BNE Magazine Issue 15

FR EE you m r aga zine

Issue #15 JULY/AUGUST 2016

WIN

airfares TO TAIWAN THE HEART OF EKKA

Behind the scenes of Brisbane’s biggest show

STYLE

The Bush brand going global

escape

• Best of Broome • Taiwan’s tribal heart • In the footsteps of Aboriginal ancestors

Flavours of

Queensland

Laura Geitz

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Welcome to your free BNE magazine, brought to you by Brisbane Airport

22

I

contents 5

Brisbane Airport News

Premium lounge a first; aviation careers

expo; artist’s view on show; Airtrain milestone

6

Brisbane Insider A floating festival and generous art prize; celebrating our nation’s ‘Songlines’; text as a work of art and more

8 The heart of Ekka

30 Ways to love whisky and more

The people who make it the greatest show in town

10

Laura Geitz

34

Turning the spotlight on women in sport

Style 12 Lasting Impressions

ESCAPE 16 The tribal heart of Taiwan

The Aussie brand going global

Hiking the hilly terrain is one way to discover the culture of Taiwan

19

WIN airfares to Taiwan

Enter our competition for a chance to win air tickets for two to Taiwan

20

Best of Broome

The sounds as well as the sights of Broome say a lot about its colourful past

22

5 Aboriginal Adventures

Descendants of traditional owners guide visitors through spectacular Queensland country and share their stories

24 Escape Extra

New regional air routes from Brisbane; Vanuatu’s revival; rent an island; best hotels and more

Board games are back; indulge in a champagne getaway; Carl’s Jr comes to Queensland; whisky’s winter tempters and more

WHAT’S ON 32 Selena Gomez grows up

Her first tour to Brisbane; Emma Louise is back with a new album; Ben Elton rewrites rock musical for a new age; heritage inspires new dance works

Darwin’s adventures recast Puppets join actors to recreate explorer’s adventures; plus Broadway songs, a vocal ‘gymnast’ and more to entertain you

35 Events calendar

Find out what’s happening in the city

MY BRISBANE 36 Betty Moinet,

Brisbane French Festival director

What she likes about Brisbane

32

BOOKS 38 10 good reads

From a Bear Grylls adventure to a high country romance there’s a book to suit any journey

GALLERY 39 Day in the life

10

Passengers in transit at Brisbane Airport

NEED TO KNOW 40 Destination map

FOOD & DRINK 28 Regional flavours

42

Helpful information for visitors to Brisbane Airport

43

Brisbane metro map

A festival in the city celebrates the best produce from the Lockyer Valley and more

n this issue we go to the tribal heart of what destinations are all about – hiking the hilly terrain of Taiwan to discover its living culture; hearing the music – not just taking in the sights – to understand Broome’s multicultural past; and going walkabout with descendants of the traditional owners of some of the most extraordinary country in Queensland to get a better understanding of the environment in our own backyard. Even on stage, Bangarra Dance Theatre shares a captivating interpretation of land and people and their stories. Our enlightenment starts here…

BNE magazine is published bi-monthly

by Brisbane Airport Corporation.

Brisbane Airport Corporation, Media Manager: Leonie Vandeven Managing Editor: Heather McWhinnie email: editor@bnemagazine.com.au Designer: Stephen Bryett Advertising sales: Chris May, call 0401 312 312 or email: advertising@bnemagazine.com.au Cover: Peter Wallis/Newspix ©2016 Brisbane Airport Corporation. The contents of this publication are not for reproduction, redistribution or reuse by any means whatsoever or in any form whatsoever without express permission of the publisher.

Advertising: all advertisements in BNE magazine are the responsibility of advertisers. Advertising is accepted on the understanding that it does not contravene the Trade Practices Act. Responsibility is not accepted by BNE magazine for statements made or the failure of any product or service to give satisfaction. The publication of any material or editorial does not necessarily constitute endorsement of views or opinions expressed. While every effort is made to avoid errors, some information contained in the publication may be superceded.

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BRISBANE AIRPORT NEWS

Premium

lounge opens Aviation careers expo Global air passenger numbers are forecast to almost double to more than 6 billion by 2034 and two thirds of that growth is expected to land in the Asia Pacific, according to Ken McLean, CEO of industry association Aviation/Aerospace Australia. That means more planes, more pilots and more jobs expected in the sector over the next decade and the place to find out more about training is the Aviation Australia Careers Expo. See aircraft on display, watch training and evacuation demonstrations and talk to people in the industry. It’s free to attend. Aviation Australia Careers Expo, 10am4pm, Saturday 20 August at 15-25 Boronia Road, Brisbane Airport. Find out more and register to attend at www.aviationaustralia.aero/events/ace/

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Congratulations Donna Tata, of Nerang, the winner of flights to Fiji and accommodation at the luxurious Vomo Island in BNE magazine’s travel competition.

For your chance to win flights to Taiwan enter our new competition on page 19.

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Australia’s first Plaza Premium Lounge has opened at Brisbane Airport’s International Terminal for travellers to access a range of services, no membership required.

Plaza Premium Lounge is the world’s first independent airport lounge which offers passengers travelling on any airline access for a pay-as-you-go fee instead of membership and lounges are open in 27 international airports around the world, including Vancouver, Taipei, Hong Kong, Singapore, Abu Dhabi and London. In Brisbane the lounge is open from 3.30am to 1.30am daily offering a smorgasbord of food and beverages, internet workstations (powerpoints are also at every seat) with free WiFi, TV, international newspapers and magazines. BNE magazine readers travelling internationally will be able to access the lounge at a 10 per cent discount of $60 per person (including GST) until 31 December 2016. Simply insert the promo code PPLBNE10 when booking at www.plaza-network.com

Artist’s view on show Brisbane artist Robert Brownhall has spent six months getting a close-up view of Brisbane Airport and creating a new collection of artworks inspired by what he has seen with the benefit of his ‘Access All Areas’ pass. Brownhall is known for his massive art pieces and this collection is no different with some expansive panoramas of views from the airport terminals and his interpretation of the life of the airport.

Brownhall will give a personal insight to his work as Brisbane Airport’s first Artist-in-Residence at the Museum of Brisbane on 6 August at 11am and his collection of paintings will be on show at the Museum at City Hall 2-28 August.

Follow Brisbane Airport BNE BNE March/April July/August 2016 | 5

BRISBANE INSIDER

Image: Tim Nemeth

Let it snow

Festival for island hoppers

There will be snow at the Winter Festival in King George Square until 10 July. A highlight is the outdoor ice skating rink in front of City Hall, open until 7pm (9pm Saturday and Sunday) surrounded by European-style food stalls and live entertainment. Skating tickets from $12 (child) and $22 (adult). See www.winterfestival.com.au

Australia’s richest outdoor sculpture competition will be a focal point of the 4 Islands Festival in Southern Moreton Bay from 27 August to 4 September. A total of more than $60,000 will be awarded to winning artists of sculptures displayed across Macleay, Karragarra (pictured), Lamb and Russell Islands and submissions from emerging and established artists will be accepted until 15 July for the latest round of judging for Best Exhibit. The festival is Brisbane’s only ‘floating’ festival with events taking place at each of the four islands, from golf and sailing days to live music, market stalls, special performances by local Quandamooka dancers and Indigenous elders sharing their Dreaming stories. Find out more at www.thebayislandsgetaway.com

C’est bon

Find out more about the French way of life and everything they are famous for – wine, cheese, fashion – at Le Festival from 8 to 10 July at the Cultural Forecourt, South Bank Parklands. Live entertainment includes gypsy-jazz and a Daft Punk tribute, bon vivants will love the masterclasses, and market stalls will be brimming with French products.

Find out more at www.lefestival.com.au

Forest of Memories

Celebrating songlines Dreaming tracks crisscross Australia and trace the journeys of the ancestral spirits of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people as they created the land, animals and lores. These dreaming tracks are sometimes called ‘Songlines’ as they record the travels of the ancestral spirits who ‘sung’ the land into life and so Songlines: The living narrative of our nation is the theme for NAIDOC Week celebrated nation-wide 3-10 July. Events from morning teas to cultural performances are held across Queensland, including a Family Fun Day at Musgrave Park, West End, on 8 July which celebrates 25 years of NAIDOC Week. For more information and events see www.naidoc.org.au 6 | BNE July/August 2016

The power of words If you want to say something, write it,” says Innisfailborn and Brisbane-based artist Vernon Ah Kee who uses text as an art form to create some of his largest works.

Although the artist also works with video, photography, digital design, painting, printmaking and drawing, his own reading turned Kee on to the beauty of text. The writing of artist and activist Kevin Gilbert particularly was an inspiration early on. “I loved the language, so clear and unapologetic. He wrote beautifully,” he says.

Posters and advertising in magazines and on billboards also caught his attention as he admired the text design – the structure of fonts and spacing and how they built an abstract shape. “Text is immediate,” he says.

Kee uses his text works to form a critique of Australian culture from the perspective of the Aboriginal experience of contemporary life. His latest work will be monumental, created for the Institute of Modern Art (IMA) in Fortitude Valley and the first of their so-called Courtyard Commissions to activate outdoor space and it will be visible from busy Brunswick Street.

Kee’s work will be displayed from 30 July coinciding with new exhibitions at IMA Misadventure by Luke Willis Thompson and Independence Day 1934-1975 by Maryam Jafri. See www.ima.org.au Vernon Ah Kee, right, and top: Authors of Devastation, a previous work shown at Griffith University Art Gallery and Milani Gallery, Woolloongabba.

FEATURE

L

ew Osborne is a fifth generation showman and his wife of almost 40 years is sixth generation. Back when her great great grandfather was in the business the sideshows were things like handwriting analysis and novelty stalls rather than laughing clowns and shooting galleries. Osborne’s own grandfather operated the early version of a photo booth which he carted around from show to show on the back of a truck. People would have their pictures taken and Lew’s grandmother would be hiding in the back with the dishes of liquid to process the strip of photos while the customers waited out front.

“When I was young we’d go to a lot of country towns for the shows and people would come up to my Mum and Dad and tell them they still had one of those strip photos,” says Osborne. Those were the days when men wore a suit to the show, he recalls, and ‘stars’ of the show were Samson the Strongman and Big Chief Little Wolf, who used to be a wrestler. The showmen would put their vehicles on the train and they’d be welcomed at the stations when they got off with their caravans and paraphernalia.

Osborne and his family have been based in Queensland for 30 years operating L&L

8 | BNE July/August 2016

Osborne Showtime and travelling the circuit of agricultural shows from Cairns to Brisbane and beyond. Osborne also does the shows in Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide and Perth and in country NSW, keeping him on the road for 10 months of the year – and he’s not alone.

Osborne estimates there are about 450 families across Australia, who are members of the Showmen’s Guild of Australasia, making a similar trek. Counting everyone connected with those groups there are as many as 4000 people travelling in convoys across the country. Surprisingly, they are travelling only about 15-40,000km a year as most have mapped out their show dates and routes to avoid a lot of back tracking – but that doesn’t mean that some family operators aren’t making more than one trip. Osborne says some of the smaller operators driving their own vehicles may go back distances of 100-200km to pick up another load. Osborne often travels with a 40-foot caravan and both he and his wife drive semi-trailers.

He will be bringing two of his most popular amusements to Ekka in August this year – the Haunted Dark Ride and 9D Cinema, two ‘rides’ he rarely leaves behind. The 9D cinema takes the

3D experience up a notch where the viewer really feels the sensation of what’s happening on the screen in front of them – that may mean a snow fall, wind, rain or whatever is part of the scene they are watching.

Seeing the smiles and hearing the chuckles of people as they come off a ride is what makes Osborne’s day. He also loves the travelling life.

“It’s a wonderful lifestyle. It can be hard at times, particularly when the weather turns nasty but the show must go on! We’ve got friends in towns scattered across the country,” he says. “It’s really a journey and an education.” There’s plenty to learn at the showgrounds but leaving his children in Brisbane when they were young so they could go to school was particularly tough, says Osborne.

Times have changed, though, and now children up to year 7 have the option of attending the National School for Travelling Show Children, a mobile classroom that travels the show circuit.

Osborne’s son, now 25, has also joined the family business and sometimes takes rides in a different direction, travelling with his fiancée who is also from a show family, or joining his Dad for the bigger shows. During Ekka they will be staying at a nearby caravan park while Osborne

Ekka is Queensland’s favourite show and it’s the people who make it. For some it’s their life. Heather McWhinnie uncovers some of the hidden gems

will commute to his home base on the Gold Coast for some rare “home time”. For others, their home is their caravan.

It takes the Osbornes about 10 days to set up and do the preparation for Ekka which might include a new coat of paint for some of the rides so that everything is spick and span for one of their biggest shows of the year.

“Ekka is unlike any other show in the country and I think it’s because of the Queensland people.

Ekka is one of the most family-oriented shows in the country. It’s got a feeling that you can’t put your finger on that is different to any other show. We’ve always loved it. Just the word itself is unique. There isn’t another show like it.”

Mother of two Karen Maguire has been a ‘show girl’ since her school days. Growing up in Caboolture “when it was the bush” Maguire would be at Ekka every year in her school days showing cattle. “We were able to sleep there for the week,” says the ebullient Maguire.

However, she’s competing in a very different category now. “When I was in my 20s I was still going to Ekka every year with a bunch of girlfriends and one day we looked at the cakes and I thought ‘I can make a banana cake like that’ and that’s where it started. I entered the next year and I’ve been entering since then for about 16 years. It took me 10 years to get a blue ribbon,” she says.

In the early days Maguire would make multiple cakes and take them to work to get people to try them to perfect her recipe. “I

Ekka is on 5-14 August at Brisbane Showgrounds, Bowen Hills. For details see www.ekka.com.au

used to lie on the floor with my Ugg boots on and pressed up against the oven door to keep it closed,” she laughs.

These days she’s not quite so pedantic but banana cake is still her specialty and she’s won many more ribbons, but now she has some competition in her own household. Son Charlie has won blue ribbons two years in a row – the first two years he has entered – for his Anzac biscuits in the Under 11 age group. This year Maguire’s daughter Morgan, 6, will be entering for the first time too, making Anzacs and decorated Arrowroot biscuits. Charlie is adding a marble cake to his repertoire this year and Maguire is entering more cakes than ever, presenting her banana cake, a carrot cake, madeira cake, date roll (which she won in the novice class last year), tea cake and a chocolate loaf she is entering in the novice class.

Maguire admits she loves baking but she also loves Ekka which is why she keeps going and now the kids like it there’s extra incentive to continue, but there’s a more serious reason for her enthusiasm as well. “If we don’t keep doing it, it will die. If the next generation doesn’t carry it on it may not be there one day and so many people get pleasure going through the pavilion looking at the cakes and jams and other things.”

Maguire loves a chat and doesn’t mind mingling with viewers to canvas comments about her cakes and others on display. She admits it’s a thrill to see her cake in the display window with her name and a ribbon on it but that’s not the only reason she likes being part of the Ekka experience. “I like how the country comes to the city. I’m from the country so I think it’s good for the kids to interact with the farmers – last year Charlie learnt to milk a cow, they’ve seen baby

animals born there, they know what part of the cow a t-bone comes from. They can learn a lot there,” she says.

Champion Chihuahua breeder Jennifer Watt is also a veteran of Ekka, going first with her parents before she was 10, but she didn’t start showing dogs there until she turned 10, the minimum age to compete at the time. This year the breeder of 17 national champions will be showing up to eight dogs at the Queensland show.

For Watt entering shows is a labour of love as there’s little, if any, prizemoney in competitions.

Nevertheless she spends several hours a day preparing her dogs for their shows – she attends up to three a weekend and has a caravan that her husband has customised to house the dogs while they are travelling – and that can be from Gladstone in Queensland to Newcastle in NSW as well as the capital city shows.

Barnsy is her pride and joy and she has been showing him since he was three months old. He’s a natural and has more than 100 prizes to prove it.

“He’s the ultimate show dog,” says a proud Watt.

“He forever wants to show. He loves the limelight.

Every show I take him to he’s looking around, jumping up and down, playing ball. He never lets me down,” she says. Watt will be showing over three days at Ekka this year and while she likes to try to see other things she never leaves her dogs unattended. If she gets a chance she also volunteers on the Dogs Queensland stand to talk to people about pure breed dogs.

Like Osborne and Maguire, Watt loves the atmosphere at Ekka. “Everybody’s there to have a good time, that’s what makes it special,” she says and there’s one thing she makes sure she doesn’t miss – the strawberries and cream, an Ekka tradition.

BNE July/August 2016 | 9

COVER STORY

LAURA GEITZ country girl to queen of the netball court

Clockwise from top left: Laura Geitz for Rebel; jubilation on court after winning the ANZ Championship last year (AAP/ Glenn Hunt); in action for the Firebirds (AAP/Dan Peled).

For more information about the Fuel2Fly clinics see www.laurageitz.com.au 10 | BNE July/August 2016

N

From growing up on a farm south west of Brisbane to capacity crowds at every home match Laura Geitz has helped put Australian netball on the map, and it’s about to get an even bigger boost. Story by Heather McWhinnie

etball has long been one of Australia’s most popular team sports, challenging soccer at the grass roots level for the highest participation rate but it’s yet to find the same recognition at a professional level. However, a record TV and online broadcast deal announced in May brought it a big step closer to achieving that goal.

The new deal between Netball Australia, Nine Entertainment and Telstra will see netball matches broadcast live every week in prime time on the Nine Network, simulcast on Telstra TV and available to view on the Netball Live app, starting with the Fast5 World Series competition to be played in Melbourne in October.

There’s no doubt netball, played by an estimated one million women across the country, is riding a wave of success and Laura Geitz, captain of both the Brisbane-based Queensland Firebirds and the national team, the Australian Diamonds, is at its crest. Since her promotion to lead the Firebirds in 2011 the team has won two out of five ANZ Championship grand finals, been runner up for another two and this year heads towards yet another finals berth (as BNE goes to press) to be played out by the end of July. In 2014 Geitz led the Diamonds to a gold medal at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, putting them back on the winner’s podium after a 12-year absence, took them to a third consecutive World Cup win last year and earlier this year led them to victory against England.

When Geitz started playing netball at age 13 she dreamed of one day playing for the state and maybe her country, but a captain’s role was not on her agenda. Nevertheless Geitz has proved to be a natural leader. Former Diamonds team-mate Julie Corletto called her captain a “fantastic leader” in a media interview last year and went on to say that Geitz showed leadership qualities even before she was given the role. “Even when she wasn’t captain she did all the right things. She is quietly spoken but says the right things and she is the type of person that when she speaks, everyone listens, she just has that effect on people,” Corletto told Melbourne’s Herald Sun. “She leads by example and always has,” she said.

Diamonds head coach Lisa Alexander agrees. “She is one of the hardest workers on the court. She is always wanting to improve her own game and the team’s performance. Laura never takes anything for granted,” she said.

Geitz, however, says her leadership style is far from natural. “I think I’m always learning,” she says. She was vice-captain of the Firebirds when then captain Lauren Nourse had to retire injured and Geitz was catapulted into the top job. “Like most things when you are thrown in the deep end you’ve got to learn quickly. You’ve got to be open to having some challenging times and get on with the job at hand. For me, I just reflect on great leaders that I’ve been lucky enough to play under and I take little bits and pieces of what they have done, but I suppose I go back to the values that were instilled into us as kids and my leadership is along those same lines,” she says.

Growing up on a farm near Allora south west of Brisbane on the Darling Downs, Geitz and her sister Carla learned from their parents Ross and Juanita to be humble, appreciate opportunities that came their way, to treat people with respect and enjoy whatever they were doing. “We saw first-hand the way my Dad went about things on the farm. He was always a huge support to anyone who needed him. We saw how kind and generous and supportive Dad was to the community he lived in,” she says.

It was devastating for Geitz when her father died following an accident on the farm in 2013, only months after he had stood beside her at her wedding, and she almost left the sport she had given her heart and soul to for more

than a decade. For almost six months she said she felt numb. It was her mother who convinced her not to quit the sport she loved.

Since then she has said she often reflects on what her father taught her growing up, on his wonderful outlook on life, his hard work ethic, how he treated people and what he did every day. “He was probably the most inspirational person I know. He was a leader in his own right although he was never an athlete. He probably taught me everything I know,” she told an interviewer a year after his death. It was her Dad that gave Geitz the simple piece of advice that is her silent mantra almost every time she walks out on court, “do your best and forget the rest”.

Geitz has also found inspiration in former leaders such as her first Diamonds captain Sharelle McMahon. “Sharelle led by example and she pulled up people when they need to be pulled up but she also was very nurturing and she had a passion for what she did. It was obvious to anyone how much she loved netball and she lived and breathed it. You’ve got to have that passion for what you’re doing for the younger players to look up to you.

Sharelle was a huge influence on me in those earlier years.”

However, Geitz doesn’t claim any credit for herself when asked about the key to the success of both the Firebirds and the Diamonds during her tenure. Without hesitation she points to coaches Lisa Alexander (Diamonds) and Roselee Jencke (Firebirds) and the culture that has been developed by both teams.

It is also the result of hard work. The players are contracted for 30 weeks a year to play the season and it’s a full-time job for that time – they are required to train every day, often twice a day (except perhaps the day after a match), and that doesn’t include their maintenance routines of additional fitness training, physio and other support services. They are given a day off during the week and most of the girls are living on minimum wage during that season, paid by the clubs. Both the Firebirds and Diamonds have a strong and loyal stable of sponsors and the girls take on additional commitments as ambassadors. For example, Geitz has become the face of companies such as the Coffee Club, Rebel and Queensland Country Health.

Geitz admits it can be a struggle for the girls on base salaries but that’s how it’s been in women’s sport for many years.

“That’s what makes the girls so amazing. They don’t complain but that’s the reality of the situation and they get on with it. I’m very proud that we play the sport because we love it.”

Geitz is more than happy to share her passion for her sport with a younger generation of girls. She has teamed up with her Firebirds vice-captain Clare McMenamin to host a series of Fuel2Fly clinics in July and September school holidays, supported by their sponsor Chemist Warehouse, at locations from Caboolture to Burleigh in South East Queensland. The workshops are for girls aged 9-14 and not just netball players. The team-mates will share their stories of success, their experiences and challenges along the way, their health and fitness tips and host teamwork and leadership activities.

“The clinics are for all young girls, helping to empower them and inspire them to follow the journey they want to follow and give them some assistance.

I’m really passionate about educating our next generation of young girls to stay healthy and active and to pursue what their dreams are so it’s a huge part of what I do away from the court.”

However, it does also mean there’s little down time for Geitz and what she has she likes to spend with her husband Mark Gilbride and beloved dog Charlie. Although they don’t have time in the netball season to go back to the farm near Allora as much as they’d like it’s a favourite getaway when they season is over.

Even when she wasn’t captain she did all the right things. She is the type of person that when she speaks, everyone listens, she just has that effect on people

BNE July/August 2016 | 11

STYLE

Lasting

impressions

I

n a world of fast fashion R.M. Williams is bucking the trend and maintaining the craftsmanship that has been the hallmark of the brand since 1932. For example, plaited leather belts are still made by hand with more than 1000 plaits, a skill that has been handed down from bushmen to the team that continues to make them today and each one takes several hours to complete. The iconic elastic-side boot now worn by royals (Kate and Wills), presidents (Bill Clinton), prime ministers (Howard, Rudd and Abbott) and stars from songstress Florence Welch to new R.M. Williams shareholder Hugh Jackman, is still made from a single piece of leather to maintain its durability and seamless style. Products that were created to endure a rigorous life in the Australian outback have become a statement of effortless style, teamed with dresses and skirts as easily as jeans for a weekend wardrobe ready for any adventure. R.M. Williams launches a new season collection on 11 July.

Fashion from R.M. Williams, available at Shop 332, Departure Level 3, International Terminal, Brisbane Airport. For more stores see www.rmwilliams.com.au

12 | BNE July/August 2016

Nepabunna Station, Flinders Ranges, South Australia S30 37.0’ E138 56.8’

LEFT: Lady Rider jacket $189; Crane dress $189; Western plait belt $270; Adelaide boot $495.

RIGHT: Monash jacket $349; Buller vest $249; Collins shirt $129; Ramco jean $149; RMW Bush Centre plait belt $350; Comfort Craftsman boot $545.

3

BELOW: Gull blanket $349; Lady Grazier shirt $159; Alice jean $139; Adelaide boot $650.

Flinders Ranges, South Australia S30 56.2’ E138 40.9’

BNE BNEJuly/August May/June 2016 | 13

STYLE Warburton River, Clifton Hills, South Australia S27 8.3’ E138 43.6’

New Alton Downs, South Australia S26 30.7’ E139 19.5’

ABOVE: Alice jean $159; Rider white jacket $189; Olivia red check shirt $149; Adelaide boot $650.

LEFT: Modern Rider suede jacket $599; Dusty navy pant $189; Collins shirt $129; Burnished belt $180; Chinchilla boot $650.

14 | BNE July/August 2016

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ESCAPE

Taiwan’s tribal heart Kerry Heaney gets to the heart of Taiwan, hiking its hilly terrain and tasting the regional flavours

‘Sea of Clouds’ from the peak of Jade Mountain, Yushan National Park

16 | BNE July/August 2016

A pre-dawn start to reach the Roof of Taiwan is rewarded with panoramic views of mountain tops dipped in cloud Eternal Springs Shrine, Taroko Gorge

M

ost people know the small island nation of Taiwan only for its buzzing capital, Taipei, filled with busy streets, vibrant night markets and street food in abundance. While there’s plenty to amaze and astound in Taipei with highlights such as the treasures at the National Palace Museum and the view from the 509-metre high Taipei 101, the real heart of Taiwan is outside the city and in the villages of the steeply sloping mountains.

There you can find, meet and share the culture of people from some of the 14 Indigenous tribes that are acknowledged as the island’s first inhabitants. Descended from the Austronesian people, these tribes inhabited the island long before Han settlers arrived from China in the 17th century and lived as hunters and gatherers, skills they still use today.

To discover this very different side of Taiwan, I took the High Speed Rail Bullet Train from Taoyuan Station to Chiayi City in south-west Taiwan, the gateway to the Alishan National Scenic Area in Chiayi County. This national landmark is a 415-squarekilometre mountainous area known for its alpine railroad, verdant forest and a sea of clouds. High altitude tea and wasabi plantations are flanked by waterfalls and linked by winding trails that are popular with hikers.

The road into Alishan is steep and twisting but there are plenty of scenic stops along the way such as the Yawumasi Trail. Yawumasi means ‘the pleasant sound of the water’ in the language of the Tsou tribe and the trail, hugging the twisting Yawumasi Stream between the rock cliffs, was used by early residents to visit nearby villages. With tall trees on both sides, the road climbs ever higher and offered occasional views of the tea plantations across the steep valleys until we reached our lunch destination, Home 23 Café and tourist accommodation, which is also home to A-Jiang and his wife.

Jiemei Lakes, Alishan Forest Recreation Area

A-Jiang welcomes visitors to his cafe at Lalauya

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ESCAPE WILD FOOD

Pakelang Boat House

962 Changbin Township, Taitung County Yes, it looks like a boat and owner chef Chan Lah is a true hunter/gatherer, taking his daily catch and supplementing it with produce from his garden and the local market (above). He creates a daily degustation menu entirely from local ingredients which tastes fabulous and is exquisitely presented as though styled for a photo shoot.

CIFADAHAN CAFÉ

16 Lane 62, Daquan St, Daquan Village, Guangfu Township, Hualien County The restaurant is decorated with carvings created by the owner/chef and the large dishes, often featuring freshwater fish and wild vegetables, come to the table ready to share.

The traditional Ami hot pot, brought to the boil with fire-heated stones, is a highlight. It’s a chance to try local foods such as fern tops, pigeon peas, pumpkin leaves, chayote, Chinese onion, miscanthus hearts and hyacinth beans.

Silks Palace

221 Section 2, Zhishan Rd, Shilin District, Taipei City First, wonder at the beauty and creativity of Taiwan’s national treasures in the National Palace Museum and then head next door to eat them! The chefs at Silks Palace spend hours painstakingly recreating imitations of the revered Meat Stone, Jadeite Cabbage and Ting Cauldron, with a curio cabinet full of sweet ‘ornaments’ for dessert.

Road hugging Taroko Gorge cliffs

A-Jiang is a member of the Tsou tribe and spent his childhood with his parents cultivating their land. Twenty years ago he left his job as a boat builder and returned with his wife to Lalauya (or Leye), their home village in Alishan, only to find it destroyed by Typhoon Herb.

They rebuilt on a new site using A-Jiang’s boat builder woodworking skills to create a collection of buildings made of wood, bamboo, stone and grass to recreate the warmth, happiness and harmony of their former village.

Rested and well fed, our journey continued as we followed the Mihu Trail (an easy 2.3km), walking through a tall bamboo forest and listening to the relaxing sound of the babbling river as we crossed the Lemi Suspension Bridge onto the Fushan Ancient Trail. It’s a coffee growing area and we made a welcome stop at a local coffee house to sample a local brew sweetened with honey and admired the orchids growing close by.

One of the highlights of any visit to Alishan is the chance to see a sunrise from Jade Mountain, known as the ‘Roof of Taiwan’ with its peak at 3952 metres. To see such a spectacle requires a very early, pre-dawn start to the day but the effort is rewarded by panoramic views of the surrounding mountain tops dipped in cloud.

From the peak, we took a ride through the lush green mountains on the Alishan Mountain Railway train to Zhushan and walked along the Tashan Trail through the picturesque Alishan Forest Recreation Area.

On the trail we came upon a heart-shaped tree and two lakes known as the Sister Lakes (or Jiemei Lakes) which, according to local legend, is the site of a tragic end to the story of two sisters who fell in love with the same boy. It’s a sad story but the pagoda on the lake is a pretty and contemplative spot to stop and enjoy the reflections.

The narrow gorge road makes for a white-knuckle ride for anyone game to navigate its twisty turns and rock arches carved from marble

Modern Toilet

2F, No 7 Ln 50, Xining S. Rd, Taipei City This restaurant has a toilet/bathroom theme so you sit on toilet seats and eat off a glass-covered bathtub. Curries (above) and hot pots arrive in toilet bowl-shaped porcelain containers, drinks are served in variations of urinals and ice cream comes out looking like soft serve poo. The food selection is not so unusual and includes familyfriendly pasta, chips and nuggets. Strangely there’s not an upright western-style toilet in the actual bathroom, only Asian-style squat versions.

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Tea plantation on the trail

Taiwan may have a population similar to Australia’s in an area that is little more than half the size of Tasmania, but more than two thirds of the country is covered by forested mountains. Taroko National Park is the country’s second largest national park (behind Yushan in central Taiwan) and a trip through Taroko Gorge, popularly known as the Marble Gorge, is an awe-inspiring sight. It is on the eastern side of Taiwan and easily accessed by a three-hour train ride from Taipei, snaking alongside the island’s central mountain ridge.

The gorge is indeed carved through solid marble and inside the Interpretation Centre there are no smiles to be seen in the photos of the ex-soldiers who built the Central Cross Island Highway from Taroko to Dongshi through the gorge by hand. Frozen in long lines, some of the stoic faces belong to the more than 200 men who died while building the highway. It’s hard to imagine more back-breaking work than chipping away at that marble to build the road, but every day for four years 5000 to 6000 men worked on the 192km highway building it with ‘blood, sweat and tears’, plus a few explosives.

Across the valley sits the Eternal Springs Shrine, a memorial to those soldiers killed while building the highway and the third to be built in the location. The other two were reduced to rubble in landslides that are a constant threat in the area and, still today, the road can be closed due to rock falls and damage in typhoons. It may be called a highway but the narrow gorge road makes for a white knuckle-ride for anyone game to try it with barely space for buses to squeeze through the rock arches and navigate the twisty turns.

High Speed Rail Bullet Train

For more information about Taiwan see www.taiwan.gov.tw There’s much more to enjoy in Taiwan and Eva Air flies direct from BNE to Taipei five times a week. The airline has just been awarded the top 5-star rating for its product and service delivery by global industry review organisation Skytrax, one of only eight airlines in the world to receive the ranking. For more information see www.evaair.com

Alishan Mountain Railway

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ESCAPE

BEST OF

BROOME

T

o me, Broome means music. The pearling town is steeped in a wide variety of sounds from reggae to calypso to good, ol’ country music. Much of this is to do with its colourful history. While local Aboriginal men and women were first used to dive the nearby depths for pinctada maxima oysters, which produce the famous South Sea Pearl, the pearling masters later went further afield to recruit divers.

Many of the townspeople today are descendants of those who came from Malaysia, China, Japan, the Philippines and Indonesia and the traditional owners. With this mix comes a melting pot of cultures, food, music and comedy, with its most well-known exponents Stephen Pigram, Jimmy Chi (of Bran Nue Dae fame) and Mary G (the Black Queen of the Kimberley). However, until recently, tours of probably the most historically multicultural town in Australia largely overlooked this fascinating – and often brutal – history.

Bart Pigram is a descendant of the Yawuru people and part of the

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large Pigram-Puertollano family, traditionally pearling workers and musicians. With a passion for telling the complete story of life in Broome, he started Narlijia Tours (meaning “true for you”) in 2015.

We are at Streeter’s Jetty, overlooking the mangrove forests and jabalbal (mudflats) of Dampier Creek where, in the distance, several pearling luggers are bobbing on turquoise water.

This coastline is known for its huge tides and Pigram explains the mangroves are teeming with life, both feeding grounds and nurseries for fish, reptiles, frogs, molluscs, burrowing mud worms, various crustaceans, dugong and the occasional saltwater crocodile – and, of course, mud crabs. The Yawuru – saltwater people – knew the seasons, land, plants and food intimately.

It all changed when the whites arrived and by the late 19th century, chaotic, crazy Broome supplied 80 per cent of the world’s mother of pearl, until the market was finally undone by the introduction of plastic buttons.

The writer was a guest of Tourism Western Australia

The sounds, as well as the sights, say a lot about Broome’s colourful past, as Diana Plater discovers

Indian Ocean from the back of an amiable camel on a one-hour walk along the beach with Red Sun Camels.

I learnt to cook Asian food in Broome and am glad that these days there are a variety of restaurants that serve it – Aarli Bar near Chinatown is one of the best. Location is king: sharing plates with cocktails at the Mangrove Resort Hotel, chilli mud crab at the Wharf Restaurant overlooking the port, or a Japanese meal at Zensai at the Cable Beach Club Resort & Spa. When driving around town past the pearling masters’ former homes surrounded by frangipanis and huge mango trees, tune in to Radio Goolarri 99.7FM for what’s on tips.

In the old days the Roebuck Bay Hotel (or Roey) was the best place to hear live music – the whole bar throbbed to local rock and roll bands. Now Stephen Pigram plays a regular Thursday night gig at the Pearlers Bar there or you can catch his son Bart’s band, The Mexicans, around town. In the words of Bart Pigram: “Make sure you bring your dancing shoes.”

Main image, opposite page: Sunset camel ride on Cable Beach.

This page, from left: Horizontal Falls at Talbot Bay from the air, photography by Lauren Bath; dinosaur footprint at Gantheaume Point; Streeter’s Jetty, photography by Edward Tran. All images courtesy of Tourism Western Australia.

Fly direct from BNE to Broome weekly on Sundays with Qantas until 28 August 2016.

See www.qantas.com.au For more information on Broome see www.westernaustralia.com

Chinese merchants established Chinatown, where there were once pearl sheds, billiard saloons, opium dens, gambling houses and brothels. Now we visit fine pearl showrooms, cafés and the historic Sun Pictures cinema, the world’s oldest operating picture garden.

We finish the tour with a sample of the boutique beers from Matso’s Broome Brewery, once a general store overlooking Roebuck Bay where kids would come for lollies and ice cream.

I duck into the Sisters of St John of God Heritage Centre where exhibits tell the story of the Catholic Church’s role in the region, when ‘Stolen Generations’ children were taken to missions – now the communities of Beagle Bay and Lombadina, reachable via the One Arm Point Road.

Broome is the western starting point for the Kimberley and its two main routes: the Great Northern Highway to Fitzroy Crossing, Halls Creek and the East Kimberley, taking you past vast cattle stations dotted with boab trees; or the gorges of the Gibb River Road. We get up at the crack of dawn for the chance to see it from the air on a breathtaking Kimberley Aviation flight that takes us to Cape Leveque for a swim and breakfast at the Indigenous-owned Kooljaman wilderness camp and then returning over King Sound, the Kimbolton Ranges and the Buccaneer Archipelago. We learn the islands below are around 1.8 to 2.4 billion years old – the tips of ancient mountains. With cameras pressed against the glass, we gasp at the Horizontal Falls in Talbot Bay, caused by a huge volume of water being forced through two narrow cliff passages.

It’s a jaw-dropping detour but there’s plenty more to see in Broome – the dinosaur footprints at the red rocks of Gantheaume Point, the Japanese Cemetery and sunset at Cable Beach. Cars line up, children play and tourists drink cocktails at the Cable Beach Sunset Bar but we experience a giant orange sun sinking into the

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ESCAPE

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MUNGALLA STATION

Mungalla Station near Ingham in north Queensland is a working cattle station of 880 hectares and almost a quarter of that area is natural wetlands which has been revived from choking weeds over the years by the Nywaigi traditional owners working closely with the CSIRO. The dry season between September and December is the best time to see some of the more than 200 different species of magnificent aquatic birdlife, including large numbers of Spoonbills, Egrets and Magpie Geese. Owls inhabit the forests, grasslands and buildings while Jabirus breed on the property and many species of raptors can be seen hunting over the paddocks and wetlands. However, eyes shouldn’t only be directed skyward as large crocodiles also inhabit Palm Creek and the wetlands. Tours of Mungalla Station are available with a traditional ‘Kup Murri’ dinner (cooked under the earth) in July, August and September, cost $119 per adult. For tour dates see www.mungallaboriginaltours.com.au

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Photography by Richard Wallace

Aboriginal Adventures

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These tours share the stories of Australia’s ancient history that you won’t find in a book

GUURRBI TOURS

Willie Gordon (pictured left) is a Nugal-warra Elder and passionate about his Aboriginal culture and spirituality. His grandfather lived on the land and as a young boy growing up in Hope Vale and Cooktown in far north Queensland Gordon would join his own father on hunting trips, learning about the land, its bush tucker, bush medicines and the stories of his people.

Gordon left his homeland for high school in Brisbane but returned in 2003 to show visitors the land where he grew up and a signature of his award-winning Guurrbi Tours are the rock art sites that can only be shown in the company of a Nugal-warra guide. The sites are accessible only on foot and it’s a short climb, rather than a walk, to a couple but the terrain is not difficult. “We call this area Wangaar-Wuri, or ‘White Person Playing’,” Gordon explains. “The story goes that my clan, the Nugal-warra, found a young white girl who was lost and alone. She was brought into the clan and taken care of for many years, living with my people in the area now named after her. It is a very peaceful place and still much the same as when I was a boy and would come hunting here with my Dad. It’s an area rich in bush tucker and bush medicines and home to many bush creatures and hidden away in the escarpments and amongst the giant boulders are the cave paintings left by my ancestors.”

Tours from two hours to just over five hours, departing from Cooktown, prices start from $85 per person. For details and to book see www.guurrbitours.com

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4 WALKABOUT ADVENTURES

Juan Walker (above) is a member of the Kuku Yalanji people whose ancestral country lies between Port Douglas and Cooktown and he leads visitors on tours of the Daintree, Cape Tribulation, Mossman and Cooya Beach for half day or full day expeditions on his Walkabout Cultural Adventures. He varies the itinerary according to the group – which is limited to a maximum of 11 people per tour and can go with as few as two, making it a very personal experience.

Typically, the Cultural Tour is a hands-on experience and based on the southern side of the Daintree River, visiting different environments from the beach to the rainforest. On a coastal walk, for example, there’s a chance to try coastal hunting techniques (such as spearing), bush tucker collection, and there’s time for a swim in a freshwater stream. A full-day tour can include as many as three hour-long walks.

“I like to share with visitors to the area how special the region is but also how local Aboriginal people across Australia have a special connection with the environment,” says Walker who shares guiding duties with his uncle Percy. Tours operate all year round; cost from $165 per person half day and $209 per person full day with lunch. For more information see www.walkaboutadventures.com.au Juan’s brothers Brandon and Linc Walker also lead their own Coastal Beach and Mangrove walking tours at Cooya Beach, 15 minutes north of Port Douglas, where they, too, coach visitors in traditional spear hunting techniques and offer a feast on the catch of the day as part of their Kuku Yalanji Cultural Habitat tours. Prices from $75 per person. For more information see www.kycht.com.au

TJAPUKAI ABORIGINAL CULTURAL PARK

Tjapukai Aboriginal Cultural Park is an interactive cultural centre and village occupying more than 10 hectares next to the Skyrail Rainforest Cableway at Caravonica, 20 minutes from Cairns. It’s not only a showcase of photographs, historic films and art but visitors can also join in traditional performances drawn from Djabugay corroborees, listen to masters of the didgeridoo, learn how to make fire without a match or how to throw a boomerang, and taste food cooked in an authentic underground ‘oven’. Prices from $62 general admission. For details see www.tjapukai.com.au

Fly from BNE to Cairns and Townsville (for Ingham) with Jetstar, Qantas and Virgin Australia. Tigerair also flies to Cairns.

Hinterland Aviation flies from Cairns to Cooktown daily

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OLKOLA COUNTRY

No one describes a journey through Olkola Country on Queensland’s far northern Cape York Peninsula better than Graham Tupper, eco-warrior and Northern Australia program manager for the Australian Conservation Foundation (ACF), who has been there and done it. “The real excitement of visiting Olkola Country lies in having the Olkola as guides. It’s a journey through a living cultural landscape where plants and animals take on a whole new level of meaning because of the stories we’re told about them,” he says.

After about one million hectares of Olkola Country were officially handed back to the traditional owners in December 2014 they immediately embarked on a new journey of their own to provide an eco-tourism experience that would ensure the sustainability of their land.

Working with ACF and Intrepid Travel, Indigenous guides hosted their first tour visitors in June and, with limited access only in the dry season between May and September, remaining tours have been quickly booked.

Olkola is a diverse ecosystem, boasting the world’s largest unbroken savannah outside Africa. Glen Ross, a land manager in the area for four years and now a tour leader, is a most passionate advocate. “Every day out here is like a new picture,” he says. Groups are small, limited to no more than 10 people, for a very personal experience camping under the stars for four nights and exploring Olkola Country by day. Tours depart Cairns; cost from $2845 per person. See www.intrepidtravel.com

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Halcyon days Halcyon House, the one-time surf motel transformed into a low-key luxury getaway by Brisbane-based sisters Siobhan and Elisha Bickle, is one of only three Australian hotels named on Condé Nast Traveler’s prestigious Hot List for 2016. The boutique hotel, located metres from the beach at Cabarita, opened last year after an extensive redesign, with interiors by Brisbane’s Anna Spiro, and the restaurant Paper Daisy has earned a popular following under the leadership of chef Ben Devlin.

The Hot List awards the world’s best hotels that have opened in the last 12 months. Condé Nast Traveler editors and reporters crisscrossed six continents and 36 countries to review hundreds of properties, including Australia’s other winners, The Old Clare Hotel, on the site of the former Carlton and United Brewery in Sydney and Como The Treasury in Perth. Suites at Halcyon House from $550 per night, see www.halcyonhouse.com.au

Regional airline Jetgo has started direct flights between Brisbane and Albury on four days each week, with travel time just one hour 35 minutes. For details see www.jetgo.com

stay and play

Walk 5 mins to Queen Street Mall & 10 mins to Southbank Door to door airport service with direct access to the AirTrain Coffee heaven with espresso machines in every room

Fast free Wi-Fi for up to 3 devices Shangri-La’s new concept brand lets you enjoy and earn Golden Circle points Always the best rates on offer, click on our website and book now Hotel Jen Brisbane. 159 Roma Street, Brisbane 4000 QLD (61)7 3238 2222 | hjbb@hoteljen.com | www.hoteljen.com 24 | BNE July/August 2016

ekka package

Brisbane Riverview Hotel is just 15 minutes from the airport by taxi and within walking distance of key entertainment precincts Fortitude Valley and Portside at Hamilton, and the Eat Street markets on weekends. There’s a special Ekka show package from 4-14 August for $199 per night which includes accommodation and buffet breakfast for two people, a family pass to Ekka, free WiFi and car parking. Brisbane Riverview Hotel is located riverside on Kingsford Smith Drive, corner of Hunt Street, Hamilton. For details see www.viewhotels.com.au

ESCAPE extra

Rent an island

Lounge in luxury Singapore Airlines has opened its new SilverKris lounge at Brisbane Airport’s International Terminal for frequent flyer club members and priority passengers. It is open three hours before departure times offering complimentary buffet food and drinks, free WiFi and recharge points. For departing passengers on Level 4, Departure Hall, International Terminal (near Gate 81), Brisbane Airport.

Regional airline Jetgo has started direct flights between Brisbane and Albury on four days each week, with travel time just one hour 35 minutes. For details see www.jetgo.com

The former ‘XXXX Island’ used in promotions for the iconic beer brand has reopened as Pumpkin Island, just off the coast of Yeppoon, 650km north of Brisbane on the Southern Great Barrier Reef. Accommodation is in five beachfront cottages or two beachfront bungalows on this eco-friendly, privately-owned island and the whole island can be booked for up to 28 people for $7425 for three nights, BYO food and drinks or meals can be pre-ordered from Waterline restaurant at Yeppoon. For details see www.pumpkinisland.com.au Fly from BNE to Rockhampton with QantasLink and Virgin Australia

High speed Orbit

Britain’s tallest sculpture which was created as a landmark for the London Olympic Games in 2012, the Transformer-looking tangle of twisted steel called the ArcelorMittal Orbit, is now also London’s newest thrill ride – a 178-metre long tunnel slide. It’s the world’s highest and longest slide and takes just 40 seconds to get to the bottom, circling the Orbit a dizzying 12 times through loops and curves and a tight corkscrew section on the way down. Of course, there is another way down – 455 stairs if you’re feeling fit. Advance booking general entry and slide ticket £15 per adult. For details see www.arcelormittalorbit.com

Fly from BNE to London via Singapore with Singapore Airlines BNE BNEJuly/August May/June 2016 2016 | 27 25

ESCAPE extra

Flash centre’s new look It looks like a resort, it’s called The Resort but this is just one chill out zone in the $670 million redevelopment of Pacific Fair – the new go-to shopping centre at Broadbeach on the Gold Coast.

It now boasts more than 400 stores including international favourites H&M and Uniqlo, along with luxury brands such as Bally, Christian Louboutin, Givenchy, Gucci, Hermès, Louis Vuitton and Tiffany & Co. Contemporary French label Maje has chosen to open its first Australian shopfront in the centre. For more information see www.pacificfair.com.au

Hong HONGKong KONG hot spot hot spot Serenity meets style in the new 32-room boutique Olympian Hotel just opened in the heart of West Kowloon and within walking distance of the mega Olympian City shopping mall and Olympic MTR station. Great dining and entertainment spots almost on the doorstep and the China-Macau Ferry Terminal is 10 minutes away. Rates from approximately AUD$322 per night. For details and to book see www.theolympianhotel.com Fly from BNE to Hong Kong with Cathay Pacific and Qantas

Own Winter

Book now for best rates guaranteed. visit marriotthoteldeals.com.au

MARRIOTT_BNE_PRESS_090616.indd 26 | BNE July/August 2016

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9/06/2016 5:39 PM

VIVE VANUATU

The popular tourist destination has bounced back better than ever from cyclone damage that devastated its islands little more than a year ago as new or newly renovated and expanded hotels open their doors to visitors once again

New flights to Armidale, NSW Tickets are now on sale for Fly Corporate’s new direct air service between Brisbane and Armidale, NSW, which takes off from Monday 1 August.

Flights depart Armidale Monday to Friday (6.15am) and Saturday (7.30am) and depart Brisbane Sunday to Friday (5.10pm) – flight time about one hour aboard its 19 or 34-seater aircraft. Introductory fares from $149 one-way. See www.flycorporate.com.au Fly from BNE to Armidale, NSW, with Fly Corporate

BE

AS PART OF VANUATU’S REJUVENATION NEW BEACH huts have opened at Friendly Beach on Tanna island near the volcano Mount Yasur, while the new Crystal Palace Hotel has opened in Port Vila. Iririki Island Resort & Spa has reopened after a $20 million dollar refurb with a new casino and day spa and the Holiday Inn Resort Vanuatu is the latest to reopen 15 months after Cyclone Pam forced its closure. The resort is minutes from Port Vila and accommodation includes 10 overwater villas on a private island and guest rooms include special kids suites – children age 12 and under stay and eat free at the resort. At the end of this year new owners will reopen Tamanu on the Beach and next year Ramada will open its Akiriki Resort on the edge of Erakor Lagoon.

Find out more about Vanuatu and holiday ideas at www.discovervanuatu.com.au.

Fly from BNE to Port Vila with Virgin Australia and Air Vanuatu

BLOWN AWAY

HER, ANY WEAT ITH iFLY ANY DAY W

YDIVING INDOOR SK BOOK NOW

BNE BNEJuly/August May/June 2016 2016 | 27

TASTE

Regional Flavours

Purely organic

Celebrity chef Alastair McLeod (right) lives on a rural property on Brisbane’s city fringe and has long been an advocate of local produce, particularly from the Lockyer Valley, and Rob Bauer’s organic potatoes are a favourite he’s been using for more than a decade.

Bauer’s family has been farming in the Lockyer Valley since the 1880s and Rob was a forerunner to the organic ‘trend’, adopting chemical-free practices more than 30 years ago to farm just as his great grandparents had done when they first arrived on the land. The public can visit Bauer’s Organic Farm on seasonal open days (the next one is Sunday 31 July) and produce can be pre-ordered and collected from the farm. See www.bauersorganicfarm.com.au

FIERY BLENDS With a fire-breathing dragon as part of the family crest – and part of the company logo – it’s no surprise that the Seatonfire chilli chocolate produced by mother and son team Lynne SeatonAnderson and Jason O’Connor packs a powerful punch. The chilli grown organically and handpicked at the family farm in Murphy’s Creek in the Lockyer Valley is among the world’s hottest, and the chocolate is infused with other ingredients grown on the farm such as Persian limes, oranges and rosemary for some thrilling combinations, all in a base of dark chocolate. Liquorice and lime is one to taste! At Regional Flavours there will be some special tempters not available in stores, including chilli chocolate truffles laced with whisky, white chilli chocolate with cranberry and coconut brittle and a chocolate picnic pack of mixed goodies.

The Lockyer Valley, just an hour’s drive west of Brisbane, is called Australia’s salad bowl but it’s far more than that. It’s one of the top 10 most fertile farming areas in the world and it produces more than 110,000 tonnes of vegetables shipped to stores across the country every year – supplying, in fact, 95 per cent of Australia’s winter vegetables. However, not all the Lockyer Valley farmers are big operators, some supply only farmers markets and others are still finding outlets for their niche products but they all have one thing in common and that is their passion for fresh and flavoursome food. Find them at Regional Flavours where chefs from around the country will share recipes and tips for cooking with the best local produce from South East Queensland at South Bank Parklands on 16 and 17 July.

Concentrated flavour As a vegetarian Melissa Sheppard was never happy with storebought stocks full of additives which often had an unpleasant aftertaste, so she decided to make her own using a treasured recipe from her Swedish mother-in-law and fresh ingredients direct from neighbouring farms in the Lockyer Valley. Although she used the stock concentrates in her own cooking for years she has only made them commercially in the last year. Vaxtkraft (meaning ‘growing power’ in Swedish) is suitable for anyone following gluten-free, dairy-free, low sodium, paleo or vegan diets. The only retail stockist of Vaxtkraft in Brisbane is The Stores, West End.

Cheese please Annie Emmerson started making cheese out of necessity when deregulation took its toll on dairy farming and she and husband Paul replaced the cows on their Thornton farm with goats. Since then she has earned a reputation as one of Queensland’s finest cheesemakers, recently winning her latest Champion award at the Royal Queensland Food and Wine Show for her fetta. Annie’s Nannybert, a camembertstyle cheese made from goat’s milk, is also a show-pleaser and has won many awards but you’re not likely to find it unless you visit the farmers markets at Mulgowie and Plainland, or visit Regional Flavours where Annie’s best sellers will be available (including marinated fettas) as well as some new varieties she’s trialling.

Sweet and juicy

Nepalese-born Yubee Khatri grew up on a farm and now grows heirloom tomatoes in more colours and shapes than you’ve ever seen at his Helidon farm, living up to its reputation as a tomato lover’s paradise. Yubee also grows heirloom eggplant, super crunchy baby cucumbers and mixes of colourful mini capsicums. He’s a regular at farmers markets in Brisbane and the Gold Coast (for details see www.facebook.com/ubsfarm) and will be part of the producer’s showcase at Regional Flavours.

Find out more about Regional Flavours at www.regionalflavours.com.au

Cobbler Bar

TASTE

Chef turns to Asian roots

Chef Minh Le, owner of New Farm’s simply sophisticated eatery The Foraging Quail, has dropped the degustation-style dining that has been the signature of his restaurant for the last couple of years and overhauled the menu to focus on more affordable Asian-inspired share plates.

Le (below) turned to his own Vietnamese family heritage to create the new menu. “Dishes are inspired by those I was brought up on – food with bold flavours, cooked with heart and designed for communal dining,” he says. The ‘fine dining’ label might be gone but Le’s mastery in plating-up continues with dishes such as salt and pepper quail with ‘bird’s nests’, smoked egg and lemon ‘emulsion’, Chinese smoked duck with kimchi, mandarin, lotus and cucumber and traditional Vietnamese beef stew with chilli ‘snow’. Asian-inspired cocktails and Asian beer on the drinks list complement the menu. Plates from $22. The Foraging Quail, 148 Merthyr Road, New Farm.

See http://theforagingquail.com.au

High tea HEAVEN

You can have your cake and eat it too at Pete Evans’ paleo version of a high tea at Asana, the restaurant at Capri by Fraser in Brisbane’s CBD. The sweet and savoury treats are sugar, dairy and gluten-free but that doesn’t mean you can’t indulge in mango cheesecakes, strawberry shortcake (above) and chocolate brownies on the menu.

The high tea is $32 per person (or $42 with a glass of bubbly) available every day from 12pm to 6pm and Asana is open to the public as well as house guests at Capri by Fraser, 80 Albert Street, city. See http://brisbane.capribyfraser.com/en

BIG BURGERS land at Brisbane Airport Carl’s Jr, famous for its whopping big Americanstyle burgers, has opened its first Queensland store (and only its second in Australia) in the new food hall at Brisbane Airport’s Domestic Terminal. The menu includes the signature Thickburger that can be ordered with a mouth filling 226g Angus beef patty and piled high with extras such as mushrooms, jalapenos, bacon and guacamole. Chop Chop Chang’s, the popular Asian street food diner in Brisbane’s West End, has also opened a new eatery in the food hall on Level 2 at the southern end of the terminal, focusing on fresh and fast food.

For information on more dining options at Brisbane Airport see www.bne.com.au 30 | BNE July/August 2016

Eat and play How about a board game with that? Debbie Seipel and Angela Brown aim to bring back the art of faceto-face social interaction at their new café-bar Club Sosay in Paddington. The family-friendly café serves up a simple snack menu (pizza, meatballs, samosas, for example) and drinks (including beer, wine and spirits for the grown-ups) with an assortment of 250 games to choose from – categorised from easy to hard. Singles are welcome to join a game or a ‘conversation table’. Cover charge ($5.50 per person) allows you to stay and play all day, food and drink extra. Club Sosay, open Wednesday to Sunday at 2 Latrobe Terrace, Paddington. For details see www.clubsosay.com.au

WHISKY A GO GO

for winter

Like much of what’s happening in food today, drinkers too are choosing quality over quantity and one nip of a good drink is worth five of a bad one, and without the hangover. Whisky is one example where quality rules but if you’ve yet to acquire the taste, Martin Lange, owner of Cobbler Bar in West End (which boasts a list of more than 400 whiskies to choose from) has a few tips. He suggests newbies start with a Speyside or Highland single malt whisky or a lighter smoky style like an Islay. Cocktails are a beginner’s way to coax the palate but once you develop your taste try a good whisky with only ice or water added. For a lighter taste stick to the lower alcohol volumes around 40 per cent and don’t be afraid to tell your bartender you’re a beginner. If you’re in the right place they will guide you the right way. Here are three ways to discover whisky this winter …

John McClane

John McClane The mixologists at Cobbler Bar, West End, have channelled their best Bruce Willis to come up with a cocktail list themed and named for great moments and characters in the Die Hard movies, including the John McClane (Talisker 10 Smoky Whisky, Armagnac, peppermint tea, rosemary syrup, lavender bitters and a lemon twist). BYO food. Open seven nights at 7 Browning Street, West End. See www.cobblerbar.com

Black Ray Nant Bar creates and serves cocktails made from its own whisky, distilled in the pristine countryside just an hour from Hobart in Tasmania. Nant Bar’s signature cocktail, Black Ray, is a whisky espresso martini made with their own Cold Drip Coffee Whisky – Nant Single Malt Whisky infused with locally roasted coffee over an eight-hour period. Nant Bar, 2 Edward Street, city. Open Tuesday to Saturday. See www.nant.com.au

Black Ray

Whisky Live An assortment of whiskies available to sample for all tastes, including a popup Rare and Old Whisky Bar for the connoisseur, under one roof. Tickets, $99 per person, include sampling, grazing food, tasting catalogue and whisky glass. Rare and old whisky tastings cost extra but there are some real gems on the list such as a 50-year-old North British. At the Grand Chancellor, 23 Leichhardt Street, Brisbane, 19 and 20 August. See www.whiskylive.com.au

Whisky Live

Bubbles galore Amanda Raboul (left), aka the Bubble Diva, is hosting her first Effervescence weekend from 19 to 21 August at Spicers Hidden Vale, just an hour’s drive west of Brisbane in the Lockyer Valley. The event will be a celebration of all things champagne and daytrippers will be able to walk a special ‘champagne trail’ (2pm-5pm, Sunday 21 August) with tasting stations set up on the rural property, while weekend guests will be able to attend masterclasses, a cocktail party, degustation dinner, long lunches and more. Tickets from $120 per person (champagne trail) to $2150 per person (includes two nights accommodation) for the VIP weekend package. See www.effervescence.com.au BNE July/August 2016 | 31

WHAT’S ON

Emma Louise is back

F

ans of Triple J will already know about Emma Louise’s latest album. She let the name slip on air several months before its release date and sang songs during her appearance at the Groovin the Moo tour where she was glad to be back on stage after a short hiatus. Supercry, only her second full-length album, is officially available at last and it’s a welcome return for the Cairns-born singer who turns 25 in July. But it’s the album that may not have been made.

She admits that making her first album was hard to do and, although it received plaudits at home and abroad, when that work ended so did her relationship. “I’m a sensitive person and it all became too much for me. I needed that break” she says. For two years she went travelling and exploring, “learning about life”, she says, and healing.

She drove a van around New Zealand staying in holiday parks and buying fresh food from the side of the road; she holed up in a cabin in Japan, discovered on Airbnb, where she was snowed in and saw no one; she went to the US, Canada and Mexico. But she didn’t leave music behind altogether. Eventually she found her way to producer Pascal Gabriel in Provence, France, an introduction given to her before she left and with no concrete plan to record. There, in a castle (really), she found her love of music again – for nothing but the pleasure of playing – and finally a new album was born.

The songs are true to her feelings, not only about the break-up, but it’s easy to see where ‘Talk Baby Talk’, ‘Everything Will Be Fine’ and ‘Shut The Door’ are coming from; then there’s ‘Grace’, written for the friend from school who has been there for her in tough times.

Supercry is not only testament to Emma Louise’s creativity as a singer-songwriter. She also did the artwork for the album cover, influenced by one of her own favourite artists, Ben Quilty.

Supercry is on sale from 15 July and Emma Louise will be at Splendour in the Grass at North Byron Parklands 22-24 July.

DANCE

TELLS STORIES FROM THE LAND

Stephen Page celebrates 25 years as artistic director of Bangarra Dance Theatre with his latest work for Our land people stories but he’s quick to pass the compliments to the three other emerging choreographers whose work is also part of the triple bill program. Jasmin Sheppard, Beau Dean Riley Smith and (QUT graduate) Daniel Riley have all been dancers with the company before turning their talents to creating works of their own.

“They are the next generation of cultural leaders who have been nurtured right here in our own backyard. It’s the dancers who inspire our stories, and it’s their heritage, their experience, their families and where they come from that permeate our productions,” says Page. Our land people stories showcases three original works inspired by art, history and family stories at Playhouse QPAC, 12-20 August.

Tickets from $59 plus fees. See www.qpac.com.au

Yolanda Lowatta in Our land people stories.

Photography by Edward Mulvihill 32 | BNE July/August 2016

CHAMPIONS of rock ‘n’ roll

Gomez grows up

Pop princess Selena Gomez (above) has well and truly left her Disney days behind her – setting out, at just 23, on a worldwide Revival Tour to show fans she has indeed found her own voice. And she’s not mincing words.

The cover of her latest album Revival is a black and white photograph of Gomez sitting topless with legs and arms crossed in just the right places – not intended to be provocative as much as it is a reflection of the singer’s liberation. It’s a show of new-found confidence that didn’t come easily.

“Making the album was the first time in my life that everyone looked at me and asked, ‘What do you want to do?’ It was a whole different kind of challenge for me,” says the pint-sized Texan who started her showbiz career before she turned 10.

However, she has taken the challenge in stride, as her new manager told Billboard magazine, “her work ethic is something I’ve never seen. Every visual, every marketing move, every decision is hers.” Gomez herself has said, “releasing this record made me feel liberated. I definitely think I’ve found my own lane and I’m excited to explore that.”

Fans appear to be delighted too. Since Revival was released late last year Gomez’s Instagram followers have almost doubled to more than 84 million.

The Revival Tour, 11 August, Brisbane Entertainment Centre, Boondall.

Tickets from $101.85 plus fees at www.ticketek.com.au

LA BOITE & STATE THEATRE COMPANY PRESENT

STRAIGHT W HI T E M E N B Y Y O U N G J EA N L EE 27 JUL – 13 AUG 2016

Ben Elton, writer and director of the musical We Will Rock You, has a message for all the Queen fans who saw the show when it first came to Brisbane 12 years ago – the new show is no repeat so it’s worth another look.

“The show is substantially different to the one that was here before. Of course, it reflects the spirit of Queen but it’s not a tribute show. We can hear the music any time we put ear phones in and hear Freddie Mercury so there has to be a story that allows us to appreciate the music, and the story is a deeply personal one. Queen has always been committed to live rock and roll music and the show is about the fight to resurrect the live experience, music that is produced by people in front of you and a crowd coming together. Of course, the music is the heart of the show and we hope that together the music and the story will make the audience feel like champions by the end.”

Queen’s Brian May and Roger Taylor hand-picked the band members to play in the Australian production and the cast spans generations, from veteran rocker Brian Mannix to one-time Australian Idol winner Casey Donovan (pictured below). We Will Rock You, from 10 July at Lyric Theatre, QPAC, South Brisbane. Tickets from $59.90 to $139.90 plus fees at www.qpac.com.au

BOOK NO W LABOITE.COM.AU LA BOI TE TH EATRE COM PAN Y La Boite Theatre Company is supported by the Queensland Government through Arts Queensland

La Boite Theatre Company is assisted by the Australian Government through the Australia Council, its funding and advisory body

BNE July/August 2016 | 33

WHAT’S ON

DARWIN’S ADVENTURE Recast

W

hen Charles Darwin embarked on his first exploration as a young naturalist aboard the HMS Beagle in 1831 the journey would take him five years but it changed his way of thinking about the origin of living things. When innovative theatre group Dead Puppet Society set out to explore new ideas for their next work it didn’t take quite five years – but almost.

Darwin travelled to South America, the Galapagos Archipelago, the South Pacific and, of course, Australia. The Brisbane-based team from Dead Puppet Society found their inspiration working alongside the Handspring Puppet Company in South Africa – and travelling to the Galapagos – and during a residency at experimental theatre haven St Ann’s Warehouse in Brooklyn, New York.

Almost three years later the new work, written, directed and designed

by David Morton, will have its world premiere in July at the Queensland Theatre Company’s Bille Brown Studio in South Brisbane.

The Wider Earth, commissioned by Queensland Theatre Company, is the Dead Puppet Society’s most ambitious production to date and brings together a cast of eight actors and more than 30 custom-made puppets to tell the story of the curious young naturalist who journeyed from the dizzying heights of the Andes to the depths of the Amazon rainforest, through the storms of Tierra del Fuego to the Galapagos Islands studying an assortment of creatures along the way.

The puppets bring to life the amazing creatures Darwin would have seen – from tiny longhorn beetles to a majestic southern right whale and the ancient Galapagos tortoise – and there’s drama aboard the Beagle as well as Darwin clashes with his captain but finds an ally in secondin-command John Wickham. It’s a coming of age tale not just a history lesson – and it’s a story you’re more likely to remember long after the ship has sailed.

Award-winning singer-songwriter Lior has composed the score. The Wider Earth previews from 9 July, season until 7 August, at Bille Brown Studio, South Brisbane. Tickets from $45 (previews), or $59 (and $68 with a copy of Darwin’s book The Origin of the Species). For details and to book see www.queenslandtheatre.com.au

Puppet captain Anna Straker with one of the ‘stars’ of The Wider Earth.

Photography by Stephen Henry

Rhonda sings Broadway Rhonda Burchmore sings the hits backed by the Queensland Pops Orchestra, 13 August at the Concert Hall, QPAC. Tickets from $82 plus fees, bookings at www.qpac.com.au

34 | BNE July/August 2016

Country music muster

The McClymonts, sisters Mollie, Brooke and Samantha (pictured below), were discovered while performing at the Gympie Music Muster almost 20 years ago, and this year the award-winning country music band returns to help celebrate the 35th anniversary of the event.

More than 120 artists, including perennial favourites Kasey Chambers, Adam Harvey, Beccy Cole and Troy Cassar-Daley, are on the playbill at the not-for-profit music festival which has raised more than $15 million for charities since it began.

This year proceeds will be donated to Mates4Mates, the support program for Australian Defence Force personnel facing physical and mental health issues.

Gympie Music Muster, 25-28 August, at Amamoor Creek State Forest, about two hours from Brisbane in the Sunshine Coast hinterland. Tickets $85-$370 per person includes camping. Call 1300 438 849 or see www.muster.com.au

WHEN WHAT

WHERE

JULY

He’s the Voice Michael Winslow made a name for himself in the Police Academy movies of the ’80s and ’90s, the only actor whose character appeared in all seven films, the spin-off TV series and an animated series. The role earned him the nickname of ‘motor mouth’ for his talent in vocal sound effects and since then he’s been heard on The Simpsons, Family Guy and numerous video games. In his first show in Brisbane he brings a mix of impersonations, impressions, storytelling, music and sound effects to the stage – including a reenactment of an entire Star Wars battle scene – at Hamilton Hotel on 29 July. Tickets $54 plus fees. See www.moshtix.com.au

Culture on the coast Cabaret favourite Meouw Meouw (below) opens the program for the Noosa Long Weekend Festival from 15-24 July. It’s 15 years since playwright David Williamson, his wife Kristin and a few other dedicated locals founded a cultural event that would give visitors something beyond the beach to remember. The Noosa Long Weekend Festival now spans 10 days with events across theatre, literature, music, dance, film, visual arts, food and forums. The Queensland Ballet, satirist Max Gillies, the One Act Play series, social researcher Hugh Mackay and Swing On This with Luke Kennedy, Rob Mills, Michael Falzon and their 9-piece orchestra are among the highlights. For details and to book see www.noosalongweekend.com

From 5 8

Sentinels and Spectres, Andy Lowrie jewellery exhibition Brisbane French Festival

9-23

Barber of Seville, OperaQ

10 12

Carnival in Venice, Queensland Symphony Orchestra Bad Jews, theatre

13-30 13

Geometric Asylum exhibition The Simon and Garfunkel Story

14

Alain de Botton, Is Love Just an Illusion? Writers and Ideas Creative Generation state schools on stage Choir of Trinity College

15 17 17+18 18+19 From 26 From 27 30 From 29 From 30

Artisan, Fortitude Valley Cultural Forecourt, South Bank Parklands Playhouse, QPAC, South Brisbane Concert Hall, QPAC, South Brisbane Cremorne Theatre, QPAC, South Brisbane Metro Arts, city Concert Hall, QPAC, South Brisbane Brisbane Powerhouse, New Farm

Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre, South Brisbane Concert Hall, QPAC, South Brisbane Brisbane Hair and Beauty Expo Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre, South Brisbane Billy Crystal in conversation with Concert Hall, QPAC, South Andrew Denton Brisbane Margaret Jolley, exhibition Philip Bacon Galleries, Fortitude Valley Straight White Men, La Boite Roundhouse Theatre, Kelvin Theatre Company Grove Roberto Alagna, tenor, with Brisbane Convention and Queensland Symphony Orchestra Exhibition Centre, South Brisbane Lest We Forget, Queensland Ballet Playhouse, QPAC, South Brisbane Equus, theatre

Brisbane Arts Theatre, Petrie Terrace

AUGUST From 2 2 4-6 5-14 6 From 9 11 12 18 19 19-21 21 23 23 23-28 25+26 26 27 27 27 27

Ari Athans and Yvette Coppersmith, exhibition Macklemore and Ryan Lewis

Edwina Corlette Gallery, New Farm Brisbane Entertainment Centre, Boondall Next Fall, theatre Metro Arts, city Ekka, Brisbane Show Brisbane Showgrounds, Bowen Hills Brian Cox, A Journey into Deep Brisbane Convention and Space Exhibition Centre, South Brisbane Endgame, Shake & Stir Theatre Cremorne Theatre, QPAC, Company South Brisbane Akmal, comedy Brisbane Powerhouse, New Farm Paul Dempsey The Triffid, Newstead Ben Folds with yMusic Concert Hall, QPAC, South Brisbane Amity Affliction Tivoli, Fortitude Valley Brisbane Boat Show Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre, South Brisbane Jimmy Barnes, Soul Searchin’ Tour Concert Hall, QPAC, South Brisbane Alan Carr, comedy Concert Hall, QPAC, South Brisbane Trevor Noah (The Daily Show host), Brisbane Convention and comedy Exhibition Centre, South Brisbane Shadowland, dance theatre Playhouse, QPAC, South Brisbane The Road to Shangri La, Tim Mager Metro Arts, city and Kay Smythe, musical comedy An evening with Steve Wozniak, Brisbane Convention and co-founder of Apple Exhibition Centre, South Brisbane St Marys in Exile, Queensland Bille Brown Studio, Theatre Company South Brisbane Umbilical Bros, comedy Lyric Theatre, QPAC, South Brisbane Soweto Gospel Choir Brisbane Powerhouse, New Farm Dead Letter Circus, The Burning The Triffid, Newstead Number Tour BNE July/August 2016 | 35

MY BRISBANE

Betty Moinet Director, Brisbane French Festival

W

here are you from?

I was born in Charleville-Mézières in the north east of France on the border with Belgium, in the Champagne-Ardennes region.

How long have you lived in Brisbane?

I arrived in Australia 21 years ago as an international student. As part of my final year of a Master’s degree in International Business I had to work at a company outside Europe. I did work experience then was offered a job and I have been here ever since. I now live in Chapel Hill, less than 10km west of the CBD. What do you like most about your neighbourhood?

‘Ardennes’ comes from the Celtic word ArDenn meaning ‘forest’, so what I like most about Chapel Hill is that it is close to the Mount Coot-tha forest. I can go for walks with my family at any time. It is a quiet suburb but very close to the busy Indooroopilly restaurants and shops, and to the university at St Lucia.

Any great finds in the neighbourhood that only locals would know?

We love Julia’s Pantry (Shop 4, 2051 Moggill Road, Kenmore) which has delicious homemade food. We are lucky also to have a small coffee place around the corner, Dennis’ Espressivo Coffee Bar (14 Wongabel Street, Kenmore) for early morning coffees in the sun. We also buy all our ‘charcuterie’ from Adam’s Continental Smallgoods (206 Cobalt Street, Carole Park). It’s not really in our 36 | BNE July/August 2016

neighbourhood but it is so European. You can hear people speak Yugoslavian, German … and the smell … yum. It’s worth the drive.

What do you love about Brisbane?

The daily blue sky, all the green vegetation and the wild birds, the cleanliness and the relaxed feeling in spite of the fact that it is a big city with lots of activities and people.

The schools our children attend (Rainworth State School and Indooroopilly State School, which offers an International Baccalaureate) teach students how to love learning and put effort into their schooling. Rainworth is like a country school in a big city. It has great outdoor facilities (it even has its own garden) and students have access to opera, theatre and writers. They are very open to all extracurricular activities and at the same time do extremely well academically. The best of all worlds.

How do you think Brisbane has changed since you have been here?

You can now drink fantastic coffees anywhere (no more kettle and instant coffee at meetings) and eat delicious food anywhere, in any café in any suburb (not just Chiko Rolls for lunch).

More seriously, Brisbane is now the hub for more international events (G20, for example) and expos and live shows. The number of people here has almost doubled. We now know what a traffic jam is!

You’re the director of Brisbane French Festival. How did it start?

It all started in 2010 with a drink at my place with Damien Hubert (then director of Alliance Française) and Sue McGary (director of French Affair). We called all French organisations in Brisbane to ask them to be part of the

organising committee and we created the notfor-profit association Brisbane French Festival.

How has the festival changed since then?

It has been a huge success from the first year and this year artists are coming from interstate and overseas (France and New Caledonia). It has grown from a one-day event to a three-day festival and leads into the first French Week in Brisbane this year from 8 to 16 July.

What are some festival highlights this year?

Masterclasses in gastronomy, champagne and wines, a Daft Punk tribute band on Saturday evening and a raffle first prize of two Air France return tickets to Paris, with four nights accommodation in Château de Cadillac courtesy of Bordeaux and Beyond.

Where do you find the best coffee and croissants in Brisbane?

Crust & Company Artisan Baking (140 Edmonstone Street, Newmarket), without hesitation. Then you take all the Viennoiseries home for a family treat.

Who are some of your favourite French food artisans?

Monsieur Macaron (at Les Folies de Paris, 97 Kennigo Street, Spring Hill or at the markets see www.monsieur-macaron.com.au) and my top buys at markets are always the ‘saucisson’ from Philippe Déliss (from West End markets every Saturday or the Jan Power Farmers Markets in the city every Wednesday at Reddacliff Place) and goats cheese by Camille Mortaud from Gympie Farm Cheese.

Do you have a favourite French restaurant?

All year round the French Food Shop (356 Brunswick Street, Fortitude Valley) is simple

BETTY’S french FOOD PICKS

CROISSANTS

Crust & Co, Newmarket

Botanic Gardens, Mt Coot-tha

Kangaroo Point Cliffs

yet succulent. For very special treats I really enjoy Lutèce (1/60 Macgregor Terrace, Bardon).

birds come back. I can stop in any park and feel rejuvenated looking at the violet Jacaranda trees or bright red Poinciana.

What Australian habits have you picked up since you’ve been here?

Unfortunately not waking up early in the morning to exercise! But in Brisbane it’s easy to be positive, be welcoming and to enjoy outdoor living. I have discovered life on a deck and would not go back to anything else. Camping is also new to me and there are plenty of options near the city.

What sort of entertainment do you enjoy?

The International Series at QPAC. I am looking forward to the French Ballet Peljocaj which will be performing Snow White exclusively in Brisbane in September. Children always love the Brisbane Festival fireworks, also in September. We also attend most exhibitions at GOMA with our two daughters.

What French habit will you never give up?

Long meals with family and friends, talking about good food, books, politics, wines and food again!

How do you like to travel around Brisbane and what’s your favourite journey?

I can drive, walk, jump on a train or a bus.

There are no rules. It depends where I have to go. My favourite journey by far is being able to go on the CityCat. I love the ride on the river and people travelling on the CityCat always look like they are on holidays even though they are not.

Where do you always take visitors when they come to Brisbane?

Children to Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary, and everyone enjoys a ride on the CityCat, a stroll through New Farm Park, coffee on the river or on Latrobe Terrace in Paddington.

What’s a favourite weekend pastime with your family?

Morning coffee on Latrobe Terrace in Paddington. Rock climbing and a picnic at Kangaroo Point cliffs.

What is your favourite short break outside Brisbane?

Lamington National Park. As soon as you arrive there it feels like you have escaped to a very special place. It is always colder and refreshing. The scenery is beautiful. The World Heritage-listed rainforest and waterfalls are one of our favourites across Australia. It is also home to a spectacular array of birds – more than 160 species of sub-tropical birds make their home in the rainforest. Every single time we go it is invigorating and inspiring.

Where do you feel most inspired?

My favourite time of the year is September, anywhere under a blossoming tree when all the

Brisbane French Festival, 8-10 July, Cultural Forecourt, South Bank Parklands

Brisbane French Festival is at South Bank – what are your favourite places there?

South Bank always makes me feel like I am having time off. I love the city view from South Bank and the beach on the river’s edge always amazes visitors.

SAUCISSON

Déliss Artisan French Food

Macarons

Les Folies de Paris, Spring Hill

TRUFFLES

Lutèce Restaurant, Bardon Opposite page top, from left: Betty Moinet at Dello Mano, Newstead, photographed by Marc Grimwade; walking trails in Brisbane Botanic Gardens, Mt Coot-tha, image from Brisbane City Council; Rock climbing at Kangaroo Point Cliffs.

BNE July/August 2016 | 37

good reads Barracuda

Two If By Sea Jacquelyn Mitchard

Christos Tsiolkas

The story in Mitchard’s latest novel begins with a tsunami in Brisbane.

A young woman and her unborn child are killed but just hours later her volunteer husband rescues a little boy from a submerged car and discovers the child has a special gift. As the boy faces danger the drama follows, all the way to the American mid-west and the quaint English countryside.

Published by Simon and Schuster.

Tsiolkas’ latest novel was first published in 2013 but if you haven’t read it now might be the time as the ABC gets set to air a fourpart television adaptation in July, coinciding with the Olympic Games in Rio. Winning Olympic gold is what drives competitive swimmer Danny Kelly and his win-at-all-cost ferocity earns him the nickname Barracuda, but the battle goes far beyond the pool in this brutal dissection of class and culture.

Published by Allen and Unwin

The Couple Next Door Shari Lapena

Author Lee Child has said “real men read women writers because of books like this” and Harlan Coben has called it “meticulously written and razor sharp” – high praise from a couple of the best-selling writers in the genre. When a couple’s six-month baby goes missing, left unattended while they are at a dinner party next door. what happens next keeps the reader in suspense right to the end. Published by Random House.

Private Paris

When it comes to packing essentials for a trip a book is still the reader of choice according to a TripAdvisor survey which showed almost twice as many travellers would pack a book (33 per cent) than an e-reader (18 per cent).

James Patterson

The Agile Mind Estanislao Bachrach

Already a bestseller before it was translated into English, this book unplugs the mysteries of how the brain functions, how creativity really works and how we can make it work even better. If you thought creativity diminishes with age, think again. We can all become more creative with the right techniques and this book outlines some tips and tools to help make it happen. Published by Virgin Books.

Jack Morgan, founder of security firm Private, stops by the Paris office for a quick hello during what’s supposed to be a leisurely trip but he’s quickly called in to service to track down a client’s young granddaughter who is on the run from a brutal drug dealer. While Jack searches the city, a whole lot of murders start happening and Private is called in to help with the police investigation. Published by Random House.

End of Watch

The Moomin Colouring Book

Stephen King

Tove Jansson

He’s been called the ‘king of thrills and chills’ since writing his first horror novel Carrie in the 1970s and all of his novels since then have been best sellers and sold more than 350 million copies. For End of Watch he brings back retired detective Bill Hodges still on the trail of his nemesis, mass murderer Brady Hartsfield. But Hartsfield has only three people in his sights this time and Hodges is one of them. Published by Hodder & Stoughton.

Buy it for the kids but bring your colouring pencils and have a go – you know you’ll want to.

Author and illustrator Tove Jansson created the world of the Moomins for children in the 1940s and it went on to become an early multimedia success. Now, as the Mindfulness colouring trend sweeps the world, these original drawings are a perfect calmer for all ages. Published by Pan Macmillan.

Burning Angels Bear Grylls

The one-time SAS soldier and star of survival TV has written several books and this one is the sequel to Ghost Flight which finds Will Jaeger, ‘hunter’, still searching for his wife and missing son while on another adrenalinefuelled adventure to save the world. From the Arctic Circle to Africa it’s a wild ride.

Published by Orion.

The Horseman Charlotte Nash Nash grew up riding horses in the Redlands district south of Brisbane and says her latest novel was inspired by a combination of nostalgia for The Man From Snowy River and the more modern practices of natural horsemanship seen in the documentary Buck. This contemporary romance is set in the Australian High Country where fate brings two horse lovers together. Published by Hachette.

38 | BNE July/August 2016

Her Again: Becoming Meryl Streep Michael Shulman This is a glimpse into the early life and career of one of the most revered actors of our time. From the homecoming float at her suburban New Jersey high school to roles in films such as The Deer Hunter, Manhattan and Kramer vs. Kramer, the book charts Streep’s rise to stardom on the New York stage and her evolution as a young woman of the 1970s amidst changing ideas of feminism, marriage and love. Published by Allen and Unwin.

Find more good reads at Watermark Books & Café, Newslink, Aero and News Travels, Domestic Teminal Level 2; and News Travels, International Terminal Levels 2, 3, 4.

day in the life

Day in the

Life

Brit Jack Innes waiting for his flight to Townsville, Qld

More than 22 million passengers travel through Brisbane Airport each year. These are just a few snapped on their journey by Brisbane photographer Marc Grimwade

England coach Eddie Jones back on home turf for the Rugby Test Brothers Declan and Matt Harms on their way to Moranbah, Qld

Tamara Walker and Arromi Causer have just returned from Thailand

Victor Davidson on his way to work in Proserpine, Qld

Glen Allen and son Kobe Warwick departing for Sydney, NSW

Daisy Hill and Donna Wright waiting for a flight to Melbourne , Victoria

Mason Cox toy shopping on his way to Newcastle, NSW

BNE July/August 2016 | 39

BRISBANE TO THE WORLD

Tokyo (Narita) Seoul

Japan

South Korea

Guangzhou

Dubai

Shanghai* (Pudong) China Taipei Taiwan

China

United Arab Emirates

Abu Dhabi

United Arab Emirates

Hong Kong China

Manila

Philippines

Bangkok Thailand

Singapore

Singapore

Denpasar

Port Moresby Papua New Guinea

Indonesia

Honiara

Solomon Islands

BRISBANE

Brisbane to the world

To 74 destinations direct from Brisbane and beyond

*Flights start December 2016.

Vancouver Canada

Los Angeles USA

Honolulu

USA

Darwin

Nauru

Cairns

Nauru

Broome Cloncurry Mount Isa

Port Hedland

Longreach

Alice Springs Samoa

Birdsville

Espiritu Santo Vanuatu

Port Vila Vanuatu

Emerald

Biloela

Rockhampton Gladstone

Windorah Bundaberg Charleville Fraser Coast (Hervey Bay) Quilpie Roma Miles

Thargomindah

Nadi

Whitsunday Coast (Proserpine) Hamilton Island Mackay

Moranbah Barcaldine

Blackall

Apia

Townsville

BRISBANE

St George Cunnamulla

Toowoomba

Fiji

Armidale

Noumea

New Caledonia

Coffs Harbour Tamworth

Perth

Norfolk Island Australia

Port Macquarie

Dubbo Newcastle Sydney

Adelaide Albury

Canberra

Melbourne

Auckland New Zealand

Wellington New Zealand

Christchurch New Zealand

Dunedin

New Zealand

Queenstown New Zealand

Map not to scale. Please note airlines and destinations are current at time of print.

Launceston Hobart

Lord Howe Island

need to know Airport ambassadors

Welcoming volunteers are available to answer questions and offer directions to visitors within Brisbane Airport’s Domestic and International Terminals. Look for ambassadors wearing bright blue shirts if you need assistance and our team of Chinese-speaking ambassadors wear red shirts.

BNE PARKING

Convenient, secure and undercover short and long-term parking is available within walking distance to both terminals. For special offers and full product offering including valet, car washing, the new AIRPARK and more see www.bne.com.au

Terminal transfers

Passengers transferring between the terminals can travel via the free Transfer Bus which departs at regular intervals from Level 2 International Terminal and Level 1 Domestic Terminal and travels via Skygate.

important information Visitor Information Centres For information about accommodation, tours, transfer tickets and general enquiries, Visitor Information Centres are on Level 2 International Terminal and Level 1 Domestic Terminal (Central Area).

Transport bookings Coach, rail, limousine and corporate car bookings can be made at the Visitor Information Centre, Level 2 International Terminal or Level 1 Domestic Terminal.

Public transport

TransLink is the local bus, ferry and train public transport network stretching north to Gympie, south to Coolangatta and west to Helidon. See www.translink.com.au or call 13 12 30.

TAXIS AND AIRTRAIN Taxi ranks are located kerbside Level 2

International Terminal and Level 1 Domestic Terminal. Airtrain provides regular rail links between Brisbane Airport, Brisbane city, Gold Coast and TransLink network as well as terminal transfers. Tickets available in the terminal or at the station.

BNE Maps + More Download the Brisbane Airport app to access important flight information, terminal maps and parking, shopping and dining options at the airport. Add your itinerary and more. Available free for iPhone and Android at Google play and App Store.

42 | BNE July/August 2016

Currency exchange Travelex currency exchange and transfer facilities are on Levels 2, 3 and 4 International Terminal and Level 2 Domestic Terminal near Gate 23.

Baggage lockers Find small, medium and large lockers for short and long-term hire at the terminal entrance to the public car park at the International Terminal, at either end of the Domestic Terminal, or next to the bus stop at Skygate.

Tax Refund Scheme (TRS) The TRS enables you to claim a refund, subject to certain conditions, of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) and Wine Equalisation Tax (WET) that you pay on goods bought in Australia. See www. customs.gov.au or call 1300 363 263.

Lost property International: enquiries to Visitor Information Centre, Level 2; call (07) 3406 3190 or email international@sqt. com.au. Domestic: enquiries first to your airline. Qantas call (07) 3867 3264, Virgin Australia (07) 3114 8150, Jetstar (07) 3336 1752 or email Tigerair at ttbne.ops@ aerocare.com.au before contacting the Visitor Information Centre on Level 1; call (07) 3068 6698 or send emails to domestic@sqt.com.au Disability access Lifts, travelators, ramps, aerobridges, rest points, accessible parking spaces and toilet

The new food precinct at Skygate is now open, offering a range of indoor and outdoor casual dining options day and night. It’s just minutes from Brisbane Airport’s passenger terminals by free Transfer Bus. facilities are in place for passengers with limited mobility or disabilities. Airlines are responsible for assisting passengers with disabilities within terminals. Passengers should refer to their airline’s policies prior to booking their ticket. There is no porter service or any form of direct assistance provided at Brisbane Airport other than any assistance that may be provided by the passenger’s airline.

WiFi access Free WiFi access up to 1GB at International Terminal and central area Domestic Terminal.

Local amenities Skygate is Brisbane Airport’s retail and dining precinct, a short free ride on the Transfer Bus from the terminals. There are more than 130 stores, including brandname factory outlets, a 24/7 supermarket, hairdresser, gym, restaurants, chemist, medical clinic, hotel, beauty services, barber, tavern and golf leisure centre.

Prayer Room A multi-denominational prayer room is located at International Terminal Level 4.

Police For assistance at Brisbane Airport telephone 13 12 37.

Acknowledgement In keeping with the spirit of reconciliation, we respectfully acknowledge the Turrbal people, the Traditional Owners of the land on which Brisbane Airport stands, and pay respect to their Elders past, present and emerging.

GETTING TO THE CITY M4

Route Number

25

Exit Number Train Line

TO SUNSHINE COAST

Main Road AirportlinkM7 & Clem Jones Tunnels Brisbane CBD Service Centre

Nudgee

A3

Banyo

BRISBANE AIRPORT

W ay

M3

Nundah

Boggy Creek

DOMESTIC TERMINAL

So ut he rn Cr os s

Gympie Road

Sandgate Road

A3

Airp ort Driv e

Chermside

26

Stafford

TO CITY

e

Rd

Albion

Lytton way otor yM ewa Gat

ra ge og En

ross Way rn C

Lutwyche

th S ou

Clayfield

M7

INTERNATIONAL TERMINAL

terial Road t Ar Ea s t -Wes

M7

A3

Mo tor way

Stafford Ro ad

Breakfast Creek

Hamilton Eagle Farm

77 Enoggera Creek

Bowen Hills

31

M1 Aquarium Passage

30

RI V E R

M4

Bulimba

s

Newstead

ty

By pa s

Kelvin Grove Inn e r C i

Wynnum West

Spring Hill

Paddington

Morningside 15 33

BRISBANE y wa tor Mo ific Pac

West End

Main Street

Milton Co ro na tio nD riv e

BRIS BANE

25

Por tO fB risb ane

26

Windsor

M1

Road nnum Wy

New Farm 23

23

Manly R oad

Norman Park TO GOLD COAST

* Map not to scale.

BNE July/August 2016 | 43

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