Brisbane: most definitely not a large country town.
The
capital of
Queensland, with a population of roughly 1.5
million (1996
census), and the fastest growing capital in
Australia.
A large, sprawling city with a great deal of leafy hilly suburbs in the inner-city, and thinning out to traditional houses on large blocks of land in the suburbs.
Brisbane is well known as being the place where Victorians come to live after they've had their fill of cold, rainy weather. The climate is very warm and tropical in summer, and tapers off to an extremely mild winter.
Alternative lifestyles seem to have found a niche in Brisbane. It has quite a large gay, hippie and goth population, the last one being the most puzzling, given the gothic propensity for black clothing and the hot humid weather in summer.
Bordered on the north by the Sunshine Coast and to the south by the Gold Coast, it's an excellent vantage point to explore south-east Queensland, the beaches and the towns.
Alos the birthplace of bands such as Powderfinger, Regurgitator and Savage Garden. But don't blame them for that last one.