We booked into Suffolk Beach Holiday Park about six kilometres south of Byron Bay. The parks in town were expensive and we thought Byron would be very busy. This park was small but had a path through to a beautiful beach. We had a very pleasant stay here.

By coincidence our day out in Byron Bay was a Sunday, market day. We had never seen so many market stalls anywhere and there were lots of interesting and quirky goods for sale. We enjoyed browsing. As well as lots of gazebos, there were a few small, subtle side shows for the children, a couple of bands playing, and a food area. With the weather so lovely, we decided on an ice cream. While John found a seat near the band, I made my way to a stall that sold some sort of natural ice cream. I ordered a banana and strawberry waffle cone for John and a sundae for me. They were absolutely delicious. It was actually frozen fruit and mine had lots of other yummy, healthy toppings like cacao and nuts.

We expected Byron Bay to be busy and it was but it wasn’t uncomfortably so. The streets were wide with plenty of parking, and there were open, grassy areas near the beautiful beach where people were enjoying the sunshine. Neither John nor I had been here before but friends and family have always sung its praises. We were not disappointed; we loved our visit. There was so much on offer – the markets, the beach, picnic areas, great boutique shops, trendy cafes and bars, not to mention lovely scenery. There was also plenty of room to wander. Unlike Airlie Beach, which we found suffocating, here the people were all part of the buzz and appeal of the town.

We spent most of the day enjoying Byron then drove a short distance to Bangalow where we strolled down the main street which felt quite historic with all the old buildings and quaint shops. It was another lovely town but with a very different feel from Byron Bay.

Our trip had already begun to change somewhat.We had previously caught up with friends Sue, Linda and Barry whom we hadn’t seen for some years. And now we were leaving Byron Bay to drive to Kinchela to stay with other long time friends, Kay and Jim.

On the drive down the coast, we called in to Coffs Harbour to check it out and have lunch. If anything proved to us that we had left remote Australia and were back in civilisation, it was when we had to find our own table in a cafe in Coffs, order our lunch and coffees, then pay our bill all on a QR code on the table. No-one spoke to us at all during our visit. A waiter brought the food and coffees we’d ordered and we left when we were finished. No-one took our money, no-one asked how our meal was, no-one said ‘thank you for coming’. It felt odd and impersonal. I’m all for progress but……give me the outback any day.