We started the day bright and early at 4:00am which isn't that bad considering how big the time difference is to get used to. The kids got caught up with their journals and we had a lot of time to pack up. We even checked out some Cricket on TV but quickly realized we had no clue what was going on. We then headed out to the airport via a taxi. The driver was super friendly and jealous of Toronto roads that he thought were the best in the world (Sydney traffic is horrible apparently, it was Saturday so we didn't see it). We tried to explain that even though there are 16 lanes they are all still at a snail's pace but he still thinks that Toronto is a highway utopia.
We got checked in at the airport, got through customs (highlight - you can actually take a bottle of juice though) and onto the plane for a quick flight to the Gold Coast. There we rented a car and got to experience driving on the left side of the road. Dave took the first shift since he's driven a couple times in the UK. We managed to get out of parking lot, navigate many traffic circles and drove about an hour to Biggera Waters. The most challenging part is that the signal lights and wiper control are reversed from back home. I can't count how many times we both turned on the wipers to change lanes. It really makes you realize how much of driving you don't really think about.
We're staying at Treasure Island Holiday Park which is super kid friendly. There is a campground and a bunch of cabins you can rent. There are 3 pools, a couple playgrounds and a great splash pad. The kids were both super excited to find out there were two bunkbeds so they both got a top bunk. The kids are in heaven.
Our cabin wasn't ready so we went for a drive to Surfer's Paradise. It is full of skyscraper hotels and rental apartments. We drove through the tourist chaos and parked close to the beach and went for a walk. The waves were endless and we can see how it got it's name. It had rained earlier and the beach was pretty empty except for a few jellyfish and the lifeguards who were doing a training relay race of surfer rescues. Dave said last time he was here you could barely walk down the beach because there were so many people.
By this time our place was ready so we headed back and Grandma watched the kids go for a swim while Dave and I found a grocery store. I got to experience driving and managed to get us there and back without incident. The grocery store was more of an adventure than I would have thought but eventually we found most of the stuff. Some differences -
- cheddar cheese is white and comes in Vintage, Tasty and Light varieties, we're trying Tasty out
- all milk is permeate free - not sure what that means but it must be good
- milk is full, light or skim
- Dave googled to navigate the bacon section - for a small store they had an impressive selection - half, side, streak, budget, etc.... Budget bacon won out ($6.00 for a kg), it seems to be a sampler pack of a few kinds
- Kellogg's Rice Bubbles are nothing like Kellogg's Rice Krispies
- eggs aren't in a fridge
We then stopped at a bottle shop to pick up some beer and wine and headed back for a great dinner and then bed. I tried to stay up as long as I could but that turned out to be 8:00pm. Dave was nice enough to wake me up on the couch so I could go upstairs to bed.
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