The Bay

Cape Byron being the most easterly point of Australia, is the first place to see the sun in the morning. Byron Bay township is still a hippie haven full of alternative lifestylers but an interesting spot to visit if you are into soul food, crystals, windchimes and possibly, dope.

Byron Bay

A pleasant round trip from the Gold Coast is to Byron Bay via the scenic coastal road taking in towns such as Kingscliffe and Pottsville and returning via Mulumbimby and Murwillumbah (love those place names). The drive through the Tweed Valley is breathtaking travelling around the steep roads of the Mt Warning Shield Volcano. It's no wonder the valley is so fertile, lots of fruit and vegetable stalls along the way.
Our trip was to check out possible places to settle for a while as well as sightsee. So far, Coombabah, a few kms north of the Gold Coast, seems to be the spot but we will continue to "suss" out the area. The weather is as good as it gets now, sunny days and cool evenings.

Dreamworld

 

Annie and I had a good day at Dreamworld.

I guess maybe I'm hard to please but Dreamworld didn't do it for me.

Annie was ecstatic upon seeing the tigers and that made for a happy trip and made it worthwhile.

Annie's tiger show rating 9/10

 

As far as the rest of the place goes? Here's my opinion:

 

For little kids     7/10

For teenagers    2/10

For tiger lovers   9/10

For older people who are not tiger lovers 1/10

 

The park is very commercialised, with lots of retail shops inside,a bit like buying a ticket into K Mart.

The park map showing ride locations? No, retail locations!   

The park has a run down look about it ( how long has it been there 100 yrs? ) with some defunct attractions.

The park has only two really good rides which means lining up - like I nearly did, for 40 minutes ( off peak ).

 

Got little kids - give it a go.

 

If you like tigers -  Annie say's '' Yes"

 

A teenager looking for thrills - No Way Man!

 

Older people - Stay home and do the gardening.

 

My advice really? - unless you like tigers - DON'T BOTHER!  

 

 

 

 

  

Taj

 

 

 

Fw: Tiger Island, Dreamworld

 

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Subject: Tiger Island, Dreamworld

Tuesday morning dawned bright and sunny, a good day for the long awaited visit to Dreamworld to see the tigers at Tiger Island. Twice a day the handlers put on a show, no tricks, just a display of natural behaviour such as tree climbing and jumping over logs and into the pool. Revenue from Tiger Island supports tiger conservation around the globe. In just a decade, numbers in the wild have fallen 96% to just around 4000.

The two female cubs born a year ago will go to other zoos for breeding, one to New Zealand, the other to Canberra.

The Rainmakers

We have done it again! Nothing but steady to heavy rain for the last few days. Too wet to take photos. Even the Gold Coast looks dreary when saturated with rain. Yesterday we drove down to Tweed Heads to cross the border into NSW. We popped into the Twin Towns huge club for a drink and discovered that on Mondays they have trivia afternoons. If all else fails, we will go and check it out. Tiger Island at Dreamworld has been out of the question until fairer weather.

Burleigh Beach