Aussie Pictures: Surfer's Paradise

On the way to Surfer's Paradise, we stopped at the Natural Arch, a rock formation that is, basically, a natural arch (creative naming, right?). You could walk into the cave in the back where all of the bats were and see the waterfall from different views. The walk through the rainforest to the arch was really pretty as well.

Surfer's Paradise has a really pretty beach. I didn't think the waves were any better than anywhere we had been, but it was a really nice beach. This area of Australia is known as the Gold Coast for its golden sand.

Yeah, more beach.

Now, it was a nice beach, but you were definitely warned very clearly NOT to go swimming in the water, not only because of the currents ...

... but because of the jellyfish! As you can see, though, many people disregard these warnings. I think most of these people must be native Aussies because those people seem to not be wary of any of the thousands of Australian creatures that can kill you pretty much instantly.

I was walking along the beach because I was trying to find this hotel. This is the Palazzo Versace, the only Versace hotel in the world. Meredith had found out about it from a Rotarian (I think), and it did take awhile to find, but it was really cool to see.

This was the last holiday Meredith and I took together. It was really cool that she was able to make it to Surfer's to hang out before she started school again, and we had a great time.