Upside Down Under

Our final stop in OZ was to visit our good friends Ann & Adam Taylor in their beautiful new home on the northern tip of the Gold Coast. It was great fun to reconnect and get reacquainted with the Gold Coast & Brisbane. This is a tropical area with pristine beaches and waterways. We had to avoid the heart of the Gold Coast, which is somewhat like Miami Beach in the US, as tens of thousands of “Schoolies” had descended upon it for their annual high school graduation celebrations. Why would students be graduating in November and then starting college in February? It’s because things are upside down for us in the southern hemisphere as they’re approaching the summer season here. As Adam reminded Rich of this, it all started clicking into place. He had been puzzled when one of the wine makers explained that they like to plant their vines facing north to get the greatest sun exposure, which is the exact opposite in the northern hemisphere where the ideal direction for planting vines is usually south facing.

Brisbane, Museum of Modern Art, River Walk, Burleigh Beach & National Park. While our visit was short, we made the most of it. Ann & Adam brought us up to Brisbane, the capital of Queensland, where there’s lots to see and do. We also spent a day exploring Burleigh Beach, where there’s a well preserved national park on the ocean. We took a nice hike to the top of the headland to enjoy some amazing views up and down the coast.

We felt like we were in a modern luxury resort when we stayed in Ann & Adam’s new 3 bedroom Town House which is right on the inter-coastal waterway. What a great house in such a great location.

We got a chance to enjoy both home cooking and eating out. We savored some proper seafood at the Fish House restaurant in a very romantic setting overlooking the ocean. The next evening, we were treated to a restaurant quality meal of filet mignon at home ala Chef Ann. We had a tasty Italian lunch at Popolo’s on the River in Brisbane. The day we left we had a late lunch at “Raw”, a vegetarian restaurant that was delicious. Along with our meals, we enjoyed a variety of fine Aussie wines to compliment our dishes and some fantastic Japanese Whiskey Adam had stored.

There’s nothing like being chauffeured around throughout our stay. We had door-to-door service from our arrival up through our departure.

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