I’m am writing this from base camp. Tomorrow I make the final push to the summit of Mount Kosciuszko, the highest peak on the Australian continent. Unlike Everest base camp, you don’t see as many tents and oxygen bottles here. Also, there are no sherpas. To climb Kosy, you have to carry your own gear. …
I’m writing this in Napier, NZ. A very nice town, with I’m guessing a very strict policy on new construction, and a very destructive past. The city center is pretty much all art deco architecture. The reason is, back in the 1930’s, the town got hit by and earthquake, so when they rebuilt, everything had …
All the effort I went through to back up my photos may have been for naught. I took everything to a FedEx/Kinkos store in Sydney to send it back to the US. So far, the package hasn’t been entered into the FedEx system to track packages, and there hasn’t been a charge to my credit …
Tomorrow morning I leave for three days in the bush. I’ll be sleeping outside under the stars. This three day trip was cheaper than a two day trip, so I figured “why not?” I get back on Friday and I hope to be in Singapore by Monday. As far as I can tell, flights to …
Well, I survived the summit, or to be more accurate, the hike on a paved path up a hill. However, I got a good dose of sun while I was out walking. I probably walked about 8 miles (15 km) yesterday. The only reason my sunburn isn’t worse is that I was pretty tanned before …
Easter here is a four day weekend. Easter Monday is a holiday, so today (Tuesday) is really the first day I’ve been in Sydney where most businesses have been open. I’ll be walking over the top of the Sydney Harbor Bridge this afternoon (sort of one of the things you just have to do when …
Yesterday I walked over the top of the Sydney Harbor Bridge. It was a unique experience, but I think what I found unique about it might be different than what other people find unique. The Sydney Harbor Bridge isn’t the biggest bridge in the world. It isn’t even the biggest arch bridge in the world. …
I know that my McDonald’s posts are some of the most popular ones I do, but seeing how long I’ve been in Australia (waaaay longer than I ever intended), I haven’t had a whole lot to write about. Since the beginning of the year, in addition to Australia I’ve been in Brunei (no McDonald’s that …
Perhaps the biggest attraction on the drive from Brisbane to Cairns is Fraser Island. Fraser Island is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and holds the distinction of being the worlds largest sand island. If you look at a map of Australia, you will notice that the east coast of the country curves. Right after the …