Back to Gloomy Melbourne

As all good things come to end, so does this little adventure.

Another perfect weather day, brilliant colours, glorious vistas and our resident sea hawks hovering outside the windows greeted us upon awakening. A quick clean up and we headed back to the beach bar for a final dose of that fabulous coffee before the final pack and last soaking in of the views before hoping into our chauffeured transport back to the (SC) airport. A very uneventful flight ensued - thinking about that's exactly what you'd want all flights to be. The home town looked resplendent in its grey cloudy cloak. The traffic was stop/ start (so build the tunnel!), the shock jocks whiney and the supermarkets overly priced...yay home.

At least it is good to be home to a welcome hug and happy smiles.

To Market To Market

Finally realised the way to see the sunrise is to go to bed early.

The ever persistent sea winds abated overnight to let the sun rise over calm seas. Wlist the waves continue their relentless barrage on the rocks below the rest of the area went through a phase shift. Windsurfers gave way to paddle boards and swarms of swimmers descended upon the coast. Our mission for the day was to hit the weekly street market, which we did with enthusiasm (for one) and resignation (for the other). At least they had good bands and good coffee to help while away the time.

Loaded with colourful expressions and considerably less financially endowed we headed back to the beach for yet more coffee whilst watching the waves pummel the would be surfers. as the day progressed the surf got bigger and bigger. Not wanting to miss out we donned our togs and headed out between the flags of kings beach for our own dumping. Apart from one misadventure with the rip it was all good fun.

Pity some waves were uncatchable due to the sardine nature of the milling throngs - being hit by pounding waves is one thing, being hammered by out of control body surfers does tend to put a downer on the day at the beach.

We cooled down in the pool at the abode and then wasted the afternoon entirely by taking a long siesta. Keeping with the theme it was paella for dinner at our now favorite haunt. Gellati for afters and then a movie in to finnish off the day.

A long walk into Golden Serenity

Awaking to the sight of our local reptars hovering outside our windows - keeping a keen eye on the swirling waters below we soaked back the ambiance of the bright morning daylight washing over the east coast and into the vast continent beyond our vision. A fabulous coffee at the local beach side cafe' charged the minds and legs for our long trek southwards.

Pausing to admire our abode from the rocks along the shoreline whilst dodging rock hopping cyclists we headed along the coastal trail, past the trendy eateries, caravan parks and manicured foreshore gardens towards Golden Beach. Aptly named in the same mindset that turned Shark Bay into Safety Beach. eg. False marketing.

There is no gold. Indeed there is no beach. What there is is a never ending sprawl of holiday homes, retirement houses and resorts selling "absolute water frontage". Yes they are next to the water. The beach is equivalent to a kindergarten sand pit. Most likely imported from the same source. The village of Golden Beach basks in the shadows of the looming resorts and has a certain buzz of excitement that is somewhat akin to a cemetery. Maybe its the off season.... Anyway, the weather was nice and warm and we had a pleasant stroll all whilst racking up step counts on the pedometer. Toasties for lunch back in our abode whilst watching the never ending spectacle of interesting things happening just outside our windows was apt reward for our labours. It was so captivating the afternoon was spent watching a video which suffered only the occassional distractions such as helicopters flying past (yesterday it was hornets).

And so, as the sun slowly faded into the west we consumed our free bottle of bubbly and then dragged ourselves down the the same cafe' for dinner. Which was delightful. The closeness of the shipping channel was highlighted yet again by the sight of a huge passenger cruiser just off shore. Very impressive.They were looking at us, we were looking at them. And then the moment passed.

Walking around Perfectville

We awoke with the sunrise streaming over the bed creating louder sensory input than the constant roar of the ocean. Quite pleasant really. Peering over toenails we could see the Glasshouse Mountains looming over the condos across the waterways. Waking up to 270 degrees views is rather enthralling. Breaking fast on the aforementioned essentials we were soon on our way treaking northwards along the coast hugging walkway.

It's all so pretty here. The ocean pounds relentlessly against the rocks and beaches whilst meters inland the sculptured gardens create a naturistic barrier before the never ending swarm of multi-story buildings define the skyline.Lots of architectural expression makes one jealous of the dollars expended here over the years. The pathway is lined with a plethora of plaques of past armed forces personnel, both recently and historically lost to us. The RSL has obviously been very active here and good on them. Lest we forget. You won't if you do this walk.

Our tiring legs took us up to the bluff that provided a view over Dickies beach and the hills of Noosa heads in the distance. Here we rested and watched the surfers plying their wares. The trek back was uneventful apart from a run in with a large lizzard whilst collecting leaves I.L.O. bandaids for blistering feet. Laid back latte's proceeded a dip in the pounding waves of Kings beach. Good fun. A wander into town saw some purchases of window cleaning gear which was subsequently used and then disappointingly applied as a rain storm can through and mucked it all up again. oh well - we tried.

The waterways below were swarming with kites and surfers. We watched one get into serious trouble in the waves. Eventually he was rescued by a collegue açnd sailed back. Dinner at the local SLSC was noisy and crowed yet fun. The stroll home along the boardwalk a nice way to end a great day.

On to SCQ

And now to Sunshine Coast Queensland.An easy drive to the airport had us contemplating the pros of cancelling the new tunnel. Leaving the airport from the the bottom gate we were squirted into the air and shot up to the warm weather in a comfortable trip as we yet again deployed the "take over the empty seats as soon as possible" tactic. A single phone call ensured a cheap and personalised carriage to our abode in Caloundra. After letting ourselves in and scaring the beegeebees out of the the cleaner we dropped our bags and headed into town for a trendy burger at a trendy café on the trendy esplanade that hugs the water front of the picturesque inlet which has Bribie Island defining its other bank. Caloundra really buzzes on balmy Thursday afternoon (not). After a walking circuit of thr town to get our bearings and essential supplies we returned to the apartment to find the apologetic cleaner still doing her stuff.

Our residence is so close to the rolling waves that the sound thunders in and the warm sea breezes wash through windows cleansing the soul and whisking away the stresses of metropolis. Possibly the best location amongst thousands of options in the area. We've done quite well. Sunset from the balcony looking over the boardwalk was spectacular.