East Coast Australia with Kid, The End
Editor’s Note: This is the final post in a series from John “traveler, father & wit” Ryan. He’s taking the family from Melbourne up along Australia’s eastern coast. Have kid, will travel is John’s motto. Read John’s previous post here.
Our last full day in Brisbane was another absolute beauty! There’s something to be said for travelling with kids. In the past, holidays have been exhausting experiences. And while climbing volcanoes in Guatemala, taking in the view of Hong Kong from Victoria Peak on a long walk, touring Dublin’s pubs, and cramming in 100 Chelsea galleries in a New York afternoon were all richly rewarding experiences, you’re sentencing yourself to high anxiety if you try that sort of thing with little kids in tow.
Not to say you can’t do all of this with toddlers (except the volcano… that was hard), just that – if personal sanity is important to you – it’s best to take a measured approach to vacations. Toddlers make you slow down. They tire easily, like their routines and go totally crazy when they’re over-stimulated. As a parent or guardian, you can either accept that they’re in charge, or suffer the consequences of your own hubris!
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| Seamus enjoying a babycino at Cafe Mama |
Having a virtually agenda-free last couple of weeks has meant we’ve enjoyed almost the entire experience, and Seamus has been relaxed and happy. Good times!
As promised, we spent yesterday in an almost mirror image of the day before. We started out at a really great café in the suburb of Windsor, only a 10-minute drive (or thereabouts) from central Brisbane. Café Mama at the Windsor Garden Supercentre is a blessing for Brisbane’s coffee-starved parents (and a welcome relief for their bored little kids too). In addition to the bright, kid-friendly décor, furniture and menu, Café Mama also has a small fenced-off play area, complete with Thomas the Tank Engine tracks and toys. Mum and dad can have a coffee and a toasted sandwich or muffin while junior can play happily. The play area is probably not big enough to cope with kids over three years of age.
With appetites sated and the sun beating down, it was time to hit the pool (again). Yesterday we discovered the kid-friendly pleasures of the Newmarket public swimming pool; the clear water acted like a shimmering blue magnet again today.
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| Last supper: Spaghetti Junction. Ah, kids. |
So three hours raced by in shaded aquatic pleasure. Young Seamus had a delightful time - although he somehow managed to get shivering-cold at one stage – in 33 deg C (91 deg F) heat!
Out and home for a messy spaghetti meal for the minor and some scrummy Indian take-out for the grown-ups, and perhaps a glass or two more wine than was required. At some cloudy point late in the evening, we went to bed…
And up this morning for the trip to the airport, the holiday-crowd queue at check-in and the three hour flight home to Melbourne. Unlike the fractious flight from Melbourne to Sydney at the start of our adventure - where our pride-and-joy was uncontrollable and inconsolable – the longer homeward flight was a dream.
The little man sat alternately on both parents’ knees and uttered barely a squawk. Relaxed, sun-kissed and with memories that wouldn’t last another hour…
Ah, kids.
Planning a trip? Browse Viator’s things to do in Australia, Gold Coast activities, things to do in Brisbane, and a complete list of kid-friendly and family-friendly tours in Australia.
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