A long weekend in Brisbane

When I heard that that Sir David Attenborough was doing live shows across Australia I knew that I had to go. The only problem was when he is in my home city, I am away. So what else was there to do except purchase a plane ticket, book a hotel, and surprise my sister with Davo tickets in Brisbane?

Day 1:

After a busy day at work trying to get as much done before I left, finally arriving at the airport was a relief. I also managed to get a little bit of work done on the trip over, although as most people would know squishy plane seats are not ideal for a computer & large notebook. As we were landing we started to notice lightning flashes outside the window and hit some turbulence, which for a person with a moderate fear of flying is not ideal, but we made it!

After checking into the hotel and finding a delicious pizzeria it was time to hit the sheets and get some rest before a big day of adventures.

Day 2:

We got up early (around 6am) and made our way to the train station where we were meeting our tour guide who was taking us over to Moreton Island. We caught a calm ferry over to the third largest sand island in the world (the two larger are also in Queensland). When we arrived we got into a funky 4WD bus and started to make our way across the island. There are not proper roads on Moreton island and the sand tracks were super, super bumpy.

We arrived at ‘the desert’ where we were going sand boarding (well actually lying stomach first on a piece of ply wood and going down a hill bigger than I was expecting). It was fun but seriously messy, we ended up covered head to toe in sand (which I am still getting out of my hair!).

We then made our way back to the beach where there are multiple shipwrecks which have created a haven for marine life. We snorkelled there and I was surprised to see so many fish as soon as we got in. There is also coral reefs where we even saw Dory! This was the best snorkelling I have done, and I have been lucky enough to snorkel the great barrier reef, twice! We first thought that due to the strong winds we would have to give kayaking in a see-through kayak a miss, but luckily the wind calmed. The kayaks were a wonderful experience (there isn’t many places you can find transparent kayaks) and we saw a sea turtle whilst in the kayak which was truly amazing. Once we were out of the water we also saw two sharks & a school of rays, my sister was extremely happy we were out of the water when we saw them! I genuinely had such a fantastic day and Sunset Safaris (http://www.sunsetsafaris.com.au/moreton-island-tours.html) made it so enjoyable and easy, however I would love to go back and snorkel without a large group! Moreton island is a must do for anyone spending some time in Brisbane.

Day 3:

My sister found some markets online which were about a half an hour walk from our hotel. Poor map reading skills is obviously genetic as as she made us walk in the complete wrong direction. The worst part was the weather was so hot, so I spent most of the now fourty minute walk complaining (poor Cass!) There was not as many clothes stalls as the add suggested but great food, including many stalls of fresh and cheap fruit!

We then meet up with some great family friends who live in Brisbane and they took us down to the coast for lunch. They then took us to Southbank where there was an amazing market (only about a 10 minute walk from the hotel- always the way!)

It was then time for the main event, Davo! We had no idea what to expect, but were just happy to be in the room as him. He talked about his early life, showed footage of his first television appearances, and sneak peaks of Planet Earth two. He was modest, inspiring and actually very funny. It was truly a once in a life time experience, and I am so grateful that we were able to go.

Day 4:

We went back to the markets near the hotel to stock up on some cute things (including some unique animal artwork). We then made our way back to the airport. It was a great weekend filled with adventures, great food, and great company.

Stay tuned as a video of the weekend will soon be up on (my yet to be created) youtube channel!!