Day Trip With The Cousins

My cousins were down to Sunshine Coast for the weekend so we decided to spend Saturday exploring all that is on offer.I rented a Hyundai Accent for $56 including insurance and started my trip down to Eumundi Markets to meet my cousins. It was about a 30 minute drive from my place. But as fate would have it, I took a wrong turn and spent 15 minutes backtracking to get on the right track.

Eumundi Markets is essentially a festival-like bazaar with the ultimate assortment of stalls. It is so big that you probably need half a day to finish exploring all the stalls. I bought a big popcorn to share with my housemates during the Germany-Argentina World Cup quarter-finals later that evening. The popcorn is simply mind blasting and definitely the best I have ever eaten.After the stalls closed, we visited the nearby chocolate factory and headed down for some strawberry picking. We ended up at Strawberry Fields, and plucked $7 worth of strawberries. They were real sweet and bursting with natural goodness. Needless to say, we ate more than we plucked!

We then drove to Noosa Heads, about 50 minutes away. It was dark when we got there. After a review of the seafood restaurants, we decided to go for steak at Hogs Breath Cafe. I ordered smoked grilled prime tenderloin ($29) and it was decent though I have had better.

On the drive back, I relied on my iPhone for directions. There was no street directory in the rented car, which was a shame. I had barely left Noosa Heads when my iPhone displayed it's 'Battery Low' warning. What the hell! Plus the Google Maps brought me to a deserted road so haunting that I turned turtle and backtracked with my tail between my legs. It was definitely not a road for the faint hearted and the glow of the iPhone on my face in the rearview mirror added to the creepy atmosphere.

Eventually I stumbled onto the motorway and hit familiar ground. The iPhone died on me just as I reached home. Phew! It wouldn't be funny to be stuck in a deserted Aussie suburb where petrol stations are closed and streets dark. Sure was a harrowing experience and I thank God I made it back safely.

Just out of interest, a young Aussie punk gave me the finger as I was driving to return the rental car this morning. I definitely didn't break any traffic rules or did anything to provoke that but I got pissed off and contemplated chasing him down. I'm sure he would run helter skelter if I did that. In the end I just brushed it off as YET ANOTHER racist encounter. Disturbing, no doubt but I'm starting to get used to it.