm not spending anything on accommodation or food whilst living here. If not, I'll be moving on in a couple of weeks. Fingers crossed xx

Brisbane Week 2...

          Sunday and Monday were pretty lay days, reading and sleeping to try and recover from the jetlag (and the night out after the rugby). It also involved helping an Italian guy book his flight home (using a lot of google translate). I attempted to watch the Superbowl with my French room mate on Sunday morning, but gave up after about an hour. On Monday, we had a new room mate called Rosanna who came from the Netherlands, and I invited her out as I was going to the Down Under Bar with the Welsh boys again. She came, and we had a really great night and got pretty drunk watching the drinking tournaments which were hysterical. 

         I checked out early the next morning and then went for a walk before I got picked up by my new Au Pair family. There are 2 children, an 8 year old girl called Annerley (or Lolly), and a 1 year old boy called Parker. The house is lovely and I have a large room with a double bed and a window overlooking the Garden. I have to get up each morning to get Lolly and Parker ready for school, which is quite an enjoyable job and pretty similar to what I'd do in a morning at home. I enjoy cooking the family meals and have so far made a Spaghetti Bolognaise and a full Roast dinner, with a Baked Alaska and Strawberry Meringue nests for dessert consecutively. Lolly's school is only about  45 minute walk from the house or  5 minute drive. There are schools, supermarkets and malls everywhere! People must find me pretty strange in the Supermarkets, as I'm yet to reach a stage where I don't find the contents of the shelves fascinating. I went to Mater Hospital with Kat (my Au Pair Mum) on Thursday, as Parker had various appointments- Parker has D

own Syndrome and has his own Facebook page called Parker's Place. He is simply adorable! He had his playgroup in the house on Friday and I had my first Australian BBQ with Sausage Sizzles which are probably my new food obsession.

With Lolly before school

With Lolly before school

Caramella Koala

          I went on a road trip to Noosa for the weekend (Kat and Parker came too and stayed with friends) which is very appropriately deemed a 'Rich People's Playground'. Similar to Mumbles in style, but perhaps more affluent, it has a beautiful beach and a very pretty river quite close together. A lot of the houses are on the river and have private Jettys and Yachts right outside the back doors of their extremely large houses, all of which appear to have private pools. We had fish and chips in the Sun, followed by Caramel Koalas (the Australian version of a caramel freddo- cool right?!). I planned on going back in the evening, but it began to rain shortly after we left so I spent the remainder of the day in the hostel.

My first Aussie Beach! With Parker

Kat and Parker in Noosa

          This week we are planning on going to the Glow Worm Caves (Glow worms are real?!?!), a chocolate restaurant, and hopefully the lagoon for a swim. I have some local babysitting jobs lined up to save money for the next stage of my trip, and am starting to plan the year a bit more- perhaps a little trip to New Zealand is on the cards? xx

My Meringue Nests

My Roast Dinner

This Country is Obsessed with Chocolate!

Week 1 in Brisbane...

          I arrived in Brisbane at 3am, after a pretty horrendous journey as I was ill for most of the flight and didn't reallly manage to sleep much. I got up early to skype the next day, but then spent the majority of the day in bed, very jetlagged. So, not wanting to waste any time here, I used the time to start applying for jobs online. In the evening, 3 girls from my room (2 English, 1 Korean) invited me to go with them to the bar under the hostel called the 'Down Under Bar', known to the locals as Dunder. It was a beach themed party that night, consisting of free cocktails, limbo competitions,  wet tshirt competitions and a load of cheesy yellow hats.

         

The River in Brisbane from a bridge

The view from Brisbane Botanical Gardens

The next day, I went for a walk into the city. The hostel is just a 2 minute walk from Queen St Plaza, the main shopping precinct in Brisbane. The city is very pretty, with lots of very well preserved old buildings- so well, in fact, it almost resembles the Disneyland Main street in some ways. It was not sunny, but very warm and I was glad of the chance to gradually get used to the weather. I had received an email the day before from the mother in a potential demi pair family to arrange to meet for coffee, and so I caught a bus to a mall 20 minutes journey away called Westfield Garden City. The bus system here is confusing and pretty unusual, with underground bus stations and a network of tunnels. If it were not for the help of a lot of friendly locals, showing me which ticket to buy, bus to catch, and stop to alight at, I am rather convinced I would not have found my way there. The locals here are really lovely, and I am yet to meet someone who is not enthusiastic about assisting me when I am lost/confused. The meeting went well, and I am due to move in with them on Tuesday.

         

In the evening, 2 Swedish girls in my room invited me to go and get food with them.

The Big Wheel on the South Bank

We went to Hungry House (the Australian equivalent to Burger King) and chatted about traveling. They had already been backpacking for quite a while through Indonesia and Australia, and it was brilliant to get advice from them about places to go and things to see. Unfortunately,  they departed the following morning to travel to the Gold Coast.

On Friday, I woke early and walked down to the nearby river to sit on the grass and ring home. Little more was achieved that day aside from shopping for something red to wear to watch the 6 nations, and doing a food shop. Strangely, the biggest local food shop is Woolworths. I was surprised to find that food shopping for one person is actually pretty tricky- working out what will get eaten before it goes off and buying as little that needs refrigeration as possible, as people frequently steal food from the fridges. Since being in Australia,  I eat and snack a lot less and drink a lot more. Sometimes only 1 meal a day- I am never hungry! 

Lizards by the River

The artificial beach on the South Bank, Brisbane

          Today, I went to the South Bank in the morning. It is quite similar to London South Bank in ways, with theatres, concert halls, galleries etc. and family entertainment. I visited Queensland National Gallery for a couple of hours before strolling along the South Bank. This was the first day of really nice weather since I had arrived, and even with factor 50 suncream on I was still starting to burn- the trials and tribulations of being a ginger. The city doesn't have any beaches, so an artificial beach has been built and this was very busy. I spent most of the afternoon sunbathing by the river and reading- a good opportunity to finish reading the complete works of Shakespeare/start the complete works of Chekhov! I had to relocate when i found myself surrounded for a few 2ft lizards, which took me by surprise to say the least. My obsession with documenting everything also kicked into gear here, and I sifted through all of my receipts and made a complete list of expenditures (just to ensure I was not wasting money). In the evening, I went to an outdoor British pub called the Pig and Whistle, where I watched the Wales vs Italy game with Kim (my Korean room mate). She returns to her home in Sydney in the morning, but has invited me to go and stay with her in March to see the Mardi Gras. At the pub I met a few guys from Ammanford who were also backpacking. It was great to watch the game with Welsh people, and even better- WE WON! xx

With Kim, watching the Rugby

A bit blurry, but the City at Night looks so beautiful