The Sunshine State

Brisbane

Last set foot here in March 2007 when I came to see Grace settle in the new place. At that time, she stayed in Chermside with Ying Wei and Sue Ann and I had lovely memories of the short stay.

I remembered I did almost nothing except cooking meals as the girls were busy preparing for their rotation exams.

Today, I insisted on going back to the place as Grace left Chermside for Mt Gravatt to be with the cousin brother earlier this year. We landed up in Westfield, the mall that I frequented then and we had lunch there.

As usual when the three girls are with us in a shopping mall, they will do nothing except shop until dad said it was really, really time to move on to an outdoor adventure.
So we landed at the botanical garden in the city equivalent to our Lake Gardens in Kuala Lumpur. The difference here is the weather. Though named the sunshine state, Queensland's tropical climate is almost free of humidity and so it's fun to walk around and you don't tire easily.

Walking into the garden

The garden is natural. The colourful flowers bloom beautifully and the animals move around freely without fear and reservation. It was a pleasant evening walk made more meaningful with the girls around us.

Grace as usual must do this jump to show her flexibility.

Lovely marsh ducks with the ibis in the background. They thrive in a very natural state.

Rich yellow lilies.

Esther's photography skills bring out the best in this species - the desert flame

The bold flame of the forest - somehow they seem more lovely then the ones back home

This petite bloom - am afraid I forgot to notice the name of the flora but it's unique

Even the bamboo crop stands out majestically.

The Brisbane river waterfront is just beside the garden. Further down , the city catamaran serves the public and provide scenic river rides along its banks. The public uses this facility to access to both sides of the river.

The family at the waterfront

Dad and his famous pose. He doesn't have this pleasure back home. We have to tear him away from work and rest here. His mobile phone is not allowed to be on.


Dad and his secret smile. He is a lucky man surrounded by women all the time. His girls give him reason to relax.


The city library. Dad said he did a thorough research at this library on the Holden Barina before getting Grace the car earlier in the year. He said it is a lovely library.





Christmas is just round the corner and the city is looking its best again to usher in the season and the new year. Told Grace and Esther that they should see the decor in the Piramid and the Curve and the ones in Brisbane will dim in comparison. They went goo ga ga and cannot wait to go home.

Brisbane city is sweet and definitely slower than Kuala Lumpur...a good place to retire. I could not resist asking Grace if she would ever come back to Brisbane to serve and she told me it's too early to tell.

The day ended with Grace preparing dinner for the family. I ate joyfully cos my daughter can serve a meal single-handedly now and I look forward to her carrying out the new role back home.