Queensland

7th March 2010 We were lucky enough not to be awoken by the six o’clock Sofia alarm this morning, unlike Anna and Nathan, but once we were all up we decided to drive up to Noosa. Noosa is a small town located about 75 miles) north of Brisbane on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast. The town and surrounding area is popular with holidaymakers who visit for its sophisticated cafes, bars and restaurants, beaches and national parks. Unlike the Gold Coast, Noosa doesn’t have shedloads of high-rises and has protected its natural environment avoiding over-development by creating significant areas of national park. ...

1st & 2nd March 2010 Monday morning’s weather report said that Queensland has had the wettest summer on record, hmmm, perhaps it’s something to do with Welsh visitors bringing their rain :D. Tina very kindly dropped us into Brisbane to collect a hire car to go out to the coast where we’ll be staying with Aunty Mary for a few days before flying out to Singapore. Back out at the Gold Coast, Ed couldn’t wait to re-aquaint himself with the pool, even though it was starting to overflow with all the rain, which was still falling. I jumped in, but it was much too cold for anything but the quickest of dips! ...

28th February 2010 More rugby this morning, it’s been so good to actually see some Six Nations and with Wales being beaten by France, I was at least happy to see that Ireland beat England too. Then we went out for a ride to the Scenic Rim area. This is a picturesque area of South East Queensland which encompasses some small country towns. It is also a region where there are a few wineries to be explored. ...

20th & 21st February 2010 With yesterday’s very early flight, most of the day was spent just relaxing, catching up on emails and blogs and sleep. We didn’t venture too far from the hostel due to the varying quantities of rain falling from the sky during the day, ranging from light to torrential. Cairns is very much a base for exploring the Great Barrier Reef and areas of far north Queensland such as Cape Tribulation and Port Douglas, and the inland rainforests of the Atherton Tablelands. Tourism is its main industry and it is very much a city about doing, rather than seeing with few monuments, natural or otherwise. ...