Brisbane 21st - 26th Jan

Arriving in Brisbane from Coolangatta was miserable to say the least! Greated with heavy downpour and wind i was most miserable getting on the bus and waddling down the road with my bags. I keep trying to get rid of things everywhere i stop yet my bag always seems to get heavier everytime i attempt to lift it. We stayed at Chill backpackers, just along the road from Brisbane transit centre. Very clean but teeny tiny rooms so 8 of us were squashed into a room really only big enough for 4. Met up with a friend from Adelaide who has stayed in Brisbane before so he showed us around the city. Pretty small in comparison to places like Sydney and even Adelaide but it reminded me a lot of Melbourne. Again the city has beautiful botanical gardens and great shopping with museums and gallaries dotted about. Brisbane also has a huge central casino which is a stunning old building lit up at night. Brisbane is separated by the river, on the otherside sits Southbank. To me this really separates Brisbane from the other cities i've visited. Such a beautiful, calming and relaxing place to be. Long walkways along the river, grassland, shops, flows, water features and a man made beach. Sounds hideous but it's done to taste and has small swimming pools surrounding it with play areas for kids. Most definitely turned into my favourite part of Brisbane and i spent a lot of time here.

Southbank is also host to weekend markets which stretch along the riverside. Stalls are made up of the usual tacky souvenier to beautiful handcrafted items such as glassworks, bags, and aborigional designs. There were some stunning paintings/photographs of across Australia which make you kick yourself you're travelling with a small bag on your back!

Compared to others cities Brisbane seems a very sleepy city, not so much going on outside the city and just a very chilled out place to be. I can see why so many people stop and work there and i may return at some point in the next month or so. The West End of the city is a little more up market with lovely cafes, shops and restuarants, little out of my price range though! More affordable is the Valley which attracts a lot of backpackers. Full of the cheap pubs, clubs and less desirable shops. Situated next to China Town and about a 15minute walk from the city centre itself.

The highlight of my time in Brisbane has to be Australia Day, the 26th January and a public holiday across Australia. Me and a few girls got kitted out in t-shirt, flags and stickers and headed over to Southbank where there was entertainment laid on. 2 main theatres hosted various entertainment such as circus performers, jugglers, puppet shows, music and dancing. As usual a mix of talent but a lot aimed at kiddies too. There were areas for hands on activities such as playing musical intruments and trying your hand at some circus performing. Compared to big events back home it was a bit of a let down. I expected there to be more stalls, fair type activities, food stands etc but nonetheless i still had a brilliant time. There was a great atmosphere. We spent the rest of the afternoon in the pub in true brit style where i met some more girls i keep bumping into at every stop along the coast. Early evening we headed back to Southbank to watch the fireworks and the evening concert. The fireworks were pretty good but of course nothing compared to New Years Eve at Sydney, im sure nothing will top that! The concert was a mixture of artists but pretty low key. Lovely to just be able to sit outside till late chilling out by the riverside.