Gold rush fever sweeps the country as the recession bites

THE lobby at the Shandon Court hotel is relatively busy at 11am on Friday morning as guests line up at the front desk to check out and children chase each other down the stairs.

In a room off the main hallway, a glass door has been covered up with posters and a sign asks the prospective customer to “knock” before entering.

All morning long, people have been wandering in and out of the room: a woman in her early 30s with three children, a couple of pleased-looking women in their 60s or 70s, a jittery-looking boy in his early 20s and a man in his 50s. Chairs are lined up outside the door so customers can wait their turn.