You never really look at where you live through another person's eyes, until you, well, look at it through another person's eyes.
And so, with a visitor to the area staying with us on a recent weekend, we decided to show off our Redland home.
The highlight was a ferry trip to Coochiemudlo.
After asking me what Coochiemudlo meant, we continued our little exploration without any insightful commentary on my part. Luckily in the circumnavigational walk around said island, a little plaque told me that essentially Coochiemudlo means 'red mud' and I was then able to point out lots of red stuff for the rest of the tour.
We had decided to have lunch on the island as part of the itinerary and I discovered that there is actually more than a kiosk on the island. There is a golf club, a cafe (also with the word red in the name) and an informal function centre, outside of which blew a flag with the word 'lunch $9.90' blowing merrily. Coochiemudlo is an island of surprises.
Along the way, we chatted to one of its casual residents who, lying akimbo book in hand, talked about his grand life where he could just wander with book down to the sand and stay there for the day, talking to people like us.
Clearly, it is "the people like us" component that makes him so happy.
We spotted the spot where Flinders made his historic landing and I am happy to report there are plaques there that make me look almost semi intelligent, such is my pitted knowledge of all things historical. We paddled for a bit and our friend kept stopping for scenic photographs.
It occurred to me then, as I wandered blithely past the great beauty of this place that I may have become a bit immune. Clearly this place is a thing of beauty and when you live with a place alive with the bay and the bush, you just shrug it away too easily.
After we got back from the island and feeling relieved that there was no parking ticket lest I had misread the signs, we did the Redland "point" hop. By that I mean, Victoria, Wellington and Cleveland points. We added in a quick stop at Redland Bay and Ormiston and my husband was keen to even take him to Thorneside, but I put a stop to that. Just how much bay scenery can one cope with in any one day?
The art gallery was closed, so we are saving the artistic progressive for another time.