Brisvegas

Yes, like Nashvegas and Las Vegas this place has the same silly name and character as those other towns. I'm sure there are more Vegases in the world but those are the ones that I am familiar with and will reference in this piece. It's been quite nice here aside from the fact that there were bedbugs in my mattress.

Yeah so to start with we got dropped off at the Palace in the CBD (central business district for those of yall not in the know) which is where I ended up staying for the last 3 nights. This place seemed alright with a cafe to the side, bar below, rooftop terrace/grill, big kitchen, fairly cheap internet all for only A$23 a night. That's about $20 US which I am fine with paying - if I didn't have bedbugs in my mattress. Now lets think back to the childhood saying about don't let the bedbugs bite and have a think about whether we would have ever thought that we would be in a situation to need to stop them. The answer is NO we shouldn't have to think about these things. Anyway I checked into room 112 and John and I had a 5 share to ourselves, quite nice. First, the maid lady comes in and tells us not to use the 2 front beds because they have dead bedbugs on them. Upon further query we found that ours in fact did not have the infestation and everything was grand. The next day I walk back for lunch to find a strange maintenance man in our room lifting mattresses and such. He showed me live bedbugs on each and every one of those 5 beds along with their human blood excrement. Wow. So we get kicked out to a new room which John slyly got us into a 3 share. The only problem with that is that they checked a 4th person into it and I didn't claim a bed so I was screwed again. They put me now into a different 3 share and said tomorrow it will all be right. Again tomorrow it was not alright and I had to stay where I had the night before with all my stuff in the other room. The room I slept in was a party room where the guys got home about 430am each night flipping on lights and being general jackasses. Their stuff was everywhere and they seemed like pretty boys after seeing John Deere mesh hats, Armani sunglasses, and assorted hair spray and cologne bottles littered about. Oh well onto the good stuff.

Brisbane is a great city. It's the biggest little city in Australia. When walking the streets you wonder where the people are that are employed in the 30 story buildings. There is one street, Queen, that is a pedestrian mall and I think half the city is there at any given time. Also, along this mall there are no less than 5 full malls (of US caliber) in 2 blocks. I've heard it is a shopper's paradise but I didn't really need anything. I have 3 shirts and 2 pairs of shorts so seriously what would I do with more clothes? So the first day after walking South Bank and some bridges and botanical gardens with 4 Danes, a Brit, and an American we make it back to the mall to check it out. Was alright but I was starving and thinking about the previously agreed upon meal of hamburgers. This is the best meal when you are eating on the roof of a building in the city with trees and stars around. Nice. Hit the sack early.

Next day was museum day hitting the Brisbane Museum, Queensland Museum, Queensland Art Gallery, and Queensland University of Technology Art Gallery. All very nice museums full of interesting physical science, history, and art from high school/college age kids. Quite interesting and a good way to spend an afternoon. This night brought further luck at the Conrad Treasury casino where I turned $50 into $350 in about an hour. I was happy and got out of there with a bit of wine in my tummy and cash money in my pocket. Also checked out the bar here at the Palace (Down Under Bar - they always have cheesy names if they want backpackers to come) and I have to say that it really sucks and is just the same as Cheeky Monkey in Byron. Next day (Saturday) did the Cliffs Boardwalk on the other side of the river leading over Story Bridge into Chinatown and a side of Brisbane I hadn't seen. Getting back to the hostel I struck more luck when John walks into the kitchen with a Vancouverite who has a surfboard for sale for $100. His buddy left it with his when he went to Thailand and told him to get what he could out of it. My gain. This is a nearly new board with bag and leash. So beyond all other trouble Brisbane was good. Listened to some live American cover songs in one of the parks and talked on the roof for quite a few hours with the Dane girls about everything in culture, travel, life, who knows what. Decided to hit the ATM, I mean casino, again and took another $150 from them and then went and happily slept in the wrong room, but it didn't have bedbugs. Now onto Mooloolaba and then Noosa Heads should be killer. Also am going to the Australian Zoo to meet Steve Erwin today. I will give him a shout out for all you fools.

Brissy: Laugh often. Don't think too deeply or to far into the future, it could get you in trouble. Rockclimbing is a sport I need to pick up. Money won is twice as nice as money earned. I will probably be a pro surfer in the next couple days. Fireworks make everything better. Alone time with a good view is worth spending a day to find. Paint poured into a puddle on a 60" LG flat screen is art and is commentary on all parts of art. Art is also 3 tshirts hanging on a rack. Walking 20km a day make a body tired. Doing push ups is quite strenuous no matter what anyone says.