Surfer's Paradise, day 7 & 8...

As I grabbed our last cappuccinos and logged my last blog, I felt a sad sense of departure on the way to the airport. It was if I was leaving some unfinished business, or in this case, some new joint, a new ingredient or idea yet to be discovered. As we hobbled down the runway alongside Air Force Two (VP Cheney's humble mode of transpo), the mere fact that our family was together, was enough to deter my thoughts. That being said, an awesome fig-raisin and oat "cookie" was served on the plane as a snack. More like a compressed, moist granola-meets-mueslix bar. We landed in Brisbane on the Gold Coast and then moved onto Surfer's Paradise...an oceanfront resort town in Queensland. A Miami or South Beach sort of feel, it was a welcomed sight for sore eyes of the city. An early bite of a BBQ'd Chicken Pizza with caramelized Onions, Tomatoes, Bacon and Pineapple on a nice thin crust was simply great. This was actually an early prelude to a Teppanyaki "show"that we decided to expose our kids to. Think Corporate America Style. A bit corporate yes, but watching the tableside chef flip fried egg as he was cutting two-handed with his spatulas as fast as the foie gras disappears at a gathering of chefs, was well worth the "sell out". The beautiful, jumbo King Prawns, cooked to a sweet, succulent precise doneness contributed a little. Remember, it can't always be my way mind you. I have to hand it to this hotel(Marriott's Surfers Paradise Resort and Spa), they do a great job! It is at least $180 cheaper a night than it's Sydney contemporary and with far many more amenities. For breakfast, they nailed it! Here's a visual...warm banana-nut, chocolate and spice muffins along with coffee cake and danish, right out of the wood fired oven. Mueslix shooters; a cool build-your-own granola bar~ mine was concocted of toasted almonds, pistachios, walnuts, coconut, oats, dried apricots and oven roasted pineapple grown locally. Add a teaspoon of local honey and milk...simply divine. Next I treated myself to one of three different smoothies; mango-coconut and vanilla blended with yogurt, honey and macadamia ice cream. They had everything from omelets "made-to-order" to a Japanese dried shrimp and accoutrement smorgasbord to a spa style fruit palette of global proportion. Hot offerings consisted of your typical fare yet done tastefully and left no detail in absence. One thing I have encountered since my arrival over a week ago, is that there are so many friendly people! Everywhere we go, no matter in what economic shape or type of establishment- we are greeted and treated with the utmost respect and kindness. Politeness and courteousness go a long way. If the rest of the world could even be half as nice, we'd all be so fortunate.