Blogs from Oceania - page 5

Friday 26th April, Mary PoolMary Pool Rest AreaFreeRated by us 8/10Mileage 18484 travelled 777kms includes travel in BroomeTime to move on heading towards Kununurra, via a free camp for the night. WE have been advised by the tourist board to avoid Halls Creek and Fitzroy Crossing as the crime and theft is horrendous, so we have picked Mary Pool one of the four sites recommended by the tourist board, it is 108km short of Halls Creek and will enable us to make Kununurra tomorrow.The scenery is changing again as we move from the Pilbarra red earth to the browner dirt of the Kimberley. The first of many Boab Trees start to appear along with more water in the creeks and rivers. The termite mounds are now brown as opposed to red and there seem to ... read more

So today we’ll be heading west into South Australia and on to the wine valley town of Clare. Compared to yesterday it’s going to be a relatively relaxed drive of only a tad over four hundred kilometres. We stop to stretch our legs at the thriving South Australian Riverland town of Renmark, best known for its prolific production of irrigated oranges and grapes. The ANZAC Day memorials set up along the attractive riverfront include thousands of crocheted red and purple poppies. It seems the purple ones are intended to recognise the “sacrifices” made by the animals that got drawn into the various conflicts. We read that it’s estimated that eight million animals lost their lives in World War I alone - horses, donkeys, dogs ….. and pigeons. I’d always thought of a “sacrifice” as being voluntary; ... read more

Hallo zusammen endlich endlich ist es mal wieder soweit und ich habe mich zusammen gerissen und mich mal wieder hin gessetzt, um Euch ein kleines Update zu geben. Eigentlich wäre ich ja schon wieder in Deutschland, denn am 17. April 2024 ist mein Visa ausgelaufen und mein Flug von Auckland nach Frankfurt ist an diesen Tag gestartet - allerdings ohne mich. Und das kam so: John kam auf die grandiose Idee einfach mal die Immigration zu fragen, ob ich nicht verlängern kann und natürlich ist das so eine Sache, wenn ein Neuseeländer sagt: „Ach probier das doch einfach mal!“, aber auf der anderen Seite keinerlei Ahnung hat wie das so mit Visas, Einwanderung und eben überhaupt in dem Zusammenhang mit Regierungsinstitutionen funktioniert. Aber John ist einfach jemand der einfach mal probiert und schaut was passiert… Ich ... read more

Friday 19 th April, BroomeRAC Cable Beach Caravan ParkCost $41.62 per night with membershipRated by us 8/10Mileage 17707 travelled 0Planning day today ready for the next phase of things.Headed into the town centre to the Tourist Board, I must say they are super helpful and know the area well. We had heard that The Staircase to the Moon is on 24 th April and wanted to check the dates, having decided we are so close we will stay and experience it, we are enjoying the camp site and the lazy days so no brainer really. Tourist Board confirm that the first night is Thursday 25 th April and that the night markets will also be on that nig... read more

Thursday 18 th April, BroomeRAC Cable Beach Caravan ParkCost $41.62 per night with membershipRated by us 8/10Mileage 17707 travelled 0Trip of the morning is out to Gantheaume Point an amazing beach onto which you can easily drive. The water is crystal clear and shallow with low waves rolling it, shame about the stingers it looks so inviting. It is safe to swim from May to October but we have been warned it is a bot early yet and the stingers are still about. We still had a good walk along they beach and I spent some time photographing the amazing rock formations. I used to know this rock as Zebra Rock in South Africa, I have never seen it in Australia till today, it is fascinating and full of colours, great for the ... read more