Brisbane 2026

Part 3 of my Australia trip begins and ends in Brisbane.  My niece Anna met me at the train station at Roma Street and I spent the next few days with her family - partner Luke, her son Theo and new great nephew, baby Francesco.  Anna treated me to a whale watching trip which was the same company as 4 years ago but of course the whales gave us a different show.

A day at North Lakes to meet my sister Ady and my nephew Pierre and his wife Toy with Audrey and new great niece Florence.  

A good catch up over lunch then I went home to Bribie Island with Ady.  Walks with the dogs, a photo shoot with pelicans, a trip to Australia Zoo and a meet up lunch with my friends Sally and Peter, a swim, then back to stay with Anna.  All too soon my Australia trip was over.  

I didn't see the baby until I downloaded

Made with my phone by one of the group I met up with to swim.  I only managed around 200 metres while the group did 1 1/2 kilometres.  19 degrees so tropical for me but cold for the rest.

Next blog post will be about my trip to Tunbridge Wells on the RPS Visual Art Group Autumn weekend at end of October.  Off to Glencoe at beginning of November for another photo workshop so may be awhile.

Indian Pacific Perth to Sydney

Part 2 of my Australia trip saw me catch the Indian Pacific from Perth.  A four day trip.  Slightly different from when I travelled on The Ghan with Judith before this blog was created.  Now there were inclusive excursions with the trip.  The first was for a mine at Kalgoorlie which I wasn't very interested in and would have rathered walk around the town.  The weather for most of the trip was rain and cool - similar to what I had left in Lewis.  The next stop was at the Barossa Valley where we had a wine tasting and a dinner at a winery.  There was a good band but the dining was not as good as being on the train.  However, the third trip at Broken Hill was what I was looking forward to.  We were taken around the town by Shelita Buffet then treated to bingo and a drag show.  Very entertaining.  Although I had been to the Blue Mountains I chose to go again on the final trip instead of just going straight to Sydney.  A good trip overall and I met some lovely people.  A wonderful way to travel.

My cabin with a sink.  Although the shower was shared it was a lot bigger than if you had an ensuite and didn't drown the toilet.

Dining at Barossa Valley

In Broken Hill with Shelita Buffet

The Palace Hotel - Priscilla Queen of the Desert

At the miner's memorial

All dressed up

On the cableway at the Blue Mountains

A night in Sydney - still raining and I caught a train to Brisbane early the next morning.  It was 11 hours on the train and then a final 3 1/2hrs by coach.  Although my seat was comfortable it was facing forward so I had to stand every so often in between carriages if I wanted to read.  The buffet was excellent and far superior to the UK but the toilets were just as bad.

More on my Brisbane trip in Part 3.