Brisvegas

Brisbane is a spot that backpackers dont always give glowing reviews of. I, however, loved it. It is the third largest city in Australia and constantly growing but it feels like a large town. On arrival I got in touch with Gerard Finn, a brother of one of my mother's friends who was going to put me up for a few days. I went to his house with him and met his wife and two young boys. They gave me my own room and fed me (very well!) while I was there. It was evening by the time I reached the house and they live in the suburbs so I wouldnt be doing much partying that night or while I stayed with them. I stayed up and watched the footy after the family went to bed and then hit the hay early enough myself. The next morning I made my way into the city centre for a free guided tour of the city which was really cool. The guy giving it works off tips and since he was really knowledgeable about the history and a good laugh he got a decent wage for his few hours work. I got to see all the major sights of brisbane this way. After the tour I took a wander for myself and chilled out at the man-made beach beside the river for a while. I also paid a visit to the museum which was free and pretty interesting before catching the ferry down the river to a prearranged point where I met Gerard. All in all it was a pretty nice day and not too heavy on the old wallet. I got dinner in the Finn household and played with the boys before they were sent to bed and then it was the footy again before bed.

I spent the next couple of days wandering around the city and visiting the parks and markets they have dotted around the place, it really is a lovely city to walk around. One of the things I really liked about the city was that it was full of cyclists and cycle tracks. The pace of life was pretty relaxed while I was there with a lot of walking and sightseeing during the day and then heading to the house in the evenings for dinner, playing with the boys and watching the footy. I got on well with the family while I stayed with them but began pining for some backpacker company. Thus after 4 nights with them I moved to a hostel in the city centre for one night. Before leaving I said goodbye to them all and gave the parents a nice bottle of wine as a thank you for putting me up.

Once I checked into the hostel I went to the XXXX Brewery which is one of the main breweries in Oz. I spent the afternoon there on a tour which was really cool and quite interesting. The 4 free glasses of beer at the end helped to make it more enjoyable too. Pretty much as soon as I walked in the door of my hostel room I was invited to a BBQ by the river. Naturally I agreed and spent the evening eating good food and guzzling more beer among good company. Did I mention I love the idea of the free BBQs? Anyway I was a little the worse for wear the following morning when I was getting the bus to Noosa. Brisbane had been good fun and is a place I would consider visiting again if I return to Oz. Especially if I came back to work then BrisVegas is somewhere I could settle in for a while. Its got a relaxed, easy going way of life that I can really relate to :)