We arrived at Brisbane airport late on the 28th Feb, well actually we didn't think it was late - but by Oz standards it was late because the airport train had already stopped running (it was 8pm!) and there was no regular bus, so we had to get an 'airport shuttle' to the hostel that we'd booked. So we had to queue up to book that, then wait half an hour for it, so by the time we got to the hostel it was about 10pm.
We'd booked three nights at 'city backpackers' largely because the frenetic pace at which we'd been moving around the south island of NZ meant that we'd had barely any time to plan what to do once we arrived in Oz (it's tiring, always thinking about where to go next!). So we figured a couple of days to chill out and sort out our plans was exactly what we needed. Besides, in NZ we'd felt like we'd missed out on all sorts of good offers (on transport, for example) because we'd booked things like car hire in advance.
'City backpackers' is one of the biggest hostels in Brisbane and in some ways is very well equipped, with a pool, large kitchen, air conditioning, parking, etc. However it also has a large bar, which if we were younger (about 15 perhaps) we probably would have enjoyed more than we did - it was like going back to a school disco, full of pissed-up and verbally abusive (mainly english, disappointingly) idiots. So we didn't go back to the bar often, which in a way was a shame because the hostel's layout was clearly organised to induce you into the bar if you wanted in any way to be sociable. Clearly this was where their profits were coming from too!
So we spent our time in BrisVegas (really!) wandering around town, buying a SIM for my mobile, and wandering along by the river, which makes the city unexpectedly attractive. The local contemporary art museum even had a big Andy Warhol exhibition on (with a big entrance fee attached - Hannah felt that she'd already seen enough Warhol not to bother).
Then on the Saturday, we met Tara. Tara the Toyota Tarago, a 1984 minivan with the seats ripped out and an Ikea bed and mattress wedged in the back. A Dutch couple had parked it up outside our hostel, desperate to sell as they were leaving for Thailand the next day. We were thinking about buying a van anyway, but were slightly put off by our uncertainty about how long we would be staying in Oz. But Tara was a bargain, and seemed mechanically sound. The Dutch couple wanted $3300 originally, but for a quick sale would take $2000. When it transpired that there was no 'certificate of roadworthiness' (i.e. an MOT) certificate, which is a legal requirement to sell a car in Oz, we offered them $1800. To our great surprise they accepted!
So despite buying Tara on the Saturday we had to stay another night in Brisbane until Monday so that we could get it to a garage, in order to get the 'certificate of roadworthiness', and then transfer the 'rego' into Hannah's name (my lack of a driving license meaning i couldn't legally be the owner just yet). This took all of Monday, as Tara needed new front brake hoses and two new tyres, which cost a bit of money, but not as much as it could have been, considering her age. But, around 5pm, we were the legal owners of a legally roadworthy van, and we headed south! On that first evening we got as far as the border of NSW at Coolangatta, and spent the first of many nights asleep on the mattress in the back, with our stuff stowed underneath... no more camping on the hard, hard, ground for us!
Robin
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