Having a Great Time in Brisbane

Micah and Aida spent the Christmas season with us and we had a wonderful time together! It is so amazing when your kids grow up and you can relate to them as adults. Although we weren’t able to see and do everything…the real joy was just being together. Of course, rules must be followed…

1. Seafood must be eaten. Often.
2. Beer is good too.
3. Explore
4. Go to the ocean. Play in the waves.
5. Hold a Koala. Pet a Kangaroo.
6. Be a little competitive. Play games. Do a Puzzle.

Eating Seafood (and more)

So, here we are – day 1 – and out at Fresh ‘N Wild with plates of fish and chips, mussels, and calamari – and a couple of bottles of wine.  We really did end up eating fish and chips quite a bit, I must say. Although I love to cook, we were out and about quite a bit and planning to cook a meal wasn’t easy – whereas fish and chips is easy, fresh, and fast too! It is the Brissie way.

Fish and Chips on the Beach

I’m sure that there are other things to eat at the beach, but what are they?

Fish and Chips, what else?

Fish and Chips at Reef Seafood

Reef Seafood, at the Gasworks, is one of our favorite places. Not only is the food great but the open air ambiance is so enjoyable. We like to sit where we can easily see the changing lights of the Gasworks structure. They also have a topnotch oyster bar and sushi too.

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Best burgers at Miel Container

Sometimes you need a break from fish and a really great burger is always welcome. We always like to head to Miel Container for a burger that is truly difficult eat, and impossible to resist.

Micah at Miel Container

Miel mouthful

Breakfast at The Jetty

Going out for breakfast is a common activity here – and so here we are at “The Jetty” – a popular restaurant in Bulimba.

At the Jetty with Micah and Aida

Drinking Beer

Let’s face it. You can’t travel with Micah and not drink beer. Brisbane is a great place to do it because there are lots of micro breweries. We weren’t able to get into Tippler’s Tap because it was closed, but we got a tip to try HooHa Bar a few blocks away. It is really off the beaten track, but had very good beer on tap and cool vibe.

Tasting the beer

Cheers at HooHa Bar

HooHa chairs

Fritzenburger

We went all the way across town to go to this spot. The burgers were recommended, as was the beer. We got lost (my fault) but Aida rescued us with her GPS, so we did get there. It was a fun, but I don’t think that it will be worth a trip across town again.

Beer Mustache

Like mother, like son… or … The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree…

Fortitude Beer – Tamborine

Fortitude Beer in Tamborine

Speaking of Tamborine…

Tamborine

Tamborine is a popular destination in the Gold Coast Hinterland, an hour away from Brisbane. We drove here on our way back from the ocean as a day trip. The town that tourists see is primarily a row of shops and restaurants.

Tamborine

We stopped by the famous St. Bernard Hotel, and met its mascot. We also took a few minutes to wander the beautiful gardens and admire the views.

St. Bernard Hotel

St Bernard Hotel

Tamborine valley

There was this interesting tree by the front door with a plaque that made the most incredible claim. I let you decide.

Macrozamia Tree

Well, we’ve covered food and drink. What’s next? Oh, yeah…explore!

O dear, “Explore” is going to be too long to add in here and so is “Go to the ocean.”  Let’s sneak in just a few Christmas pictures, simply because this was the Christmas season. Sorry if you are no longer in the mood.

Christmas in Brisie 2016

We took Micah and Aida into the city to see the annual Christmas parade and the the light show on City Hall. We arrive early so that we can wander around Queen Street and look at the Christmas decorations in the CBD. (Aside from Christmas decorations, can you find something else that these two pictures have in common?)

Peace Love Joy

Angel by the Bank of NSW

Meyer Department Store Window Display

Meyer, one of the largest department stores in Australia, annually creates a Christmas window display. This year (2016) was based on the new children’s book ‘One Christmas Eve’ by author Corinne Fenton and illustrator Marjorie Crosby-Fairall.

“The book tells the story of Bella on Christmas Eve in 1968 when she visits her Grandparents in St Kilda for a typical Australian BBQ. Bella and her grandfather head to Luna Park and she is given the choice of one ride so she chooses the magical carousel. She jumps on the horse and lets her imagination take hold as she daydreams about the ‘Majestic Horse’ taking her high above the clouds over Melbourne and being greeted by Santa’s sleigh and his reindeers. Once the ride ends, Bella’s dream fades back to reality and she heads home with her grandfather. When Bella wakes on Christmas Day, she is delighted to unwrap a rocking horse that her Grandfather hand-carved for her to resemble the ‘Majestic Horse’ she rode on the carousel.”

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Christmas Parade

We head over to King George Square to wait for the parade and the eventual light show.

Waiting in the warm evening air

City Hall as the light fades

Waiting, waiting, waiting…where is the parade? Where is Santa?

Finally. Here it is. A brilliant display of light.

Parade glow

David Jones Christmas gift

Space theme

Parade globes

Gabriel ?

Angels in Parade

Parade toys

And here comes Santa Claus! Look at the delighted faces of the children.

Here comes Santa Claus

(As usual, there was a beautiful nativity as part of the parade, complete with Mary and Joseph holding a real baby and riding a real donkey, and wise men on real camels…but they didn’t turn out. So sorry.)

City Hall Light Show 2016

Every year there is a fantastic light show on City Hall. Although this was not my favorite year, it was an impressive display of light nonetheless.

Just a little more

My final food picture has a story. It is Christmas morning and this was meant to be the traditional Aussie picnic on the beach. But Christmas day was stormy and rainy so we stayed at home. Just as well, we heard later that in spite of the weather the traffic was at a standstill on the motorways, some people sitting for 3 hours before they could get to the next exit to detour back home. Yuck! As it turned out we enjoyed our breakfast of Panetone (traditional Italian Christmas bread) and tropical fruit (papaya, mango, lychee, and strawberries), and Scotty’s Nest Eggs, complete with Champers and Orange Juice and hot Flat Whites.

Christmas breakfast 2016

The day was cozy with games and traditional jigsaw puzzle assembly. I was so happy that Aida shared my interest in jigsaw puzzles. Here we are doing a 1000 piece puzzle of Sydney Harbour. We also played Catan, but I don’t have a picture of that. (Aida won!)

puzzle girls

Okay, that is #1, #2, and #6 covered!  Stay tuned for parts 2 and 3. After all, there was a lot more to our visit than eating and drinking and Christmas parades…

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