Brizzy - Part I

Since nearly a month has passed since our trip to Brisbane, I figure it's probably time to recap our trip. How timely of me!

At any rate, this was David and my first little trip since our arrival in Australia. No offense to Gladstone, but I was definitely ready to get the heck out of here have a change of scenery. I've learned pretty quickly since being here that I am definitely a city girl. I just feel "off" here without any pollution, skyskrapers, traffic, or crowds. Oh and Target too. So this long weekend trip to "Brizzy" was just what I needed.


Saturday, September 29

After getting checked into our Hotel, which was in Brisbane's Central Business District (CBD), we decided to wander around for a while in hopes of finding a place to eat to tide us over until dinner.

Royal on the Park

 

Our inner Mexican food compasses must have been on, because we found ourselves at an amazing Chipotle-like mexican food restaurant. After ordering "nachos" in Gladstone and getting chips with marinara sauce and cheese, I had resigned myself to the fact that Australia just must not have Mexican food. Thank God I was wrong! So of course we did what any good Southwesterner would do and ordered margaritas and one of everything on the menu. Yes, I came to Australia to eat Mexican food.

 

We also found a Starbucks, which I was strangely excited about even though I am not a coffee drinker.  Just nice to see something familiar and authentically American I suppose. 



It was a happy coincidence that the night we arrived in Brisbane also happened to be the last night of the month-long "Brisbane Festival." The month-long festival culminates each year with a huge fireworks show called Riverfire along the Brisbane River. Our hotel was right near Eagle Street Pier which just so happened to be have a great view for the show. Riverfire did not disappoint. It lasted for close to 30 minutes, and was very impressive and so pretty over the water with the Story Bridge in the background.

After the show, we had dinner reservations nearby. I tried to convince David that we should just go back and get more Mexican food, but I was unsuccessful. We ate at a restaurant called George's Paragon. The food was great, and the view was amazing. Oh, and the couple at the table next to us got engaged during dinner- it was so cute!

Our view from dinner

Sunday, September 30

The next day, we had planned to rent a car and drive an hour South to a cute little town called Tamborine Mountain, which is known for wineries and cute little restaurants and boutiques. But most of all, the views were amazing (even though most of the day was pretty overcast). Supposedly on a clear day, you can see all the way to the coast.



Oh, and of course I have to share a photo of this lovely friend that we made on the mountain:

But I digress. Sorry, snakes are distracting. As usual, our first order of business when we arrived was to eat. There seems to be a pattern here. We found the most adorable restaurant/bed and breakfast called the Polish Place. It had AMAZING views and incredible authentic Polish food.  Yes, I also came to Australia to eat Polish food apparently. The restaurant really felt like it was just somebody's kitchen and living room. There was even a cat snoozing on one of the chairs. You also had the option to eat outside at this bar-like table that faced directly out toward some amazing scenery.

Finally, we headed to some of the wineries in the area. I've always loved Australian wines, and even before I knew we were moving here I had always dreamed of visiting an Australian winery. Mission accomplished! We visited Au Winery, Cedar Creek Winery, Heritage Wines, and Tamborine Mountain Winery. I was so excited to learn that on domestic flights in Australia liquids aren't restricted- so we definitely brought home a couple of our favorite bottles.

  Congrats if you made it this far!  Stay tuned for recaps of our time exploring the city of Brisbane and our trip to Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary.  Oh, and sorry for the wonky spacing, formatting, etc... I'm still figuring Blogger out.  If anyone has any tips out there, PLEASE share!