Brisbane - the food and drink visit

Ahem, I mean the work trip ;)

I tried to paddle to Storey Bridge once.  As I sit here drinking my Riesling  (pinot gris is apparently not a thing in Oz) at Il Centro  looking at the bridge, I'm reminded of that trip.  Noodle (named changed to protect the innocent) and I took a kayak trip on which we were cursed with The Incompetent as our tour companions.

I had the bridge in my sights.  Noodle was keeping up.  The tour guide, however, kept making us stop and wait for The Incompetent.   We'd sit patiently (ok, not), and then paddle like mad when they caught up.  My plan was to get far enough ahead so that the guise couldn't catch up to tell us to stop.  Sadly, he was not incompetent.  Really, I should have booked to do it again (properly this time) this trip.

Instead I'm pushing the boat put on a nice meal and people - watching at Eagle Pier.

I imagine it won't be as exciting as last night with Noodle and Pat (his real name; he's not innocent).  We'd started with a very late lunch at Cafe Mondial in the city.  A very nice lamb and haloumi salad.  Followed by a walk past the suitcase market (teenage girls selling last season's wardrobe for $2 a piece and star wars toys) and, inevitably, to South Bank.

I've been to South Bank before.  This was undoubtedly my most enjoyable visit.  Possibly because with sober driver Pat in tow, I wasn't watching how much wine I drunk.

We found a nice spot on the upper balcony of the iconic Ploughman.  It's been there since 18 blah blah.  The band played steady stream of classics (Australian Crawl, The Proclaimers  (da da duh da), Bon Jovi, Bryan Adams (those were the BEST days of my life), etc.

Noodle was mid story when I noticed a kurfuffle downstairs. I'm sure her story was riveting, but it didn't hold a candle to the drunk patron being held down by two bouncers and a security guard, while a waiter stood by presumably offering tips on technique.  And standing in the way of the chap attempting to film the incident on his phone.

Three cops arrived and the was a struggle as they transferred holding down responsibilities.

(My dinner has arrived and it's delicious.   Barramundi and octopus with a side of green beans and yummy stuff.   Definitely a well worthwhile boat pushing out.)

Back to Crime Watch.  The poor fellow was in pretty bad shape.  I was a little worried for him, particularly when they shooed away the medical professional offering to help and called in the life guard instead.  All was eventually ok and he was lead away in cuffs while cop number three carried his jandals (I can't bring myself to write 'thongs' as there was a disturbing 'show us your crack' moment.

On that note, we headed for Max Brenner where we consumed chocolate fondue, praline chocolates and a thick Italian chocolate drink.  All of it was delicious.   Luckily calories consumed overseas don't count.

Today I have been working.  But I did manage to start my day with a walk through the botanical gardens and across the pedestrian bridge.   For my morning break, I ended up at City Hall.  There's an average museum and a fabulous elevator ride up to the bells and a peek at the clocks from the inside.  You can also wander into the auditorium and some random rooms.  I considered a visit to the Lord Mayor but couldn't fit him into my schedule.

It hasn't been quite as exciting as my previous visits, but I'm pretty sure it's the winner on food and drink.  She says while quietly sipping on a glass of Talisker.