Mackay- June 2015

The Cane harvest as usual has had a start/stop beginning to the season.  Tui had a few days driving, then we had 2 weeks of rain.  Luckily he has been able to assist in the workshop occasionally. Maintenance and cleaning of the trucks being the top priority.

Fixing TrucksTam Mudguards

Karen PolishingTam Beating the heat

Tam’s answer to beating the heat on the odd hot day we have had!!

Not much progress on the trailer either, however the platform for the bike has been made.  No side ramp this time but a ramp toward the back of the trailer with the exit being the back door.  Tui has designed it so that it fits over the back wheel of the Microlight.

Bike ramp 1Bike Ramp 5

Bike ramp 3Bike ramp 4

Wednesday the 13th May we headed down to Brisbane, in the work Ute, to the Truck Show with Brett & Tam. Left Tiki Tourer at 6am and after making a few stops, finally arrived at our unit at 8pm that night!  We stayed at the Oaks on Felix, a lovely place.  Two bedrooms & two bathrooms self contained kitchen & lounge area. A bit of a change to being in Tiki Tourer! We were all pretty tired so had a few drinks then Brett went out and brought us all Pizza for tea.

Brisbane DiningBrisbane Lounge

We were on the 25th floor with a balcony that had an awesome view of the Story Bridge. The Story Bridge is a heritage-listed steel cantilever bridge spanning the Brisbane River  that carries vehicular, bicycle and pedestrian traffic between the northern and the southern suburbs of Brisbane. It is the longest cantilever bridge in Australia and is a lovely sight when it is lit up at night.

Brisbane Day viewBrisbane Night view

A short walk to the Eagle Street Pier the following morning for breakfast then onto the “City Hopper” to the Truck Show. The City Hopper service allows you to rediscover Brisbane for free with ferries running every 30 minutes between 6am and midnight, seven days a week. It travels along the Brisbane River, stopping at North Quay, South Bank 3, Maritime Museum, Thornton Street, Eagle Street Pier, Holman Street, Dockside and Sydney Street terminals. All you need to do is hop on and hop off and enjoy taking in the Brisbane River and city sights. A great service!

Brisbane CAT catching upBrisbane City Hopper

 

 

 

 

 

It was then a couple of blocks walk to the Convention Centre, passing the Brisbane Lagoon on the way, named Streets Beach.  A major feature within the Southbank Parkland is this man-made beach, which is 2,000 square metres of free-formed concrete surrounded by 4,000 cubic metres of sand. The sand surrounding the beach is sourced from the Rous Channel in Moreton Bay and every year the beach is topped up with an additional 70 tonnes to ensure that it is kept in pristine condition. Almost half of the lagoon area sits on reclaimed land that was once the Brisbane River.

Brisbane Lagoon

There are lots of other attractions at Southbank but unfortunately we didn’t have the time to check them out.  They include The Arbour, consisting of 443 curling steel columns  an open-air amphitheater,  60-metre tall Ferris wheel, The Young Designers Market,  The Nepal Peace Pagoda, some lovely walkways & heaps of Cafes & Restaurants.

 

 

The Brisbane Truck Show (formerly the Queensland Truck and Machinery Show) is Australia’s premier event for the transport industry showcasing the latest in heavy vehicles, technology, engineering and innovation. It is the largest event of its type in the southern hemisphere and is held every 2 years. A lot of walking! The Brisbane Truck Show occupies Halls 1-4, the Great Hall and the Concourse on the Foyer level of the BCEC (approximately 27,000m2 of space), all the Mezzanine level (approximately 3,000m2 of space) and all the Plaza level including the Plaza Foyer on Grey Street (approximately 5,500m2 of space)!

Brisbane the newBrisbane the old

Brisbane Tui's Mate

 

 

Tui had to have a photo with his best mate!! Pete (one of the Drivers for Fellows) arrived by plane that afternoon and when we got back after a couple of drinks we decided to go to a Pub around the corner for tea. Can’t remember the name but good food!

 

 

Day 2, Tam & Jude decided one day was enough at the Truck Show so the 3 boys set off after being shouted breakfast by Don from Volvo. Jude & Tam chilled out for a few hours, had brunch at the Coffee Club,  then decided to check out the closest shopping mall.  Well that was a bit of a shock!  The receptionist told us to just head up to Queen Street.  We thought it was just a street of shops, how wrong we were!!! It is Australia’s most popular pedestrian mall, playing host to more than 26 million visitors a year.  More than 700 retailers, not merely the state’s shopping hotspot, it is also Brisbane’s heart.  More than 1,000 events take place throughout the mall each year, buskers take over the streets on a daily basis and The City Sounds fills the air with music on Friday nights and weekends. In addition, there is an  Event Cinema, countless eateries, a farmers market , beauty salons, the Treasury Casino & hotel, a Hilton Hotel and NEXT Hotel.  Wall to wall people were overwhelming so after a stop off for Tam to have a massage we headed back to the unit to chill once again.

Queen Stree Mall

Thanks to “Visit Brisbane” web site for the photo

 

 

When the boys got back once again we had a couple of drinks then off to the “Pig & Whistle” for tea.  Amazing meals!!

Brisbane Pig n WhistleSaturday morning it was pack up, down to Coffee Club at the Eagle St Pier for breakfast, out to the airport to drop Pete off then onto Proston to Brett’s parents place.  Brett had bought his Mum a mobility Scooter that we had to drop off.  Proston is a small town in the south-east 280 kilometres from Brisbane and 50 kilometres northwest of the South Burnett regions commercial centre, Kingaroy.  We stayed the night there and man what a beautiful meal Brett’s Mum put on!!  Roast Pork with a massive Pavlova for desert!  Lovely people, great hospitality!  Sunday it was off back to MacKay which was just under 800kms!  Jude & Tam decided that traveling that distance in the work Ute was not the most comfortable and very tiring!  Might fly next time!!

Great Northern Man

 

 

During a clean up in the shed Tui found a “Great Northern” hat (the beer he drinks) so a photo was a must!

 

 

Jude was delighted to hear that one of her best mates, Sydnie, was coming back  to MacKay & Don was to be working with Tui! Looking forward to some girlie days! Also great to catch up with our Mate Jen, who has flown up from Tassie to be with her daughter, who is due to have her baby in a week or so. Pete Hatton (another Mate from last time we were here)  joined us for a couple of drinks while Jen was visiting. Great to see you too Pete!

Tui has just done a couple of days carting wood chips for the Mill, just over a 3hr drive one way. No rain for the last 2 days so hopefully the Mills will get up and running steadily soon.

Well guys & gals that is about it for now.  Until next time “Laugh more, live longer!”

 

 

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