A land down under

My first visit to Australia kicked off with my arrival in Brisbane at 0700hrs on Wednesday morning. This was a very brief stopover in “Brissy” as my train to Proserpine (nearest station to Airlie Beach) leaves at 1300hrs tomorrow so, between catching up on my sleep after the overnight flight and having a quick scout around, I didn’t have enough time to explore the city properly. However, from the little I saw I can say that Brissy is a city with a nice feel to it. It is a busy commercial centre with lots of activity and plenty of life, especially around the pedestrianised Queen Street area.

All the usual High Street stores are accompanied by carol singers, Christmas trees and Santa hats, all of which feel more than a bit out of place in this heat !


The temperature here today was 32°C (which is a little hotter than normal) but the main subject on the news was, you guessed it, the economy. There is speculation that the Central Bank will come back from summer holidays early in January to introduce an interest rate cut and that variable mortgage rates may be reduced from their current level of 6.7%. The Queensland government has just announced a package of tax hikes to prop up the provincial economy but is hoping that coal revenues (priced in US dollars against a falling Australian dollar) will help to fill some of the growing revenue gap. While having dinner, I overheard conversations at three different neighbouring tables about a slowing housing market, so apart from the weather (and being able to have bacon for breakfast), it’s just like being at home !

My overnight train from Brisbane to Proserpine left Roma Street station at 1325hrs on Thursday and was a very pleasant trip. My “fellow travellers” included an English guy who now lives in Papua New Guinea (PNG) with his PNG wife and two children, an English couple on a touring holiday en route to New Zealand for a family wedding and an Australian couple on their way north to Cairns. Comfortable accommodation, good food and interesting company.

Next update will be from Airlie Beach, one of the main jumping off points for the Whitsunday Islands. I'm going to hang out here with all the backpackers until Michael & Jane arrive on Sunday to pick up "No Ties", our twin-hulled home for the next week.