As Claire was flying back to Perth from Brisbane we decided to have a few days in the Queensland capital prior to her going. We caught the Tilt Train from Rockhampton down to Roma Street Station in Brisbane. It’s a journey of about 7 or 8 hours and was a holiday in itself. There is no way you could drive the over 600km trip for the price of a train ticket. Just over $100 one way which I thought was excellent value. I love train travel. Seats were very comfortable and spacious compared to an aeroplane. The service was first class and the prices for food and drink was extremely reasonable. It was a very relaxing trip.
I had booked an apartment in South Brisbane. It’s always hot and miss when booking online but this was a hit. Only about 300m from the railway and bus stops and a short distance to shops, cafes etc. We got a couple of the prepaid travel cards they use in Brisbane for all forms of public transport and off we went sightseeing. We caught busses and trains at will and couldn’t believe how cheap the fares were.
We went up to Mount Cootha Lookout. Spectacular views across the greater Brisbane area.
When I was last in Brisbane on my own I did a river cruise with one of the Boat Cruise companies at South Brisbane. This time we decided to just get on the Public ferry and what a wonderful day out on the water. We went as far as it went down river and then back a little way before getting off for lunch. A return trip would have taken 2 hours and only cost a few dollars. Most impressed!
We also took the train and tram down to the Gold Coast for a day trip. The apartment in South Perth (Parkview Apartments) had a fully equipped kitchen which meant we could save on the cost of a lot of meals which is always expensive when you are staying in Hotels or the like.
We caught the skytrain out to the airport and Claire flew out while I caught the train back to Roma Street and had a couple of hours wait until I caught the Tilt Train back to pick up Rhonda at Emu Park. The trip back whilst still relaxing was eventful as we clipped the back of a motor home at a level crossing in Caboolture and then had to wait for Police at Maryborough to arrive to evict an unruly passenger who was thankfully in a different carriage to me. These 2 events cost us an additional 2 hours travel time. Oh and did I mention the 130 school kids that got on at Nambour after a year nine camp. They filled half my carriage and the one next.
rayaroundoz 