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| Day 1 - Monday, October 1st, 2001 Brisbane - Sunny 23°C | ||
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With all the adrenaline overpowering the desire to sleep, we decided to freshen up and head out for a walk-about town. It being only late-morning local time (approx. 11 am), the shops were still relatively empty and easy to browse. We bought some portable lunch food and headed to the in-city botanical gardens to relax and take some pictures. Some beautiful plants and trees are on display here, including a gorgeous violet Jacaranda tree near the end of its blooming cycle. Before heading back to our room, we made a last stop at a small jewelry store that specialized in opal, and purchased a large black opal ring for Lyne. Opal is common in Australia, making even the black opal (rarest and most expensive type) relatively inexpensive compared to the common white variety seen back home. She will cherish this gift forever. Heading back to the hotel, we picked up some fruit and bottled water for our breakfast the next morning. Changing into something a little less casual, we headed down to the hotel restaurant Picasso’s for supper. Both the meal and the service were superb, but ordering coffee in this foreign land will take some getting used to. Afterwards we retired to our room to prepare for our first tour the next day and some much needed sleep. |
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Checking into our hotel was a bit tricky at first. As indicated by our travel planner, our hotel and trip vouchers as well as other essential documents were to be awaiting us at the front desk upon our arrival. When informed that they were not, a swipe of a credit card was required to secure our room. Moments after opening our room door, we received a telephone call informing us that our travel documents had just arrived via courier. Phew, our first potential disaster averted.
