Seb_down_under

It is just a couple of hours left for me here on the north-eastern coast of Australia. I am currently sitting in the internet cafe of Gilligan's Backpackers Resort in Cairns. This is probably the flashiest backpacker's place I have been to so far. Very good and clean rooms, well trained staff etc. Still it somehow feels wrong. I think it is because I'm a bit old fashioned and have this image of backpacking being a bit filthy thing. But as anyone travelling around Australia can probably tell, backpacking is moving to the next level: backpackers appear with Samsonite suitcases and beautycases, pulling their luggage on trolleys behind them - still a minority but probably being a harbinger of the next backpacking generation. What else is there to tell about Cairns? From my point of view ... read more

Time for an update on my tour up the east coast of Australia... At the moment I am in Airlie Beach, the gate to the Withsunday Islands. I arrived last friday after a long ride on the Oz bus coming up from Dingo (that's another story, to be told at another time). After a night out with two dutch guys I met a couple of days before while staying in the same dorm room (and who are also travelling with Oz experience), I had a relaxed start into the day - apart from the fact that the rain was pouring down like crazy. This was not the best outlook for my sailing trip through the Whitsundays and apparently a couple of day tours had been cancelled. However, we met for the introductory meeting at 1:30pm and ... read more

So, I have made it across Australia - still a concept that for me as a European is hard to grasp... you sit in an aeroplane for 4,5 hrs, fly across a continent and still you are in the same country. Hard to imagine. I stayed last night at Barnaby & Anna's place, got picked up by the taxi and arrived in time at the Perth Domestic Airport. Funnily this terminal is much, much busier than the international airport - if that doesn't tell you something ;-) The flight was pretty smooth and sitting at the window I had the opportunity to get some aerial views of Australia - my dear friends, I can tell you, this country is dry. Apart from the ocean I haven't seen a single major body of water. No running rivers, ... read more

Geraldton To Perth This is our last day on the Nort-West trip. Most of the time on the truck is spent with exchanging contact details and sharing further travel plans. Before we arrive in Perth we have a stop at the Yanchep National Park, where we have lunch, watch the Koalas and get introduced to a bit of Aboriginal culture. All of us are very tired and exhausted and longing for a long shower and a good night's sleep without being forced out of bed at six in the morning. ... read more

Exmouth to Geraldton Not much to report about this day. We have to leave early again as we have to make 850km today. It’s my turn to ride in the passenger seat of the truck and to engage our driver in conversation to make sure that he does not fall asleep. This turns out to be very interesting as Scott and I get to share some parts of our life’s stories. In the evening we arrive at the Batavia Backpacker’s, which is situated in the building of the old Victorian hospital. A nice building, clean and simple rooms and again a big communal kitchen where we prepare our dinner. After dinner we have a couple of beers and experience some real Australian pub games. Around midnight everyone is ready to hit the beds and we retreat… ... read more

Warroora Station via Coral Bay to Exmouth Again, we have to get up early this morning as another long stint up north is waiting for us. As Christina’s and my room is right next door to the communal kitchen we wake up as the first people from our group start preparing breakfast. I remember that I made the foolish promise to cook pancakes for everyone. Well, this means playing the chef for 15 people… The first problem I come across: The eggs are frozen. *hmpf* That freezer unit on the truck seems to be operating in either one of two modes: Antarctic cold or Australian heat – we experienced that already on the previous days, having fun with frozen cucumbers and tomatoes. Scott has the great idea of melting the eggs in a water bath however ... read more

Lynton Station to Nanga Bay Another early start… We have to hit the road early, so that we can make it to our next destination during the daytime. In Australia it is absolutely not recommended to drive during the night, as many accidents happen with cattle, sheep, feral goats and – of course – kangaroos. Just take a look to the left and the right of the roads when driving through the bush… Anyway, we get packed and leave Lynton Station around 7 in the morning. First stop after a few kilometres is a huge purpelish/pinkish lake or to be more precise an area where seawater evaporates leaving behind sea salt. The colour is due to the activity of photosynthetic cyanobacteria. These are halophilic (salt-loving) organisms that are able to survive the high salt concentrations. The ... read more

so, here it starts... the semester is over - at last. the last two weeks were really stressing me out with exams in all three core units whithin 10 days. i don't think that i have ever felt so stressed by university before. the good thing about it is the fact, that now everything is finished. no more assignments due, no exams during a second period, just plain three months of sweet idleness and a lot of time for travelling. before i hit the road, i have to move to another flat within the student village of my university, as all residents staying for the summer are pooled together in one area. well, i don't really mind, as it means a bunch of new people to live with for a couple of weeks (that's both good ... read more