Boondall

Boondall
see all photos »

• Monday - July 9, 2001: I wake up at 3:30 a.m. and I am still in my travel clothes. I lay in bed till 6 a.m. The sunrise is colorful and the sky becomes clear and blue. Kristin and Lindsey hear the Kookaburras for the first time and they amazed at the Magpies and Ibis. Later, they would the Ibis are considered a pest of sorts. Eddie and I would joke about Colonel Sanders using Ibis instead of chicken. We called it KFI instead of KFC. Years later an Asian restaurant was cited for a health violation because they were actually serving Ibis in place of chicken. We go shopping at Toombul Mall. The bus service is excellent in brisbane. With an off-peak ticket you can travel just about anywhere throughout Brisbane and its suburbs.
• Tuesday - July 10, 2001: Today we travel into downtown Brisbane with my cousin Judith. We become acquainted on the bus. I have only met her once before when I was just four years old. Now, fifty years later, we begin to talk and it would lead to a very close friendship. She is a kind, caring , considerate and loving person. Lindsey says she is too nice. We traveled through Nundah on the way down Sandgate Road. I spot the Prince of Wales Hotel and it has not changed in 31 years. This the neighborhood where my mother and father met. It brings back many fond memories from years ago.  We make our way over to the Botanical Gardens and across the road is the cemetery where my grandmother is buried. Jenni asked me where I wanted to go and the first that came to mind was to see my grandmother's resting spot. Then we head up to Mount Cootha to view the city.  The Queen Street Mall is new to me. It was a street in 1970. On the return to Boondall, I buy passion fruit and have some for the first time since I was a kid.
• Wednesday - July 11, 2001: Went into downtown Brisbane again with Judith to see the Art Gallery. I especially enjoyed the Aboriginal art and I am fond of paintings that display the serenity of the Outback. In 1970, I spent time on my Aunt Kusty's cattle station up near Mount Isa. So, any paintings of the Outback are quite sentimental.
• Thursday - July 12, 2001: Spent a quiet day doing laundry and goin walkabout. Found Wooley's and did a bit of shopping.
• Friday - July 13, 2001: Raeanne arrives and takes us up to Redcliffe to see the area. Raeanne's father is the caretaker of the oldest church in Brisbane near the beach up at Redcliffe. We meet Raeanne's mother and father and we have fish and chips under a shelter across the road from the church. We returned to Raeanne's house where we spent the evening with them and had a very nice dinner. Raeanne and Andrew explained how they celebrate Christmas in a warm climate without snow. Both Kristin and Lindsey find this very strange; Christmas without snow. Andrew said they put up Christmas lights and a tree and he even puts sleigh marks on the lawn outside. Often Christmas day is spent with a picnic outside or a picnic at the beach.
• Saturday - July 14, 2001: Today we moved into the house behind the hotel. We stopped at a fresh seafood store by the Brisbane River and I believe the name was Dave's. Then we visited a friend of Lester's who owned a flat on a high rise along the Brisbane River. It had a beautiful view of the river and appeared to be quite expensive. Then we went to Lester's house for a barbecue and had a great time. Lindsey enjoyed her backyard rugby match with Tim, Nic, Peter and Anthony.

Raeanne and Andrew explained how they celebrate Christmas in a warm climate without snow.