Gone Walkabout: the Beginning of our Epic Aussie Adventure

Hello!

Yes, I am still alive.

And no, I haven't “cashed in [my] airline tickets to buy goofy hats and a sheep ranch and given up on returning to North America,” a concern expressed by my dad in a recent e-mail regarding my ongoing “walkabout” (though the idea does sound rather enticing). If Curtis could stand to be away from his family for another year, I won't lie, we would likely consider the prospect.

I am writing this first bit on a bus, on the way to a cattle station in the eastern outback town of Kroombit (random, I know, and oddly pertinent to the previous paragraph). But I'm going to take a wild guess here and assume there will be no internet and I will in fact be posting this when we get into Rainbow Beach, our next stop on the coast, and the gateway to the famous Fraser Island.

(Ok, well I didn't get time to post in Rainbow... or Noosa... or Brisbane. Or Sufer's Paradise... which, ironically, is known for its poor waves, overcrowded beaches and generally bad surfing. Despite having free internet at our next stop, the bustling hippie town of Byron Bay, I didn't find time to finish writing & post this there, either! We are now on the Coffs Coast at this little surf camp/hostel called Spot X, working for accommodation, yummy food, and endless surfing in a town called Arrawarra... but I'm getting ahead of myself.)

So... where did I leave off? Ah yes, the tragic llama incident and baby Francesca, among other updates. Basically (I never did figure out how to make that google map thingy, so if you're interested, you'll have to input the points yourself) our journey over the past two months has consisted of something to this effect:

LEG 1

Melbourne, Victoria to Adelaide, South Australia for three days. Highlights include the Great Ocean Road and the Grampians (a Eucalyptus Rainforest and National Park).

The GOR was just as beautiful the second time around (it actually worked out cheaper to tour it again than it would have been to bypass it and fly straight onto Adelaide). Also, the trip was far more relaxing as a three day tour than it had been as the one day trip that we took back in March.

We used our day off in Adelaide wisely, South Australia's capital being a fairly small and boring town, and took a day trip into the Barossa Valley wine region. As of late, Curtis has been fascinated with wine making, so this was particularly interesting for him. And plus, who doesn't love being drunk before 10am? We visited five wineries, (including the renowned Orlando Winery, home of Jacob's Creek), had about six or seven tasting glasses at each location, and befriended a lovely Aussie/German couple from Melbourne. All in all, a delicious day.

The facebook photo album for our trip from Melbourne to Adelaide is here.

Alrighty, I think that's enough for now! I'm getting into a regular schedule here at Spot X, which should translate to more frequent posts. Or more surfing. One of the two.

Lots of love,

the traveling stahr...

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G'day Mate! (A Short Update)

Ok. So. I had FULLY intended to post frequent (dare I say daily?) updates as Curtis and I set off to trek about the Australian continent. Little did I know there would be no internet until now (or phone signal for that matter). And there is noooo way I can sum up the past 10 days in one post, especially seeing as we have to be up again in 5 hours to hop on a bus heading to Darwin. Hooray for 4am wake-up calls...

At the moment we are in Alice Springs, a beautiful, weird town, smack dab in the middle of Australia. The Outback dirt is rusty red and the sky is bigger than I have ever seen. I could stay for a long, long time. But alas, we journey North tomorrow.

Out of all the (over 2,700) photos I've taken in the past few weeks, this brings back one of my most favorite memories. I can still feel her soft, silky fur in my hands, and her tiny kangaroo breath on my face as she kissed me goodbye. Meet baby Francesca:

In other animal news, I now hate llamas. ALL I wanted to do was say hello. And then this furry monster spit on my face. And then Curtis fell over laughing as I drowned in embarrassment and bits of grass and pukey llama loogie.

Gross.

On another note, one of the positives of always getting up early has been the breathtaking sunrises we've seen. We pulled the bus over one morning as six o'clock slowly gave way to seven, and experienced this:

But the most beautiful sunrise yet, was watching the changing colors of the famous Uluru. Expect a full and detailed blog post with about a billion more photos later on, but for now, a teaser:

Alrighty, my creaky single bed in my 8 bed hostel room is calling my name. Time for sleep!

Lots of love, and more updates coming soon. And by soon I mean whenever I next get internet... which could be never. But no matter, I don't think I have ever been happier.

the traveling stahr...

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(I Can't Wait to Be) On the Road Again

It is time.

Time to move and go and travel and progress and explore and see and do. Because we have been in Melbourne now for nearly five months now. And, well... I can see my breath in the morning. In my apartment.

So, for the past few weeks I have been planning. And although my head came dangerously close to detonation during this process, we have just forked over the final payment of our Totally Amazing and Cool Australian Outback and East Coast Adventure (TACAOECA for short).

And we leave on Saturday!

When I figure out how, I will make one of those fun Google Maps things that shows where we’re headed, but I think “everywhere” (except for West Australia) is a fairly accurate description to start.

We’re essentially making a big ’ole circle. From our starting point in Melbourne, we are headed west to Adelaide. Then we’ll tack north through the exciting and dangerous (probably not, but let me dream, ok?) Australian Outback (Mmm... Hugh Jackman...). We’ll pass Alice Springs (where we’ll see the famous Ayers Rock, or Uluru) and continue up to Darwin. At the end of July we’ll fly to Cairns and then begin our journey down the East Coast on a Hop-On Hop-Off bus all the way back to Melbourne, finishing the whole tour in about two months.

Ooo, I’m getting excited just writing about it!

I ended up booking the entire trip with this amazing company called Peterpans Adventure Travel. For those of you who have been with me from the start, this is the same travel company that gave me a free trip down the Great Ocean Road for winning a limbo contest at a bar.

I have always believed that when you do something yourself, time permitting, you have a better chance of getting a cheaper price, especially if you’re flexible with your dates. A handful of phone calls to hostels can result in a great nightly rate, and a few dedicated hours online can often yield the least expensive flight. (My personal fav sites are Expedia for domestic and Cheap-O Air for international... but remember, these websites often charge hidden convenience fees—even if they say they don’t!—so once I find a cheap flight, I check that airline’s own website for the base fare).

But with Peterpans, not only did we get nearly $1000 off the actual price of the trip, they threw in dozens of freebies we can redeem along the way. Free surf lessons, free dinner and drinks at nearly every stop, even a free didgeridoo lesson! This means (fingers crossed) we won’t have to spend too much money along the way.

I'll keep you posted on how true that last statement actually ends up being. To be honest, I’m preeeetty sure we’re going to come back to Melbourne flat broke...

I could always sell my soul. Or become a lady of the night. (I hear they’re good at limbo.)

Love always,
the traveling stahr...

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The Great Ocean Road, L’Ultimo Capitolo (The Last Chapter)

The beautiful, breathtaking Twelve Apostles.

When they were first discovered, they were affectionately called “Sow and Piglets” (the big one – Loch Ard Gorge – was the sow, and the smaller stacks were the piglets), but their name was changed in the 1950s.

Not all twelve remain today. Time passes as time is known to do, and the constant battery of wind, water and rain cause the limestone pillars to fall.

But just as the violent ocean erosion brings these colossal columns to their knees, it continuously carves and crafts new Apostles out of the winding, ever-changing coastline.

Our first stop along the Twelve Apostles was Port Campbell, and our tour guide Clancy announced that there would be a special tour discount price for helicopter rides, if anyone was interested.

I thought a helicopter ride sounded awfully decadent. I don’t need to spend money to buzz around these beautiful rocks – I can see them just fine from here!

Oh, how wrong was I…

Curtis, Becky and I finally decided to splurge because, hey, I might only get this one chance, right? Except, from the moment that wobbly copter floated off the ground and long after it had hovered back to safety 15 minutes later, I knew it would not be my last flight.

But I’m getting ahead of myself!

First let me introduce our handsome pilot.

Swoon… I have a thing for dimples. But for anyone who has ever seen Curtis, that’s old news.

But I snapped out of it, I had pictures to take! And miles of coastline to absorb and inhale. A sweet and stunning breath.

Curtis snapped a few beautiful close-ups from the front seat.

All too soon after we had drifted up, up, up and away, we descended through the clouds and floated back down to the landing pad. As we squeezed out of the tiny cab, my body was buzzing.

Here I am, apparently trying to swallow the sky.

I was jumping up and down with adrenaline, and struggling to speak over the roar of the chopper and the wave of my excitement. I yelled spastically back to Becky.

That was! One of the coolest things! I have ever done!

Our bodies still humming with happiness, we piled back into the van and headed to our two final tour stops, the Loch Ard Gorge and the London Bridge.

Alas, as the sun descended upon the horizon, we began our journey back to the city, salty and tired, but oh, so incredibly happy.

A few days later, we were forced to say goodbye to Dave, Nicola, Becky and Hinnerk. (I suppose that's what I get for bonding with backpackers!) But, at the risk of sounding cliché, we will always have the memories...

Lots of love,

the traveling stahr...

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The Great Ocean Road, Partie Deux

Now where was I…?

Oh yea! Before we knew it, the grey and orange clouds were upon us. [Jaws music, etc, etc…]

We were plunged into an orange fog, and I’m sorry to say I was far too intrigued to take any pictures… It was like flying amidst sepia-toned clouds, minus the altitude. Before we knew it, we were on the other side. And not ten minutes later? Was this:

The next stop was something I’d been looking forward to since Clancy announced it that morning – a koala park! Nice shades, Curtis the Koala... teehee...

Did you know koalas are one of the few species in Australia that has virtually ceased evolving due to a lack of predators? (Though, this is not to ignore the fact that they are very much endangered by diseases and urban expansion.) Koalas subsist on a diet entirely of eucalyptus leaves, which contain 70 percent water and virtually no nutritional value. That's why they are so lazy!

We were lucky to find a koala perched in a low tree, and I was able to get surprisingly close.

This is me with my koala friend. He needs to learn a thing or two about friendship, because last time I checked, friends didn’t let friends wear white bras under black dresses.

All throughout the koala park, beautiful, vibrantly colored parrots dotted the lush green and brown trees. And if you had food (I borrowed a handful off another tourist), they would swoop down and eat right off your hand! Not a good place to be if you were recently freaked out by the movie Birds.

After the koala park we piled back into the bus and headed to our next stop, a lovely beach town, for our picnic lunch.

Next stop: the rainforest! Now I’ve seen big trees before, at the Redwood Forests in San Francisco, but I’m telling you, this rainforest had BIG TREES. Exhibit A:

And keep in mind, by "regular size tree," I mean the kind you can barely wrap your arms around.

Having worked in the forest–or bush, as he calls it–for much of his life, Curtis has seen a lot of trees. But these big guys had him stumped. (Sorry for the terrible pun... it was too bad good to pass up.) Here are Curtis and I, being dwarfed by phenomenally huge trunks.

After the rainforest we headed to what had to be the most breathtaking, beautiful string of stops on the trip, the Twelve Apostles. I’m smiling just thinking about them (and the absolutely exhilarating, body-buzzing helicopter ride we took above them). Here’s a sneak preview:

Bye for now!

the traveling stahr… 

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The Great Ocean Road, Part 1

You might remember I won a limbo contest at a bar about a month ago. The prize was a day trip down the Great Ocean Road and, having never heard of the GOR before, I had little expectations. After all, it was a limbo competition. At a bar. Don’t they usually just hand out free t-shirts for stuff like that?

Well, Becky, Hinnerk, Curtis and I headed out (at 6:30am… grumble, grumble) on the road trip last Tuesday, and let me tell you, it was wayyyy better than a free t-shirt, early start and all.

We stayed up way too late the night before to watch our roommate play at an open mic night in St Kilda. Because James was playing, they gave us a $50 bar tab and 2 for 1 drink specials which, unfortunately thankfully didn't go very far between seven people. He sang really well, but the guitarist who was accompanying him kept throwing him off by switching up the tempo of the song and then laughing about it. It was vair, vair annoying, and Becky and I may or may not have yelled “Give him back the guitar!” a few times…

He finally got the hint.

Anyways, after only about four hours of sleep we awoke the next morning and groggily walked to the pick-up location. When we boarded the bus, I recognized the Haitian guy who was sitting towards the back, strumming angelically on his guitar.

“Hey! You played at Base Bar last night, right? I have a million pictures of you!” Which doesn’t make me sound like a stalker at all, no.

He laughed, told me his name was Nikerson, and gave me his website so that I could send him some of the pics. Turns out he’s a bit of a world-wide star, and is tentatively scheduled to play in Montreal as part of Les FrancoFolies next year. I’ll try to get more details so those of you in Montreal can go see him!

He played us a few tunes, including a fantastic impression of Celine Dion, and we were off, racing out of the city opposite the early morning rush-hour traffic. After a small nap, we awoke to find that we were driving towards… a forest fire? Hmm...

As I'm sure you know, forest fires are extremely common (and destructive) in Australia. Our tour guide/bus driver Clancy told us how the GOR has been completely wiped out quite a few times, which was not all that reassuring as we headed toward this wall of smoke.

Clancy switched on the radio and we were soon informed that there would be some “controlled fires” (oxymoron?) going on in the area today.

Clancy giggled into the microphone. “Well, let’s hope this is one of them!”

We made a quick scenic stop at the famous surfer haven, Bells Beach, to stretch our legs and take a few photos. Despite the possible impending doom, it was a beautiful, warm, and perfect day. 

Here I am with Hinnerk, Curtis, Nikerson and Becks.

We continued driving and Clancy pointed out a funny house along the road. Apparently the owner got so sick of rebuilding his place after a forest fire (to which he lost three houses!) that he decided to build something that was untouchable to the fiercest roaring flames. And after the deadly fire of 1985, his was the only house that remained standing.

Despite its obvious lack of style, this one-bedroom popsicle sold for a whopping four million dollars last year.

Next we stopped at a WWI memorial, or rather, the memorial for a WWI memorial, as the first statues had been destroyed in the fire of ’85. The whole Great Ocean Road was actually a government initiated project designed to provide work for the thousands of jobless soldiers returning from battle. Curtis decided to give them a hand.

After snapping a few pictures, we were back on the road, and getting ever closer to the menacing hedge of smoke. Before we knew it, the grey and orange clouds were upon us. [Cue dramatic Jaws music]

… to be continued… 

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