A familiar face.
I visited Australia (Sydney and Cairns) back in March of 2017 with good friends and had an absolute blast. I didn’t imagine I would be back because of how far it is from home and flights are long and expensive. Life is unpredictable though. I came back. This time around I came to Brisbane in Queensland (middle of the country on the east coast) for one reason and one reason only – to visit my friend Carolyn. I know I mentioned this before, but I normally don’t visit a country twice (with a few exceptions). Carolyn is an exception. I met Carolyn in Chicago working at PepsiCo where we bonded over growing up in Michigan, indulging in Jet’s Pizza way too much, and complaining about the hefty workload of a University Recruiter. She is one of those friends that always has your back, cares deeply, and can make you laugh until you cry. Regardless of location and time zone, we always make time for each other.
A bit of a backstory is necessary to understand how we got here today. In 2017 Carolyn and I were both ready to quit PepsiCo and backpack around the world for a year. One evening after work, we bought one-way tickets to Iceland together (it was really happening) and mapped out where we wanted to go. Not long after we bought tickets, I got a promotion opportunity at work and the new role would relocate me to New York City. I had to make the decision to stay and take this great career opportunity or travel with my girl. After many sleepless nights and countless tears, I decided to move to NYC (which was some of the best years of my life) and Carolyn would travel without me. She traveled, met a wonderful guy in Australia and never moved back. Fast forward six years, I am now on my self-exploration journey (better late than never) and we remain as close as ever. I was going to be in Asia and Australia is only a hop, skip and a jump away so I planned to visit her. I am happy to say I was her first visitor and definitely not her last!!
The land down unda.
The Australian accent is one of my favorites. I am horrible at it, but after three weeks in the country, I have picked up a few sayings and tricks to sound “Australian”. Anything ending in R, the R is dropped, vowels are LONG, Os sound like Rs, and words are shortened and/or abbreviated sometimes ending in a Z, etc. Some accents are easier to understand than others and I found myself asking people to repeat themselves more times than not. Apart from the difficulty of understanding, Australians are kind and lovely. The cities and beaches are so clean and filled with people living a very active lifestyle. People wake up early to exercise and start their day – probably why everyone is fit. Shoes are optional and fashion is not the focus. Although, there are amazing thrift stores. Apart from that everything is expensive (example – a bag of green grapes was $24.99 AUS dollars – what???). The good thing is that there is no tipping and tax is included in the final price, so there are no surprises. Also, the US dollar is stronger now compared to the Australian dollar so everything was a bit cheaper for me.
While I was excited to explore Brisbane and the surrounding areas, I was most looking forward to just spending time with Carolyn and doing domesticated things like cooking, laundry, and watching local tv. Things I haven’t done in over seven months. Brisbane is quite a large city – about 2.5 million people – making it the 3rd largest city in Australia. However, it doesn’t feel super big. It is the coastal capital of Queensland and is attracting people for many different reasons. A quick drive north or south and you are at a beautiful white sand beach lined with surfers and hip coffee shops – see photos for evidence of the beautiful beaches here. People are laid back and the weather is incredible year-round. While August is a winter month it was a high of about 75-80 degrees Fahrenheit every day with lows ranging from 50 to 60s in the evenings/mornings. Growing up in Michigan, winters looked a bit different…so no complaints here. Also after some extremely hot weather in SE Asia, it was just what I needed.
Eating my way through the country.
I flew from Bali to Brisbane where Carolyn was waiting for me right after customs. We hugged for a long time and wasted no time catching up. I hadn’t eaten in a while so our first order of business was to get food. Because it was around midnight, one of the only places open was McDonalds (or as they call it in Australia – Maccas) so I devoured a McChicken. This is only my 3rd time eating McDonalds in eight months – I consider that a win. If this was any indication of how I was going to be eating in Australia, I was in trouble.
The food tour continued. We had plenty of avocado toast, breakfast sandwiches (sandos for short), burgers (Betty’s burger for the win), taco bell (don’t judge me), subway, pizza, and so much more. There is a restaurant in Coolangatta called Franc Jr. that makes Detroit style pizza. So we obviously had to go. It was absolutely incredible. I told the owner I was from Michigan and would report back. They nailed it, even using square pans bought in Michigan to get that slightly burnt crust flavor. It was the taste of home I didn’t know I needed.
Apart from eating out, we did so much cooking at home. I told Carolyn I needed to eat healthy and was most excited to cook (hostels in Asia do not have kitchens). What I didn’t know was that her partner Ben was a fantastic chef and skilled on the barbeque (barbie for short). I was spoiled. They cooked almost every night. Everything from veggie bakes to homemade ragu to cheesy potatoes to delectable chocolate tartes. I learned on my travels from another Aussie that you can eat Kangaroo! They are basically like deer in the states, plentiful and have very lean meat. I told Ben I had to try it before I left, and he grilled me up kangaroo on one of my last nights. I’m happy to report that it was delicious. We finished every meal with some sort of desert. It usually consisted of tim tams (IYKTYK) that you can really only get in Australia. I once found them in a Bed Bath and Beyond in NYC but that is a rarity. They are delicious little chocolate covered cookies and a staple in this country. There is also a chain of convenience stores called EZ Mart that sell American snacks that you cannot get ANYWHERE. I spent way too much money on butterfingers, reeses, twizzlers, and the like. Needless to say, my clothes are a bit snugger now.
A tourist in your own city.
Carolyn has lived in Brisbane for over a year and still has not done everything. The best way to see your own city is to have visitors. Win win for both of us. We walked through the two stunning botanical gardens that the city has (for free I may add) and through different parts of the city to see the Brisbane sign and explore West End, Rosalie, and Paddington neighborhoods. We went to basically every thrift store the city had to offer. I changed up my entire wardrobe for under $50. I am excited to showcase my new clothes in Central America! We also visited Kmart several times – it is classier than the stores in the US and got everything from new cell phone screen covers to Tylenol to sunglasses. We enjoyed local beer at the breweries and rode the KittyCat (a free Brisbane ferry along the river). One memorable experience that was specific to Australia was when we went to the local team’s footy game. This was a first for all of us. We had to look up the rules ahead of time. It is like a mix of rugby, soccer, and football. The players look drunk while playing because the ball bounces around and the players chase after it and fall down in the process. We had a great time cheering on the team while drinking local XXXX beer, and indulging in footlong hotdogs, meat pies and fries. We hiked to the top of Mount-Coot-Tha to see a Birdseye view of the city. We were hoping to see Koalas on the way but were not that fortunate. So we took matters into our own hands on went to a Koala Sanctuary.
Koala Pine Sanctuary is located right in Brisbane and has over 100 Koalas on site as well as crocodiles, kangaroos, Tasmanian devils, all types of native birds, snakes, platypuses, lizards, and more. We spent hours at the sanctuary watching the adorable koalas go from sleeping to eating to pooping. They are such lovable animals and while they don’t do much, they are fascinating to watch. We were able to pet and feed the kangaroos in an open field and they were not afraid of humans. Unfortunately, the photo opportunities with the koalas were sold out for the day, but we still had a great time regardless!
The gold coast.
About an hour and a half south of Brisbane is the Gold Coast. Carolyn lived here when she first moved to the country and had several places she wanted to show me. My first weekend there we headed down and stayed at her friend Mathilde’s apartment just a block from the beach. We walked the ocean front walk through Burleigh Head National Park. We took several swims in the brisk ocean. We watched the sunrise with a hot cup of coffee each morning. We spent Saturday morning at her favorite farmers market (her first Aussie job selling buckwheat wraps) and bought fresh fruit/veggies for dinner along with the most delicious gluten free donuts I have ever had – it melted in your mouth. We cooled off with drinks at the local surf club overlooking the ocean. We spent the afternoon at the huge outdoor mall, stopping in Lululemon (I only bought one pair of shorts) and Kmart. And finally we ended the incredible weekend seeing the Barbie movie while overindulging in buttered popcorn. The movie brought me back to childhood and surprised me at how funny it was!
We went back to the Gold Coast a week later for an air show on Surfer’s Paradise Beach (great for people watching) and more beach time. I did yoga in the park with the local community center. It is currently whale season and we had several whale spottings right off the coast. On Sunday we headed a bit further south to see the more rural towns of the coast. We stopped in Billinudgel to see an old style Aussie pub and made our way to Byron Bay, a place popular for influencers and a hippie lifestyle. To prepare, we watched a ridiculous reality show called Byron Baes – a somewhat accurate depiction of the “locals”. We decided to camp for the night because it was the cheapest option (still $80 a night for a lot in a campsite right by the water) and a different kind of adventure. We pitched our tent, bought a bottle of red wine and walked to watch the sunset where we saw a family of dolphins playing right in front of us. It was magical. We headed into town to watch the women’s world cup final and cheered on the teams with the other patrons.
On our way back to Brisbane the next morning, we made several stops in small towns. My favorite being Mullumbimby. Words cannot even describe this town. The locals don’t wear shoes, the fashion is quite interesting (some wearing kangaroo fur and lots of tie die) and there are many events with crystal healing and spiritual rituals. We had a great time people watching and bopping into different shops to see what interesting things they were selling. After the few days away, I was excited to be back in Brisbane for some more chill time.
The jen essentials for australia.
- My girl Carolyn (after three weeks I thought we would be sick of each other, but I could have spent another three weeks there, I just love her)
- Brisbane Yoga Space Studio (I went every morning and was greeted by kind and kowledgable teachers)
- Comfort food (I had more American food in those three weeks and don’t regret anything)
- Someone to cook for you (Carolyn and Ben were so gracious and cooked almost every night or me – I will miss this the most)
- Money (Australia is expensive – coming from Asia there was quite a bit of culture shock, at least I didn’t have to pay for lodging!)
- People watching skills (the people watching was impeccable – from mustaches and mullets to kangaroo fur…the people did not disappoint)
- Camping gear (unless you wanna spend upwards of $200 a night for a basic hotel, camping is the cheapest option)
- A haircut (I went 8 months without a haircut because you cant trust anyone to cut this wild mane of mine – luckily there is a ton of curly hair in Australia so I was in good hands)
- Jeopardy (if we were home at 5pm, I was watching Jeopardy – one of the things I miss the most about my routine life in the US)
- Thrift stores (new wardrobe coming your way!!!)
Wrap it up jen.
Australia was exactly what I needed. Traveling from place to place, meeting new people in every location, and constantly planning your next move is exhausting. I hit a wall and these three weeks were exactly what I needed and more. Carolyn and Ben were the best hosts. So accommodating, gave me space when I needed it, made delicious meals for me asking nothing in return, put up with me chatting for hours each morning on the phone with friends I haven’t talked to since I left because the wifi was the best I’ve had, and showed me around their city. Even the smallest things like taking mid-day naps and puzzles made me so happy!
The last time I was in Australia I was a tourist, this time I was not. Even though I was only there a few weeks, I felt like a local. From feeding kookaburras out their kitchen window to grinding my own coffee manually each morning, I enjoyed every minute more than they will ever know. Apart from the KOALAs and all the amazing places we went, the QUALITY time I spent with one of my best friends was my favorite part. I guess I didn’t realize how much I miss this in my everyday life. There are so many people I cannot wait to see and catch up with face to face. I get back to the states in December and couldn’t be more excited. But before that, I have many countries in Central America to visit!
Up next: Panama to practice my Spanish and island vibes.
Signing off for now,
Jennifer