We tried to do this at the end of the Asian section and it was easy to write a summary for Asia as we only spent 1 month there. It seems like an impossible task though to sum up 7 months in Australia but we will do our best....
We really can't believe that we have been here so long as it doesn't seem that long ago that we arrived in Cairns, the tropical North East of Australia. The highlights here have to be skydiving, Hartleys Creek Crocodile Farm and buying the van as well as the free dinners in the restaurants for backpackers.
From here we started to travel South with our maps and guidebooks through the Atherton Tablelands ending up in Tully for a spot of white water rafting. A short drive later we were in Townsville and decided to head for the outback and Uluru, Kings Canyon and the Olgas. This took a week to get there due to the problems with the van. In this time in the outback we came across millions of wildlife including kangaroos, dingos, camels, snakes, spiders and birds of prey. We also learned about the Aboriginal people, the hatred that exists between them and the white settlers, and the way that they still choose to live to this day without developing.
From the outback it was back to the East Coast and we travelled from Townsville down to Brisbane. Some of the highlights were Airlie Beach, Rockhampton (the steak capital of Australia), whale watching in Hervey Bay and our 3 night trip to Fraser Island, followed by a trip to Australia zoo.
After 2 or 3 months of travelling around Australia it was time to turn our attention to finding work and after 2 weeks job searching around Brisbane we picked up our job on the lettuce farm in Warwick. Here we spent almost 2 months of early starts at 5:30am or 6am, 6 days per week weeding, hand cutting lettuce and harvesting salad with a tractor. The time was passed with our free dvd rentals via our library membership and cheap Tuesdays where the cinema and pizza shop offered cut price deals, we were really living it up in style! We also took in a rodeo one weekend and a drag race event another weekend. All this while still sleeping in the back of a van and sneaking into a campsite each morning for showers.
Eventually we left work as it became unbearable in the 40C+ heat and swarms of flies attacking you and it was onto the theme parks just south of Brisbane. The theme parks were a great way of getting back into the holiday mood and it was then onto the Gold Coast. We also explored the Gold Coast Hinterland and spent a good few days up in the mountains learning about the volcanoes that created much of the landscape around here.
Sydney was then in our sights and we headed towards it stopping off at some interesting places including New Italy and Australias Scottish town MacLean.
We spent an unsuccesful week in Sydney trying to sell the van before deciding to head for Tasmania which was one of our best decisions as we both loved the place. It has a more Scottish like climate, amazing green scenery everywhere and has the history of Port Arthur, one of the most infamous convict settlements in Australia. Hobart is also the home to Cadbury Australia's main factory where we took a tour to sample the chocolates on offer.
It was then back to the mainland and Melbourne where we managed to sell the van to Igor the Italian and spent a week not really doing much as the weather was rubbish and it pretty much rained all the time.
From here we were unsure what to do as it was coming up for Christmas and New Year and we had intended being back in Sydney but it was too expensive. We ended up getting a cheap car rental relocation to Adelaide which enabled us to drive the Great Ocean Road before spending the most un-Christmasy Christmas in Adelaide, living on pot noodles and having a Chinese for Christmas dinner.
A quick check of the finances and budget airline websites allowed us to book up some flights. First stop was Perth for New Year where we went to Fremantle prison, hung about the nice beaches and parks and hired out a car to travel the South West coast taking in Margaret River, Denmark and some more fantastic beaches.
Darwin was next on the list and the highlight of this was the Cage of Death where we cage dived with huge salt water crocodiles.
It was then back to Sydney to take in the sights of the Harbour Bridge, Opera House, Botanic Gardens and beaches.
We feel that we have managed to cover everything that we wanted to see which was beyond our expectations at the start so we are delighted with that. Now it is onto New Zealand!!
Friday, 29 January 2010
Monday, 25 January 2010
Sydney Part 2
The final destination of our 7 months in Australia was Sydney. This time we were back without the van to sell and it was time to explore the city.
Two of the obvious main attractions are the Harbour Bridge and the Opera House and we were able to walk across the bridge which gave us some great views of Sydney Harbour where the Opera House is situated.
Sydney Harbour Bridge:
The Sydney Harbour Bridge recently celebrated its 75th anniversary in 2007 and is still the widest (49m) and tallest (139m) arch bridge in the world. At time of construction it was also the longest (503m) but it has since been overtaken and it is now the 4th longest in the world.
A bridge had been proposed by early settlers as far back as 1815 but it wasn't until 1932 that a Middlesborough company got the go ahead to construct it with the architects contracted from Glasgow. In 1923, 799 homes and a high school campus were demolished in preparation for construction. The owners of these homes received compensation, but their occupants did not. We learned that because Australia was going through a recession the Government just kicked all these people out their houses and told them to find somewhere else to live.
The bridge took around 5 years to complete and cost a total of $10m, which was double the estimated cost and this led to a toll being set up. The money was not fully recouped until 1988 but the Government then decided to keep the toll in place to pay for the new Harbour Tunnel that they had built to ease traffic congestion on the bridge. Unfortunately due to the unsafe working practices at that time, 16 people were killed during the construction although surprisingly only 2 of these were from falling off the bridge.
On the 19th March 1932 there was an opening ceremony and a ribbon was due to be cut by the Labour leader of New South Wales, Jack Lang. However just seconds before he opened the bridge, a man in military uniform rode in on a horse, cutting the ribbon and opening the Sydney Harbour Bridge in the name of the people of Australia before the official ceremony began. He was promptly arrested. The ribbon was hurriedly retied and Lang performed the official opening ceremony. The man who cut the ribbon was identified as Francis de Groot who was a member of a right-wing paramilitary group called the New Guard and was opposed to the left-wing Labour Government and was annoyed that King George V was not invited to open the bridge. He was fined £5 for his efforts.
At the moment, the bridge is 5 years into an 8 year project to remove almost 80 years of paint on the bridge as they are concerned about the weight that all these layers have added to the bridge.
Sydney Opera House:
The Opera House is one of the most recognisable buildings in Australia and sits right on the water front at Sydney Harbour. Although it is heralded as one of the great Australian icons, there was a lot of controversy surrounding its origins.
The idea for the Opera House came about in the 1940's when Eugene Goossens, the Director of the NSW State Conservatorium of Music, decided that he wanted a suitable venue for large theatrical productions. It took until 1954 to convince the New South Wales government and in 1955 a design competition was launched. The winner was announced 2 years later as Jørn Utzon from Denmark. This is where the problems began as Utzon had produced a design that was too advanced for the time. Nevertheless construction started in 1959 and it was finally completed in 1973 at a cost of $102m which was 10 years late and 14 times over budget. During construction the government nearly halted the project several times and Jørn Utzon resigned due to being owed money. With his resignation a new designer was hired to create an interior that was affordable and Utzon was outcast and went back to Denmark where he was shunned by his fellow design community after being branded a failure.
The Opera House was formally opened by Elizabeth II, on 20 October 1973, Utzon was not invited to the ceremony, nor was his name mentioned. In the late 1990s, the Sydney Opera House Trust began to communicate with Jørn Utzon in an attempt at reconciliation and to secure his involvement in future changes to the building. In 1999, he was appointed by the Trust as a design consultant for future work. In 2004, the first interior space rebuilt to an Utzon design was opened, and renamed "The Utzon Room" in his honour. He passed away in 2008 never having seen the creation that he is world renowned for.
Sydney Royal Botanic Gardens:
Situated right behind the Opera House is Sydneys Royal Botanic Gardens. This is a fantastic large green space in the heart of the city centre to escape the noise of traffic and people. However certain parts of the gardens the tranquility is shattered by the large bats that make this park their home!
It was nice to have a walk about and see all the different species of trees and plants and take in the scenery around us. The day we went a thunderstorm was brewing and you will notice Gemma's face pondering this in the first picture as there is a huge rumble of thunder above our heads!
Bondi Beach:
Although Bondi was one of the only places we seen the last time in Sydney we went back for another look to give it a second chance as we weren't too impressed the first time. Like the previous time it was another grey day and the beach didn't look that special. Here you can take a nice coastal walk though round to Coogee beach. This route takes you along the rugged coastline and offers great views out to sea where you can watch all the surfers. We also managed to spot a pod of dolphins coming in to see the surfers. On this walk you are taken past several other beaches which are all nicer than Bondi itself.
Sydney Harbour Ferry Trips:
Another couple of days that we were here we decided to make use of the ferry transport to go and explore further away parts of the river. The first place we went to was Manly. Manly is one of Sydneys top beach destinations and is arround 8 miles from the city centre. You could sense the beach vibe as soon as you got off the boat and it was quite a cool place to explore. It has nice coastal walks along with a decent beach and many street cafes and restaurants.
The next day we took the Ferry to Watsons Bay which was originally just a small fishing village before it was engulfed by the city of Sydney.
Two of the obvious main attractions are the Harbour Bridge and the Opera House and we were able to walk across the bridge which gave us some great views of Sydney Harbour where the Opera House is situated.
Sydney Harbour Bridge:
The Sydney Harbour Bridge recently celebrated its 75th anniversary in 2007 and is still the widest (49m) and tallest (139m) arch bridge in the world. At time of construction it was also the longest (503m) but it has since been overtaken and it is now the 4th longest in the world.
A bridge had been proposed by early settlers as far back as 1815 but it wasn't until 1932 that a Middlesborough company got the go ahead to construct it with the architects contracted from Glasgow. In 1923, 799 homes and a high school campus were demolished in preparation for construction. The owners of these homes received compensation, but their occupants did not. We learned that because Australia was going through a recession the Government just kicked all these people out their houses and told them to find somewhere else to live.
The bridge took around 5 years to complete and cost a total of $10m, which was double the estimated cost and this led to a toll being set up. The money was not fully recouped until 1988 but the Government then decided to keep the toll in place to pay for the new Harbour Tunnel that they had built to ease traffic congestion on the bridge. Unfortunately due to the unsafe working practices at that time, 16 people were killed during the construction although surprisingly only 2 of these were from falling off the bridge.
On the 19th March 1932 there was an opening ceremony and a ribbon was due to be cut by the Labour leader of New South Wales, Jack Lang. However just seconds before he opened the bridge, a man in military uniform rode in on a horse, cutting the ribbon and opening the Sydney Harbour Bridge in the name of the people of Australia before the official ceremony began. He was promptly arrested. The ribbon was hurriedly retied and Lang performed the official opening ceremony. The man who cut the ribbon was identified as Francis de Groot who was a member of a right-wing paramilitary group called the New Guard and was opposed to the left-wing Labour Government and was annoyed that King George V was not invited to open the bridge. He was fined £5 for his efforts.
At the moment, the bridge is 5 years into an 8 year project to remove almost 80 years of paint on the bridge as they are concerned about the weight that all these layers have added to the bridge.
Sydney Opera House:
The Opera House is one of the most recognisable buildings in Australia and sits right on the water front at Sydney Harbour. Although it is heralded as one of the great Australian icons, there was a lot of controversy surrounding its origins.
The idea for the Opera House came about in the 1940's when Eugene Goossens, the Director of the NSW State Conservatorium of Music, decided that he wanted a suitable venue for large theatrical productions. It took until 1954 to convince the New South Wales government and in 1955 a design competition was launched. The winner was announced 2 years later as Jørn Utzon from Denmark. This is where the problems began as Utzon had produced a design that was too advanced for the time. Nevertheless construction started in 1959 and it was finally completed in 1973 at a cost of $102m which was 10 years late and 14 times over budget. During construction the government nearly halted the project several times and Jørn Utzon resigned due to being owed money. With his resignation a new designer was hired to create an interior that was affordable and Utzon was outcast and went back to Denmark where he was shunned by his fellow design community after being branded a failure.
The Opera House was formally opened by Elizabeth II, on 20 October 1973, Utzon was not invited to the ceremony, nor was his name mentioned. In the late 1990s, the Sydney Opera House Trust began to communicate with Jørn Utzon in an attempt at reconciliation and to secure his involvement in future changes to the building. In 1999, he was appointed by the Trust as a design consultant for future work. In 2004, the first interior space rebuilt to an Utzon design was opened, and renamed "The Utzon Room" in his honour. He passed away in 2008 never having seen the creation that he is world renowned for.
Sydney Royal Botanic Gardens:
Situated right behind the Opera House is Sydneys Royal Botanic Gardens. This is a fantastic large green space in the heart of the city centre to escape the noise of traffic and people. However certain parts of the gardens the tranquility is shattered by the large bats that make this park their home!
It was nice to have a walk about and see all the different species of trees and plants and take in the scenery around us. The day we went a thunderstorm was brewing and you will notice Gemma's face pondering this in the first picture as there is a huge rumble of thunder above our heads!
Bondi Beach:
Although Bondi was one of the only places we seen the last time in Sydney we went back for another look to give it a second chance as we weren't too impressed the first time. Like the previous time it was another grey day and the beach didn't look that special. Here you can take a nice coastal walk though round to Coogee beach. This route takes you along the rugged coastline and offers great views out to sea where you can watch all the surfers. We also managed to spot a pod of dolphins coming in to see the surfers. On this walk you are taken past several other beaches which are all nicer than Bondi itself.
Sydney Harbour Ferry Trips:
Another couple of days that we were here we decided to make use of the ferry transport to go and explore further away parts of the river. The first place we went to was Manly. Manly is one of Sydneys top beach destinations and is arround 8 miles from the city centre. You could sense the beach vibe as soon as you got off the boat and it was quite a cool place to explore. It has nice coastal walks along with a decent beach and many street cafes and restaurants.
The next day we took the Ferry to Watsons Bay which was originally just a small fishing village before it was engulfed by the city of Sydney.
Saturday, 23 January 2010
Darwin
Darwin sits right at the North of Australia and is the key connection between Australia and Asia. For many years it has been the hub for all transport, both leisure and industry, travelling between the continents. This is due to the fact that Darwin is actually closer to Jakarta than it is its own capital.
Darwin is also one of the most metropolitan cities in Australia and apparently there are people from 56 countries living within it. This is helped by the university and the port which brings many foreigeners in. It is also a relatively new settlement and 40% of the population only arrived in the last 40 years, the majority were only intending a short visit but after visiting decided to make it more permanent.
Darwin has had its share of misfortune and during the 2nd world war it was almost completely destroyed from sustained bombing. Having survived this a cyclone then went on to inflict even more damage than the bombs did . In 1974 Cyclone Tracy killed 71 people, caused $837 million in damage and destroyed more than 70 percent of Darwin's buildings, including 80 percent of houses. Tracy left homeless more than 20,000 out of the 49,000 inhabitants of the city prior to landfall and required the evacuation of over 30,000 people. Most of Darwin's population was evacuated to Adelaide, Whyalla, Alice Springs and Sydney, and many never returned to the city.
Darwin has a tropical climate with wet season and dry season. When we were here it was in the middle of wet season and although it didn't rain constantly, there was a constant blanket of rain clouds waiting to flood the place. It was also 90% humididty and was a bit unbearable to walk about, luckily there isn't actually too much to do in Darwin itself.
Fannie Bay:
Darwin is surrounded by coast and beaches so we decided to take a walk to one of them and picked the best sounding one, Fannie Bay. The beach wasn't that great and reminded us of a beach you would see in Scotland, especially with the grey clouds everywhere. That particular day was roasting as well and the 2 mile walk seemed to feel more like 10 miles due to the lack of oxygen in the air.
Crocosaurus Cove:
Darwin is crocodile territory and after government initiatives, the banning of illegal hunting and a succesful reintroduction system there are now over 100,000 wild crocodiles living in the area. This has now led to them being declassified as an endangered species in these parts which is a major achievement. The reintroduction plans across Australia are also going well and within a few years crocodiles could soon be removed from the endangered species list. Darwin was also the setting for the majority of the Crocodile Dundee film.
Therefore it made sense for us to go to one of the local crocodile parks where we had heard about the opportunity to go into the Cage of Death. We had read about this 6 or 7 months previously when we first arrived in Cairns and was the main reason that I wanted to go to Darwin. What it involves is stepping into a 2.8m clear perspex box that is only 4cm thick and then getting lowered into the crocodile enclosure. It is basically like shark cage diving except there are no bars!
There are 3 enclosures which you are lowered into. The first was home to a couple called Houdini and Bess. The huge male, Houdini who is 4.6m long and 660kg, gets his name from his talent to evade capture and ability to escape his pens and enter other ones to create havoc. Since being introduced to the tiny Bess, who is only 2.8m and 90kg, though in 1991 he has settled down and they have now became a succesful breeding couple.
The second enclosure that we were lowered into was Chopper who was 5.5m long and weighed a massive 790kg! Chopper was missing his two front teeth and his two front feet after being involved in numerous fights in the wild. When he got a bit older he was tired of losing and moved upstream and became too friendly with the locals and had to be captured and relocated to a crocodile farm. Despite his huge size, Chopper actually has a smaller than normal head which is believed to be why he lost so many fights.
The third enclosure was home to Denzel who is 5.2m long and 670kg. This crocodile is one of the most viscious and had to be removed from the breeding programme and put in solitary confinement due to the fact that he was too agressive with other crocodiles and was also responsible for a lot of infertile nests at the farm.
It was such an incredible experience to get dipped into the water and look at these crocs in their own environment. It is only then that you get an idea how big they are. Unfortunately for us or maybe fortunately, the crocodiles weren't too active and didn't bother too much with us but we did see all the scratches on the side of the glass where the crocs have tried to attack the people inside!
Another one of the crocodiles that they have here where you don't get to go in with is Burt who is a famous TV and movie star. 80 year old Burt is 5.1m long and 700kg in weight and was captured in 1981 after attacking too many cattle. From here he went on to star in Crocodile Dundee where he tried to eat the lead female before Crocodile Dundee rescued her. Burt has also starred in various other documentaries and awareness programmes. The fame has went to his head though and every female that was introduced to him was met with a fierce attack and he has now been confirmed as a bachelor at the age of 80.
Crocosaurus cove is also home to freshwater crocodiles, 200 fish, 40 turtles and 76 snakes and lizards species that we had a look around before leaving.
Darwin is also one of the most metropolitan cities in Australia and apparently there are people from 56 countries living within it. This is helped by the university and the port which brings many foreigeners in. It is also a relatively new settlement and 40% of the population only arrived in the last 40 years, the majority were only intending a short visit but after visiting decided to make it more permanent.
Darwin has had its share of misfortune and during the 2nd world war it was almost completely destroyed from sustained bombing. Having survived this a cyclone then went on to inflict even more damage than the bombs did . In 1974 Cyclone Tracy killed 71 people, caused $837 million in damage and destroyed more than 70 percent of Darwin's buildings, including 80 percent of houses. Tracy left homeless more than 20,000 out of the 49,000 inhabitants of the city prior to landfall and required the evacuation of over 30,000 people. Most of Darwin's population was evacuated to Adelaide, Whyalla, Alice Springs and Sydney, and many never returned to the city.
Darwin has a tropical climate with wet season and dry season. When we were here it was in the middle of wet season and although it didn't rain constantly, there was a constant blanket of rain clouds waiting to flood the place. It was also 90% humididty and was a bit unbearable to walk about, luckily there isn't actually too much to do in Darwin itself.
Fannie Bay:
Darwin is surrounded by coast and beaches so we decided to take a walk to one of them and picked the best sounding one, Fannie Bay. The beach wasn't that great and reminded us of a beach you would see in Scotland, especially with the grey clouds everywhere. That particular day was roasting as well and the 2 mile walk seemed to feel more like 10 miles due to the lack of oxygen in the air.
Crocosaurus Cove:
Darwin is crocodile territory and after government initiatives, the banning of illegal hunting and a succesful reintroduction system there are now over 100,000 wild crocodiles living in the area. This has now led to them being declassified as an endangered species in these parts which is a major achievement. The reintroduction plans across Australia are also going well and within a few years crocodiles could soon be removed from the endangered species list. Darwin was also the setting for the majority of the Crocodile Dundee film.
Therefore it made sense for us to go to one of the local crocodile parks where we had heard about the opportunity to go into the Cage of Death. We had read about this 6 or 7 months previously when we first arrived in Cairns and was the main reason that I wanted to go to Darwin. What it involves is stepping into a 2.8m clear perspex box that is only 4cm thick and then getting lowered into the crocodile enclosure. It is basically like shark cage diving except there are no bars!
There are 3 enclosures which you are lowered into. The first was home to a couple called Houdini and Bess. The huge male, Houdini who is 4.6m long and 660kg, gets his name from his talent to evade capture and ability to escape his pens and enter other ones to create havoc. Since being introduced to the tiny Bess, who is only 2.8m and 90kg, though in 1991 he has settled down and they have now became a succesful breeding couple.
The second enclosure that we were lowered into was Chopper who was 5.5m long and weighed a massive 790kg! Chopper was missing his two front teeth and his two front feet after being involved in numerous fights in the wild. When he got a bit older he was tired of losing and moved upstream and became too friendly with the locals and had to be captured and relocated to a crocodile farm. Despite his huge size, Chopper actually has a smaller than normal head which is believed to be why he lost so many fights.
The third enclosure was home to Denzel who is 5.2m long and 670kg. This crocodile is one of the most viscious and had to be removed from the breeding programme and put in solitary confinement due to the fact that he was too agressive with other crocodiles and was also responsible for a lot of infertile nests at the farm.
It was such an incredible experience to get dipped into the water and look at these crocs in their own environment. It is only then that you get an idea how big they are. Unfortunately for us or maybe fortunately, the crocodiles weren't too active and didn't bother too much with us but we did see all the scratches on the side of the glass where the crocs have tried to attack the people inside!
Another one of the crocodiles that they have here where you don't get to go in with is Burt who is a famous TV and movie star. 80 year old Burt is 5.1m long and 700kg in weight and was captured in 1981 after attacking too many cattle. From here he went on to star in Crocodile Dundee where he tried to eat the lead female before Crocodile Dundee rescued her. Burt has also starred in various other documentaries and awareness programmes. The fame has went to his head though and every female that was introduced to him was met with a fierce attack and he has now been confirmed as a bachelor at the age of 80.
Crocosaurus cove is also home to freshwater crocodiles, 200 fish, 40 turtles and 76 snakes and lizards species that we had a look around before leaving.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
