Gold Coast Adventures #4: ‘Welcome to the High Country’

Text by Shirin Mehta. Photographs by Ashima Gupta

In this travel series, Verve chronicles it’s adventures in Australia’s Gold Coast in Queensland, with its endless beaches, exciting amusement parks, green hinterland, great food and the largest tropical forest in the world

Our last evening is spectacular indeed. Northern Gold Coast is home of the theme parks — Dreamworld, Movie World, Sea World, Wet n’ Wild and Whitewater World. Leaving these for our agenda on another visit with family and friends, we opt for the Gold Coast’s must-see live presentation, Welcome to the High Country, a stunning dinner show that portrays a ‘captivating journey to the snow peaked mountains of the high country where enchanted whispers and legendary yarns come alive with the most inspiring stories of Australian characters’. The animal stars are endearing with even a baby elephant thrown in. We are seated in a large arena with seats all around and a wooden running table. As the show orchestrates in the arena, another kind of orchestration goes on in the audience where the meal is being served seamlessly. Surprisingly, the vegetarian Indian meal is quite good – chole, samosa, palak paneer, dal, pickle and roti. Steak for everyone else followed by apple pie. Earlier, in the large wood-lined hall with the posters, photographs and even an old-time wagon, you could meet the animals. There was live music and beer and fun-time for the entire family.

Read about #1 Surfers Paradise here.