Category: Australia

We ate lunch Monday in Parachilna, a town with a population in the single digits, at a hotel restaurant licensed in the late 1800s. The population has steadily declined since then like many near outback towns since their brief years of prosperity from gold or otherwise. In Australia, McDonald’s and Best Western are relegated to…

1) Euros are not a currency. They look an awful lot like kangaroos. 2) “But it’s a dry heat” is just something people say to make themselves feel better. 3) Laughing kookaburras are relaxing if you feel comfortable in an insane asylum. 4) There is a distinctive line where wheat stops growing. We spent a…

After five years of drought in southern Australia, the ground is rock hard, the fire bans are daily, and the scenery is 40 shades of brown. This could make for a camping disaster. However, the abundant national parks offer an oasis of trees, free electric BBQs, and, when needed, a borrowed mallet for pitching the…

We’ve only been in Australia 48 hours but we’ve already seen a gazillion kangaroos and koalas driving along the southern coast between Melbourne and Adelaide. Will post pictures later when we actually have a computer with a USB port. First impressions: Many more tourists but much less backpackers than NZ Produce is more expensive –…