Saturday, October 25, 2008

Attack of the Ibis




Had a nice day yesterday. I had a leisurely breakfast at one of the many sidewalk cafes near my backpacker on the West End of Brisbane. Walked down to the Cultural Centre, and hopped a ferry up to the Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary. Got to see a lot of Koalas, lizards, birds and things-- even fed a kangaroo right out of my hand. Kind of a touristy thing to do, but I'm glad I did.




The whole South Bank of the Brisbane River near where I'm staying is a huge complex of libraries, museums, and other cultural buildings. There is a river walk full of sidewalk cafes, restaurants and shops, and there was kind of a craft fair going on. There is an incredible arbor, with bright pink flowers on it, that seems to go for miles along the river walk.


I stopped at one of the food stands and got a shrip and chicken roll and one of the incredible Aussie ginger beers. I turned my back on my lunch for a split second to get a napkin, and an ibis jumped up on my table and ate half my lunch in one bite. These ibises (ibi?) are big, creepy looking birds with odd, hooked beaks. They're about twice the size of a chicken and (now I know) evidently quite aggressive. Live and learn, I guess

No comments: