What we did: 34 days in total, seeing four cities in four states. Where we went: 3 days in Sydney, ten days in Cairns, two weeks in Melbourne, and one week in Perth. About costs: Australia was by far the biggest expenditure of our trip, but we had planned well for it prior to arrival. [...]
Here we are in Western Australia. A slightly less-frequented vacation spot for foreigners, yet a popular holiday for Australians. This is a more ‘secluded’ Australia, where places of interest are a days drive from the next. Where the cities are smaller, the ocean opens to a deep and vastly moving abyss, and life seems less [...]
When a museum advertises a famous artifact on large posters everywhere in the city, that usually suggests they actually have said artifact on display. Usually. I am probably not the first person to make the foolish mistake of believing this. I bought the tickets in advance for the special exhibit- it’s final stop on the [...]
Having taken a recommendation from a certain american chef with a loose tongue and a passion for spice, we made our way to the Szechuan House for dinner. The dining room looks a lot bigger on the Travel Channel and the restaurant itself a lot more prominent. Wrapped tightly into a small, dark alleyway in [...]
Landing here from Cairns. Suddenly moving from tropics to overcast and rainy. A long boardwalk traded for concrete and towers. Diving kiosks are replaced by a city tram rail and museums replace the ocean for tourist attractions. We are back in a big city, shaking ourselves free of sand and sun. We find ourselves amongst [...]
Don’t come to Cairns thinking you’ll get a relaxing week of beach activity and ocean swimming. While beautiful, this stretch of sandy shoreline can mame, eat, sting, and then kill you all in one adventurous afternoon. We’d heard this from other travelers, but the reality of it didn’t quite hit until the warning signs and [...]
The morning news casters joke about rugby flubs and American Idol, laughter is recorded throughout the studio and all is caught casually on national television. They break into song when their reporting seems cliche, and replay sporting mishaps with joking commentary. Each morning in our hotel rooms, the difference between this and American news reporting [...]
I’ve always found it alarming when any adult raves about an experience geared towards those in grade school- a children’s concert, a trip to the dairy farm… A petting zoo. Others might agree that anyone attributing a rush from touching a cute furry marsupial should probably not tell too many people, let alone write about [...]
