Wine! Silver Bullet Transfers does a wine tour...

I booked my Wine tour with Silver Bullet Transfers some time in advance. This gave me plenty of time to get excited about a whole day of wine, food, and fun!

The tour was a full one and all my fellow wine lovers were in a great mood and ready to try new wines. Our tour leaders were knowledgeable and friendly, pointing out sights for us to look at on the way up to Mount Tamborine.

Our first stop was the Botanical Gardens a lovely cultivated garden covering 11 hectares. We had a short wander through the Japanese garden, the rose garden, and the rainforest walk before settling in at one of the many picnic pavilions for our first tipple, sparkling wine and nibbles to prepare our pallets for the day’s tastings.

After our morning snack we were off to the first cellar door Aussie Vineyards, a lovely spot to which we would return for lunch. The group split into two so that we could all enjoy a more intimate tasting. The wines were nice and we were complimented by the lady serving us on our docility! She could tell it was the first stop…

Next we were off to The Heritage, housed in what used to be the gorgeous Infant savior Catholic Church from Burleigh heads, where the man who conducted our tasting was amazing! He really set the atmosphere, and all the wines he served tasted remarkable! Just goes to show how much influence good company has on the taste of wine. He also regaled us with ideas for foods that would match well with each wine, by the time we had tried eight wines we were starving! Luckily lunch was the next item on our itinerary.

We returned to the gardens of the Aussie Vineyard’s Cellar Door. Our guides had packed a delicious picnic which we enjoyed in the sun, listening to the live local musicians who play each Saturday and Sunday.

After lunch we visited The Cedar Creek Estate Vineyard & Winery and tasted more lovely wines. By this time our group was no longer receiving complements on our docility, and we were all feeling a bit merry. We then moved next door to the Queensland Wine Centre which houses around 100 wines from 14 of Queensland’s premier wineries. There we tasted  eight more wines, all delicious.

Our last stop was the Mount Tamborine Brewery where a beer was quickly poured for each of us. I chose the Czech Mate and it was marvellous. The Witches Chase Cheese Company shares the building with the MT Brewery and we were also able to taste their delicious cheeses, just the thing to go with all our wine purchases!

We had some free time to explore Mount Tamborine’s Gallery Walk before heading back down the mountain. There may have been a little singing in the bus on the way down and you could really tell everyone had enjoyed the day. We were lucky enough to have had a glorious sunny day for our tour but it would also suit a rainy day as the tastings are all indoors. I can’t wait to take my relatives on the tour as soon as they arrive for the holidays, I’m certain I will be very popular!

Tallship Island Adventures

Another perfect sunny Queensland day sees me start my trip on the Tallship Island Adventure to McLaren’s Landing.

All the passengers board the Sir Henry Morgan with the mates resounding welcome ringing in our ears. We can already tell that the crew are amazing. Khan, singer and deck hand extraordinaire, remembered all of our names and was a perfect charmer all day. A brisk Southerly ensures our sails are up and we are off, sailing!

The Broadwater is delightfully smooth and I am just starting to feel I like a total jetsetter with no cares in the world when a speed boat pulls up alongside the Sir Henry Morgan. This is so exciting! We have a little blast around the Broadwater jumping wakes, and spinning circles, exhilarating! A delicious bruschetta is served during the 90 minute sail. This is the life....

Arriving on the dock opens our eyes to the tropical paradise that is McLaren’s Landing, I feel like Robinson Crusoe already. There are Palm trees and tropical thatched huts everywhere, giving the place an amazing atmosphere.

We are served a delicious lunch with a choice of chicken, fish, or steak done on a tropical barbeque with an assortment of sides and salads. Sitting in the shade of a thatched hut I see a little Pretty Faced Wallaby, a native resident of the island. It is so cute!

After lunch we are whisked off on an Eco tractor ride on the tracks through South Stradbroke Island to the beach on the other side. We get to a huge sand dune and immediately the fun begins. We go Sand boarding, and sand rolling! Climbing up the sand hill is pretty hard going and we are soon puffed! We are covered in sand and can’t stop laughing as we troop back to the rig for the return trip.

When we get back to our side of the island we are free to explore or use the beach equipment including pedal boats and kayaks. As the afternoon draws to a close we once again board the Sir Henry Morgan for the return trip to the marina.

I have thoroughly enjoyed my day, and I can tell everyone else has too. It is slightly sad to return to the normal world and I am sure the tropical paradise of McLaren’s Landing will beckon again soon.

Tallship Island Adventures

  

Rez252 Launches its new spring menu!

Spring is the season for freshness and renewal as reflected in Rez252’s menu launched on the 14^th of September. The menu features the best of our regional produce, seafood, and talent in the kitchen! Executive Chef Steven Seychell says the inspiration for his new menu comes from being able to follow his passion for food in such a perfect location.

I was lucky enough to attend an advanced tasting. The menu offerings include amazing entrees like the Pan seared scallops and blutwurst with marjoram served with a garlic potato puree drizzled with chervil vinaigrette

Grilled fillet of kangaroo beside a pastry shell filled with crispy apple and crunchy walnut salad finished with a nashi and plum wine sorbet

And my personal favourite Mozzarella fritters with vine ripened tomatoes and basil leaves served with caramelized lemon and zesty lemon vinaigrette

During the tasting I am in heaven, entrees are my favourite, but we do eventually move on to the mains. There are some delectable offerings from the Nolan’s private selection eye fillet 200 gm served on a red emperor and herb potato cake topped with a chargrilled garlic banana prawn with tomato hollandaise sauce

And I am in love at first bite when I taste the Pan roasted fillet of market fish on creamy mash potato, Asian greens topped by crustacean cappelletti and preserved lemon caper sauce

To the Pan seared duck breast 210 gm on duo potato gratin surrounded with

praline pecans, orange segments and micro herb salad topped by a grand marnier orange reduction

On to the last main and it is a real treat; Roasted pork fillet medallions wrapped in bacon served on braised cabbage, kassler ham and apple with madeira sauce

Ok now I am getting excited… bring on the deserts! The first taster is a Mango cheesecake filled with mango nectar set upon a ginger nut biscuit base with ripened mango yoghurt sorbet

Followed by the most delicious Vanilla bean crème brulee with raspberry ice cream and almond tuile dusted with icing sugar

I can’t resist the Turkish delight and mixed summer berry parfait served with pistachio nut biscotti and rose flower syrup

I finish my tasting with a vittoria coffee latte and the Dark chocolate fondant with duo chocolate ganache and cherry chocolate ice cream.

By the time I scrape the last of the chocolate ganach from the plate I am already planning my next dinner. A read through of the menu reveals I have not tasted the Fettuccini pasta with sautéed prawns, chorizo sausage, basil, confit garlic in a creamy white wine and shallot sauce or the Sticky date pudding with caramel sauce beside double vanilla bean and rhubarb ice cream. Oh well, there is always next week!

Whale Watching!

The morning before our whale watching cruise was slightly tense. I was extremely excited to go, and my husband Alex was very nervous to go. Alex hates to be sick. He is deathly afraid of vomiting. This makes him really worry about boat travel. My advice, me being the nurturing one in the relationship, was “Quit being a baby, it will be awesome!”

As we got to the dock and I could see the Whales in Paradise boat I nudged him and said “look babe, it has a double hull that will make the boat very stable even if there are a few waves.” The crew was very welcoming as we boarded. There was a photographer on hand to take a photo of each group of passengers up at the front of the boat. This photo was later available for purchase and came packaged with a great DVD of the best shots of whales over the last few seasons.

We were quickly off cruising through the canals past the homes of the rich and famous, or maybe notorious, the gold coast’s glitterati. The captain had many juicy tidbits to share as we cruised past houses each more opulent that the last. The sun was out, and the day could not have been more beautiful.

Our Captain motored us straight out to where the whales were, his knowledge of the area and what to look for to get us to them was amazing. Alex of course never had a twinge of nausea he loved every minute; I resisted saying “I told you so” but only just!

The first whale we came across was a lone whale and came up to breath, arched his back and went back under every minute or so. We got some great photos of that whale with the buildings of Surfers Paradise creating a perfect backdrop. Then we came across a pair of whales and this is where things really got interesting! The onboard marine biologist gave a running commentary and fielded every whale question we could come up with. She let us know that she thought this might be a male and a female whale. This was a lucky find indeed as male whales like to show off for the ladies. What a show! First the dive to get up speed, he would show us his tail flukes then a moment of anticipation as we thought will he? Won’t he? Then a huge breach, the whole body of the whale came out of the water and splashed back down creating a huge spray of water. It was spectacular! This went on for quite some time, obviously that was one special lady whale he was trying to impress!

We eventually had to wave goodbye to our lovely whales for the return trip and as we cruised back towards shore we could see the makings of a really great sunset on the horizon. The view as we came back through the canals was breathtaking, and everyone on the boat was taking photo after photo of the city, the lights, and the sunset over the water. When we docked Alex and I both were reluctant to leave and on our drive home had already started planning our next Whales in Paradise trip.

Whales in Paradise

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Australian Kayak Adventure

The sun was out on the day of my Kayak Tour with Australian Kayak Adventures.  When we arrived at the boat ramp I could see that the water was flat, and it would be a great paddling day. Our guide Steven was very friendly. He explained everything we would need to know about Kayaking in a very clear way so even those who had never done it felt comfortable. After the short lesson on shore we were ready to start the paddle to Wavebreak Island.

The kayaks are two person so as long as you and your kayak partner are able to paddle in synch you actually move quite quickly. My husband had to call out left, right, left, right for me because I have no rhythm, but we eventually got it! It was beautiful to look back and see we had well and truly left the city behind.

Steven kindly carried a continental breakfast for us on the front of his Kayak, and it didn’t even get wet! After we had all eaten breakfast it was snorkel time. Steven provided wetsuits for those who wanted them. The water was about 20 degrees so some people decided that wetsuits were unnecessary and just went in swimmers. I wore the wetsuit which kept me nice and warm. There were many fish of varying sizes shapes and colours. I liked the Flute fish even though I could not hear them playing any music whatsoever! Steven had many jokes to keep us laughing all through the tour.

Once everyone had their fill of fish watching we got back in the Kayaks to paddle to our second destination; South Stradbroke Island. We pulled the kayaks up on the beach and went for a bushwalk across the island. We spotted one Swamp Faced Wallaby, and we were also very lucky to see a rare Golden Wallaby. The golden wallaby looked like fire when the sun shone on its fur, stunning!

   

On the way back to the boat ramp we saw a small sting ray jump right out of the water, it was remarkable! We got back to shore right on lunch time and I mentioned that I was starving. Steven pointed out his favourite Fish and Chip shop just near the boat ramp which ended up being marvellous! It was the perfect finish to a perfect day on the water.

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Looking Back to Surfers Paradise

South Stradbroke Island



Intrepid paddler!



Kayaks pulled up on shore



Glitter Strip Glamour Package – Starshots Makeover

When I arrived at Starshots the girls there all had big smiles on their faces. There was a young couple just heading into the studio for their photo shoot together. They were laughing together, and I could tell the girl was very excited. “Let’s get started” my makeup artist said.

As I entered my private change booth I saw a luxurious silky robe, this is what I would spend the next hour and a half wearing as my hair was straightened, and body added. My makeup was professionally done with Arbonne all natural makeup. It was weightless and so pretty! With a bit of digging I found that if you love the makeup as much as I did you can purchase it from Starshots too. I felt very pampered as I sat filling out my client info sheet. It asked me color and personality questions, ensuring that my makeover and photo shoot were tailored especially for me.

Once I was all glamorous it was off to the studio in the back room for the photo shoot. My photographer was very energetic; she showed me how to do all the best poses. I could see that she really enjoyed her job, and making me look my best! By half way through my photo shoot I was feeling just like America’s Next Top Model. Some of the poses were quite awkward to get my body into but they came out looking really graceful. Magic! We did a few costume and set changes and hundreds of photos. “That’s a wrap” said my photographer. I was having so much fun I didn’t want it to end. Returning to a regular girl after being a supermodel is hard!

When I looked through the proofs of my photos I wanted them all! My husband wouldn’t know what hit him when I signed his copies with a kiss. I left the studio looking and feeling like a million bucks, ready to get dressed for a night on the town.

To experience the fun of Starshots yourself you can book our exclusive Glitter Strip Glamour Package. Included is a Starshots gift voucher. Starshots is located in the Centro Shopping Centre just below the hotel in the heart of Surfers Paradise. They can be contacted on 5592 6566.  Once you have had your makeover and photo shoot why not hit the town in your gorgeous new look?

Start your evening by presenting your complimentary sparkling wine drink vouchers to our lovely staff in REZ252, located on level 1.

Whilst staying in the hotel take the time to relax and enjoy some of the facilities on offer.  Our recreation facilities are all located on Level 5 of the building and are open from 7.00am until 10.00pm daily.  The pool is a lovely spot to relax and read your complimentary fashion magazine. Also located on Level 5 is the gymnasium which is open from 6.00am until 10.00pm daily.

To book click the link posted below or contact the Hotel grand Chancellor Surfers Paradise by phone 07-5579-3499 or email stay@hgcsurfersparadise.com.au

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