byron bay trip: port macquarie

Arriving in Port Macquarie
As I mentioned before, our plan was to spend the night in Port Macquarie, but we had no booking whatsoever. So we drove around and found a centrally located motel; it was quite pleasant and also close to the restaurants and bars.

After dropping off our bags at the motel, we went out to have a look around. I must admit I’m impressed by the well-manicured parks, clean sandy beaches and the large number of great places to wine and dine. Port Macquarie is actually quite a lovely place after all.

We walked all the way down to the waterfront and spotted a few places to check out on the way back to make a final decision.

Gaol Point Lookout
As we drove around Port Macquarie, we came to Gaol Point Lookout, a beautiful lookout. It’s an extension to Rotary Park; this lookout is located above Town Beach and offers the best views of Town Beach and the Hastings River, as you can see in the photos.

Port Macquarie is the Koala Capital of the East Coast
Port Macquarie has, in fact, the highest koala population on the east coast of Australia and is home to the famous Koala Hospital (as the Goal Point Lookout sign mentioned above).

There is also the award-winning Hello Koalas Sculpture Trail happening here. Established in 2014, this trail features koala sculptures, each hand-painted by local artists. Well, that explains all the koala statues scattered around the place.

Now, a well-established koala hospital and respect for them are everywhere in Port Macquarie. It’s a wonderful thing to hear if you are an animal lover. Well, I did feel good when I saw the sign at Gaol Point Lookout, but later that night, nothing could have prepared me for finding the statue of Lewis the Koala inside a shopping mall.

You may have heard about the bushfires in 2019. It was terrible, heartwrenchingly terrible. Now, Lewis the Koala puts a face to that disaster for us. Unfortunately, we lost a large number of koalas within the region.

Now, this may be a horrible thing to happen, but it is also a testament to human decency and compassion. Take Toni Doherty’s heroic action of saving Lewis from the flames. Take the donation of this statue by an artist couple, Gillie and Marc. These people are not only helping but also creating hope for the future.

A note on Gillie and Marc. The couple is using their art to preserve wildlife, and they both have a background to make them who they are today, and why what they do is important to them. Please take a little time to read their story on their website. I will add the link at the end of this post.

I also have alittle story of my own… When I was a little girl, I wanted a koala as a pet back in Turkey. My Dad made me sit down and patiently explained why I couldn’t have one. Well, the number one reason we don’t have koalas in Turkey, right? The second reason is that they’re not pets. I may have moved on to pestering my parents for a penguin, but little did I know back then that one day I would be living in Australia, and that the day I actually met a koala would be one of the most beautiful experiences of my life.

Dining and Wining in Port Macquarie
As we walked around Port Macquarie, we were also deciding where to eat. There was a Turkish restaurant that only did lunches, and it didn’t look all that good, but our hearts were set on some Japanese food. The only vegetarian-friendly Japanese restaurant was closed! It was called Suzu Dining. Such a shame.

We wanted to have something Greek in Byron Bay, but the one and only Greek place was closed due to a family emergency. Well, the Greek restaurant Papa Feta Ouzeria didn’t have a family emergency by the looks of things. So, the decision was made right there and then, and we ended up having something Greek to eat there.

Here’s what we had at Papa Feta Ouzeria:

• Skordalia
• Tzatziki
• Hummus
• Olives
• Spanakopita
• Haloumi with honey

Of all those beautiful Greek dishes we had here, I absolutely loved Skordalia for its creamy texture. It was also bursting with garlic flavour. So, I made a point of popping into their kitchen and thanking them. It was well received.

On the way home, I thought about learning how to make skordalia, and eventually I found Jenny’s recipe. To this day, I haven’t tried it myself yet, but I will.

Unfortunately, Papa Feta Ouzeria is permanently closed. I’ve just found out.

After dinner, drinks at Botanic Wine Garden, since the night was still quite young.

The next morning, we had to find a place to have breakfast before we set off and we decided to go to the place we spotted a day before, while we were walking around.

Breakfast at (not Tiffany’s) Chop ‘n Chill
Chop ‘n Chill is located at the waterfront, and it looked like a popular place to have breakfast. For us, it was fantastic because they also have a vegan and vegetarian menu!

Koala Chi welcomes you at the entrance, and there are water-drinking facilities for dogs of any size. I mean every size.

So, from their vegetarian breakfast menu, my husband decided to have Banana Split Waffle (oven-baked Belgian cubed waffles, banana, seasonal fruit, whipped cream, and chocolate topping).

… and I had vegan hash ‘n bash (hashpotatoes with red onion, baby spinach and vegan cheese). It was topped with tomato bruschetta and vegan mayonnaise and served with sourdough.

Luckily, Chop ‘n Chill is still around. Their website address is below.

Links
Gillie and Marc’s website
Love the Last Wildlife Fund by Gillie and Marc
Chop ‘n Chill

Now that our tummies are full, we can now drive down to New Castle to have lunch.