Brisbane - Noosa

We arrived in Brisbane on the 18th and checked into the YHA for 5 nights. Hostel was ok but quite far from the city. Compared to everywhere else we've stayed there wasn't much to do in Brisbane. So we decided to visit the koala sanctuary near by. It was really good to see them so close and we could walk into the kangaroo enclosure. We were out numbered by Japanese tourists who seemed to have no fear of the kangaroos, one kid tried to climb on a kangaroos back!

The nicest area of Brisbane was South Bank, lovely gardens and a man made beach which stayed open after dark. We went to the cinema to see the Holiday which was much better than we expected. We stayed in to eat every night but one when we went to a Vietnamese place in china town.

There are huge bats in Brisbane which freaked me out, especially sat outside the hostel at night with them flying around. One night a cockroach landed on my head, as you can imagine i was jumping around like a fool trying to get it out of my hair!

On our last night in the 6 bed dorm a lady called Iris from England checked in, i guess she was about 60? She'd been travelling on and off for 25 years and had a lot to say! She gave a running commentary on everything from taking her hat off to getting into bed!

We left Brisbane on the 23rd and travelled on the greyhound coach 3 hours to Noosa. The YHA here is lovely. Clean and spacous with lots of outdoor areas to relax in. Turkeys, chickens and lizards roam around freely, one lizard i've seen is about 2 feet long. Yesterday we went to a market which had 300 stalls and entertainers, it was good but so hot. The further north we get the hotter it is. On average here around 30 degrres. After the market we did the coastal walk through the Ntaional Park. Last night we had a roast dinner for the first time since leaving the UK. It was so tasty. Nicky had an early night as she was doing a bike ride this morning. I stayed in the hostel bar drinking with 2 girls from Dublin.

Tonight we are travelling 8 hours to Rockhampton so we can get to Great Keppel Island tomorrow where will will be for 4 nights.