Day 57
Up early today
and Alfie gave me a lift to the Sydney Domestic Airport. I checked in with time to spare for my flight
to the Gold Coast so went and had breakfast. Coffee with an egg and chorizo wrap.
Delicious.
I then took my place
in the departure lounge and was surprised to see that I had seat A1. Any
further forward I would have been sat on the pilot’s lap. After a short wait we were called to board
and I took my seat next to a chap called Darren who ran a small carpentry
business in Corulla called ‘Old School Carpentry’
Old School Carpentry - Servicing Sydney
The flight was
only 1 hour and fifteen minutes, so it seemed in no time we were coming in to
land at the Gold Coast Airport. After
collecting my case I proceeded to the car hire section only to find that my
hire company, Alpha, were located off site but no worry there was a shuttle bus
waiting to take me and others to the pick-up point. This was a good thing
because it took us out of the airport on to the main highway and I always find
this the most difficult aspect of taking a hire car from an as yet unknown airport
and road circuity
I had only
booked a small car and was given a brand-new Suzuki Swift with built in
navigation system. This is unusual I have found because most car hire companies
like to charge extra for these.
As it was only
9.30 in the morning I knew it would be no use trying to check in at the Hotel
so decided to take the short drive to Byron Bay. I was glad I did because it
was an as yet unknown place for me. Very laid back and more like California
than Australia. The sign on entry to the town should have given it away ‘Cheer up, Slow down, Chill out’
It was very busy
and it took me a while to find a parking place but when I did I walked back to
have a look at the beach. As with
virtually every other beach I have seen in Australia it was very large with
acres of golden sand with the white crested waves breaking as they reached the
shore. It was quite crowded but there was plenty of space for everyone.
I stopped here
for some lunch back in the town just behind the beach before heading off to
Surfers Paradise on the Gold Coast, where I would be staying for the next few
days.
After an enjoyable
drive I found my Hotel, The Crown Plaza, easily and after parking on site I
checked in and made my way to my room in the Gold Tower. Terrific room, very spacious with a nice
balcony looking out to sea.
The new buildings going up, presumably because of the Commonwealth Games coming here in April, spoilt the view a little, but it wasn't too bad.
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| Massive work going on around here |
I stayed here for the rest of the day and ate dinner in the hotel dining room. Very good food and excellent service. Then it was a few drinks at the bar before retiring for the night.
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| The cranes all lit up at night |
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