Brisbane and around

We stayed here for only a few nights but had really nice time. Visited Australia zoo, home  to the crocodile hunter Steve Irwin. We all loved it and it was probably the best zoo we have ever been to, highly recommended. We were there all day but still didn’t get to see everything, the shows we saw were excellent and you got very close to the animals. They seemed well looked after and had lots of space around them. It was great to see Steve’s legacy continuing. There was lots of information and a museum about Steve and his work helping to protect many animals including crocodiles, tigers, Tasmanian devils, elephants and cheetahs.

We also spent a day in Brisbane city which we really enjoyed too. Again not too big so we could walk to most places with the children, trying to find as much shade on our way as possible as it must have been closer to 35’C that day!

We walked to the Botanical gardens which was huge and so interesting as one end you could see the city workers enjoying their lunch on the beautiful river bank amongst the number of cyclists, runners, walkers. We had to stop for a play park so that the girls could run out some of their energy!!! 

As we carried on walking through the park we came in to the rainforest and then walked up to the little hill to find a most beautiful little wooden coffee place you could imagine. In fact it reminded me of some old finnish buildings which have been converted into a coffee shops.

After having lunch there we walked across the river by the Maritime museum and then to Kings park which was just another wow! That just shows how Aussies can turn some old railway yards into the amazing outdoor living mecca! The river bank was full of restaurants, coffee shops, shops, park areas, bbq and picnic areas, yet again another play park we had to stop!!! Not to mention the Art galleries, theatres, ‘Brisbane Eye’ and a massive free lagoon pool to cool down. There is often bands playing on stage and as we were there was a Christmas market. 

As we walked back to the bus stop there happened to be a Christmas parade that Myer’s department store staff create every Christmas… something you are unlikely to see in England. They were all dressed up in this huge parade in the theme of ‘Nativity’ which they would play after the parade! The girls loved it! Then had a most pleasant bus journey back to the campsite. Our bus driver was friendly not just for us but everyone that came aboard or jumped off, polite and cheerful. For the girls he slowed down when we passed the houses that were covered in Christmas lights for them to watch them in the dark and the best of all we had a free bus ride! Result!

East Coast Glamping!!

Well after rocky start we have had a great experience camping on east coast. After first van broke down before we had even left… leaving us stranded in Cairns for another night when already spent 5 nights there! On the Second day we finally got on the road at 15.30 after waiting around for a replacement. Finally got our original van after they had changed the broken fridge, but this leaked few days later and then the engine management light came on leaving us now stranded a few hours down the road in a caravan park. They upgraded us to a newer and bigger motorhome to keep us going for the rest of the journey down to Sydney. 

And I have to say its ace! This is my kind of camping…glamping! .

We have been to some great campsites on our way with superb pools, water parks, play areas, tennis courts, jumping pillows and outdoor cinemas are just a few to mention… not forgetting the ultimate beach front locations!

The tropical Northern Queensland where we have spent last 3 weeks have been very hot and extremely humid, but the weather has just turned slightly with occasional rain and storms as we have headed into Southern Queensland. Still over +30’C (reaching over40’C)!!

A great place for us was mission beach. Felt quite unspoilt and the water was the warmest we’d felt so far.

Townsville was packed with things to keep us busy, with waterfront lagoons to swim in or bustling evening markets. We took a steep drive up Castle Hill to get the best view. Felt like an episode from world’s scariest roads in our motorhome but made it up and down and the view was well worth it.

                                                                                      

Airlie beach was our next stop. A stunning waterfront lagoon and a real buzz as we wandered around town.

That said we stumbled on a real jewel in the crown when we quickly pulled off the road to sort out some lunch at a place called Clairview. Not a lot there (at all)! But stunning, eight to ten holiday homes sat right on the beach, truly beautiful.

Great to just pull over off the road and be right on the water’s edge.

A couple of nights stop at Yeppon, to recharge our batteries for the next drive down. Stunning coastline again!

We headed south hoping to pop in to 1770. A part of Australia’s history with Capt. Cook’s beach. However, the previous night’s storm put pay to that as the access road was flooded. That meant we had to drive further for a couple hours to finally find a campsite for an  overnight stay in Bargara. We found ourselves on the ‘Absolute Beach Front Campsite’ as the storm was hitting the shore! As you can imagine with a name like that we had an interesting night. Cute little town though.

As we made our way  to the sunshine coast we arrived at Noosa Heads, wow!  A stunning beach, clean, vibrant little town with lots of water sport activity. One of the best places we have stopped until this point. We could see why many people visited and never left.

More on Perth

Perth

We went to the city on several occasions so that we could see bit by bit and it worked quite well and we weren’t rushed each day. Every time I visited I started to like the city more and more and in fact now when I am writing this and we are on the east coast, I must admit` I do miss Perth! Steve and I both think that it is quite a small city and perhaps that is why we liked it. Plenty to see, everything within easy reach and we felt safe. But I am sure we both agree that what was very impressive is that there is free bus service around the city. CAT bus with four different routes, and you can choose where to hop on and where to hop off the bus. They run fairly regularly too about every 10mins. Dead simple.

The trains were easy to use too, very regular and cheap to get to the city.

Our first city sight was the Waterfront (Harbour town) outlet shopping mall which we all (including Steve) liked and ended up going there later again. There were also amazing waffles at Gelere which we just had to try!

Other places worth seeing was Kings park, which is massive and even we didn’t see it all as it happened to be a rainy morning when we decided to go there but the girls were just happy in play park areas. There are beautiful views to the city on a clear day. 

We also visited the Bell tower, aboriginal art work exhibition, English street and other central sights. Miia just loved the water splash area outside the train station.

Apart from the city, Fremantle, Hillarys and beaches around we also got to know Swan Valley, Midland, Ellenbrook areas really well.

Liked Ellenbrook very much and even looked at some houses there and visited few schools nearby. The weather felt hot over there initially but since we have been on the east coast where it’s barely has been under +30’C and very humid… Perth seems so much easier to cope with the heat in dry climax. There is a great opportunity for good outdoor living and everywhere is catered for families with free gas powered BBQ areas which we loved and used. The kids play parks were superb and you really get the feeling that Australia is geared up for outdoor living and providing for the younger generation.