![\"A.JPG\"](\"http:\/\/chroniclesofleisure.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/surfers\/A.JPG\")
<\/a><\/p>\nA seemingly endless stretch of sand from which the Gold Coast gets its name<\/p>\n
Apart from lounging in the sun<\/p>\n life here seems all about finding the perfect wave<\/p>\n Ran into this guy Renato who had some pretty good form out there<\/p>\n emailed him these photos so hopefully they are already posted on the fridge.<\/p>\n Down on the beach on a clear night, the Southern Cross looms large, pointing the way to the southern celestial pole. Glad I finally remembered to take a good look at it, pretty impressive. What I didn’t realize is that the stars on the Australian and New Zealand flags (among others), are the stars of the Southern Cross.<\/p>\n Outside of the beach and the heavens, well, as Lonely Planet puts it, “Surfers takes its drinking more seriously than oxygen.”\u009d A very laid back crowd enjoying the good life.<\/p>\n For those of you who live or have lived in one of my favorite places in the U.S., does this sound familiar?<\/p>\n Surfers Paradise is on a narrow strip of land separated from the mainland by an inter-coastal waterway and connected by drawbridges. Everywhere you look there is construction going on as old shops and hotels make way for towering new condos<\/p>\n There is an enormous shopping mall called the Galleria<\/p>\n There is a towering Marriot hotel by the beach (where I happened to be staying)<\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n