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The
Antipodean Adventures
Jayne & Simon
Brisbane and Stradbroke Island
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Life on the beach is hypnotically simple-Arise after the birds have sung through their rounds of song and walk to the beach, body surf, lie in the sun, shower, eat, nap...and repeat. As reported earlier, we welcomed in the new year by toasting champagne to the fireworks bursting over Stradbroke Island, with little thought to the Y2K Bug of which you've all no doubtedly heard. There were tribes of revellers and their bon fires scattered about on the starry beach, passersby in the darkness wishing everyone a happy new year. When first I heard of our plans to camp on the island (we got the very last camping site on Stradbroke), I turned up my nose at the thought of camping next to caravans (trailers) and being sandwiched in amongst loads of other campers. But as with many experiences in Australia, I had to drop my comparison with similar situations in the States because of the radical differences. Due to this nation's small population of 19 million (relative to its size especially), crowded just isn't a word which has the same meaning at home. Though we might have been in close proximity to other camping sites, the density was reduced to sparsity on the beach, and this at the height of their 'season'. There was a feeling of peace, privacy and solitude. Fellow campers had a quiet reverence for the place as if the song of the ocean lulled them or perhaps because souls are naturally more gentle in this equation of the hemisphere.
After 4 days of sugar sand and aquamarine bliss, it was tough to leave Stradbroke, or Straddy as it is known. My re-acquaintance with sleeping out of doors reminded me of how the environment so powerfully effects our well being. Sleeping under a roof in a regular bed, surrounded by walls with but a glimpse of the outer world certainly makes it easier to focus on the task of daily living. However sleeping under the stars with only a thin membrane to protect from insects and the elements completely retrains the psyche. The folly of ordinary existence is quite clear and the importance of the moment becomes all.
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Australian's have an outstanding ability to define open space. Everywhere there exist wonderful botanical parks, colorful murals (the wild-eyed and witty graffiti walls are as welcome as the commissioned art) and even a man-made beach in downtown Brisbane. At the Brisbane Botanical Gardens, we were amazed by the iguanas or Water Dragons as they are known here. Everywhere you looked, there was one or two or three or six, ranging in size from 7 inches to a couple of feet. They are so accustomed to sharing their territory with humans that they move only at the last moment before the bustling of busy feet. One day we visited a preserve and petted kangaroos in a large paddocked area (about 3 acres). They were almost as indifferent to petting by humans as to the food offered them. This same place also makes a great effort to support the survival of koalas in the wild and they had many of them for observation and some for petting. The bird we saw most frequently in Sydney was the sulphur crested cockatoo. In the Brisbane area it was the glossy ibis. This bottle cicada is one of about 200 different cicadas known in Australia. En masse they launch a huge buzzing noise from the bushes at sunset.
Modern architecture in Australia has the right amount of whimsy mixed with restraint. There is no hint of the megalomania exhibited everywhere in contemporary American architecture. And the vintage structures are charming and old world--once removed. The traffic of the downtown area has been cleverly diverted along the river, leaving the streets free of much insanity. Daily life around the Landsberger residence has restored my appreciation of the simple pleasures, such as hanging out the wash to dry or letting the 'chooks' in and out of their pen.
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