Part of the rationale for going to New Zealand and Australia after SE Asia was just efficiency. It’d be really inefficient to be so close, only to leave and then come back at another time.
Australia is a bit of challenge because of its size. The continent is huge, and the cities are far apart. A lot of time would get lost in transit, so I just decided to commit to one spot for now.
The choice of where to visit was pretty easy- Brisbane, ’cause of an old friend from my days as a post-doc at the Mayo Clinic. Brad and I were postdocs in the program in “Professionalism and Bioethics” for 1 year. It was a good year- some challenges and some pretty fun times. I’ve found that for some weird reason, working at the Mayo Clinic is a weirdly bonding experience. I think something about living in such close proximity in a small town, and basically socializing and working together through a bunch of the same bullshit forges some lasting connections. Some of my best friends are still from those 2 years.
Anyway- Brad and Erin, and Ava their 20 month old daughter, (and the real boss of the house,) were kind enough to invite me to hang out for the week, which was awesome.
Brad described my experience as… “extreme family time.” I would agree. Ava is a pretty sweet kid- she’s acutely aware of her surroundings, and very concerned, if not insistent, about making sure that everyone is included in the activities she thinks are fun and important. In particular, this includes dancing to “Happy” by Pharrell and “Shake it off” by Taylor Swift. On almost a daily basis. I feel like if I incorporated a daily dance-off to these songs after work everyday, I might actually be a much happier person.
Highlights of Brisbane-
- Mooloolaba and Noosa Head on the Sunshine Coast. Beautiful places with great beaches, good food, and nice people. What struck me is how chill and relaxed it is- specifically that it’s not completely overrun by development and tourists. Great seafood too- see below. Another notable event- was placing a few bets on AFL. I really, really, like Aussie rules football…
- Brisbane West End Markets, South Bank, Botanic Garden and Central Business District. Brisbane is just a great city… it kind of reminds me of the Twin Cities in some ways, but I’m biased.
- Easter Brunch with Erin’s family. Super nice, kind, welcoming folks. First easter egg hunt with Ava. She needed a little coaching, but figured it out pretty quick.
- Grilling out with Erin and Brad’s friends/colleagues. Had some grilled kangaroo, which was pretty delicious.
- Lone Pines Koala Sanctuary. Lots of animals. Ava and I got to share our first experience meeting kangaroos- which is also the featured image. Also koalas, dingoes, platypodes (note this is the correct plural), etc.
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