28 June 2009

Brisbane Cycle

When we packed up in Cape Town, Scott spent ages cleaning our bikes with engine cleaner & a toothbrush! We packed in the bike rack that fits onto the towbar so we could take our bikes all over the place & ride. Well, unfortunately the bike rack doesn't fit our towbar. We've been meaning to get one but they're pretty pricey at nothing less than $150. Until the End Of Financial Year Sales!!!!! Scott picked one up on Friday at a bike shop down the road for just $100 which wasn't bad.

So Sunday seemed like the perfect time to try it out! We drove through to South Bank again to try out one of the many cycle ways around the river. The only thing we need now on our bikes are bells. Yes, bells! We ended up having to shout "Tring! Tring!" to alert walkers to our approach. LOL! Scott wants to get one of those air horns so he can watch people jump out of his way - such a boy!

Just a head's up here - this isn't a massive blog with loads of photos. Taking photos while riding & navigating through pedestrian traffic isn't the easiest so we left the camera in the backpack for most of the day.


Me on my bike - this is right at the end of the path we were on so it was totally deserted. This is one of the few marinas we've seen along the river and the apartments and houses along here extremely swanky! I think it was around here where there was a guy singing opera from one of the apartments - not my kinda thing, but he had a beautiful voice!


On a little grassy area next to the path we found a whole bunch of vintage cars on display. It looked like they had had a bit of run and were all having picnics behind their cars while passersby asked questions & oggled the machines. Some of the cars seemed to be a work in progress & they arrived on the back of flatbeds. There was also a table set up with a whole lot of trophies. We reckon it was a vintage car club having their annual awards run or something like that. Some of these cars we'd never heard of before!

A Riley


A work in progress - Tercat-Mery. Yes, that's me in my bike helmet - couldn't take it off because of the horendous helmet hair!


Scott with a Minerva. Some of the cars had beautiful radiator caps. This one of Minerva, the virgin Roman Goddess of warriors, poetry, medicine, wisdom, commerce, weaving, crafts and the inventor of music - a large portfolio even for a goddess!


Scott clearly doesn't have the same problem with helmet hair!


This Alvis was absolutely stunning! Looked like something you drive to the country for a picnic (packed in a wicker basket of course) wearing a straw boater.


Not sure what this one was - also a work in progress. It had a Scottish thistle as it's radiator cap.


Another Alvis with what looks like the March Hare from Alice in Wonderland as the radiator cap.


Scott inspecting a Talbot


The Talbot radiator cap - a rearing full maned lion


What an awesome looking 12 cyclinder engine! Brass & copper everywhere!


I had to get Scott to stand next to this little Austin so you can see just how small it actually is - very cute!


I think this is another Alvis - totally made of alluminium


Lunch time!!! We built up quite an appetite after the 14km or so ride and stopped at Mado - a Turkish restuarant.


Peak-a-boo! The beers were ice cold and the food was excellent - Anatolian chicken & the most delicious falafel I've ever tasted!


Back to the parking lot - Scott putting the bikes back onto the new rack.

Another fabulous day out!

27 June 2009

Queensland Museum

Our next outing was to the Queensland Museum at the Cultural Centre. This Cultural Centre incorporates the Gallery of Modern Art, Art Gallery of Queensland, Queensland Museum, QPAC (Qld Performing Arts Centre where we saw Chicago) and the State Library. All situated on South Bank where there are markets, buskers, festivals, cafes, restaurants, a man-made beach, parklands, picnic areas and walkways all along the river.



A aeroplane hanging in the Whale Mall on the way to the Museum


Now you know why it's called Whale Mall....


Ready to go in


A Volunteer Fire Brigade quadricycle built in 1912 for the New Farm brigade


Scott hanging out at some of the exhibits


2 Indian Scouts which, before 1030, were all painted red. Indian only brought out 2 models between 1901 & 1953 - the 'Scout' and the 'Big Chief'. American made, it's main rival was the Harley which had an equally devoted fan base. I loved this quote... "You can't wear out the Indian Scout Or its brother the Indian Chief. They're built like rocks To take hard knocks. It's the Harleys that cause the grief."


The Acrohc Australis holds the record for the smallest boat (11 feet, 10 inches!) to sail around the world. In June 1984 Serge Testa sailed it from Brisbane via the Qld coast to Darwin, Maritius, Cape Town, St Helena, Natal, Tobago, The Panama Canal, the Galapagos, the Marquesas & the Cook Islands, Tonga and Lord Howe Island, 80,000km later he returned to Brisbane in May 1987.


Crash! This is what Scott does to planes in his computer games! Unfortunately the real life ones don't have 'restart' buttons. LOL!


Who's the animal?


I thought this was a funky shot - taken in the mirror


Oh good - I'm bigger than most of them!


But some of them have much bigger teeth


Love this one - looks like the polar bear has wings!


This Beech Duke broke the round-the-world speed record for piston-engined aeroplanes in 1975 - it took just 122 hours, 19 minutes and 57 seconds.


Scott really fancied this Beech Duke


One of the water features around the Cultural Centre


Another water feature with pelican sculptures


Scott on the other side ready to dive in!


Lovely shot of Scott between the fountain & another sculpture.


And a late lunch at Kapsali's - a wonderful Greek restaurant overlooking part of the Streets Beach. Then it was off home to wish Cavell (aka Hermit) happy birthday on Skype!

21 June 2009

Fête de la Musique Brisbane

Okay, go grab a cuppa & put your feet while you catch up on our latest adventure...

I recently found a great website, Brisbane in Winter. While browsing around, I came across an event called Fête de la Musique which is a music festival which takes place in about 350 countries around the world on the same day. There are no tickets, no A-Reserve seating, no headlining musos, no critics. Jazz, rock, rap, umpa bands and gospel singers could be on the same bill. All performed in non-music venues.

So armed with our waterproof jackets & a great big umbrella, we braved the rain & headed off to the city. We parked the car at Scott's office and walked down to the Queen Street Mall where there was a big concentration of acts all along the mall. Brisbane isn't as vibey as Sydney but it's certainly got a helluva lot going on in the arts & culture department! Just walking through town, you get to see some pretty cool architecture & there are also sculptures all over the place.

Something else I picked up while browsing the Brisbane in Winter site, was that the Jade Buddha for Universal Peace was on display at Brisbane square - at the river end of Queen Street Mall. This buddha was carved from a rare find - an 18 ton boulder of gem-quality Polar jade discovered in 2000 in Canada and called Polar Pride.


Cathedral Square - Just across the road from Scott's office




I absolutely love this sculpture! I can't find what it's called or who the artist is so it's all very mysterious. I guess that adds to the attraction.


Wanting coffee..... ah great a big NOW OPEN sign at Gloria Jean's..... oh wait, it's closed. Damn!


Funky new building


"The Overseer"


Sculpture on the side of a building


"Dialogue" on Queen Street


It begins.... Our first glimpse of live music in the Queen Street Mall


The Pig & Whistle with Tattersalls Club in the background.


Sahaj Sangeet - An ensemble playing Indian music. They were great - very rhythmic & you could see they were thoroughly enjoying what they were doing.


The Jade Buddha


The Dreadlock Cowboy
(Just to let you know that some of the captions are actually links to the artists' websites - so go, have a look & listen! If it's underlined, it's a link, so get clicking!)


A whole bunch of teenage girls & one guy - can't remember what they were called - something Collective. They didn't really appeal to us.


Scott with a couple of the balls in Brisbane Square


Joseph's Caravan - the St Joseph's Bardon Gypsy Band. A whole bunch of school kids - only their parents were really enjoying their perfomance. But good on them for giving it a go!




Including me!


It was a total blast!


And this lonesome fellow with his accordian playing for about 3 people


Next we found the Cook Islands Cultural Dance Group. Check out this woman's "bum dance"


Then each of the dancers grabbed someone from the audience. I tried to hide behind Scott but was dragged up anyway!


A very bad impersonation of a hula girl! LOL!


But I think I did better than this guy who looked like he needed a shot of vodka & a furry hat!


They ended off with this dance



And then we found Martin Rappeneau - he normally plays Fête de la Musique Paris but came over to Brissie this year. WOW!!! What a beautiful voice!!! And a real character on stage. It was well and truly worth standing in the rain to watch his performance.


Martin Rappeneau with the Brisbane String Quartet whom he had only met & rehearsed with 2 hours previously. Brilliant!


I'm pretty sure if you click on this picture & look at the enlarged version, you'll see the rain falling.


Here's one of Martin Rappeneau's music videos so you can hear what he sounds like - it also gives you an idea of his sense of humour.


The last perfomance we took in was Muziz. Scott had spent the day wondering if he'd see his work mate, Michael performing. Well, here he is, 3rd from the right. They play Egyptian music while Mike's wife, Tamara (on the far right) does a bit of belly dancing.


Heading back to the car.... "Echoes From The North"


Through Anzac Square


A Queensland Bottle Tree


The Anzac Memorial with Central Station & the Sofitel Hotel in the background.


Scott at the fountain in Anzac square


Scott on the steps of the Memorial


We were very surprised to see the flame out. I'm pretty sure the Memorial in Sydney burns constantly.


All very symbolic - the number of columns, steps leading up to the memorial, all have meaning which I won't bore you with. ;)


The Masonic Memorial Temple. Opened in 1930, this is an incredibly imposing building. Wish we could get a glimpse inside.

And that's all for this time folks!

Bye for now.

14 June 2009

Lake Wivenhoe

I was looking around on Google Maps for places to go on a Sunday drive and came across Lake Wivenhoe. It's the origin of the Brisbane River, is one of SE Queenland's main water sources and is just 50km away from Moggill. We took a small picnic lunch and hit the road.... Only to discover that the first road we had to take, Mount Crosby Road, was closed. Scott insisted we take a "short cut" along the side of the road next to a big pipeline. There was no road. Just churned up grass where a couple of 4x4s had tried their luck. I was driving our Astra - not even a 4x4 wannabe! Because there was a bend up ahead, we couldn't even see if the 4x4s had been successful or not. When I refused to take this "short cut", Scott accused me of having lost my "spirit of adventure"..... It coulda gotten ugly but I bit my tongue instead! Ouch! LOL!

We stopped along the way at a bustling little village called Fernvale. Heaps of cars, bikes, trucks & bicycles parked outside this one little shop - Old Fernvale Pie Shop, The Best Pies In Australia. Even though we had our picnic, we couldn't resist & figured that all these people couldn't be wrong. They weren't!!! Fabulous pies - in over 100 varieties & flavours. Absolutely delicious & it won't be the last time we stop there either! Next time we'll take some pics - I totally got lost in pie heaven & completely forgot about the camera.


A is home - B is Lake Wivenhoe


Scott at Logan's Inlet - a picnic area which also has a slipway. Only non fuel driven boats are allowed on the water which is great as you don't have speed boats racing all over the place disturbing the tranquility. All the tinnies we saw on the water had little electric motors.


There's a camp site in the distance there - we're planning a few days away there in for next month


The picnic area at Logan's Inlet


Getting my feet muddy for the pic


A couple with their canoes at the water's edge


It was a beautiful day and we practically had the place to ourselves. There is another picnic area on the other side of the dam wall which was alot busier than this one.


Enjoying the view

A successful Sunday drive discovering somewhere new... Nope, clearly I don't have any "spirit of adventure"..... ;)

06 June 2009

Wintersun Nostalgia Festival

We first heard about Wintersun from Doug, my brother. He's done the artwork for all their printed media - programs, posters, t-shirts, etc. for the past 2 or 3 years. It takes place over a 2 week period and is held in and around the NSW/Qld border towns of Tweed Heads, Coolangatta and Kirra. It is Australia's No1 Rock 'n Roll Nostalgia Retro Event - consisting of all things rock 'n roll, Elvis & 50's retro. There are live bands, dances, swing & rock 'n roll dance classes and exhibitions, everything retro markets. It all comes together on the last weekend though - which is usually the Queen's Birthday long weekend - the thing that brings the punters...... THE CARS!!! Aside from the cars being displayed in 3 ENORMOUS zones, they hit the road in an organised cruise. Unfortunately we missed the cruise on Saturday. We spent the day oggling the cars and the people on Sunday instead.

If you don't like bright, shiny classic and custom cars, you will probably scroll through this blog thoroughly bored. It's okay, there IS something wrong with you and we'll just snigger behind our hands at your unfortunately situation. Tsk tsk!

I took a total of 217 photographs on the day. I've managed to wittle it down to 93 for the blog and that was no mean feat I tell you! I really only took pics of the outstanding cars. And we only managed to get through 2 of the 3 zones! I have no idea how many cars were actually on display - there were so many varying numbers being bandied about that I just couldn't figure out what the true number was. Let's just say A LOT and leave it at that. Sensory overload!

Doug had spent the day at Wintersun with his family on the Saturday but came down and joined us for a good look at the cars. Trying to keep an eye on & chasing after an extremely adventurous 2 year old must've been a helluva distraction for a boy wanting to drool over all that shiny metal! LOL!






On our way down to the Gold Coast in the morning we were engulfed by an enormous thunder storm. By the time we got to Coolangatta, the rain had stopped and the skies had started to clear.


There were alot of Buicks in varying colours


The first of MANY hotrods


"Black Sheep"


DROOL!!!! Shelby Cobra Mustang


Scott really loves the hot rods - maybe has something to do with his love of ZZ Top?


I still dream of owning a Mustang....


Chrysler Imperial


A very orange Buick


There must be a VERY short person who drives this hotrod - anyone taller than 4'2" will have their knees knocking their ears!


This was hand painted


The couple in the photo bought "Herbie" new in 1967.




I just wish he'd put the siren on - I could almost hear it while looking at the car!


And to our surprise, out steps the Sheriff himself - in authentic dress too! He wasn't impressed with this girlie & her sister so.....


Decided to make an arrest....



Scott was completely colour coded to this Dodge truck





Studebaker Bullet-nose



Chevy with a roadhouse tray with hamburger, mustard & ketchup


I think this is a Studebaker Avanti but I could be wrong...


Think that's an Indian on the back of the truck



*sigh* Another Mustang


A night at the drive-in/roadhouse


Ooh! And now we get to the "Rat Cars". I loved these!!! Here we have "Corupt"


"Weirdo" - painted to look like it's made from beaten copper. This was one of my favourites.


Looking into "Weirdo" - love those door handles!



Give new meaning to body art...


A Willys Coupe


Grrrrr...... MzKity


Just a crowd shot...


Not sure what this is but liked the shape of the boot.


This guy's eyes were completely freaky so I asked if I could get a pic - he insisted I be in the pic too.


The boys inspecting an EXTREMELY beautiful Buick Eight "Woody"


Only 1400-odd of them were built in 1952 & this one still has it's original woodwork.


"Woody" towing a beautiful wooden speedboat & sporting a wooden longboard


Drooooo! Another Shelby


Vrooooom!!! Vrooooom!!!!


Cecil turned 80 this year!



Get in, sit down, shut up & hang on...


There were quite a few people dressed up - more as it got later. I suspect there were some late risers after all the festivities on Saturday night.




We saw a few Elvis's. They have a huge Elvis competition & people come from all over Australia & the rest of the world to compete.


I could SO see Doug driving this ute with his boards on the back!


The boys making their inspection...


Another fabulous custom job! Unfortunately it was a real attraction and I couldn't get a very good shot. This was the trailer - it was a replica of the car, just with bonnet & boot joined together. It's the ultimate party car... Fold out bar, bar stools in the back, on the bonnet side of the trailer there's a built in esky (coolbox). The inside of the car is also kitted out with fold down drinks trays, a kick-ass sound system and even has an airconditioner fitted. All colour coded in black and yellow.



Custom kiddie's cars



"Diablo"


Doug in between the hearse & it's trailer


The hearse




Yip, there was actually a baby in there! This was one of a few I noticed.


Crowd shot with Doug in the middle foreground


Big Pink


Another one with wonderful styling on the boot





DROOOOOOOL!


All these Mustangs......


Mandy heaven!!!



Grrrrrr........ Droool....... Pant.......!






Kramalot "Inn"


A genuine mobile DJ! What an amazing setup inside. DJ for hire - only really good for street parties though.


Scott drooling!


This beautiful Astin Martin even had lots of switches and knobs which I'm sure Scott was just itching to try out!


Customised DBR 03


Goggomobil Darts








Hope you enjoyed our trip around Wintersun with us!