To Bribie - Night 26

My assignment this week was to do bush regeneration on Bribie Island, a large sandbar northeast of Brisbane. It would also be my first week with Team Leader Chris. We loaded the troupee for an 8am departure. Joining me this week would be Daniel, Hong, Han, Rex, Mark and Lena. The drive isn’t far and after fighting Brisbane traffic for a bit, we crossed the bridge onto Bribie at around 9:30 am. The island itself is populated mostly by retirees and we weren’t the least bit shocked to see nothing but old folks upon our arrival.

The Mexican Chef

Our lodging consists of three man cabins at the Bongaree Caravan Park, directly across the road from the Moreton Bay side beach. To the immediate south is a lawn bowling club that at 10 am on Monday was full of octogenarians acting out their last athletic endeavors. We were working at Buckley’s Hole Conservation Park, just a mile or so south of the caravan park. Arriving at the park, we were greeted by two rangers from the Caboolture Shire Commission, Ed and Shane. Shane would be our day-to-day assistant, while Ed was on hand to give us an informative, detailed introduction to the uses of the park, its wildlife and how man has changed the area over the years.

Weeding, weeding, weeding would be our main task. Many invasive species have taken over the shores and prohibit the native plants from growing. Names such as Mother of Millions and Mother-in-Laws Tongue speak to the aggressive reproductive powers and painful nature of these plants.

As opposed to working John, Chris requires each person or groups of people to cook one night of the week. Lacking any real interest in cooking American food, I offered to do a Mexican food night. This stunning meal consistent solely of a do-it-yourself taco bar, which worked really well considering ¼ of the

Taco Night in Bribie

volunteers are vegetarians and the refried beans and veggie mince served as a sufficient surrogate. It all turned out surprisingly well, there was enough food to go around and the meat tasted very well, much better than anything I’ve ever had at Taco Bell.

What I Learned Today: Lawn bowling clubs in Australia seem to serve the same purpose as country clubs in America: to retain the division of classes long after retirement.

written by

exumenius on November 5, 2007 from Woorim, Australia

from the travel blog: Kiwis and Kangaroos

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