The Brisbane River

The Brisbane River rises in the Brisbane and Cooyar ranges of the Great Divide and meanders 214 mi (344 km) through crop and dairy farms in the Brisbane valley, then through the center of Brisbane before draining into Moreton Bay. Its chief tributaries are the Stanley and Bremer rivers and Lockyer Creek. It is navigable for small craft for about 50 miles to the city of Ipswich.

The river is dammed by the Wivenhoe dam. This dam was completed in 1985 to regulate the flow of water down the river. Planning for the dam was initiated after the disastrous flood of 1974.

An article in Wikepedia on The Brisbane River wikipedia-The Brisbane River suggests there is much environmental concern over the river.

"Environmentally, the river is in a poor condition and has been so for many years. The major causes of pollution are excess nutrients, hydrocarbons, pesticides and bacteria which become concentrated in the river and its sediment after flowing off surrounding lands. This river is also considered too murky and it is not recommended to swim in its waters.

Historically, the river was actively dredged by Boral Sands Inc, ostensibly to make the river navigable. The constant extraction of river bed material by dredges has had considerable effect on the river. These impacts include increased turbidity, bed and bank erosion and changes in tidal hydraulics. The tidal nature of the river and the generally muddy nature of the sands removed by dredging created a woefully sludgy clayey sediment load in the river which did not clear. The efficacy of dredging the river upstream of the city reach to make it "navigable" was always in doubt, and the effect of the artificial sediment load in Moreton Bay grew to concern environmentalists worried that sediment was choking sea grass paddocks which were grazing territory for dugong. In a meeting concerning the matter in October 1996, including two State Government Ministers and three Mayors, an agreement to cease the dredging of sand and gravel from the river by September 30, 1997 was formed. Boral Resources Pty. Ltd. resisted the agreement, but ultimately all dredging was stopped by the agreed date.

The river has several important ecological areas where remnant populations of mangroves exist; these include areas around drainage culverts, in Breakfast Creek, New Farm, a small preserve at the city bend, near the Queensland University of Technology and around the shipping terminals at the river's terminus into Moreton Bay.

These mangroves have recently become classified as protected nature reserves."

Now that I've done my environmental bit, let's look at some pictures.

Nine major bridges span the river in Brisbane, and to relieve congestion on city roads, the Queensland government transport agency called Translink operates a Ferry Service with five crossings across the river or a catamaran shuttle service that runs from Bretts Wharf in the north east of the city to the University of Queensland in the south east of the city. (The river flows from south west to north east at this point in it's travels.



The CityCat is a catamaran that can take seventy or eighty people sitting in reasonable comfort inside the main cabin or sitting and standing at the front or rear of the boat with the wind blowing through your hair.



We rode for some of the time at the front of the boat and for most of the time at the rear. The views of the city and buildings and other boats on the river were stupendous.



This is the CityFerry that plies the river crossings in the city.



The river makes a U turn through downtown, this is the Central Business District on the west side of the U ...



... this is a paddle steamer that is used to take tourists on day trips up and down the river ...



... and this is the Central Business District on the east side of the U...



... and this is the Story Bridge - the largest steel cantilevered bridge in Australia. The bridge marks the northern and eastern limits of the Central Business District and connects the CBD to Kangaroo Point.

Swimming with the Dolphins

This was the most amazing experience. I am still trying to come up with words that adequately describe the sensations of touching and stroking a dolphins back and tummy, holding a dolphin's chin and watching their eyes as I talked to it and got the incredible sensation that it was actually listening.






The Sea World at Surfers Paradise, Australia is somewhat different than the US versions of Sea World. There are more interactive activities and less of the choreographed performances with dolphins and whales and seals that you see in the US. There are three shows, only one of which involves aquatic animals/mammals. The three are a show with sea lions who stay mostly on dry land, a water skiing stunt show and the Sesame Street show, where a life size Big Bird, Grover, Elmo, Cookie Monster and a couple of others put on a 15 minute show every hour with songs and dancing to entertain the children. After every second show children line up to have photographs taken with one or more of the characters.

After the show, there is a Sesame Street play area with a carousel, a helicopter roundabout and a wet play area with fountains squirting from the ground.






The interactive parts of the park include the Dolphins shown above and a similar experience with sea lions, a tidal pool where children (and adults) can touch starfish, sea cucumbers and shellfish, tanks where one can scuba with manta rays and small sharks, other tanks for snorkeling on a barrier reef. It is also possible to become a dolphin or sea lion trainer for a couple of hours.

Mooloolaba Beach and Ettamogah Pub

The Sunshine Coast is north of Brisbane. The beaches of the Sunshine Coast are some of the best in Australia for board riding and body surfing. The seaside town of Mooloolaba is 95 km north of Brisbane in the middle of the Sunshine Coast. Warm Pacific waves roll into shore. This is the view north from the Lifesaving Club.


This the Lifesaving Club - the blue flags mark the area patrolled for swimming. It is a relatively small swathe of beach, less than a hundred meters wide, but the life guards do an excellent job of keeping swimmers within the flags.



Grandad and Chloe played in the surf:



While mummy sculpted a turtle in the sand.



As we left the beach, we stopped for a moment to visit the Loo:



Before stopping, on the way home, for a beer at the Ettamogah Pub. The pub is inspired by the cartoons of Ken Maynard. Mr Maynard was a traffic policeman in Melbourne when he started drawing cartoons for police Life Magazine. Over time the Ettamogah Pub cartoon grew in popularity and the Aussie World theme park picked up this popularity to establish the Ettamogah pub as the anchor to the park.

Brisbane and me - a personal view, mostly pictures, a few words

The visit to Chloe, Jacquelynn and Colin has reached the halfway stage. These are a few of the images from the first half of the trip.


One (of the many) highlights was a visit to the Corrumbin Wildlife Sanctuary, not just because of the wildlife, but because Chloe sat on my shoulders. However, Jacquelynn snapped the shot before I had time to suck in.




Chloe is amazing. she is 18 months old, can dog paddle well enough to be safe in water and can now jump from the side of the pool towards her mother in the pool.



We spent a day at Sea World on the Gold Coast, most of the day was spent at the Sesame Street section of the park watching the show (twice) or riding the Elmo and Big Bird and Grover rides. Here I am with the two Chloes.



The Brisbane climate is subtropical and there are some beautiful parks in and around the city. These are flowers in the Roma park.



Some billboards around town defy explanation. I am still trying to get someone to explain to me what worked and dropped mean (fully loaded I understand)



Many restaurants in Queensland are not licensed, so many restaurants allow customers to bring their own beer, wine or even liquor. Some restaurants advertise this by placing banners (BYO - Bring Your Own)outside the restaurant.



One hypermarket we visited covered their parking lot with a canopy to shield customers and cars from the sun.



Junk mail is obviously as great a problem in Oz as it is in the US. However, in Brisbane, many residents have "no junk mail" signs on their mailbox and the Australian post appears to respect the wishes of these people.



To ease congestion the main arterial streets into and out of the Central Business District (known to all as the CBD) have one lane marked as an HOV lane, called T2. In the morning rush hour the T2 lane is the inside lane (the lane nearest the curb) going into town and in the evening it is the inside lane going out of town.




Brisbane has it's own Chinatown. A four block area on the edge of the CBD with Chinese restaurants and food stores.



Brisbane has made a wonderful effort to beautify the city. There are many small parks around town like Wilcannia Park. The city has also painted every traffic light control box with a different scene to match the locality.

Tamborine Mountain, Australia

Food and Wine on Tamborine Mountain

Today we spent the day on Tamborine Mountain, a plateau 580 meters (approximately 1,900 feet) above sea level and 25 km (approximately 16 miles) inland from Surfers Paradise south of Brisbane. The temperature on the plateau is 5-7 degrees Celsius (9-13 degrees Fahrenheit) lower than on the coast and the gentle winds made it an excellent day for walking. There are three villages on the plateau, Eagle Heights, North Tamborine and Mount Tamborine and the three have bandied together to provide the visitor with a eclectic mix of things to do, places to go and things to see.

There are three wineries on the plateau, and three more wineries in the valleys at the southern end of the range. Good restaurants, bed and breakfast accommodations, cottages for rent, gift and antique shops and artists shops and galleries line the road. Seven National Parks provide paths for walking and viewing the thick rainforest and tall eucalyptus trees and the rich variety of flora and fauna that grows on the mountain.

Jacquelynn reserved a table for us at D’Luscious, a small café adjoining the Heritage Winery tasting room. The table was outside under the canopy between the tasting room and the restaurant. The seats were exceptional, a love seat for two on one side of the table, padded wicker chairs on the other side, and to complete the ambiance a guitarist played and sang folk songs from his location on the other side of the tasting room entrance.

The Maitre D was enthusiastic about promoting his special so Colin chose one – pumpkin and basil ravioli with crisp panchetta and rocket in a white wine and cream sauce and I chose the other – seafood chowder with prawns, scallops and fresh snapper delivered that morning from the coast. Jacquelynn chose a potato, chive and cheese pancake served with crisp bacon and garden salad. We each chose a different flavor of milk shake and Colin added a glass of red wine from the Heritage winery tasting room next door. The restaurant discourages patrons from bringing their own wine and instead encourages them to buy a glass or a bottle of wine from the conveniently located tasting room.

The food was excellent, and the portions were large. The flavors melded well together in all three dishes and the food is highly recommended.

Unfortunately the same cannot be said for the milk shakes. At first proffering the shakes were merely flavored milk, Jacquelynn and I complained and more ice cream was added to thicken the shakes. Colin drank his wine and let Chloe drink the flavored milk. Very shortly after finishing the meal and paying, both Jacquelynn and I got stomach cramps that were most painful. We walked for a while to try and ease the cramps, and after 45 minutes or so and two trips to the bathroom mine went away. Jacquelynn’s persisted for the afternoon and evening.

Jacquelynn continued to walk with us as we visited art and antique and gift shops or sat outside with Chloe while Colin and I visited the Mount Tamborine winery tasting room and tasted cabernet-merlot, muscatel and chardonnay. All three of the wines left slightly unpleasant tastes in the mouth during the tasting.

We then drove down the mountain to the Mount Nathan winery where Jacquelynn stayed in the car with sleeping Chloe while Colin and I were ‘entertained’ by the third generation of the family Gibson who own the winery. Unfortunately the younger Gibson – studying history and English at college to become a schoolteacher – did not know much about the wine and though the port was very good, he could not tell us how the fortification took place. Instead he told us that the ‘brandied port’ got its flavor by having fortified wine poured into a barrels previously used to store brandy. The barrels were then spun around so the barrels gave up the flavor of the brandy but no alcohol to the fortified wine. An interesting concept, to say the least, and despite all this whirling around, the port tasted OK, so we bought a bottle.

Australia, Brisbane, Sirromet Winery

Queensland has a small but growing wine industry. Although the climate represents a challenge for viticulturists, the state appears to show promise, particularly for red wines. There are currently 170 wineries in ten wine producing regions growing grapes on 1,500 hectares (approximately 3,700 acres)

The state of Queensland itself is a designated wine zone. Within the state there are two official regions, the Granite Belt covering 790 hectares or approximately 2,000 acres and South Burnett with 420 hectares or approximately 1,000 acres under grape cultivation. The Granite Belt is approximately three hours south west of Brisbane in the mountains on the border between Queensland and New South Wales, South Burnett is two hours north west of Brisbane on the rolling hills of the Great Dividing Range. There are several other smaller growing areas that produce unique wines.

Sirromet Winery is on 560 acres on Mount Cotton just a short drive from Brisbane's Central Business District. The winery buildings, a restaurant and tasting room sit on top of Mount Cotton surrounded by grape vines. Moreton Bay and the sand ridges of North Stradbroke Island can be seen in the distance. The grapes grown on Mount Cotton are used exclusively for producing fortified wines, the climate is not suitable for grape varietals used to produce table wines. The grapes for their award winning red, white and sparkling wines are produced at the Sirromet owned Seven Seas and St Jude's vineyards in the Granite Belt.

This is a link to the winery web site. On the site there is more information on Club Sirromet. Membership in the club entitles the holder to 15% discount on wine purchases and at the restaurant, but requires one to purchase a case of wine per quarter. There is also more information on the restaurant, Luraleen's recently voted 'Australia's Best Restaurant in a Winery' The restaurant was fully booked on our visit to the winery so we were unable to sample the food.
http://www.sirromet.com/index.html

We tasted fifteen different wines and though the memory is a little bit fuzzy, the scribbled notes indicate that the 2005 Seven Seas Sparkling Chardonnay Pinot, produced from grapes grown in the Granite Belt, was enjoyable. It was light and fresh on the nose and fresh and clean on the palate with hints of strawberry and apple, retails for $25 at the winery. Jacquelynn liked the 2006 820 Above Rose, also produced from Granite Belt grapes, this was a little flowery on the nose for me, and the palate followed the nose with hints of strawberry and rose but little residual sweetness. $15 at the winery. My favorite was the 2005 Seven Seas Cabernet, which had a rich chocolate and cassis nose and lovely firm fruit flavors and soft tannins on the palate. An intense, rich red wine that will go perfectly with the steak on the barbie we will have tomorrow. $25 at the winery.

After the tour and the tasting we sat outside and enjoyed a shrimp sandwich and a very nice cheese plate for an early afternoon lunch. I enjoyed a glass of cabernet with the cheese, then Jacquelynn, Chloe and I napped in the car while Colin, our designated driver, piloted us home safely.

Australia, Brisbane, Australian Outback Spectacular

Billed as the show "to make Australians feels good about themselves" the Australian Outback Spectacular is an evening dinner show set in a 1,000 seat arena. It is indeed spectacular.

Each visitor entering the building is handed a straw stockman's hat as part of the entry price. Each hat has a maroon or yellow head-band to identify which side of the arena that person will sit. Then the two sides cheer for a particular station as the riders from each station battle it out through a series of outback related competitions to win the prize as top station for the night.

The evening starts in the Aussie pub, where beer from several of the brand names owned by the Foster's Group can be bought together with any number of drinks in glasses with stems or bases that light up. In the picture Jacquelynn isn't really drinking from two glasses at once, she is holding Colin's beer while he snaps the photo. The walls of the pub contain bric-a-brac and photos from the outback stations, and an Australian country singer entertains the audience while they wait for the start time.

The show starts with a stirring audio-visual presentation of the early history of Australia when the Aborigines lived in harmony with the land.

Then the games begin. One side of the arena cheers for the stockmen and women of Austral Downs and the other side cheers for Wondoola Station. We shouted and stamped and clapped for Austral Downs.

The competition was spectacular, the riders were talented and expert horsemen and women as the hung from their saddles at full gallop or raced flags to the finish line or mustered and broke colts. Of course, there was a sheep muster with a well trained sheepdog herding sheep around the arena and a depiction of helicopter mustering of longhorn cattle.

The show continued while we ate a very good dinner of Queensland salad served with tangy mango dressing followed by barbecue eye fillet steak with gravy seasoned with plum sauce and served with garden vegetable and a piece of Damper - the bushman's bread. Desert was a baked Pavlova served with a Queensland berry sauce and country cream. Beer, wine and soft drinks were available at no extra charge during the meal.

The show ended with a spectacular display of patriotism as the whole cast performed an amazing routine incorporating the Australian flag.

An excellent evening that was well worth the price of admission (AUD$95 per person) Picture taking is not allowed in the arena, so to see pictures of the show and get more information visit their web site at http://outbackspectacular.myfun.com.au/index.htm

The Deli New Farm, Brisbane

http://www.thedelinewfarm.com.au/

On March 31, 2004, the Brisbane News reported “Italian style cafes and restaurants might be ubiquitous in Brisbane, but New Farm Deli is one of the originals and still the best. The deli has been open for almost 30 years and is still the place to go in Brisbane if you want great Italian food….A trip to the New Farm Deli is all the proof visitors to Brisbane will need to confirm what a cosmopolitan and stylish food scene we now have.”

So we went. And ate lunch. Along with several hundred other residents of Brisbane. Our timing was great in that we snagged a table on the sidewalk under cover o a canopy, then Colin and Chloe kept the table while Jacquelynn and I stood in line to order lunch. We chose our food from a giant blackboard behind the counter. We ordered one Pollo Funghi (chicken, mushrooms, cream and topped with Napoli sauce) and the counterman suggested it should be served over rice, one Boscaiola (mushrooms, bacon, cream, wine, garlic topped with a Napoli Sauce) and the suggestion was that it be served over gnocchi made at the Deli, one Deli Salad (mixed salad leaves, artichokes, sundried tomatoes, olives, capers, marinated feta, pan fried eggplant and shaved parmesan) and one fries for Chloe. After paying and pointing out to the cashier where we were seated - look for a guy in a blue shirt with a baby, outside and to the left of the main door - we went back to the table and waited for the food to arrive.


The Deli Salad was delivered first and Chloe snacked on the shaved parmesan while we waited for the other main courses. These arrived shortly after and conversations quieted as we delved into the food. The two pasta plates were quite good, Chloe preferred the Pollo Funghi and Boscaiola instead of the fries, but there was universal agreement that the rice and gnocchi were poor choices for support of the delicious pasta sauces. The salad was bathed overly heavy in olive oil and vinegar dressing and was heavier on the leaves than the other ingredients.

It was great to sit outside on the sidewalk and enjoy the beautiful weather while eating lunch. We can possibly blame ourselves for accepting the recommendations of rice and gnocchi, so I'd proably give The Deli another chance as a better informed consumer.

Brisbane, Queensland, Australia

It is five a.m. and I am sitting on the patio watching and listening to the rain falling. The temperature is a cool 63 degrees. I woke about an hour ago and watched the dawn light gently lighten the white vertical shades covering the windows of my bedroom. The lightening of the sky was heralded by a profusion of birds merrily calling to each other that this was a new day. There were at least four different bird species singing away, though I couldn’t see any of them from the bedroom window.

Brisbane is the third largest city in Australia, as well as the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Queensland. It is set close to the Pacific Ocean and is situated on the Brisbane River. Brisbane is 1,011 km (628 miles, approximately Houston to Amarillo, TX) North of Brisbane, and 4,384 km (2,724 miles, approximately Los Angeles to New York) east of Perth.

This area of Australia was originally inhabited by the Turrbal people whose ancestors migrated to the region across the Torres Strait from Papua New Guinea. The first western explorers arrived in 1823 and this led to the establishment of a harsh penal colony in 1824 at Redcliffe, 28km to the north. It was established at the direction of Sir Thomas Brisbane who was Governor of New South Wales from 1821 – 1825 and whose name was used for the new city. The colony was moved to what is now the location of the Brisbane Central Business District in 1825, and free settlers were permitted from 1842. It was chosen as the capital when Queensland was proclaimed a separate colony, in 1859.

Population of Brisbane is 1.8 million, slightly less than Houston’s population of 2.1 million. Brisbane at 1,804 square miles with an average of 916 people per square mile is significantly larger and less crowded than Houston’s 580 square miles with an average of 3,701 people per square mile. Both cities have a humid subtropical climate though Houston’s mean minimum temperature at 45 degrees f (seven degrees C) is five degrees lower than Brisbane and the mean maximum temperature at 94 degrees f (34 degrees C) is 8 degrees warmer than Brisbane. Rainfall in Brisbane is 114.6 cm (45.1 inches) some 22.5 cm (8.9 inches) less than Houston.

Laurie Lawrence swim school

Every Saturday morning Colin takes Chloe for a swimming lesson at the Laurie Lawrence swim school along with friends Duncan and their Chloe. The children and parents are in the pool together and the children learn breath control and survival skills. They learn how to swim underwater and the feel of their own buoyancy. In this lesson Chloe was encouraged to jump into the water from a submerged ledge and towards the end of the lesson to jump from the edge of the pool towards Colin’s outstretched arms.


Roma Street Parkland.

The World’s largest subtropical garden in a city center. The gardens were developed on the site of the Roma Street railyards. We walked through the gardens and played with Chloe on the swings and slide and climbing frame.
The Spectacle Garden was indeed spectacular with vibrant colors from many colorful and unique subtropical flowering plants. Other parts of the park were arranged so that each area focussed on a specific type of subtropical flora. Around the lake the plantings focussed on wetland species, the forest recreates a subtropical rainforest and the Arid Garden focusses on plants that thrive in the arid interior.

Australia, Brisbane, The Coffee Club

Coffee drinking in Australia has a long history that comes from the influx of Italian immigrants that gained strength from the late 1800’s through to modern times and now coffee drinking has become an integral part of the modern lifestyle for many younger Australians. The Coffee Club’s first premises in 1988 were in a small store on the banks of the Brisbane river. From those small beginning has grown a franchised operation of more than 150 outlets around Australia and New Zealand.

Each franchise is based on great coffee but franchise owners personalize their stores. The particular Coffee Club we visited, in The Gap, had a great coffee shop, and a full selection of snacks and sandwiches on the menu. The coffee was great, and the toasted banana and walnut cake smeared with fresh butter was wonderful. But the neatest idea was a small fenced area for tots to play with a padded floor and padded things to climb on and toys to play with. Mums would come and sit around the play area having their morning coffee while their kids (ages 1 - 4) cavorted in the play area.

CA, Simi Valley, Elephant Bar and Restaurant

One of the pleasures visiting the Moorpark, CA office is the availability of wine by the glass in most of the restaurants in the area. Casual dining restaurants like the Elephant Bar (www.elephantbar.com) in Simi valley have 20 or more wines by the glass with prices ranging from $5.25 for Beringer White Zinfandel or Mondavi Woodbridge Chardonnay or Cabernet to $6.95 for Kendall Jackson’s Vintner Reserve Merlot or Cabernet. At the Elephant Bar all but two of the wines – a Pinot Grigio from Ca’vit ($5.25 per glass) and Reislong from Chateau Ste Michelle ($5.95) are from California. The house wines are Vendange at $4.75 per glass. Portions are generous, moderate prices do not mean small servings at the Elephant Bar.

A really nice surprise was splits of Domaine Chandon for $6.50. One of the nicer pleasures in life is to relax after a 12 or 13 hour day with a glass of sparkling wine and watch the world go by.

While checking out the wine list I ate the Shrimp Adventure Platter. This was a combination of large coconut fried shrimp, teriyaki glazed shrimp and breaded fried shrimp served French fried potatoes and a mish-mash of overcooked vegetables and two dipping sauces. The best part was the Teriyaki shrimp, the other shrimp were completely overwhelmed by the breading.

Service was excellent. Amanda was attentive without being overbearing. The food arrived hot, the drinks were served expeditiously and the bill presented promptly

Tom Bradley International Terminal, Los Angeles Airport

I enjoy traveling, I really do. Travel is an adventure and each event on the journey a new experience to be savored and enjoyed. When one travels there are sights and sounds and smells galore to tickle, titillate or assault the senses. There are obstacles to overcome and pleasantries to be passed with and by people who generally work hard and still maintain a smile despite constant abuse from tired, disgruntled, anxious travelers.

Entering the environs around Los Angeles airport means stepping out of a prosperous, clean, modern America into a rather seedy, dirty, crowded suburb of what could be a minor city in a third world country. The buildings around the airport are drab and in need of repair, there are potholes in the roads and the only bright lights come from neon lights around the entrances to strip – sorry gentlemen’s – clubs and a profusion of signs announcing the presence of all the major international hotel and car hire companies. Entry into (and exit from) the airport is difficult at the best of times and traversing the terminal road hazardous, though Angelinos take near misses from the crawling taxis, buses, limos and private cars very good naturedly.

The International terminal, like much of the airport is being renovated. There are six long aisles with check in counters and one of them is walled off to travelers. People are everywhere trying to speak to porters or check in clerks in many dialects of English then turning to the accompanying parents or grandparents or multiple children and translating into Mandarin or Punjabi or French or Spanish or Cantonese. All seem to be carrying enough luggage to clothe a family of ten comfortably for a month. It is a teeming sea of frantic humanity. The destination board lists planes heading to London, Taipei, Mexico City and 20 or so other cities including, near the bottom, Brisbane, Australia.

There are beacons of light amongst the scowling passengers. A friendly Avis bus driver who hopes I have a good flight and a smiling gate clerk who manages to persuade me that my single bag should be checked since it is too heavy for the overhead bin. She takes my passport, finds my reservation in the computer then tells me I need a visa to enter into Australia. Panic strikes. Visa, what visa? This wasn’t mentioned when the flights were booked on line. But all is well, the gate clerk tells me I am eligible for an instant multiple entry visa that lasts a year and, because I was not told I needed a visa she waives the $25 fee they normally charge. Whew.

The check in lady suggested I eat in the terminal before going through security. It was a well intentioned suggestion, but next time I will eat before arriving at the airport.

There is one restaurant and bar – The Daily Grill – and a choice of fast food – Mexican, Sushi, Chinese, Ice Cream, Coffee and the ubiquitous McDonalds available up one flight of stairs at the end of the check in hall. After much pondering in the Daily Grill while imbibing a pint of Newcastle Brown I chose the chicken pot pie for $15.95. The pie dish was enormous, perhaps 10” in diameter and the pie crust was domed and golden, a beautiful presentation. Unfortunately there was a dearth of chicken inside the pie, the advertised vegetables were conspicuous by their absence, though I’m sure at least a couple of the crunchy things were barely cooked potato pieces. But at least it was hot and the Stoneybrook Cabernet Sauvignon at $6.50 a glass was acceptable.

The check in lady was correct. The barely acceptable fare at the Daily Grill was preferable to having nothing to eat once I had passed through security. The gate area of the international Terminal is one long corridor of 20 or so gates spread out over more than half a mile. In the gate area are a couple of small bars and a couple of snack shops at opposite ends of the corridor. Where are the restaurants and bars normally available at an airport inside the security cordon? There is a captive audience of hungry and thirsty travelers who would be delighted to patronize such places. The situation was desperate for one young man – a youth aged 14, 15 or 16 - who was trying to fill his water bottle at a water fountain. The pressure in the fountain was not enough to produce a stream high enough that the bottle could sit under the stream and be filled, so this young man was filling the bottle cap with water then pouring the cap contents into the bottle. He had quite a rhythm going and after countless trips of full caps poured into the bottle he had a half full bottle of water, which appeared to suffice, since he picked up the bottle screwed on the cap and wandered to his gate area. Can you imagine how much patience this takes. One good swig devours 10 or 12 capfuls. Wow, what patience.

The comparison to a third world airport was further strengthened when they started to load the aircraft. 350 plus people were loaded onto buses, 30 or 40 at a time, then driven to the far side of the airport to board a Qantas 747-400. I wonder if Qantas counts it as an on time departure if all the passengers are on buses by the scheduled departure time.

We pushed away from the remote gate at 12:20 am, some 25 minutes late and a quick look around at the sea of hair peeking over the tops of seats confirmed that nearly every seat was occupied.

The flight, fortunately for all, was uneventful. A can of Victoria bitter and a couple of glasses of Australian wine with dinner, helped put me to sleep for a few hours, though the sleep was not really restful, it would have been much worse without my Bose noise canceling headphones. Woke with four hours to go (my goodness will this flight never end) to watch Al Pacino in Scent of a Woman and enjoyed it a lot. Breakfast was advertised as a mixed vegetable Frittata, I guess that sounds better than a warmed up square of pressed scrambled egg and peppers.

Then 13 hours and 20 minutes after taking off, we landed in Brisbane. Eight am local time. The adventure continues.

CA, Simi Valley, The Courtyard Hotel

Simi Valley’s main claim to fame is that it is the home of the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library. Whatever your politics the library is worth a visit if only to feast your eyes on the magnificent view across the valley from the gardens and to walk through the Boeing 707 Reagan used as Air Force One.

The Courtyard hotel in Simi Valley is conveniently located at the Madera Road exit off the Ronald Reagan highway (CA 118) in a shopping center that includes a Wal*Mart, Bev Mo liquor store, Home Depot and casual dining or fast food at Applebees, Subway, Fune Sushi, Garlic Jims Famous Gourmet Pizza, Panda Wok Chinese, Panda Express Chinese and It’s a Grind Coffee or across the road a Taco Bell, Chili’s or Marie Calendars Pies.

The rooms are comfortable and reasonably large. Each room contains one or two beds, a couch to watch TV and a desk with high speed internet. The beds are comfortable and the sheets soft, but sometimes the towels don’t quite reach the same standards. Each room has it’s own air conditioner / heater that can be a little noisy when the fan is working on high.The staff are friendly, competent and helpful. Breakfast is not included in the room price, the selections include both hot and cold buffet items and at night there is a cash bar serving bottled beer, wine by the glass and mixed drinks during the week. Behind the hotel in a small garden between the hotel and the Wal*Mart is a small swimming pool and Jacuzzi tub. Overall rates are reasonable for the business traveler at $170 - $200 a night.