Sunday 6 July 2014

Sunshine Coast Mini Getaway [25APR14 - 27APR14]

Okay, I really do suck at updating posts, so this is owed from April.

Max, a friend of mine since high school, had finally decided for us to do a mini-getaway. He had not been to the Sunshine Coast since forever. 

After much debate about where to stay in Mooloolaba, we booked a two-bedroom executive apartment at the Mantra Sirocco

This self-contained apartment is too huge, even for 4 people! 

Our first day, pretty much consisted of driving from Brisbane (and we got stuck with a shitty car as the protective-flap thingy near the tyre, was shredded and it made really loud noises whenever we turned a corner, to which we gained heaps of attention from pedestrians!), checking in, and wandering around Mooloolaba area. We had a quick lunch at the Mooloolaba Fish Market: shared a kilo of prawns! Omnomnomnom.

Then, pretty much chilled on the balcony of the apartment: what better way to spend a weekend by the seaside than to have a lot a few beers and some great company.

The Hoegaarden went pretty quickly!

Sunset view from the balcony. What a sight! I think my SLR finally did sunset photos right!

That night, for dinner, we decided on Augellos.
Front: Tuna & Salsa ($25AUD) 
Back: Vegetarian ($22AUD)

Now, Augellos' had advertised that they had won a couple "World's Best Pizza" award, and the Tuna & Salsa, was one of them. The salsa was made from mangoes, which complimented the seared sesame tuna pieces and mild wasabi dressing, however, for $25AUD, I would expect more tuna served on top. Admittedly, the fusion of flavours is quite interesting but it's nothing out of this world. I've had better pizza at Flam's. I still cannot believe they charged $22 for a vegetarian pizza, which was bland as hell. Not a place I would go back to for pizza.

Anyways, we were mostly drunk that night and went down later around Mooloolaba Wharf.


Alcohol makes everybody happy!

The following day, I told Max & Taylor, that I had always wanted to go back to the Eumundi Markets, where we spent most of our morning. There are no photos as I was busy looking at everything! One purchase we made, which was totally awesome: ACID-FREE PINEAPPLES!!!

I used to love pineapples, but most of the time, I ended up with a prickly sensation on my tongue. These acid-free babies, were sweet, pineapple-y and no more tongue pain!!!

Next up on the agenda (Max's insistence), is a nature walk/trail. The one closest to where we were was the Kondilila National Park. I completely forgot about the walk and wore flip-flops/thongs with my Louis Vuitton. Worst mistake ever. I came back from the walk with blisters on my feet. Please note that this trail has many, many stones.




Look at that retard!!

James finally managed to take a not blurry photo of me. By this point, I had given up smiling.

Taylor


Prior to our return to the apartment, we decided on making dinner. Well, Max was the cook for the night. Coles surprisingly sold premium steak cuts. Max had also decided on a blue cheese sauce which went really, really well with the raw steak. That dish, however, was served with potato gems lol.

Mostly tipsy posers in this photo. And yes, we are wearing beer holders/packaging on our heads.

Everybody was exhausted by the end of the day and went to bed at a respectable time. I was slightly sad that the trip passed so quickly!

On the last day, we decided to venture somewhere near the Glasshouse Mountains (before that, James and I insisted on getting Beefy's Pies; the one located right next to the Ettamoogah Pub). I love Beefy's as their pies are big, full of gravy & flavour. Not to mention, I loved their Steak & Kidney pie since the beginning (like when I first arrived in Australia? 2005?). Max wasn't too impressed you should be impressed damn you Max

We stumbled upon another small park by accident whilst having a "picnic". There were a few people standing and staring at what seems to be a normal bit of bush. At first, I could not for the life of me, figure out what they were staring at. Until, suddenly:


Holy shit! It's a snake that had just devoured (presumably, a wallaby) its lunch!

After gawking at the snake, we decided to head into the park (at a gold coin donation per person). It definitely was a shorter walk than the one at Kondilila, and it was pretty enjoyable to escape the heat amongst the lush rainforest scenery.

Spotted a weird looking fungus/mushroom

Turned out looking like an angel lol

It was definitely a fun, short trip and wished that it had lasted longer! :(