I posted a quick recap of our wedding exactly 4 weeks after the fact, so I’m going to continue that with our trip to Australia. The posts are listed chronologically on our Honeymoon page, so please start there. This post covers Saturday, October 15 through Tuesday, October 18.

Saturday is market day on Bribie Island and my dad wanted to show me around. There was a big storm the last week and there was some suspicion that the weather would strike again, so most of the farmers and other vendors were absent. Farmer Bill was there and happy to see my dad, who had helped to hold down the tent during the high winds while he packed up last time.

We stopped in at grocery store on the way back to fill in the gaps, and I learned about how to handle mangoes properly.

Then it was time for the beach.

We had made plans for Madeleine and Ben to join us on Bribie, but we weren’t exactly sure when and how they were getting there or if they needed a ride in with Kate who was coming from Brisbane. On Saturday we were starting to wonder about how to get in touch with them when they casually strolled up to the front door. This worked out well, because the next morning we were able to video conference in to Mike and Michelle’s going away party back in Vancouver.

Sunday was our big family party. Rather than trying to get all my Australian relatives to fly out to Canada for our wedding, it just made more sense for them to come to a party at my parents’ place. It got very busy very quickly, with 50+ aunts, uncles, cousins, distant relatives, and friends converging on Bribie Island. There were children everywhere, adults catching up or meeting for the first time, and generally a great time unfolding all around. I was so caught up in saying hello to as many people as possible that I barely got any photos until things calmed down as people started to leave.

On Monday, we took it easy and had a bit more of a look around the Sunshine Coast. For no discernible reason, there’s a Greek church on Bribie Island. My parents call it a taste of Mykonos, but I’m sure the vegetation is different.

We visited Michael Pugh in Buderim to see his wonderful studio where a good chunk of my mom’s pottery collection is crafted.

On Tuesday, Wendy was feeling a bit under the weather, so I went with my parents to Mary Cairncross Scenic Reserve to see some of the Sunshine Coast rainforest. On the way, we passed some excellent examples of Queensland architecture.

The countryside is beautiful.

The walk around the reserve is very relaxing, even with groups of school children noisily making their way through. We saw a pademelon, which is surprisingly more like a kangaroo than a fruit.

We stopped in Maleny to visit David Linton, where I wish I’d taken some pictures. The cheese store was also good and we got provisions for the next few days.

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