Back to Scarborough

 

There's something unusually photogenic about the palm trees of Scarborough.

 

And with its rocks, and its Glass House mountain views. Makes you want to get enlargements printed and hung on the wall. Come to think of it, that's what we did after our last visit: Feb 2022 visit

 

 

 

I'm still coming to grips with all these Outer Brisbane seaside spots. Many named after English resorts, and mostly a bit on the sleepy side, past their prime maybe as holiday resorts, but probably very desirable as places to live.

Brisbane's hidden gems #1: Banks St Reserve

 

 

 

 

 

Banks St Reserve in Alderley, in Brisbane's inner north-west.

The soul trembles

 

 

And so it should now and again. Like when you visit an inspiring modern art exhibition maybe.

I called in on Brisbane's GOMA, the Gallery of Modern Art, yesterday. On show is an exhibition of the works of Chiharu Shiota, a Japanese performance and installation artist of some note. Here are some of the highlights.

The Queensland Museum

 
 

While on Brisbane's South Bank last week I acquainted myself with the Queensland Museum. It's quite an institution, great for a visit, and clearly a primary authority on all things natural history in the state. It also has a focus on cultural heritage, science, and human achievement.

 

 

 

Lots of dinosaurs of course   

 

 

And a giant squid welcomed me into one of the galleries.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Possums, eagles, all the usual suspects

Lots of things exhaustively catalogued

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This one's a ghost bat

 

 

And this one's a shark that feeds on aeroplanes

There's always Brisbane, just down the line

 

 

When I get tired of the Sunshine Coast's unlimited attractions, I tell myself, there's always Brisbane just down the road. It's a big city, and there's lots going on.

 

When people ask, I tell them it takes an hour to drive to Brisbane. Or three hours. Hard to predict, so horrible can the traffic sometimes be. But there's a pretty good train service. So why put yourself through that?

 

I've found that you can drive to Landsborough station in less than half an hour, and then you can let the train take the strain for the next 80 mins. It costs almost nothing, and there are no parking problems whatsoever.

 

 

 

I revisited South Bank the other day, with its cultural complex of art galleries, museum, entertainment venues and gardens.

 

Still not sure what to make of the big 'Wheel of Brisbane' thing. Real world-class cities don't need ferris wheels. Except Vienna, and maybe Copenhagen. But their ones are different.

Beside the seaside in Scarborough and Redcliffe

 

 

They're outer north eastern suburbs of Brisbane, and they have a rather quaint old fashioned English seaside feel about them. Rather different from the Sunshine Coast, we thought.