TRAVEL: Brisbane, Australia - crocodiles, conservation and Christmas in July

Mornings in Brisbane are, surprisingly for me, very cold. I was expecting Australia as I know it - blistering sunshine and high high temperatures. Instead, we got 8 degrees. Bearing in mind it is the dead of winter here, it being almost as far South on the globe as you can get. This also means shorter days than those back home, so coming in early meant for a pleasant sunrise view from the plane. 

On our first day in Brisbane, we drove the car about an hour out to Australia Zoo, which in my mind was probably in a larger city like Sydney, but turned out to be pretty close to where we were. Arriving at 11am, the car parks were already very busy - but presumably less so than the day before, which had been Bindi Irwin's 19th Birthday Party, which apparently had over 5000 visitors attending. Probably a bit less manic when we were there. 

Australia Zoo gains its fame from founder Steve Irwin 'The Crocodile Hunter', who tragically died a few years ago from a sting ray attack. Nevertheless, his legacy remains strong at the zoo and almost every sign has a photo of him smiling, so it's nice to see his presence is still felt strongly at the zoo.

The zoo itself was lovely - definitely one of the nicer ones I've been to. Unlike most zoos, the animals weren't 'caged' to the extent that you would normally expect - instead, they're given free roam of enclosures which generally just had lowish fences around the edges that you could clearly see over. This was particularly the case in the 'Africa' section, where giraffes, zebras and rhinos had a massive expanse to wander around in. The whole complex is absolutely massive, so I recommend giving yourself a full day to make sure you see everything. We were there from 11-4, and were very much rushing at the end. 

They have a great variety of animals too - plenty of reptiles, crocodiles, beautiful birds, red pandas, camels, lemurs etc etc, and of course the best of what Australia has to offer - Tasmanian devils, binturong, wombats, koalas and kangaroos. The freedom the animals were given with their spaces was refreshing and made it feel less like a zoo and more like a conservation park, which I think was the aim. and there were a few animals in there I'd never seen before so I thoroughly enjoyed that. We also passed by Robert Irwin, Steve's son, who looks set to continue with his dad's legacy. If you need convincing, YouTube his appearances on various talk shows and you'll see just how much he cares about animals.

At midday, we headed to the Crocoseum to see the Wildlife Warriors show - Steve Irwin's attempt to get people to want to protect animals by educating them on how incredible these species are. It started off with birds, who swooped gracefully (and extremely fast) around the arena, as well as seeing one of the largest birds in the animal kingdom. The second part was crocodiles, Steve's speciality, and we were shown what to do if we come into contact with a crocodile so that we can respect their space and avoid any nasty confrontations. Very informative and amazing to see these animals up close. 

In the afternoon, I had signed up to help with the wombats, which involved heading into their enclosure to feed them and check they're doing okay. The enclosure we visited had 3 wombats - Waffle, Meg & Minibus - two of whom were common wombats and one snout-nosed, the latter of whom was incredibly soft. Wombats are lovely animals so it was great to spend some time with them. I learnt a lot too - did you know they're almost completely blind? This is why you shouldn't appear directly in front of them in case they get a fright and leg it. They're very fast too, and a wombat to the legs is like being hit by a bowling ball. 

As pleasant as Australia Zoo is, I must say that it is a cash cow - entry tickets aren't  cheap (but that's the case with any zoo) and everything else is pay as you go, including animal experiences, photos etc. Worth it? Yes, but probably only the once (although annual membership is a good deal if you live near). If you choose to go for one of the koala experiences, my recommendation would be to wear a thick shirt - mine was very thin and I ended up with some gnarly claw scratches on my torso!

Our final stop was the animal hospital, which I particularly wanted to visit. A $2 donation will get you in. It's not particularly big - just like a large operating room - and it wasn't very busy with animals when I visited, which is a good thing when you think about it, although it means less to see! There were few koalas receiving treatment, all of whom were doing what they do best (sleeping), an opossum, a bandicoot (who even knew they existed - Crash Bandicoot is real, kids!), and an abandoned joey who was being hand reared to be released back into the wild. Not much to see, but I was glad to have made a contribution to the wellbeing of some of these animals. 

Once back in Brisbane, we Ubered in to town (by far the easiest way to get around) to a restaurant on the riverside called Jellyfish which offered a great view of Story Bridge which was lit up in green at the time. Jellyfish is a fish restaurant (the name probably gave that away) and apparently the fish was lovely, although the vegetarian dish was disappointing, but I understand it's not their speciality! If you're looking for good seafood, that's the place to go. 

A fun fact about our trip to Brisbane was that it coincided with July 25th, which is 'Christmas in July' given that it's their winter. As it was a Tuesday, not much was going on, but I hear the celebrations really start at the weekend. So, if you do make a visit to Australia during the summer, that might be a good time to aim for! 

The following day we caught the train into Central station in the morning for coffee at Marchetti near the Tattersall's Club. Upmarket coffee and lots of cakes. Brisbane was busy and bustling - although a small city, there was lots going on including live music blaring out in the streets, and free public swimming pools which I bet are great in summer. We decided to undertake a walking tour, which took us down along the river, across Goodwill Bridge which offers lovely views of the sideline, and along Southbank. I stopped for a cheese and vegemite sandwich (not enough vegemite) to get the true Aussie experience. If you're looking for Aussie cuisine, I would absolutely recommend trying a Lemon, Lime & Bitters drink - it's delicious and I wish they stocked it in the UK! 

The weather was more pleasant during the day (again, sunscreen is a good shout) so it was nice to stroll along the banks of the river. Our return journey was by CityCat, a shuttle catamaran which you can take in place of the train - basically the equivalent of the Thames Clipper. This offers the best views of the city as you cruise along by some insane riverfront houses which one could only dream of affording - although with climate change and increasing flooding I doubt they'll be worth too much in the next few decades! A great way to travel home, and the perfect end to a pleasant few days in Brisbane. 

Advice for Brisbane: whilst a small city, give yourself time to enjoy it. I'm not sure we were there long enough to take advantage of everything the city has to offer, so a few more days would have been pleasant. Whilst it is Australia, bear in mind the time of year. The cold came as a bit of a shock to us, so it's not shorts and t-shirt weather all the time! While you're in Brisbane, or anywhere in Oz I'm sure, try and check out something with animals, and preferably with a conservation angle if you can. Australia has some of the most incredible wildlife that you can't find anywhere else so it would be a shame to miss it!

I hope you enjoyed this blog post! I'd love to hear your thoughts either on Twitter @CiarasCountry or in the comments section below. Be sure to stay tuned for more travel blogs coming soon and let me know the places you'd recommend to visit - I'm always keen to try new places!