We had an early start today as we had to drive nearly 600km north of Noosa Heads to the city of Rockhampton. We packed up the car – which was stuffed to the brim – said goodbye to Shilpa, Dinesh and Tanish as they had to head back to the Gold Coast and unfortunately weren’t able to join us for the rest of our road trip. We took a more scenic route (instead of the main highway) and drove through some very different countryside than what we had seen so far. We were far inland and there were more rolling hills and farms (mostly for cattle). It was also a lot drier and brown and it reminded us of Saskatchewan except for the eucalyptus and that there were quite a few more trees. We also drove by quite a lot of sugar cane fields as we approached the Bundaberg region – which is known for its sugar, rum and ginger beer. We also happened by a large lemon plantation as well which was the only one we saw the whole drive up. We were really hoping to spot some koalas but it was not to be.

Biggenden was where we stopped for a lunch break and we happened upon a little gem of a café.  My parents had a coffee and cake while we opted for some hot chips (fries). It was hands down the best fries either of us have ever had – perfectly crispy on the outside, soft and moist on the inside; seasoned to perfection and served with a delicious aioli. After our lunch stop, the rest of the drive was uneventful and we arrived in Rockhampton just around dusk. I did however spot some kangaroos grazing on a rugby field as it was approaching dusk.

Rhys was fantastic in the car the entire day and it definitely helped that Ajji (“grandma” in Kannada) was in the backseat with him to sing him all sorts of songs and even invent some new ones to keep him entertained.