More than three weeks ago I started the third étape of my tour around the globe in the beautiful ville of Brisbane. The capital of Queensland is the country's third largest city and one of the main gateways for foreign backpackers planning to conquer Oceania. Thousands of individuals of this ubiquitous species mingle around the city in groups, sorted by nationalities (being the German the most abundant) and with two things in mind: finding a job and partying. Provided that the former is rather unfeasible at the moment, most backpackers put all their energy into the latter. As for me, well, I don't really want to engage in this money in/out cycle so I focused on the visit to the city.
After 7 days exploring the capital I concluded that there might be just as many people who love it as who feel trapped in it. Imagine a place where the sun welcomes you to a new day 6 in 7 days a week (average). A city where you -as well as your boss, your priest and your plumber- ride a shinny race bicycle to work every morning. A place where you and your boss (or your mighty priest) can team up for an after work natural rock climbing session right in the heart of the city, minutes away from the office. Finally end your dream day inviting your boss, your priest and even your plumber if you wish to share a beer and a burger at the nearest public BBQ and don't forget to have a swim in the turquoise waters of the free artificial lagoon before heading home!As you can see Brisbane is all about the outdoors. The unbeatable weather and the magnificent public facilities drag the local folks out of their homes. This elicits a very sporty atmosphere where everybody seems to be engaged in some sort of activity involving motion, sweat, fashionable sportswear and tons of Gatorade. As a result people look healthy (ie handsome) which -I guess- adds to the overall quality of life: mens sana in corpore sano.
However this has a downside. During my short visit to Brisbane I got the impression that some people did not exercise their minds as much as their bodies. What I mean is that in Brisbane -as in some cities back in Europe- physical appearance and image in general seems to be utterly important. An example of this is the main clubbing area. I hate when a bouncer refuses entry to someone for not wearing formal shoes, long trousers, etc. In Brisbane this is a regular practice and everybody seems happy about it. The dressing code issue is just a silly example (I'm pretty sure there are places where one can dress in whichever way they want) but it shows that Brisbaners can sometimes be a little bit too conventional and old-fashioned when it comes to the importance of the looks, at least from the perspective of a cheap Spaniard.
Bienvenidos a Australia, tierra de kanguros, koalas, rancheras tunning, sandalias de dedo y mala cerveza. En efecto, hace tres semanas aterrice en Brisbane, la tercera ciudad de Australia (en poblacion) y capital del estado de Queensland. Esta ciudad sirve de puerta de entrada a miles de mochileros en busca de trabajo y diversion (mas lo segundo que lo primero) durante su año sabatico. Ademas de la fauna aloctona lo que mas me llamo la atencion de esta ciudad es el altisimo nivel de calidad de vida del que gozan los Brisbanenses. Carriles bici, parques urbanos de escalada natural, lagunas artificiales y barbacoas publicas son solo algunas de las instalaciones impecables y a disposicion de cualquier vecino. Gracias a estas y al clima inmejorable, la ciudad es un hervidero de gente haciendo deporte al aire libre, lo cual esta genial. Sin embargo y al igual que en otras ciudades que he visitado (algunas de ellas en España) esta pasion por el culto al cuerpo ha propiciado un ambiente un tanto superficial. Muestra de ello son los bares de alterne donde zapatos y camisa son condicion sine qua non. Supongo que este tipo de cosas van de la mano. En fin, a quien le importan los bares cuando se pueden echar unas birras en el albergue!
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