For the first time since leaving the good ole US of A, we repacked our beastly backpacks and relocated. It didn't take us long to realize we needed to prioritize our belongings and get rid of a couple things. The gravitational force of a 26 kilo bag drug our feet on the ground as we crouched over huffing and puffing for air...with a little hope the pain in our lower back and shoulders would eventually go numb.
The Hamptons have a beach house on Coochiemudlo Island just southeast of Brisbane where we vacationed for a couple days to have a rest from the bustling city life. It sits in Moreton Bay, sheltered from the Pacific Ocean by a much larger, Stradbrooke Island. Only 5k in circumference, Coochie (for short because Aussies abbreviate everything) gave us the perfect distance to walk around in preparation for Kilimanjaro. We strapped on our boots again and took the island twice by storm in less than 1.5 hours. 
Tea and crumpets in the morning on the back veranda with absolutely no schedule or list of things to do...we were on island time. We kayaked a bit and bounced around in their 1960s "mini moke"--a beach buggy with no doors--to pick up firewood. A crackling fire and Bill Bryson's hilarious book, Down Under (about Oz of course) did the trick at night. Here, the stars are extra bright and the water is often motionless. Only a ferry connects the island to the mainland so it served as the perfect escape...
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