Adventures in the land of pineapples - Brisbane still

Back to our Pineapple adventure (1, 2, 3)! Saturday dawned and it was warm, a sultry 27C. For a midwinter temperature that was very warm to us. Neither Elissa nor I had packed appropriately for the weather so we made do. Thankfully I had packed a couple of t-shirts and skirt.

First on our schedule was a catch up with friends, old and new. A former work mate had moved over to Brisbane a few years ago and I could not leave town without saying "hello". D and I had started at the same company within a week or two of each other and she was always good value in the lunch and shopping stakes! We also met Kylie of Flying Ducks fame. Both Elissa and I had corresponded with her and it was exciting to meet her in person and hear more of her adventures!

Elissa and Kylie had been a part of a package exchange and they took the opportunity of our visit for them to exchange their packages in person. It was Christmas in July - literally! If you are curious what is in the packages then read Kylie's post for a more eloquent rundown. And photos.

We met at the Shingle Inn for morning tea. It was a mountain of food as you can see here and I failed to finish mine. I felt over sugared! High tea was served with a glass of orange juice and a pot of tea, a different twist that I have not come across before.

Here we are, Elissa, Kylie, me and D.

All good things must come to and end and we eventually had to say goodbye. Elissa and I rolled onto our next adventure and waddled(!) across to the Westend in search of some shops that had been in Kylie's guide. A couple we liked (and the only ones that I took a photo of) were Don't Tell Fannie for local fashion and Nook, for handmade and funky designs from Australia and the world. They have many brands that I have previously seen and admired, including versions of the Mattt bag that is now my favourite accessory.


After our sojourn to the Westend we caught a train to Fortitude Valley to see what was there. Shopping was the main activity on the agenda and we did a quick reconnaissance of the shops. I was feeling very poorly by this stage and resorted to over the counter drugs to keep myself feeling vaguely normal and able to still be a tourist.

The next morning we headed out to Southbank for the Young Designers Market. This market was excellently awesome and there were stalls and stalls and even more stalls of locally made and designed items. Clothing, jewellery, accessories, and everything that a girl could want. I was impressed with the size of the market and the amazing range of products. They happen on the first Sunday of the month and I would definitely recommend coinciding your visit to Brisbane with this market.

We were both feeling the pain of tired feet and lack of energy - I am sure that it says somewhere that you cannot get sick on holidays - so we headed to the Queensland Art Gallery to get some culture and also to escape from the heat. Unfortunately this also meant walking around but at least we could frequently stop as we admired the art.