Living in the marina

Mon 18^th – Thurs 28^th August 

 

For the first few days, we lived in the caravan in the carpark at Bribie Island Boat Charters but gratefully accepted the invitation from Brendan and Robin to move into the houseboat when our caravan leaked. Breakfasts on the rooftop deck gave us a great view of the birds diving into the water and coming up in a different place several seconds later. In fact, we were watching them so intently that we almost missed the dolphins. There were always pelicans about, often sunning themselves on the pontoons or just floating gracefully in the marina waterways. When they were on the walkways they watched every move we made with their button-like eyes and their heads that seem to turn right around. One day a large group of cormorants came in, obviously chasing small fish that they dived for. Right behind was a group of about ten pelicans chasing the cormorants to get the fish from them. In all I saw them come in like this three times.  Not far away was the boat ramp where there was fairly constant activity of launching and loading boats. There were kids paddling kayaks and even a canoe full of pink ladies, breast cancer survivors, who go paddling most mornings and finish up with exercises on the lawn.

 A friend brought in 3 large buckets of strawberries that Robyn turned into jam and distributed to friends. At night we played cards with lots of banter and enjoyment. It is never boring when you stay with Brendan and Robyn. They seem to have a constant stream of visitors and there is always room at their table for one more. We admire them for their generosity and friendliness to everyone. I’m sure they have the most used teapot in Australia.