Slept ok til around 4am then awake.

Had a bit of leftover pizza for breakfast.

Checked out and drove off the side of the hill.

Driving off the side of the ranges
Driving off the side of the ranges with the view up to Picnic Point

Then onto Chay and Daemon's.  Augie came over as well which was lovely.  Had a mostly healthy brunch there which was awesome.  

Stu.  With cat.
Stu. With cat.

Chay playing the ukulele
Chay playing the ukulele

Then carried onto the airport.  They had a problem with the conveyors at the bag drop, so a lot of queueing and waiting around. Then really slowly through security (and they wanted to send my camera through the system again), so hardly any time in the Virgin lounge (which I've never actually been into).  Managed a quick drink and snack before boarding.

Our flight took us right over Sydney which was pretty awesome.  

The Gold Coast
The Gold Coast

Anyone know what this is at the tops of all the windows?
Anyone know what this is at the tops of all the windows?

Palm Beach and Barrenjoey
Palm Beach and Barrenjoey

Manly
Manly

Sydney CBD
Sydney CBD

Randwick
Randwick

Central Sydney
Central Sydney

Kurnell
Kurnell

Sydney Airport
Sydney Airport

Look Mum I can see our house from here!
Look Mum I can see our house from here!

ANSTO at Lucas Heights
ANSTO at Lucas Heights

Shellharbour Airport.  If you look closely you can see a 747 parked!
Shellharbour Airport. If you look closely you can see a 747 parked!

Coulson C-130H N13206 and Boeing 737-300 N138CG firefighting aircraft at Canberra Airport
Coulson C-130H N13206 and Boeing 737-300 N138CG firefighting aircraft at Canberra Airport

Virgin Boeing 737-800 VH-YVC at Canberra Airport
Virgin Boeing 737-800 VH-YVC at Canberra Airport

Fountain at Canberra Airport
Fountain at Canberra Airport

Got home at dinner time.  The sweetie wisely took the Monday off.  I didn't.  Whoops.

So got to bed around 20:00 which was good. 

The bed was very soft - kept making my spine hurt :(  The aircon was off when I woke up around midnight, so turned it back on again.  Slept through til around 5.

Had some of the chippies to keep me going while waiting for the sweetie to wake up.

Then we headed into town and found a cafe to have breakfast.  Had a nice eggs benedict.

Nice eggs benedict at Latte's & Cake Crumbs Cafe
Nice eggs benedict at Latte's & Cake Crumbs Cafe

Then wandered around.  Found a newsagent to get a card for the wedding, and some cash.  And wandered up to the town hall for some photos.

The Chronicle Clock (1986)
The Chronicle Clock (1986)

Toowoomba City Hall
Toowoomba City Hall

Next we headed out to the Japanese gardens at the University of Southern Queensland (past all the jacarandas!!).  A very pleasant spot.

Jacaranda tree on West Street
Jacaranda tree on West Street

Jacarandas on West Street
Jacarandas on West Street

Pond in the University of Southern Queensland Japanese Garden
Pond in the University of Southern Queensland Japanese Garden

University of Southern Queensland Japanese Garden
University of Southern Queensland Japanese Garden

Lantern in the University of Southern Queensland Japanese Garden
Lantern in the University of Southern Queensland Japanese Garden

Bridge in the University of Southern Queensland Japanese Garden
Bridge in the University of Southern Queensland Japanese Garden

World flags along the entrance to University of Southern Queensland
World flags along the entrance to University of Southern Queensland

Bin chickens (aka ibis) in a tree in the pond
Bin chickens (aka ibis) in a tree in the pond

Stu in the Japanese gardens
Stu in the Japanese gardens

Bin chickens (aka ibis) in a tree in the pond
Bin chickens (aka ibis) in a tree in the pond

Stu in the Japanese gardens
Stu in the Japanese gardens

Waterfall in the Japanese gardens
Waterfall in the Japanese gardens

Ducks flying
Ducks flying

Pond in the University of Southern Queensland Japanese Garden
Pond in the University of Southern Queensland Japanese Garden

Jacaranda flowers
Jacaranda flowers

Bush turkey
Bush turkey

Back at the motel I popped up to see if they needed any help with anything but they were all good.

So we got ready then toddled off to Ben and Sarah's wedding.  Which was lovely!

Then back to the motel for some drinks and pizza.

So I didn't sleep.  Awake from like 12:30 - 5:00ish.  Sigh.  Total zombie, not fully transfunctionating.

Got to the airport with plenty of time to spare (drove ourselves).

Fountain at Canberra Airport
Fountain at Canberra Airport

Had some snackages in the Qantas Club.  First time I'd been there since 2018 - the last time the sweetie and I had actually travelled by plane together!!

QantasLink Embraer E190 VH-UYO at Canberra Airport
QantasLink Embraer E190 VH-UYO at Canberra Airport

The plane was delayed by half an hour, which wasn't too bad considering there was a maintenance workers strike which could have derailed everything.

We took off to the south which is somewhat unusual for Canberra.

Kangaroo scupltures at Canberra Airport
Kangaroo scupltures at Canberra Airport

Googong Dam
Googong Dam

Canberra Airport
Canberra Airport

Canberra
Canberra

Gunning
Gunning

Bathurst
Bathurst

Had some nice arancini balls for snackages on the plane.  But being up the back we didn't get them til quite late.  Which was fine, but they did a garbage run while I was only half way through eating, and then didn't bother to come back. 

Arancini balls on the plane
Arancini balls and apple juice on the plane

Brisbane from the plane
Brisbane from the plane

View of Brisbane from the plane
View of Brisbane from the plane

Moreton Island
Moreton Island

Air traffic control tower at Brisbane Airport
Air traffic control tower at Brisbane Airport

Off the plane I had to set the time on my phone manually - after the dramas in the Caribbean last year where it was randomly changing time zones.

Picked up the car, an MG, and then the long drive out to Toowoomba.  Bizarrely there's no traffic lights whatsoever between Brisbane Airport and Toowoomba.   Literally none.  And you don't see Brisbane really at all, you spend most of it in tunnels.

The only view we got of Brisbane - you're in tunnels and bypasses for the rest of it
The only view we got of Brisbane - you're in tunnels and bypasses for the rest of it

Darwin!  3414 kilometres!
Darwin! 3414 kilometres!

BOM weather radar at Marburg
BOM weather radar at Marburg

Decided to head out to Picnic Point first up, because I knew the sweetie wouldn't feel like going out once we got to the motel.  It was afternoon light when we got there this time, quite different to the morning light I had there ten years ago!  Also went down to have a look at the waterfall which I didn't do last time.

Flag pole at Picnic Point
Flag pole at Picnic Point

Puppy sculpture (mascot of the Toowoomba Thistle Pipe Band), by Vern Foss
Puppy sculpture (mascot of the Toowoomba Thistle Pipe Band), by Vern Foss

View at Picnic Point
View at Picnic Point

Table Top from Picnic Point
Table Top from Picnic Point

Flag pole at Picnic Point
Flag pole at Picnic Point

Foxglove flowers at Picnic Point
Foxglove flowers at Picnic Point

Flowers at Picnic Point
Flowers at Picnic Point

Gardens at Picnic Point
Gardens at Picnic Point

Reservoir at Picnic Point
Reservoir at Picnic Point

Waterfall at Picnic Point
Waterfall at Picnic Point

Waterfall at Picnic Point
Waterfall at Picnic Point

St Patrick's Cathedral
St Patrick's Cathedral

Got to the motel and checked in.  Room is nice enough.  Although oddly there's a little living room space with a couch, but the tv isn't there.  In fact it's facing the bathroom, and with the door open, the view from the couch is the toilet.  Weird.

Our room at Highlander Motor Inn
Our room at Highlander Motor Inn

Kitchenette
Kitchenette

Living space.  There's no tv in front of the couch - just the door to the bathroom.
Living space. There's no tv in front of the couch - just the door to the bathroom.

Bathroom
Bathroom

Bathroom
Bathroom

Grabbed a couple of beers and chips from reception and had those while waiting for Ben and Sarah to get back from the hall.  I went up and said hi and chatted for a bit, then went down to Subway to pick up dinner.  I swear the guy was stoned - I had to repeat things over and over and over again, all the while getting hot and sweaty from the stifling heat in the store.  Lame. Had our dinner and went to bed.

Spirit of Tasmania I

We had an overnight crossing on the way back.  I was too late to get any double-berth rooms so we got a quad, so we had to be super careful about the top bunks.  I really should have brought my pillow up from the car, as the one in the room was so thick I couldn't relax to get to sleep. 

Room 8076 sign
Room 8076 sign

Room 8076
Room 8076

Bathroom
Bathroom

Bathroom
Bathroom

Entrance
Entrance

This was the most expensive place we stayed, captive audience and all.  All the cabins have secluded bush outlooks.  They're well insulated and the gas heater gets the room cozy in no time.  There's a spa in the room which we enjoyed with some wine on our last night in Tasmania.  It did lack some practical things though - there's almost no kitchen bench for working on, no coffee table or side table near the couch for drinks, only space for one suitcase anywhere useful (everywhere else is in narrow thoroughfare), and no power near the only place you can set up a laptop on a table.  We did enjoy our stay here though, it was very private and cozy.

Entrance to cabin 34
Entrance to cabin 34

Mudroom
Mudroom

Living area
Living area

Living area
Living area

Kitchenette
Kitchenette

Living area
Living area

Spa
Spa

Bathroom
Bathroom

Bathroom
Bathroom

Bedroom
Bedroom

Spa
Spa

Spa
Spa

Balcony
Balcony

View of the bush from our room
View of the bush from our room

Bench and view next to the spa
Bench and view next to the spa

Gas fireplace
Gas fireplace

Gas fireplace
Gas fireplace

Cabin 34
Cabin 34

This place was pretty amazing.  The view!!  Spectacular.  Room itself was lovely.  My only complaint was the lack of air conditioning.  I did let them know about this, and they said they were getting it soon.  Global warming and all.  And they're building new houses behind the place, which have a direct view into the bathrooms.  They might need to get frosted glass or blinds.

Front of room 13
Front of room 13

Room 13
Room 13

Table and chairs
Table and chairs

Room 13
Room 13

Kitchenette
Kitchenette

Second bedroom
Second bedroom

Bathroom
Bathroom

View to The Nut from the balcony
View to The Nut from the balcony

View to The Nut from the balcony
View to The Nut from the balcony

Desk next to the bed where I sat on my laptop
Desk next to the bed where I sat on my laptop

View to The Nut from my laptop station
View to The Nut from my laptop station

View to The Nut from the table
View to The Nut from the table

View to The Nut from the table
View to The Nut from the table

Simple cabin in a caravan park.  They really have a captive market in Strahan so this was a lot more expensive that I'd expect to pay in a caravan park.  There's a laundry on site but you have to pay for it, and it's *super* busy.  I ended up going to the yurt laundromat next to Molly's.

Living area
Living area

Kitchenette
Kitchenette

Bedroom
Bedroom

Bathroom
Bathroom

I would describe this place as .. rustic .. !  The dude has built a little cabin on his farm.  He used to run retreats and had a yurt, but that's not there anymore.  The location is idyllic.  Absolutely beautiful.  The biggest problem was that the upstairs bedroom was HOT.  I found it painfully uncomfortable even with a pedestal fan going.  It really could have used an air conditioner.  Still, I'm sure for most of the year it'd be fine.  A change came through around 2:00 which did help a bit.  The dude provided some snackages in the kitchenette, but we brought all our own food.

The bunkhouse (centre) at Camp Inifinity
The bunkhouse (centre) at Camp Inifinity

Sheep on the farm
Sheep on the farm

The bunkhouse
The bunkhouse

Living area
Living area

Living area
Living area

Bedroom
Bedroom

Bedroom
Bedroom

Living area
Living area

Bathroom
Bathroom

Living area
Living area

Kitchenette
Kitchenette

Cluny Lagoon on the River Derwent
Cluny Lagoon on the River Derwent

Cluny Lagoon on the River Derwent
Cluny Lagoon on the River Derwent

Cluny Lagoon on the River Derwent
Cluny Lagoon on the River Derwent

Cluny Lagoon on the River Derwent
Cluny Lagoon on the River Derwent

View of the sunrise from my bed
View of the sunrise from my bed

Sunrise over the lagoon
Sunrise over the lagoon

Sunrise over the lagoon
Sunrise over the lagoon

Peacock on the farm
Peacock on the farm

Quest Savoy, Hobart

We had a full week here, and I really liked it.  Only real complaint was only having a minibar fridge so we coulnd't keep ice cream in it.  And the bed was a bit soft.  But there was lots of space to spread out and it was quite well appointed.  There was a guest laundry that we used.  The location was also brilliant - right in the heart of Hobart next to the Elizabeth Street Mall, so I could pop out to the supermarket or any number of restaurants for supplies.  There's no parking on site, so you have park in a garage a block away, but you do get a small discount.

Exterior of the hotel
Exterior of the hotel

Room 302
Room 302

Bathroom
Bathroom

Bathroom
Bathroom

Kitchenette
Kitchenette

Kitchenette
Kitchenette

Room 302
Room 302

View from our room
View from our room

View from our room
View from our room

Hotel laundry
Hotel laundry

Keysafe for late arrivals
Keysafe for late arrivals

Of all the places we stayed this was probably my least favourite.  It had a lovely view but the room was tiny, so no desk or even a chair for me to use my laptop.  The room itself felt a little tired.  The bathroom had been renovated but the toilet barely flushed.  There was an air conditioner but we didn't need it because it was cool enough. There was also an extra pedestal fan and a fan heater. 

Exterior of the hotel
Exterior of the hotel

Exterior of the hotel
Exterior of the hotel

Room 25
Room 25

Bathroom
Bathroom

No desk or chair and a tiny fridge
No desk or chair and a tiny fridge

View from our room
View from our room

View from our room
View from our room

View from our room
View from our room

Sunrise from our room
Sunrise from our room

Exterior of the hotel in the morning
Exterior of the hotel in the morning