Brisbane!

First of all, thank you so much to friends and family for all your birthday wishes through phone calls, email, SMS, cards, facebook etc!

We had a great weekend in Brisbane, what a city! It didn't feel as congested and busy as Sydney and since it's a pretty compact city, we managed to get around by walking.  We spent the 3 days there walking, eating, drinking and being generally touristy!  The city is a great mix of old and new and there are so many beautiful old sandstone buildings hidden amongst the skyscrapers.  There were some places of the city where damage from the floods in January was visible, but it's amazing how fast the city has bounced back considering the scale of the floods.  All the riverside restaurants were open and the city was buzzing!

Southbank

Birthday drink and dinner by the river!

Subtropical garden in the city centre

River boat cruise

I had the best breakfast ever, pancakes at       the Pancake Manor, an old church made into a   restaurant


                                                          
                                                                                                    

A great view from the Wheel of Brisbane

An afternoon beer break to write some cards

Brisbane Casino

Amazing trees in the Botanic Garden