Around Brisbane

Yesterday I got to see a couple lap bands, a partial gastrectomy, and a hernia repair. After the tough day at the office I was gone by 1:30 to cruise around Bribane ("Brissy" as the aussies call it) for part of my cultural education. I went down to the center of the city where they have a huge outdoor "mall" area called the Queen St. Mall. It's just a huge blosked off street with tons ofs stores lining it and restaurants, cafes, and bars all along where you can enjoy some food or beverage outside. It's pretty neat and a fun place to walk around. Then I walked along the bridge which goes over the Brisbane River to South Bank. There is a great walk/run/bike path that stretches for 30km along the river with grassy areas, beaches and other places to sit and relax. Also there are more restaurants by the river. It is really nice and offers great views of the city. (see pics). However, I was told that there are sharks and crocs in the river.

After a fun filled day of walking around, I went out to dinner with some of the interns at the Royal Brisbane Hospital who work under Blair. They were super nice and we had a great time eating seafood outside in a very trendy area of town only a few blocks from my apartment. They also introduced me to one of Australia's best beers- Cooper's! So low and behold, Foster's is in fact not the "Australian beer" but it's Cooper's! After dinner they took me to a few more bars/pubs which was a great time. Everyone here is so friendly and nice and it has been easy to make friends.