World Traveler

I headed from Melbourne over to Perth, which surprisingly is often missed by travellers and holiday makers but I love the place! There are fabulous beaches and the water in the Indian Ocean is a beautiful blue, with excellent waves. Perth is pretty small, the first day I arrived I some how managed to keep getting lost and ending up in the middle of no where with nothing around! Perth is very laid back but can’t be a bit expensive which is probably due to the mining boom which has made Perth Australia’s richest state.

The city has something for everyone and there are plenty of smaller towns within half an hour from Perth that have beaches as Perth its self doesn’t. Perth also has some stunning islands surrounding it with loads of wildlife including strange animals that aren’t found anywhere else, seals, penguins, loads of bird life and reptiles.

Perth is basically far from everywhere else, there are a few amazing rock formations around like Wave Rock (you guessed it, it looks like a wave but it’s a rock) and the Pinnacles which are basically giant bits of pointy rock out in the middle of the desert. It all looks amazing on photos but it’s a four hour drive to see a bit of rock. Saying that I still want to go!

Perth has plenty of cafes, restaurants and bars of all variety to keep you entertained, plus some excellent outdoor activities and sight seeing. In many ways I prefer it to Melbourne (I love that city!)

Read about some of Perth’s Islands……

I can’t help it, I’m an explorer and as soon as I get to a new destination, I’m straight to explore and find out every possible thing to do! I arrived in Perth and did just that and found out that I can see penguins and seals in the wild, obviously excited (I never seen a real seal, apart from TV of course) and even better, the Penguin and Seal Island were only a 40 minute journey from Perth.

I hoped on the train and got to the jetty. You can actually walk through the water to Penguin Island as it was fairly shallow but not to Seal Island, so I got a boat. Seal Island is very small and is protected so you can’t get off the boat, but you get within 10 metres of the seals and they are so cute to watch. The boat also takes you to Penguin Island which you can get off.

Penguin Island is home to the Fairy Penguin, also known as the Small Penguin (what an inventive name!) As they only come out after dark it’s hard to see them during the day but they usually lie under boardwalks so I managed to see some. However, for those that miss out there is a discovery centre with Penguin feeding time so you get to see them in action as well, very cute! The island is also home to Giant Pelicans and there is a whole nesting ground, plus plenty of other wildlife like Sting Rays, a variety of birdlife and skinks (they look like a short snake with legs!) The beach is deserted and absolutely beautiful with crystal clear water so great for snorkelling. Brilliant if you love wildlife and nature!

Read more about animal places…….

Earthcore festival happens in two states in Australia every year and has been going for over ten years and takes place in two locations; New South Wales and Victoria. The only festival I had been to really was Glastonbury in England which is Europe’s third largest, so when I heard that Earthcore festival was on and it was one of the biggest in Australia I was really excited. Plus the festival was the week before my birthday, yay!

The day of the festival we headed out of Melbourne and drove through a lot of nothingness for about two hours and finally arrived at the festival entrance, where we then sat for four hours waiting to get in! The festival goes on for three days, or so the flyer says! We finally got through the gate at 10pm Friday and I went off to explore straight away.

The first thing that struck me was “where is the rest of the festival?’ It was tiny and hardly any people. I then found out that its always that small, usually attracting a tenth of Glastonbury at about 10,000 people (but I reckon its much less that that!) The partying stopped at 3am and then there was nothing till 12pm the following day! Three day festival? - I don’t think so!

The next day the heat kicked in and there was no shelter from trees and there were huge sand and dust clouds from where people were dancing on the dry ground – I thought it was smoke at first, ha ha! Luckily there was a river near by, loads of people swam naked but I’m a prude so went in with all my clothes on and when I got out even my jeans were dry in less that 20 minutes!

There was no ATM, no shop, nothing! Just a few dance areas and a bar, plus a couple of places to eat – not what I had expected at all but I still had a great time. Maybe Glastonbury isn’t the best festival to go to first!

Read about more parties around the world……

( The 12 Apostles, photo by Robert S Butler)

The Great Ocean Road stretches along the coast not to far from Australia’s well loved Melbourne and it’s a great place for adventure, spotting wildlife, surfing and generally experiencing some of Victoria’s beauty. There are plenty of day tours, 2 day tours and even 3 day tours but its better to hire a car as there are so many things that the tours don’t cover and there is so much to see so you can travel at your own pace.

Along the great ocean road there are plenty of places that you can stop and see kangaroo’s and Koala’s which are funny, very lazy creatures but so cute! There is the Kennett River where you can hire kayaks and have a very good chance of seeing a Platypus. I love Australia’s animals; they really are like no other!

Torquay is a popular stop on the Greta Ocean Road, it’s a big surf town, freezing water but huge waves, I tried to put a toe in but it’s far too cold for me! Surfing competitions are often held in Torquay.

There are tree top walks through rainforests, famous rock formations like London Bridge (yes you guessed it, it looks like a bridge) and The Twelve Apostles; which are basically, now 8 bits of tall rock that jet out from the sea. There used to be 12 but some have since collapsed!

Slightly inland there are plenty of wineries to keep you entertained and also a volcanic crater. Its fantastic on a sunny day, very cold and not so much fun on a bad day – I have done both.

Read more about Australian wildlife……

I arrived in Melbourne and immediately wanted to have a look around and find out what there was to see and do, so when I realized that there was a Penguin Parade I got really exited and had to go see them! About an hour out of Melbourne, on Philip Island you can go and see Fairy Penguins, which are the smallest penguins ever about 30cm high, and they are adorable!

Each evening, just as it starts to get dark, the penguins emerge from the water in groups (should that be packs? flocks?) and try to make the way up the beach in order to get to their nests. I saw and waited patiently for them to show themselves and soon enough the first penguin group came out of the sea looking very scared and quickly waddled up the beach, hiding behind rocks on their way. Half way up the beach, for no reason, they got scared and ran all the way back to the sea. They did this same routine about four times and I just wanted to help them to get home (obviously I didn’t interfere). The other groups did the same, it was so cute but I really felt for them.

Eventually some made it to the back of the beach and started singing (honestly, it really does sound like singing!) but loads of penguins were still in the water, I even saw one get confused, it came from its home and headed back to the water then realized whet it was doing and ran home again!

You aren’t allowed to take photos as it scares the penguin’s, and watching platforms have been set up so you can see them so unfortunately its quite set up for tourists but at least it keeps the penguins safe and protected.

Read about more animals……

I’m always fascinated by sand dunes so when I realised that you can actually surf down them I was so excited, and like I always do, I get excited but don’t really think about what is involved! I was in Australia and the nearest sand dunes to me were in Newcastle in NSW so I headed up there and found a tour company that takes you there are provides all the equipment (its much less hassle for me that way!) First was a 4-wheel drive across the dunes and I’m glad that I wore a seat belt, unfortunately my seat wasn’t attached to the floor so I had to concentrate on not hitting my head on the ceiling or the window, whilst I was being thrown around like a rag doll, fun all the same though. We parked up at the top of one of the highest dunes and I remembered my fear if heights and thought “oh my God, what am I doing�? and chickened out.
 
I watched as everyone else had a go and when I realised that you can do it sitting down instead of standing up I managed to muster enough courage to have a go. I waxed down my board, positioned myself and off I went. As I neared the bottom of the sand dune I had built up so much speed that I screamed, at the same time I veered out of control sending a wave of sand over me, most of which went into my open mouth – mouth full of sand, lovely! By this time I was covered in sand and loads was stuck up my nose so yes, I had definitely learned to keep my mouth shut for the next go!
 
Its tiring walking back up the dunes so I only got a few more slides before my legs gave way, but its a great way to have fun and get loads of exercise at the same time – just remember to keep your mouth closed!

Read about more places to go in Australia…….

After 6 months of working a full time job and two part time jobs I was so stressed and depressed , the only thing keeping me going was that I was looking forward to a nice relaxing three week holiday on Australia’s east coast. I planned to stop at a few locations doing activities like canoeing in the Everglades, snorkelling on the Great Barrier Reef, visiting Fraser Island which is the largest sand island and then chilling on a yacht for a few days.
 
I arrived in Surfers Paradise first and saw family over Christmas for a few days then headed up to Noosa Heads and began my two week tour, starting with a three day canoeing safari, after day one there were cyclone warnings and dangerous weather so I had to come back, and did so just in time as the storms really kicked in. The next stop was Fraser Island but the cyclones got worse so the whole island had to be evacuated. Who goes to Fraser Island and it gets evacuated in summer? Talk about unlucky.
 
And so the saga continued, the storm was just as bad in the other places I planned to visit so I had to cancel my trip. I headed back down to Brisbane and found out that my work hadn’t paid me, this was on New Years Eve. I also had no where to stay and everywhere was fully booked but had no money to stay anywhere either. Finally I found a hostel that would put me up but was a sleep before midnight so missed the whole of the New Year celebrations.
 
My boyfriend then got hit by a car and broke a few bones and surprise surprise, the cyclones were still following me. Meanwhile back in my home town its sunny and 40 degrees while I’m stuck with torrential rain and cyclones, oh what a joy!
 
In the end I gave up and took a 30 hour train ride (non stop!) as I couldn’t afford to fly and had to survive on peanut butter sandwiches for three days and arrived back in Melbourne a day before I had to go back to work, ending up more stressed and depressed than I was before I left!

Read about more shenanigans…….

The Blue Mountains are situated about an hour from Sydney but it feels like they are a million miles away from the hectic Australian city. The Blue Mountains provide a blissful getaway and some amazing scenery but make sure you wrap up warm as you would be surprised how cold Australia can get and surprise surprise, they are blue!

There are loads to see and do around the Blue Mountains, a day trip is fine but a long weekend would be better. There is a cable car which provides excellent views but its a fairly short trip, there also there is the steepest railway in the Southern Hemisphere, the ride is less that a minute long but feels more like a rollercoaster than being on a train, a fair few people even screamed as the train flew down the mountain!

There are loads of walks where you can see The Three Sisters, which are basically three bits of rock that jet out, there are waterfalls, old cole mines for your dose of history. There are also wineries (mmmmm, Australian wine!), a maze, loads of fab restaurants, rock climbing…… and so the list goes on.

It’s probably better to have your own transport but there are plenty of tours that operate from Sydney if you don’t, that way you can sit back and relax as you are taken from place to place. Most tours stop at a wildlife Sanctuary on the way, to break up the trip, that way you also get to stroke a koala and see more of Australia’s amazing animals!

Read more about Australia……

I imagined Byron Bay on Australia’s East Coast NSW to be really hippy-like from all that I had heard about it but was fairly surprised when I got there. Yes, there are quite a few alternative healing centres and loads of places you can get a massage, the odd crystal shop but that was it, apart from that its just a little beach town.

Byron has loads of beaches, all of which are very beautiful and at certain times of the year you can actually see whales as they migrate, plus there are a school of dolphins (not sure if school is the correct terminology!) that live in Byron so they often make an appearance. You can generally see them from the beach or from the look out by the lighthouse but its better to go on a two hour tour to get a closer look and some better photos.

There are loads of restaurants in Byron but all in all it’s a fairly quiet town but very nice for a short holiday as its teeming with wildlife, beside dolphins and whales you can easily see wild bush Turkeys, Goanna’s, Parrots and loads of birdlife and that’s without even having to search for them! There is a lighthouse walk that you can do if you walk all the way along the beach and then follow the signs, it’s a bit tiring (for a very unfit person like myself!) but there are some fabulous views all across Bryon, and out to sea, plus you get to see all the little bays along the coast.

Read more about Australia…….

My sister moved up to Australia’s Surfers Paradise and I heard all sorts of things about the place, both good and bad; a fair few comments about the fake and beautiful people there. My sister told me that there are gorgeous men jogging - in slow motion. Yes, apparently it was that bad. I went up to see for myself and have no idea what everyone was talking about - what beautiful people? Most people seemed to be old!

The town itself is very clean looking and has loads to keep you busy with. The place is packed to the brim with cafes, restaurants, shopping (both bargain and designer) and the beach is pure white sand in both directions as far as you can see, with pretty good waves too. There are also loads of attractions including a couple of theme parks and water parks, zoo’s, fair rides, bungee jumping, surfing, day cruises to islands, flight simulators, massages and alternative healing, the list is endless and its the kind of place where you can never get bored as long as you have the cash.

There are a fair few strip bars so when you go out to dance at bars and nightclubs you get a lot of hassle from guys, no matter where you go. Its really annoying and makes you not want to party as it really isn’t a nice vibe.

There are also other towns that are within an hour of Surfers Paradise that are worth a visit like Brisbane, Byron Bay and Nimbin. There are plenty of National Parks about and tours to suit everyone. I quite liked the place, for a holiday, I think it would be very different to live there though.

Read about more Australian get aways……

I love adventure but I’m very unfit, but I never seem to think about that when I decide to climb volcanoes, mountains or go on hikes, just like i didn’t think about my fitness levels when I decided to go on a three day canoe safari in the small town of Noosa, Queensland, Australia. My sister made most of the arrangements for the trip so I didn’t really know what was going to be involved, and apparently neither did she! We were collected at 7.45am for an early start (way too early for me!) and soon realised that it was a self-guided tour, at this I nearly freaked out. I’m not a camper although I have been before but I was scared at the fact that we would be out on our own in the middle of know where with a canoe, seemed like a recipe for disaster if you ask me!

We set off on our canoe safari and all seemed good at first, in fact we were quite impressed with ourselves, even though the bottom of the canoe was filled with a fair bit of water, but we didn’t think much of it. The Everglades were beautiful and really peaceful and there was plenty of wildlife around and some breath-taking scenery. The reflections in the water made it feel like I was Alice in Wonderland as the water is black because of all the tea tree oil in it so it acted like a mirror. This was bliss, was just what I needed to de-stress.

Our canoeing skills were getting better, apart from crashing into the odd tree and nearly capsizing, there were a few close calls and we even managed to get out of the way as bigger boats came along, all in all day one was brilliant. We set up to camp and managed cooking etc, unfortunately it started to rain just after it was dark so we were confined to the tent. We woke up the next day to a wet tent, complete with wet sleeping bags and wet clothes. It was still raining and it rained well in to the afternoon, then we heard from some other campers that a tornado was coming! Great. Obviously we freaked out, packed up in a matter of seconds and hit the river to row back home as quickly as possible before we ended up like Dorothy in ‘Wizard of Oz’.

The water was pretty rough but luckily there was a break in the rain, else our canoe would have filled up with water and sank! After arm-breaking rowing session we arrived back at the pick up point and luckily had phone reception to get someone to pick us up. We later found out that a few of the near by islands were being evacuated so were pretty glad to be back safe in the warm! I should have known - whatever I try and do it turns into a shenanigan!

Read about more shenanigan’s……

One of the first things that I noticed when I arrived in Melbourne was the strange taste in clothes people seem to have, and the majority of people wear the same style. Its like no one seems to match the clothes that they are wearing, its like they thought “hmmmm, I like those orange leggings, and I love my green skirt, oh, and that red top, teamed with a grey cardigan” with no thought that none of the items go together, and everyone does it. I must say, it took a bit of getting used to, I tried to go shopping so many times but came back with nothing, which is certainly something that has never happened to me before!

I thought that maybe Melbourne only gets the hand me downs from the other cities wholesalers but then I was surprised to learn that its actually the fashion capital of Australia! If that’s the case Australia certainly needs some top designers to come to the rescue. At least when I’m in Melbourne and I can’t really be bothered to make much of an effort I cant just throw on anything and it looks like I’m being “fashionable”.

Spring races draws the crowds from far and wide and that’s when you see some of the true monstrosities. The trend at the moment seems to be ill fitting dresses that make even the girls with the best bodies look a strange shape, and as for the guys, it seems skinny jeans are in. Jeans so tight that leggings look baggy in comparison, these skinny jeans are worn low down, you know, so you can see almost all the underwear and so the crotch of the skinny jeans come down to the knees and it looks liked they have soiled themselves from the back end - how do they manage to run for a bus I wonder? Fashion capital of Australia ay? Australians must have a field day when they go abroad and see what fashion is actually all about!

Read more about Australia….

Ask any one that has been to Sydney and Melbourne which is better to visit and you will get a different response every time, you soon see why they couldn’t pick a capital city out of the two!

Sydney has some of the better sights, obviously the Opera House and has some so really nice scenery like when you get on the ferries to Luna Park and to Manly, its also much better for shopping as there is so much more variety. However, its more expensive than Melbourne and people aren’t as friendly. Its much busier and people hurry about always in a rush, where Melbourne is more chilled out.

Melbourne is like loads of towns all really near each other, you have the Italian area, the Greek area, China town, etc so its more diverse. There is more of a cafe culture and its where the majority of events are, especially in sporting. Melbourne’s transport system is much easier to use and the people are really friendly so you often have strangers strike up a conversation.

I definitely prefer Melbourne, although its a city, it feels less polluted and much cleaner than most cities. There is always loads to do and places to go to and the extensive tram system make it so easy to get from place to place. I do find that people in Melbourne have a very strange taste in fashion, it certainly takes some getting used to - however, it is supposed to be the fashion capital of Australia!

http://www.worldtravelerjournal.com/travelling-australia/

We have all seen Australia on a map and we know that its a huge country but until I arrived in Australia I didn’t realise how spread out it is, even though people told me!  It makes seeing everything very difficult, unless you have an unlimited amount of time and money, which most of us don’t. 

The best way to travel Australia is with a Working Visa, you can apply for one if you are between 18 and 30 yrs and if you fit the various criteria (check the website http://www.immi.gov.au/ for details).  The Working Visa enables you to work your way around Australia for 1 year in your own time, so you can get to stay for longer and earn money to travel with.  You can be granted a second years visa if you work for a minimum of three months on the harvest trail (basically picking or packing fruit and vegetables, there are other jobs available as well - all very hard work I’m afraid!) 

Australia is an amazing country with a diverse landscape and stunning beauty, the people are very friendly and make you feel so welcome - you wont want to leave!  Its a great way to get to see some of the world with out having to save ridiculous amounts of money first, and who knows, if you have enough money left you can also see a bit of Asia afterwards!

http://www.worldtravelerjournal.com/ayers-rock-in-australia/

Ayers Rock is the world’s largest rock. Located in Australia, it has been renamed Uluru, in keeping with the Aborginal roots of the continent “down under.” Uluru is 1,141 feet high, a single rock that is as large as a small mountain. It is 1.7 miles wide, and made from sandstone. As near as geologists can figure, Uluru reaches nearly 1,000 feet more below the surface.

When you visit Uluru, you aren’t just gazing at a big chunk of rock. Beneath, caves honeycomb the rock. There is plenty of Ayers Rock to see below. But above, Uluru is just as cool. You can gaze at aboriginal paintings all around the surface. The best time to visit Uluru is at sunset, when the entire Australian Outback is awash in color and the setting sun illuminates Ayers Rock. Unfortunately, Uluru is a rather popular destination, so you may find yourself oppressed by the crowds. I recommend that, after seeing Uluru, you escape to the interesting — and less crowded — wonders of the Olgas (only 17 miles away, and take the Olga Gorge Walk) and head about 200 miles north of Uluru to Kings Canyon (complete with permanent oasis in the desert and very good Aboriginal paintings).

Aboriginal paintings, Ayers Rock, Uluru, Kings Canyon, the Olgas, Olga Gorge Walk, Australian Outback