Mt Tamborine is about one hour south of Brisbane - up in what is called "the hinterland." It was settled in the late 1800's and the heavily timbered mountain and surrounds was used to harvest timber and much of the good old timber was taken away. In recent years the area has become a popular destination for people wanting to escape the hustle and bustle of the city and the Gold Coast, and it is a popular tourist destination with streets full of cafe's, shops, wineries, art galleries, B & B's, wedding chapels, and rain forest walks.
I could stay there a week and not see everything!
We parked outside a winery, though in the end did not get to taste the fruits of their labour as the queues were long. We did wander around the shops and we had coffee and cupcakes at a cute little coffee shop/gourmet shop, and I bought a few lavender things at a gift shop (bag of lavender, lavender oil, soap, and some body creme).
However, the main reason to go to Tamborine ws to visit the Rainforest Skywalk - a fairly new tourist attraction with a walkway through the treetops of one of the rainforests. And it was well worth the visit. It takes about an hour to go along the walkway through the treetops and back via a pathway that takes you through wonderful rainforest.
It was great. Despite being somewhat dark, I managed quite a few photos. We are so pleased we did it - well worth it. There are several other walks through rainforests in the area, but no other has the treetop walk. Next time, I'd like to visit them.
Around lunch time we'd planned to visit a Brewery and eat some lunch, and duly found a park, wandered around looking at the cheese factory, and brewery before ordering lunch, and a glass of wine.
And we waited and waited. We only ordered two salads, and after 40 minutes we asked a staff member about our meals. She said she would ask, but then didn't speak to us again. We saw her but she clearly avoided us.
After nearly 15 minutes more, we'd had enough. My husband asked at the counter, and as they could'nt give us a satisfactory response, we cancelled the order and asked for our money back. It was given to him, without argument.
As we were leaving, the manager came and spoke to us. We explained the situation and all he could say was "they had served over 300 meals and were busy." We said he'd have to learn to manage it better. As the walked away he said "Do you want to hit me?" Strange response. There was never any indication of violence or abuse on our part.
Before we left the permises, another man approached us. He was a Captain in the Australian Defence Force, stationed at nearby Canungra Jungle Training centre, and he too had complained and had guessed that we had. He spoke to us and encouraged us to write a letter of complaint, which I will do.
By now it was about three in the afternoon, and we were starving. We considered our options and then decided to drive down the mountain and get a burger at Hungry Jacks! Fast food. We needed to eat, and fast!
I will write a few letters of complaint - (a) to the Brewery and (b) to the tourist organisations.
Totally unsatisfactory.
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