The Sunshine Coast.....

I know I know, I am awful and haven't blogged or taken a single photo while I have been here.  But my sweet Mom has mailed one from the States and will hopefully get it in the next few days and catch you up on the beauty that the Sunny Coast offers!

After a few wonderful days in Nundah, Brissy area, Katie and Ben drove me up to Noosa as they were heading to the States for a few weeks and I have some friends living on the coast.  On the way up we went hiking (good news Katie has photos) in the Glass House Mountains.  What a stunning delivery of flora and fauna God has put together in those forests and mountains.  If any of you have ever seen the Lord of the Rings movies, you could almost bet that part of it was filmed along our hike.  Rock pools, water falls, greenery as far as you can and some pretty amazing views of the surrounding towns.  We were also able to see a few of the very common animals that are founds in Queensland too. 

Ben and Katie then dropped me at the Noosa Backpackers in Noosaville.  When you think backpackers or hostel I am sure visions of dirty dorms and horror movies fill your head, but this was a really cute place.  I had my own room and only had to share a bathroom with 3 other rooms, not much different than sorority house living, but only one of the other rooms was occupied and that was only for the first night.  Check out the website at  http://noosabackpackers.com/  and I have a pic below of the entrance.

Katie and Ben gave me some advice on what to do while I was there and everyone who worked there was amazing too.  They headed on their way and I showered up and took the public bus into to town to check out the shops and have some dinner.  The town is a perfect beach town with all the clothing, pharmacies or chemists as they call them here, restaurants and bars.  After a browse around, I stopped into the Surf Club.  All beach towns have these here and they have the primo location in each one as well.  Situated on the beach front and serving foods, drinks and gambling to members and the public.  It was a rainy night so I just had a beer and then headed to find some dinner.  I stopped at an Italian restaurant called Lindoni's and had another phenom meal.  Started with a garlicky homemade bruschetta and a nice cold beer and for my meal delicious Gorgonzola gnocchi.  Seriously the best I have ever eaten.  Headed home for a rest and then on day two walked down from the backpackers for a coffee and some breakfast.  This country really does food so well and I am in love with poached eggs and flat whites.  With a full belly I decided to try my hand at solo kayaking and let's just say it was a short stint and I prefer the company i.e help of someone else.  There was a bit of wind and that only made matters worse so I turned in the free kayak at the backpackers and resorted to something I know I am fantastic at.....reading on the beach.

Later that afternoon after hanging out at the beach and a scenic run along the beach path, I had a light dinner and hung out at the bar inside the resort and talked to some of the locals for a bit.  It really is funny how we all essentially speak the same language, but they have such a different "slang" if you will that I find myself having to listen very well and ask at the end of a convo what certain terms mean.  I plan do a whole blog on slang here soon so stay tuned.  The next day my friend Patrick from the old Down Under Restaurant picked me up and we headed about 20 minutes south to his house in Coolum.  I have since taken some pictures of Coolum and will post after we return from our boating excurison which we are leaving for in about an hour. 
It is Monday at 6:30 am here and he is busy packing the boat while I blog :).  I have been in Coolum since Tuesday morning and have had a blast so far.  We have gone to the Australia Zoo which is just so freaking cool!  They have an open area where kangaroos and wallaby's hop around and love for you to pet and feed them, koalas that you can hold and pet, crocs, native birds, tigers, elephants, Tasmanian devils and so much more.  It really is a necessary stop for anyone who visits of lives here.  I have also been hiking in Coolum and Noosa and spent some good time with Frazier, Amanda and their sweet children Ryder and Zephyr.  I worked with both of them at Down Under too and plan to spend more time with them while I am here. 

Heading out on the boat soon so I will update again when we return possibly Wednesday or Thursday.  Let's see how I do without a proper shower for a few days and we might make an early return :).  Off to get packed and ready.  Love everyone and hope that you are working on saving to visit Australia right now!

xx- Cheryl