6 February 2014 - Hotel Ibis Budget Brisbane Airport, Brisbane, Queensland

Budget says it all; you get what you pay for. We are squeezed into a coffin sized room with just enough space for two single beds (not two double or king singles as you might expect) and our Samoan suitcases, three already strapped up and piled ready for their journey across the Sea. The last one lies open ready to receive the last offerings tomorrow afternoon.

We were away from Bli Bli early this morning arriving at the Brisbane Toll Road office at Murrarie on the south side of the Gateway Bridge well before check in time. There we sorted out our toll dongle which we had safely sealed into an empty powdered- potato packet, after reading that aluminium foil was required for carriage to its final resting place. We also used the opportunity to link up our rental car to our toll account for the period we have it and came away all sorted thanks to the excellent service from the aging lady behind the counter. Mature staff should be valued more; this one is worth gold to her employers!

Still too early to check in to the hotel, we drove back across the river and up to Chermside, spending some time wandering around the wonderful Westfield shopping centre there. The centre is very modern and very smart, as well as being one of the largest visited for some time and certainly far superior to the one closer to the hotel at Toombul, which we checked out later in the day with a view to dining out tonight.

Finally we headed back down to the hotel and checked in with our massive amount of luggage and bits and pieces that were obviously useless in the circumstances. The rooms do not have tea making facilities; in fact the use of kettles and cooking appliances is forbidden. We stored some of our food in the communal fridge, an arrangement that is reminiscent of camp kitchens and noted the communal dining arrangement where we will probably have our breakfast tomorrow morning. Indeed this is a budget hotel and should be avoided if one is after a pampered holiday.

But this post is my swan song, although a swan is not migratory and we are likely to be back again because Australia is too wonderful and too big to do justice in just three years, although in all fairness I should subtract the time we spent back in New Zealand catching up with family; four months in all, which means that we actually only spent thirty two months travelling around the country, another reason why we will have to be back.

I shall miss the flora and fauna, especially the wonderful birdlife, the big open vistas, long roads, big skies, wonderful people and so much more. Yes, we will indeed be back, but for now, this is over and out.

Go well, and do as we have done, take the plunge; you only live once!