Wednesday 22nd July
This short trip was a long time in the planning. The all-in-one flight, transfers and accommodation package had been booked well before Covid-19 was part of the modern day vernacular but the pandemic meant our trip was delayed and, then, rushed in before August to enable redemption of the Virgin flight component.
The departure day eventually rolled around however we were only convinced the trip would evolve once we were seated on the plane, such were our concerns about the state of Covid-19 border restrictions. The sad irony was that we left a sunny, albeit cool, Bondi for a wet and similarly cool Noosa! I soon realised that the jumpers I had thought about packing but decided against would have been better in my bag than the swimming costume that made it through the cull 🙁
The flight went smoothly enough on departure but the arrival process into Noosa had Mark and I agreeing we would not be flying again until there was a vaccine for this dreaded Covid-19: the lengthy arrival queue at the Sunshine Coast, part of it in the rain mind you, sealed that deal.
The transfer from the airport to our hotel was pleasant though as our driver, Brian, was a chatty bloke. He had left the northern beaches of Sydney some 30 years ago and we heard much about his life here, his children and grandchildren and this helped fill the wet and gloomy 30 min drive to the hotel.
The hotel for our five night stay was the Sofitel which is well located about half way along the busy Hastings Street. This location proved to be ideal given the miserable wet weather as it meant it was relatively easy to get out and about along the shopping strip and to stay dry under the awnings. We had a nice room overlooking the river and, after settling in, headed out for a walk whilst there was a break in the weather. As luck would have it we made it to the Noosa Surf Club just before the rain resumed and it then cleared again as we were leaving. The only disappointment with this visit was that there was no Boiling Pot craft beer for Mark; it is one of his favourites!
Our dinner booking was for 6 pm at O-Ren but it was fairly dark, wet and cold by the time we left the Surf Club and, given we were rather tired, we headed there at 5 pm. There were others obviously thinking suffering a similar fate as plenty of the tables soon filled. This is a great dining option if you are ever in Noosa as it offers an eclectic mix of craft beers and great Asian cuisine; just what Mark and I like!
It ended up being a super early night for us but that suited as we’d had a long few days with painters at our house so we were glad of the fragrant-free room and comfortable bed!
Thursday 23rd July
Our first morning started off much the same way as the previous night: with rain. This meant there was no bike ride for Mark and no beach walk for me. With little else planned we opted for a promenade stroll to seek out a morning coffee before our 10 am hotel breakfast. Our coffee stop was at Noosa Social and this is also another must-visit place if ever in Noosa as the coffee is great! The hotel breakfast was very good and left us assured we would not be eating again until dinner. It was still raining so the next few hours were spent doing some blogging and with a trip to the gym.
Rain was forecast for the next few days too so we decided we would hire a car for Friday and visit a vineyard at Montville, a one-hour drive away. The Avis rental booth just happened to be down near the Noosa Surf Club so of course we dropped in so Mark could have a beer! We headed back to our room after that as I was cold and needed to scour for some more layers to add.
We headed down to the Sofitel bar for our bonus cocktail before heading to the restaurant for dinner. Our meal was delicious and the head chef is to be commended! It was another early night given the cold and damp conditions.
