Bunny & Paw Visit - Part 2

Well, once we got back from Noosa the weather continued its pattern for about another week.  Somehow we managed to squeeze in a few fun day trips though.

*Sidenote: I think it's important to point out that since we live in a place that's known as sunny Queensland, it comes with the territory that almost 100% of activities are set up to take advantage of the fabulous weather and the sunshine.  It's not like we see a rain cloud and go running to take cover, but almost everything here is outdoors!

Since it was still raining, we decided to take a trip over to the Queensland Museum in South Bank.  It's such a great museum, and it's free!  I've been there several times with the kids, but it was a treat to take my parents with us and gain some knowledge about the things in and around this state of Australia.

At first glance, it just looks like my kids are looking at a wall with a bunch of various insect information. However, they are really looking at the circular piece in the center that has over 100 different bugs in it.  The interesting (well actually creepy) thing about it is that these over 100 bugs were found in one bucket of leaves.  That's right...puts a whole new spin on jumping in the pile of leaves in the fall doesn't it!

Notice the shoeless Hallie.  It's actually quite common for people in Queensland to go around shoeless.  I guess it's the whole tropical, beach attitude??  Anyway, it's not unusual for us to see barefoot people in the grocery store, mall, walking down the street, etc.  So now we call Hallie our little Queenslander because she loves to take her shoes off in public.

She also loves turtles and this one at the museum happens to be her best pal.  We spend at least 5 to 10 minutes visiting with this hands on exhibit every time we go.

My dad is a WWI and WWII buff, so he was interested in the Gallipoli exhibit where the Australians entered the first world war, similar to D-Day for the Americans in WWII.

My crazy little dinosaurs.

Later that day, once the rain subsided a bit we headed across the Victoria Bridge to the Queen Street Mall to meet Cory for lunch at the Pig & Whistle.

On our way, we ran into a sidewalk artist...you may have seen some of his work in a viral e-mail (I know it came across my inbox a time or two).  He does these amazing 3D illustrations where, by viewing from a certain angle it looks as though the drawing is coming to life right there on the sidewalk.  The rain had forced his crew to erect a tent over his work, so the effect was lessoned a little, but it was still cool to see him at work.

The following day the kids and I took B&P down to Wynnum.  It's a little town right on Moreton Bay that has a great playground/splash park and a huge wading pool for kids (and adults) to play in.  When I say huge, I mean the size of a football field huge.  They also have a little pier and sandy beach, so we took a picnic and enjoyed a relaxing morning by the water.

Love the insistent "shoes-on-wrong-feet" stage we're in!

Yes! Sunshine!

Not a fan of the cold water.

Thank goodness for Crocs.  

On the way back from Wynnum, we stopped at Downey Park, the site of Marin's dreaded tree fall.  It was the first time I had been back since that fateful day.  The whole park felt eerie to me, full of scary memories and fear.  Here is a photo of the tree she fell from.  Now that I have the pictures, I don't think I ever plan to go back.  You can see how great a tree it is for climbing, aside from the large, pointed roots around the bottom of the trunk, which I'm obviously not a fan of.

On Friday we had our first day together without the kids.  All three were in school, so B&P and I headed down to the city.  I just had to get them to Eagle Street Pier to see the Story Bridge. It was hard to believe they had been in Brisbane for three weeks and had not yet laid eyes on the iconic structure.

Stopping by a giant Strangler Fig to take a pic.

B&P by the Bridge.

Those little toothpick looking things are people.  You can actually get a paid tour to climb the Story Bridge...it's "high" on my list of things to do here, once I find a partner!

Even though the sun stayed hidden, we enjoyed brunch at the best casual spot on Eagle Street in my opinion, The Boardwalk Bar & Bistro.  It's situated right on the water, with large outdoor seating, good food and great daily specials.  It's a favorite because it's so easy to take the kids there and let them run around looking at the water and playing without needing to worry about settling them down.  However, on this day, as I said, there were no kids, so we took our time and later walked along to the Botanic Gardens and admiring things around the city.

Quick view down the Eagle Street Pier Boardwalk.  Such a great way to spend an afternoon walk...especially when the Jacaranda Trees (purple flowers) are in bloom!

We finished the night by heading over to a park near our house that is home to a large colony of fruit bats.  Brisbane has thousands of these huge bats called Flying Foxes, who come out every night at twilight and fly around the city.  Funny that after growing up in a city famous for a bat flight (Austin), I should end up in another place where the winged creatures are famous.  The kids love to watch for them any time we are out at the right time of day, especially Caden, who was convinced when we first saw them fly, that we had moved to the city where Batman lives.

We ended the week with a day trip to Mt. Tamborine.  Just two hours south of Brisbane, and directly west of Surfer's Paradise, is a large mesa that is called Mt. Tamborine.  It's home to wineries, artisans, and plenty of outdoor activities.

The day was glorious (finally) and we got off to an early start to make the most of our friend the sun.  We had intended to go to the Rainforest Skywalk, which is heavily promoted in Brisbane, but ended up instead stopping right off the beaten path at Cedar Creek Falls.  Now I haven't been to the Skywalk, but I can say that I seriously doubt it could be nearly as wonderful as the free attraction right down the road where we were.  The pictures I took don't nearly do it justice...it's a see for yourself kind of place.

This photo may look a little out of place, but...there was a couple getting married down by the falls and this was their getaway car.  The kids thought it was pretty fun to touch, but it's owner, not so much.  This was a "look with your eyes only" moment.

We left and had lunch at a great old hotel: The Hotel San Bernard. It was perfect since Oktoberfest was still going strong, and what else was waiting there to welcome us but an Oompah band, grilled bratwurst, and Lowenbrau Beer.  The views weren't half bad either.

So, by the end of our third week together we had successfully scratched off several "to-do" things on our Brisbane visitors list! Lots of fun, and it's not even over!