Surfers and Sinners

We went straight into the Hertz counter, picked up our Nissan Xtrail, loaded the boot with our luggage, which we did get better at as the tour went by, and drove into the city and highway to head to Surfers Paradise. The drive was pleasant. With Vimal’s fantastic ability to catch up on sleep at any time in the car, it was clear that he was not sitting up front. Which meant Arpita and Madhu had the option to swap places. Which they did throughout the trip. Madhu primarily being my navigator during the night time drives while Arpita doing the honours during the day time drives.

We relied on Google to get there. As we neared, we saw some really tall buildings. Most Australian towns reminded me of San Francisco in terms of the ups and downs. The roads though are much wider and it is a lot sunnier.

We wondered how come there were such tall buildings around this area. Later we found out that these were all hotels. We stopped by at a Coles to snack up and drive on to Surfers Paradise. As we entered Surfers Paradise, we saw a town which had a tram line in the heart of

the city along with some fantastic places to wine and dine. We parked in the designated spot, checked in to the Hotel Grand Chancellor. Our rooms overlooked the esplanade and the sea face. It was a stunning view. We had the most happening street right in front of us – Mini Ibiza as they call it or the Ibiza of the south. After a quick snack, we decided to get ready for the night.

We figured it was Ladies night at one of the most happening clubs in Australia – Sin City. After walking on the Orchid avenue, we decided to step into the club. I surely needed some affirmation that ladies night didn’t mean only ladies. It actually meant more men and rightly so!! It was one helluva night. Party. Women. Booze. Music. The best. Simply the best. I have seen places in the US and in Europe. This was kick-ass. There was no place to move. The party was on till late. It was almost like we couldn’t handle more than a party past 2am.

We made a walk back to the hotel. We stopped by at the beach. And enjoyed the starry sky. It was so serene. Only the rhythmic sound of the waves. Musical. Gentle breeze. We decided to take a drive. And see the city and the sea facing villas. It reminded me of Fort Lauderdale and Miami. Only the Ferraris were missing. A lot of Maseratis but no Ferraris.

It was a bright and sunny Wednesday the next day and we decided to learn how to Surf. We

signed up to ‘Go Ride a Wave’ later that day. Vimal chose to share his breakfast with the sea gulls. He placed the breakfast on the table in open at a nearby restaurant and stepped into get some salt and pepper. A flurry of many birds out of nowhere attacked his plate and he had to get a new one. After breakfast, we walked on Orchid avenue and discovered the Frozen yogurt location where you try all you can but buy with weight. And you get it free if you guess the weight. I didn’t get it free but the frozen yogurt flavours were awesome.

The surfing lesson was a lot of fun. A very friendly and encouraging coach. A fantastic afternoon. A nice setting. A superb experience. Few basics and then out to sea. It could get addictive. We had people from Japan, Mexico, China and us from India in the lesson. A stern warning. This could get very addictive. So don’t leave your jobs and only surf – that was his advice. A lot like Golf. I did manage to ride a

wave couple of times. It was a killer feeling. Very satisfying.

That evening was the Surfers Paradise Wednesday market from 5pm. Once we were done with the surfing, we strolled along the beachside market and enjoyed some exclusive shopping. It was sunny and cloudy. There was a rainbow. At one point, there were two. Perfect setting for a nice shopping stroll. If only Soul Sante of this kind was possible in Bangalore, the women thought. Unfortunately, there was no beach in Bangalore.

That night after some heavy rain and an Italian dinner, we continued to party. This time at Vanity. Another club. This was the party hoppers night where in a huge group of party animals were club hopping. It was like people wave. You had a huge group coming in and leaving after a while. We enjoyed the music. Not as much as Sincity. Even though we had a reservation at Shooters the next evening, we decided to go to Sin City itself.

Having seen most of Surfers paradise, we decided to head to Mt. Tamborine for the day the next day. Not before we had some more of the Frozen Yogurt. It was a couple of hours to get there and enjoy some of the local sightseeing. We were clear we didn’t want to get to Seaworld or Movieworld or Wet and Wild – All amusement theme parks. We wanted to experience the not so regular. We

headed to the Skywalk. An exclusive and private rainforest with an approx 2km walk looking right down into the forest. It was wonderful. Arpita was silent. Probably the only time in the trip that she was silent. It was almost like she was in a trance. Even though we didn’t spot any wildlife, it still felt good being at the forest. I met up with friends from school. Meeting some of them maybe after 20 years. Our next stop was the Glow worm caves. This was something different. An education into the lifecycle of the glow worms and seeing them live was exciting. While we waited for the entry to the glow worms, we had our first experience of wine tasting. It was a boutique winery making only limited editions of wine. This possibly remained as one of the best wines we have tasted on our trip.

At the main road of the town, the women continued with shopping while I enjoyed fudge and ice cream. This time it was a brand called ‘Lick’. Hand crafted ice creams. Fantastic flavours. Couverture Dark

Chocolate is what I picked. On the drive back we wanted to stop at Australian Outback, we realized that it is closed on Thursday.