For those who don't know Graham and Dian, they are friends of old, from Debden. They moved to Debden around the same time as us (many years ago), and we have not seem them since we left in 2007. So, it was a real treat to be able to stay with them for a few days (and interrupt their busy work schedule...as you can see below).
Leaving Graham hard at work, Dian took time out from her very busy schedule to show us the delights of Brisbane, its city centre and river. We took a fantastic trip along the river, taking in the skyline, houses and life on the water...
...around the city centre (BCD) we saw some truly beautiful buildings and sculptures, these butterflies below adorn this and many shops in the mall, which, Dian tells us has a wonderful bohemian feel at the weekend with bands, buskers and street acts filling the mall.
...as with all Cities these days, they all have their own 'Eye', or 'Wheel'. Brisbane's nestles seductively behind the oriental gardens and temples, melding culture, nature and old and new structures in an appealing way...
... on its reverse side, it is reflected in the modern glass building of the ABC TV Headquarters.
As with all City Business Districts, the towering sky scrappers rise ever higher into the sky, fulfilling whatever business need is required - offices, hotels, apartments, shops, creating a skyline that can be seen anywhere in the world.
However, the City is not just about business, it has its pleasure side to... and here are just two extremes of river cruising you can do... paddle powered
or modern diesel engine powered. This cruise liner was docked at the far end of the river, waiting for its thousands of guests to either embark or disembark, ready to go onto their next port.
Other sights along the river are the many and varied houses, all of which probably have their values in the millions, with their prime river front location and interesting designs, here are just three that took my fancy...if ever I were to think of moving 'down under'!
Finally, here are few views back along the river as we returned to meet up with Graham for dinner. Brisbane really does have a beautiful skyline, and the city had a real easy feel about it, made all the more special by Graham and Dian looking after us so well.
Having said our farewells to Graham and Dian (and the possums that live under their house - how cute!), we took an 8 hour flight to Singapore, where we arrived at our hotel (Albert Court), at 10pm, had a quick beer, went to bed and woke at 4am, ready for our flight to Lombok.
We were greeted by our guide, who took us on a two hour drive through his country, to a small dock, were we met a boat skipper, who got his 'boat boys' to load our bags, and zoomed us over to Gili Trawangan...all in the pouring rain! Well it is the rainy season.
And that's for next time...
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