Family Visit Installment 1

Writing Saturday Evening.

My family- my mother, my auntie (Marianna), and my cousin, Elaine- arrived in Brisbane on schedule at 10:30 on Thursday. (And, I made it to the airport- my first trip there alone- on time, too.) They had a raucous good time on their long, long, long trip from Ohio. They were laughing tears as they told me about their experiences...including the drug store cashier who when Marianna explained that she was leaving that afternoon for Australia asked "Are you driving?", the little girls from Tasmania they met in line for a restroom who were surprised to learn that you could have a cousin when you were a grown up, and the airline steward who was so taken with my mom he gave her a big hug when the plane landed in Sydney. We got all the luggage in our little car- a bit of push the bag in and slam the hatch quickly before it fell out.

Thursday: trip to an Australian grocery- the Pick 'n Pay at the Aspley Hypermarket!
Friday: road trip to the Alma Park Zoo. We enjoyed feeding the deer, petting the koala, and visiting with a wallaby mother and joey. Lunch at an Australian McDonald's (Mackers)...though no one opted for the McOz burger.
Saturday: Kevin took the group house hunting while I worked in the morning. (They weren't able to see any of the houses that seemed like the best prospects. This is the joy of house hunting in Brisbane...again.) I needed to get my hair cut in anticipation of being on the road with lots of photo ops- so the afternoon was spent at Chermside Mall.
Tomorrow- we're looking forward to taking a cruise down the Brisbane River to the Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary. Kevin and I haven't taken the ferry yet- nor have we visited Lone Pine. This should be great fun- though it might be chilly on the river. The literature says we should be traveling past the largest bat roost in Brisbane. I hope it is true. I love seeing large numbers of our big fruit bats.



I can't begin to capture the silliness and all the laughter I've enjoyed the last 3 days. It doesn't take much to tickle these women. And, they are spreading humor amongst the natives, as well. The woman who sat on the bench next to them at the mall was in stitches listening to their discussion of Australian money. And, the waitress at Harry's diner gave us a free slice of cake ("a fat one") to take home for dessert!