The conductor had given us a stern warning not to wander too far while in Cook, for once the refueling was complete the train would be leaving for it journey across the Nullarbor, and you don't want to be stranded in the middle of the outback. The Nullarbor (Latin in a way null being none arbor trees...i.e. treeless) is akin to California's Death Valley, but much larger in size. The Indian Pacific travels through this 160,000 square mile arid and treeless plain on the longest straight stretch of rail line in the world; not the slightest deviation for 286 miles. For [View Full Entry]

---

---

It was a lovely Saturday in June. The Capital was alive with shoppers and day trippers, enjoying the spring-like weather. We visited St. Nicolas Cathedral c.1461, which is immensely Baroque and had hosted Napoleon, all the Austrian emperors, Tsar Alexander and Pope Paul II. During Saturdays much of the town is devoted to marketing, and large portions are set aside for pedestrian and bicycle traffic. The markets are loosely organized by product: flowers, fish, produce, clothing and so forth. During our saunter we found the Parliament building, an unimposing structure, a delightful Opera/Ball [View Full Entry]

---

---

excerpted from Our Summer in Estonia see my profile for more information) Worldwide there are many well known and highly regarded musical festivals. They take different forms. Some, for example, celebrate a prolific and renowned composer, such as Wagner or Mozart. Others represent a style of music such as opera at Spoleto and jazz at Monterey. What's more, these festivals endure as commercial successes, filling hotels and cafes with tourists. But I don't know of another festival as unique as the Estonian Song Festival, unique for several reasons. The first reason is its frequency, being hel [View Full Entry]

---

---

After travelling all night from Adelaide we were awakened at 7am in time to prepare for entering the metropolis of Cook; population two. Cook was a town of 300 as recently as 1998; its sole purpose to service the National Railroad. The town boasts a school, swimming pool, hospital, post office and railroad service yards. It even has a golf course without a single blade of grass; a true links course with packed sand greens. The hospital had so little business that amid concerns about being closed by the government, people stopping over on the railroad were encouraged to "...get crook [View Full Entry]

---

---

The photo shows many structures competing in the center of the capital, three bridges converge, and three architectural styles are seen; Art Deco in the distance, Italian Rococo on the left and French Empire. A delightful, compact city square. Just a little more of Ljubljana's fascinating history. The ancient Romans established a military camp named Emona that by the 6th century AD had developed in the town Julia Aemona. The site of present day Ljubljana has been occupied continuously for well over 2000 years. Ljubljana is not only the political capital of Slovenia it is the cultural, econo [View Full Entry]

---

---

Keeping with the ethical code of this site I want to emphasize I am not endorsinfg any agency or similar business, but recommending a better approach to renting a car, especially for a long visit. Continuing my story about spending the summer in Estonia (see my profile and web site) I want to discuss how I address the need for a rental car during our entire summer. For our first summer abroad, in Kinsale Ireland, I rented a car from a well known US auto agency. Was I naive? With all the added fees I ended up paying over $4,000 for [View Full Entry]

---

---

Leaving Broken Hill mid-morning out train passed through mile after mile of flat bush country devoid of habitation and enterprise. After turning south towards Adelaide there is sufficient annual rainfall to allow viable agriculture. For the last 200 miles you pass through large wheat farms of 3000 acres or more, grazing cattle and many vineyards. We are in the state of South Australia, and Adelaide is proud to have been the first to seriously develop a wine making industry. Today South Australia leads all other states in wine production. Adelaide also leads Australia in automobile manufacturin [View Full Entry]

---

---

As my readers know, my wife and I stay in a different place in the world each year, and I write a travel journal about the experience. (See my profile for more.) During our summer in Slovenia we made several trips from our residence in Bled to Ljubljana. This is an account of one such trip. Ljubljana means "beloved" in Slovene.It is an easy 45 minute drive from Bled. We went on a Saturday, market day, and the town was all a buzz. Finding a parking place for the day near the university, we set about discovering the central part of [View Full Entry]

---

---

For six years Elysee and I have put into practice our adopted retired lifestyle: "The World Is Our Second Home." (See my profile for more information on that.) We have ranged from Slovenia, to Carmel, California, to Australia/New Zealand. Our Estonian "Love Nest" fit right in. Within days of arriving we had adjusted the furniture, put our personal photos in place, bought fresh flowers, set up our cocktail bar, established separate places for each of us to work, and enjoyed our traditional first meal, schnitzel, with a fine local wine. I had begun searching for a place in Tallinn the pr [View Full Entry]

---

---

We are still in Broken Hill, stopping over on our cross country train ride aboard the Indian Pacific. That chilly Sunday morning the good people who run the Flying Doctor's Service were good enough to get out their warm houses and give a lecture and tour of this famous Australian institution. RFD's story is unique to Australia. Started by Rev. John Flynn of Queensland, in 1928, to bring emergency medical service to remote outback areas where there were only two doctors in over 2 million square miles. The operation we visited in Broken Hill dates back to 1938 and is entirely [View Full Entry]

---

---