Brisbane

The first thing we noticed about Brisbane, or at least, the suburbs of Brisbane, is that it's not nearly as high-rise or as busy as Sydney. What a pair of city-dwellers we have become. In Sydney, there are apartment blocks on every corner. In Brisbane they seem to have more space so there are more freestanding houses on larger plots. In particular there are loads of so-called "Queenslander" houses. I'll get some photos of them in the next few days to show you what I mean.

And here's Mark and Louise's house (with them sitting in the back of their Holden Rodeo, which we have been ribbing Louise about because she appears to have traded a life in Finchley for one in the Aussie bush, with a truck). The house is beautiful, all shiny wood floors and posh halogen lighting. And all this for less than the price of a three-bed semi in Stockton Heath.

We've known Louise for seventeen years, so it's odd to see her new life in Australia, and she's a better woman than me because not only does she have a son the same age as Ella (Hugh) but she has a six month-old baby (Archie) and another one due in December. And she's so calm about it.

Anyway, Mark got the barbie on, Ella cried every time Hugh touched any of her (or his, for that matter) toys and she didn't stop all afternoon.