Anticipating driving across the Nullarbor – the longest road trip ever
In a few days time I will start the longest drive of my life. I will leave Esperance, WA and drive more than 4,000km to Bundaberg, QLD. That’s the equivalent of driving from London to Mumbai (but crossing one country instead of 12). Australia doesn’t look that big, does it? It’s a bit of a sneaky secret, but I’m telling you, Australia is enormous. It is vast, and Australians, who are used to these distances and consider them normal, have a totally different perception of distance from visitors. Having lived remotely for the past few years, I have learned not to underestimate Australian distances and also grown cautious of the…
Australia, the next chapter – Farewell Esperance
The start of this new year has been especially exciting because 2015 will be a year of big change for me. Having been living in Western Australia for almost four years, this year (next month, no less!) I’m moving to Queensland. Firstly, apologies to friends in Europe. I am are aware this is not the return to Europe you have been asking about! Those without much experience of Australia may think ‘big deal, moving within Australia. How different can it be?’ and having previously lived in other countries, I can understand this. It wasn’t until I had lived in Australia for a few months that I truly understood distance, from an Australian…
West Australia’s Crazy, Colourful, Tin Horse Highway
“Is that a horse made from scrap metal?” It’s not something you see on every roadtrip, but a small farming community in Western Australia’s wheatbelt region has created an open-air art gallery along one of their highways. Moving to Australia gave me a fresh perspective on distance. Living in Esperance, WA, our nearest city is Perth and it is over 700 kilometres away. That’s about the same distance as driving from Paris to Barcelona, or New York to Detroit. Roaring along the highway, about five hours into the eight-hour journey, I spotted the first of more than 70 tin horses that line the main road leading into Kulin. Kulin is…
Flower art at Floriade, Canberra
Every year Canberra’s Commonwealth Park becomes a botanical wonderland when it hosts an incredible floral display called Floriade. The month-long event displays an incredible number of blooms, arranged in artistic displays across numerous flowerbeds. A wander through Floriade is not to be missed if you time your trip to Canberra right. It’s a rare person that worries about being in the presence of flowers but, I must admit, it was with a sense of trepidation that this chronic hayfever sufferer headed to Floriade, I needn’t have worried though. The flowers were mostly ‘blooms’ rather than ‘blossoms’ and, dosed up to the eyeballs with some strong hayfever medication, I was fine.…
Vintage Shopping in Melbourne, my favourite places
Melbourne is an absolute paradise if you enjoy exploring second-hand shops and discovering treasures like unique items of clothing, interesting jewellery, knickknacks or home wares. The city is a vintage shopping wonderland! Here’s my guide to the best places to go vintage shopping in Melbourne. There are lots of individual vintage shops in Melbourne but there are also a few bazaars, where several shop owners team together to provide lots of vintage wares in one place. Lost and Found Market 511 Lygon Street, East Brunswick Lost and Found Market offers several different vintage stores (I didn’t count precisely but there are probably around 30). The indoor market has a large…
The Australian War Memorial, a humbling experience
What do you think of when you read the words ‘war memorial’? Probably a statue or the memory of a remembrance ceremony, no? The Canberra War Memorial is certainly an awe-inspiring building, constructed to honour fallen ANZAC soldiers, but it is also so much more than that. Even if Australian military history is not a subject you are especially passionate about, the inspiring, and often heart-breaking, stories you can uncover on a visit to the museum are truly humbling. The Australian War Memorial The walkway from the main entrance leads through an arch to the main memorial area, the commemorative courtyard. In the airy rectangular courtyard the names of thousands…
Visiting Parliament House in Canberra
After several years in the country, Australia’s ‘warts and all’ style of politics still intrigues me. The headlines of the Julia Gillard vs Kevin Rudd tussle to lead the Australian Labor Party and the aggressive campaigning ahead of the 2013 federal election that featured some outrageous allegations about both sides have been part of my Australian experience. So, when an opportunity came to visit Parliament House, I was keen to see the politicians in action. Before you get anywhere, there are high levels of airport-style security screening, which you have to complete before entering the building, and again if you wish to enter the two chambers: the House of Representatives…
The best sushi in Melbourne
Having previously lived in London, where everything is available just about all of the time, moving to rural Australia has meant some serious adaptation in terms of the availability of, among other things, favourite foods. For this sushi addict, living in a town without a sushi restaurant, has been challenging! So, on a recent trip to Melbourne I delighting in feasting at several different sushi outlets. Here’s my guide to the best sushi in Melbourne. I admit it. I went to a variety of restaurants and ate lots of sushi! Here I have compared a serve of salmon sashimi and a roll in each. One was a restaurant rather than…
Things to do in Esperance
Arriving in Esperance, in the south-east corner of Western Australia, feels like you have arrived at the end of the earth. Lying over 700 kilometres from Perth, and a two-hour drive from the next established town, Esperance sits in isolated splendour on the spectacular south coast and has several unique attractions for visitors to enjoy. Esperance Waterfront Over the past two years the foreshore by Esperance town centre has been transformed from a scrappy shoreline of grass and beach to a chic new waterfront featuring walking and cycle paths, planted areas, benches, picnic shelters, public barbecues, pieces of public art and, of course, beach access. It makes a great place…
Things to do in Cairns
Many people visit Cairns simply to access the Great Barrier Reef and spend little time exploring other nearby localities. The reef is incredible, and is a definite must-see for all visitors to Australia. However, there are also many other attractions in and around Cairns that should also not be missed in this very special part of the world. Day Trips from Cairns Visit the Great Barrier Reef Let’s start with the reef. With over 900 islands spread over more than 340,000 square kilometres, the Great Barrier Reef is the world’s largest coral reef system. The best way to spend time exploring the reef is to spend a few days…
