We drove up to Mt Tamborine this morning, ostensibly to go to the local produce markets, although we arrived a little late and there wasn’t much of anything left. We did grab some beautifully fresh avocados and mushrooms, and couldn’t resist a bottle of mulberry and rhubarb jam – dark and delicious looking.

After peeking at some cottages and wondering if we could afford a weekend in front of a fire with a mountain view, we headed for the tourist strip filled with galleries, cafes and fudge shops. I had to buy Lemon Meringue Fudge, which I’d had once before – deliciously tangy.

We stopped off at a butcher in Logan Village on the way home, where the butcher’s three young children were in the shop with him, making rissoles and serving customers. The young girl who served us was probably 10 or 11, and carefully picked up the Italian sausages we bought with her bare hands, stuffing them into the plastic bag, before frowning at the scales, trying to figure out how much we had to pay her. I wondered if they resented having to help out their father on the weekends. Perhaps he pays them pocket money in return.