Ah, Townsville with its lovely marina setting, beautiful waterfront, easy access to shops, restaurants, museums, parks, and GELATO all along The Strand. "Gelatissimo" was just across the street from us. Dangerous.
Weather remains dismal but not our spirits. We set off for a stroll along The Strand and finding a trendy café with live jazz/blues music we planted ourselves for a delicious dinner and excellent entertainment by a local trio.
Monday we walked all over Townsville, taking in the sights, browsing shops and then realized a little late that we had not eaten lunch. Many of the cafés and restaurants had either closed or stopped serving. We spied people eating at a bar called Longboard's and stuck our heads in to be told that they were no longer serving lunch but could offer the bar menu. We ordered crispy/spicy chicken wings and salt and pepper calamari that both turned out to be mouthwateringly delish. Chance delivered us another dining boon. Afterward we continued our stroll back toward the marina in the rain noting the attractive beach with posted warnings about the stingers, and boxes containing vinegar for application to the stings. I couldn't help but wonder how vinegar would and could counteract a deadly Irukanji or Box Jellyfish sting and yet hoped never to find out.
Tuesday was another on and off rainy day, but we had places to go and things to do. We finally located a back-up impeller at a chandlery across the river. The cost was 3 times what we would have paid West Marine but we are not in America anymore and have to keep reminding ourselves to get over it. I had also wanted to step into one or two of the museums in the area but when you are walking a town looking for boat parts and supplies time gets eaten up quickly. We pacified ourselves with a trip to Gelatissimo later in the day. That night we dined at The Seaview Hotel that boasted the best steaks in Northern Queensland. I decided to try the steak, while Frank opted for wood fired pizza. As we often do we each eat half of our meal and then switch plates. I sadly admit that his pizza, although not the best we've had, was far better than my $40 steak and I had to fight him to take the steak for my half of the pizza. What a disappointment! Not even close to The Norman or Breaky Creek back in Brisbane. Big price ($40 for the steak) and big disappointment there.
We planned another early departure for Wednesday, since the weather was not giving us much to look at or to do, and we were eager to get further north. Several locals told us the cruising from here north was the prettiest in all of Northern Queensland.
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