Anyone For Tennis?
Gigi's
5 Boundary Street, Howard Smith Wharves, Brisbane City, QLD 4000
Ph: 07 3188 9090
'Out at coffee'
17th August 2024
We park on Malt Street and head to the cliff top on Bowen Terrace. It’s a beautiful day and the panoramic view of the Brisbane River across to Kangaroo Point is stunning. A perfect blue sky frames the iconic Story Bridge as it stands proud and majestic against the backdrop of the city. The rhythmic, muffled thump of wheels on raised bridge sections audible, as early Saturday morning traffic flows across it.
We stand looking at the breathtaking view and I inhale deeply and think; ‘What a perfect day to be out at coffee!’
Stephen points below to this week’s coffee venue; ‘GIGI’s’.
We're eager for our first caffeine fix of the weekend, so we forgo the glass lift and descend the stairs; these health conscious fifty somethings prefer, or should I say, need the exercise.
The wharves have been tastefully redeveloped to provide an abundance of entertainment venues with green spaces in between.
As we approach the cafe`, it feels like we've been transported to a rustic, Mediterranean courtyard, with alfresco seating elevated by the liberal use of tall pot plants.
The space is complimented by a menu of homestyle cooking and the pastries on offer look delicious.
We look at Messenger’s live location to find out where Lee and Pete are, a little hesitant after last week’s blue dot antics... and it looks like they’re still at home!
We laugh at the thought of Pete still grooming in the bathroom without a care in the world, something he’s renowned for!
Suddenly Pete messages: ‘Our blue dots are about to intersect!’
And as I respond… ‘Goodness... that sounds fun!’, they jump us from behind with Coco bounding in too!
Stephen and I shriek at their abrupt arrival. Messenger was clearly not syncing!
We order coffee and as usual Lee returns with something scrummy to eat. We’re all shocked that it’s not an almond croissant… this week he’s selected a blueberry pastry.
Pete looks at it and says, “Oh, I wouldn’t have chosen that!”
To which Lee responds with a huge grin on his face; “Oh well! I forgot to bring a knife too… sorry can’t share!”
We all laugh conscious that won’t stop Pete anyway! They're both seagulls after all!!
As we chat and enjoy coffee, it feels like Lee, Pete and I are sat front of stage at a tennis tournament, watching a fast-paced rally play out. Our heads move in unison from left to right as we look out to the pathway, in fact we’re jerking our heads so quickly whiplash is a real possibility.
Stephen stops talking mid-sentence as nobody is listening to him, and when he turns, he realises why.
The pathway behind is like a human version of the Pacific motorway, except the traffic here is a constant flow of fit, hunky, shirtless men, as they go about their early morning exercise routines. It really is a smorgasbord of toned bodies and testosterone going in both directions.
In a soft accentuated tone Stephen says; ‘Goodness!’ It’s a comical phrase he often uses, which breaks our trance, and we all look at each other and burst out laughing.
This week’s catchup needs to be a brief; game, set and match, and Coco, who must hold telepathic greyhound qualities, serves a timely bark to wrap things up.
Stephen and I have a busy weekend ahead, including his granddaughter's first birthday celebration with family. For this reason, we could so easily have cancelled our coffee commitment. But it’s an important event in our weekly calendar and while it may have been brief catchup, it was full of fun, friendship and laughter. So next time you feel inclined to cancel a social catchup… ask yourself; ‘Should I really make the effort and turn up?’ However short, it may be the best thing you could do for yourself and them. And if you’ve nothing planned, be adventurous, reach out to someone and invite them out to coffee.
I love sharing our coffee escapades with you, so please help me share the joy of coffee and friendships. Like, follow and share the ‘Out at Coffee’ Facebook page. And if you have suggestions for a great coffee venue in or around Brisbane, please drop us a line via the Contact page, we’d love to add it to our caffeine calendar.Allan
I'm proud to state that all content on this Blog is written by me and all photos are originals taken by our group.