Byron Bay

We used our Train passes to make the journey from Surfers to Byron Bay and we travelled about 5 hours by bus to get there.

We arrived in the early evening, it was dark and raining. We didn't really see Byron in the best light.
The accommodation that we had booked was a half hour walk from the centre of town.... (which was my fault for not really checking the location in too much detail when booking it).

Byron Bay is beautiful. Its a sharp contrast to Surfers Paradise, its very laid back, home to lots of unique art work, book stores and gluten free & vegan cafes and restaurants.

 On the coastal path to the lighthouse you will walk through the most Easterly point of the Australian mainland.

As you can see from the photographs it was very very windy! So windy that my raybans were nearly blown off! 

We had hoped to go whale watching whilst in Byron bay as we were there in July, during the migration of the humpback whales along the East coast. Unfortunately, the wind was so strong that no boats were able to go out to sea during our time there. We did however brave the coastal walk from the beach up to the lighthouse and back.

Even in gale force winds it was very beautiful and a must do whilst a Byron Bay!

Once you reach the top (if you dont fancy walking and have access to a car, you can drive up to the to Lighthouse) you can take a guided tour of the lighthouse. There is also a small museum inside, which gives information on the history of the area, including history of whaling, which continued up until the 1960's, details on whale watching and accidents that had occurred within the vicinity of the lighthouse.

After a sweet few days in Byron, it was onto Coffs Harbour!

Travel Tip: If you need to store your luggage for a few hours you are able to do so until 5pm  at the travel information centre, just make sure you give a few $'s donation :)

All rights reserved Copyright © Laura Powell

Hello Surfers Paradise, Gold Coast, Byron Bay, Coffs Harbour & Wyong.

After leaving Brisbane in July 2012 our next stop was Surfers Paradise on the beautiful Gold Coast. 

Before heading to Surfers we had been told a few negative things and even to not bother going there. However, it had always been on our itinerary and we wanted to experience it for ourselves.  

We travelled from South Bank to Surfers via train, with a bus connection. 

As we had been working whilst in Brisbane we had some $ saved and splashed out to stay in a hotel, rather than staying in shared accommodation.

Surfers is a great holiday town. Loads of bars, clubs, restaurants & shops and miles of beautiful beaches. 

                                             Contemplation on the sand dunes at Main Beach......

                                                                       Q1 Tower by night

 Surfers is also home to the Q1tower, the tallest building in Australia measuring  1,058 ft tall. The tower has amazing views of the Gold coast and lots of information regarding the history of Surfers Paradise and its heyday in the 1960's. Even though I despise heights,I braved the tower, just for the view and even managed to walk along the glass blocks on the outer edge of the building. 

As we were nearby we had to visit Dreamworld, the largest theme park in OZ. Awesome rides, and even an animal park with kangaroos and koalas =) 

We had a great few days in Surfer Paradise, and even saw a few meter maids! 

Now onto Byron Bay......

All rights reserved Copyright © Laura Powell

Its been a while.......

Hello, 

It has been a long while since the blog has been updated, apologises for this!
This was mainly due to the sporadic Internet access (& the cost of internet cafes) in Oz & I got lazy and busy.

Soooo.... we are now back in the UK and have been since February 2013.

It seems like the logical thing to do to give you a brief overview of the rest of our time in Oz, so Il start where I left off.......

Brisbane - Retrospective

We are now at the end of our 2 & 1/2 month stay in Brisbane. Brisbane is an awesome city and we have had a great time here!

The view from the cultural centre to the Wheel of Brisbane.

Things we recommend in Brisbane :

• Australia Zoo - Steve Irwin's zoo on the Sunshine Coast. See previous post for photographs & details. http://www.australiazoo.com.au/
• Brisbane is the home of the Queensland Art Gallery, Gallery of Modern Art & Museum of Queensland. They can all be found in the Cultural centre just across the river from the city. The museum has a section devoted to interesting facts and history of Queensland. From Queenslander houses, strangler fig trees to the History of the Aussie classic 'Waltzing Matilda'. 

                                  

                           
                               Queenlands Art Gallery & Gallery Of Modern Art

       

                                             Corned beef tin cow

               

• The Pancake cafe on Ann Street was one of my favourite discoveries. Its open 24 hours a day and has a varied menu. With pancakes, crepes and even steaks on the menu. The cafe is located in a renovated church, which still has a lot of the original features. Most of the seats are pews and the windows are all stained glass. A nice relaxed atmosphere, some good music and a short stack with plenty of maple syrup = good times! Definitely check out the Pancake cafe if you've got a sweet tooth like me. 

• Teppanyaki Lovers was another our favourite food discoveries in Brisbane. Located in the Myer centre in the city this little food outlet serves great food at great prices. Everyday they run a special  offer between 9am -5pm you can get a large bowl of chicken Katsu curry for $5 - which is cheap! But more importantly the food is really good. 

                                  Jamie tucking into a seafood bento box.

• Streets Beach on Southbank. Right beside the Brisbane river. Great place to chill out, do some sunbathing and enjoy a free bbq station. 

With a great view of the city skyline. 

• Check out the farmers market in Brisbane square every Wednesday. Lots of local produce and good food. Check out the macaroon stall and definitely try the pistachio and the vanilla! As well as food the market also sells flowers. I bought a beautiful bunch of my favourite flower gerberras (in the above photograph) for $5 - bargain! 

• If you're going to be staying in Brisbane for longer than a week or two then look into longstay accomodation. Check out Gumtree and other sites for house shares, a great way to save some cash and not be stuck in hostels dorms. 

The view from our veranda, with the city skyline in the distance. 

• A Roy Lichtenstein exhibition is currently on at the QUT Gallery which is opposite the city botanical gardens in the CBD. A really interesting exhibition showcasing some famous prints from the Australian Gallery archives. With Free Admission, its well worth a look!

                                    

City Botanical Gardens.

                                             Mr.Whiskers - Our lucky Cat


 

Laters Brisbane, Hello Surfers Paradise, Gold Coast. Hopefully we'll spy a few Meter Maids sporting their legendary gold bikinis!

All rights reserved Copyright © Laura Powell

read the newspapers....

One of the best ways to find out what is happening in the area that you're staying in is to read the local newspaper. Of course its a bit difficult if you don't speak the language, but here in Oz thats not a problem.

As we are travellers and are on a budget it can be costly to buy a newspaper regularly, but there are alternatives. Read them online, or pick the free newspapers. Here in Brisbane 'MX' is distributed at stands throughout the city and train and bus stations every week day. It provides you with a brief overview of National and International news and lets you know what is going on in your local area.

It was through reading 'MX' that we discovered that the 'Paniyiri' Greek Festival was taking place in Musgrave Park a few weeks ago.

It was a brilliant day out and great to experience Greek culture here in Brisbane.

Filled with Food stalls selling traditional Greek cuisine, numerous bands and singers and plenty of dancing! We also saw a world record attempt at the worlds largest Zorba, we were going to join in but got distracted by the outstanding Honey puffs!!

www.paniyiri.com

I have been reading Bill Bryson's book 'Down Under', on my Grandmother's recommendation whilst travelling in Oz. Not only is it extremely funny but also a very helpful travel guide. In the book Bryson recommends reading the local paper to find out local news, but also because the politics etc is often filled with names that you don't know, discussing policies and other things that have absolutely no affect on you... its quite a refreshing experience! A lighthearted take on the news.

Finally I wanted to mention 'The Good Guide'. Based in Brisbane its a very cool little book that reveals the local secrets, underground and upcoming places. From restaurants, vintage shops, art, bars, book stores, clubs, gigs, the list goes on.

To quote the ' Good Guide' directly,
"The Good Guide is all about community and localisation. We want to showcase the underground happenings of our flourishing nests… hidden gems to discover and cool cultural events. There’s so much good stuff going on, shops opening, music being made, things being created, fashion being designed… all from our native nests that see the sun shining (well, most of the time!)." 

Its published Bi-annually and you can also check them out online @ http://thegoodguide.com.au 


You can even subscribe and become a V.I.Pigeon!!


Definitely have a look - Highly recommended!


All rights reserved Copyright © Laura Powell