left our jobs, went to Asia

Sydney reminds me somewhat of a Singapore. Water, high rise buildings and reflections in a dark water.

CBD reflecting in the waters of the bay, Sydney, Australia

Except the prices. No more negotiations when  READ MORE »

At least one hour's climb to Mount Oberon via a wide and winding gravel road is rather boring, but two things while on the top are definitely rewarding.

View to down below from the top of Mount Oberon, Wilsons Promontory, Australia

Views to the surrounding beaches, and  READ MORE »

The highlight of my today's sightseeing in Melbourne is visiting one of the high-rise hotels.

Actually, the hotel's toilet.

It is situated on a top floor and has a huge window from floor to ceiling. The views are magnificent.

Birds-eye panoramic view at the city from the toilet of a hotel, Melbourne, Australia

We all know that some people love reading in toilets. Well, in this one, you one can  READ MORE »

So far we have driven all along the West coast of Australia, from Darwin to Perth.
After the flight from Perth to Melbourne, we plan to drive again, this time from Melbourne to Cairns.

In total it will be more than 8000 kilometers.

Postcard comparing territory of Australia to Europe, USA, Japan, New Zealand, SE Asia

Back home it usually takes me half a year to cover  READ MORE »

After a nice dinner out in Melbourne, we decided to give it a go and try a dessert in one of Italian ice cream shops that are open till late.

All kinds of desserts are tempting passers-by, Melbourne, Australia

After the waitress brought the blueberry cheesecake, we realized our mistake.

Even for two of us the piece was  READ MORE »

An example of Australian marketing.

Ice cream named "Golden gaytime", Melbourne, Australia

Costs 6.49 AUD.

Of course I bought it! Tastes great, by the way.  READ MORE »

Statue guarding entrance to the shop, Melbourne, Australia

I've asked a resident of Melbourne, living there for over twenty years, if he could tell me the name of the most dangerous suburb. Gangs, guns, drugs, that type of  READ MORE »

A few posts back I mentioned kangaroos, wombats and emus. Thought you might like to see how they look, umm, in a different context.

I.e. alive.

Emu you already saw, so I'll start with a kangaroo.

A portrait, if you like. I think she's dreaming about grass that's even greener.

Portrait of a kangaroo, Phillip island, Australia

Also, meet wombat. A boulder of  READ MORE »

I become worried and upset when simple street signs come with asterisk and small text. To me it means something has gone wrong in the society.

Special lunch offer, Melbourne, Australia

Of course I understand that  READ MORE »

Australia still manages to keep us surprised with its variety of birds and other wildlife.

Green colored wild parrot, near Pemberton, Australia

Initiatives and laws of environment conservation are quite  READ MORE »

Next time anyone tells me that Australia is nothing but a desert, I'll suggest them to go and climb one of the karri trees. For example, the Gloucester tree, standing at 61 meters in height.

Climbing Gloucester tree near Pemberton, Australia  READ MORE »

There's time to enjoy.

Riding the top of the wave, between Yallingup and Hamelin bay, Australia

But there's also  READ MORE »

The fire destroyed big part of Busselton jetty in 1999. Rebuilding costs were estimated at around 1 million dollars, and neither municipality nor state government wanted to finance the process.

The community then took initiative, established a committee and managed a successful fund raising campaign, what resulted in reopening of the jetty for public visitors.

Wooden jetty in Busselton, Australia

Active community, working together, can produce  READ MORE »

A few words about telecommunications in Australia.

There still are plenty of payphones, and it does not seem like they are going out of fashion anytime soon. Most of them are even upgraded with a "send SMS" function. Bastards eat coins like crazy.

Mobile connection is very unreliable, except from cities. Understandable, bearing in mind the huge territory of the country. Expensive.

Internet. Poor Australians.

Timeworn computers in Grand central backpackers hostel, Perth, Australia

Costs around 3 to 5 dollars in internet cafes of the bigger cities. The facilities sometimes are imported from Ice Age. See above.

If you are unlucky  READ MORE »

Meet Transperth, a public transport company of Perth city.

Transperth logotype on a bus stop, Perth, Australia

They are famous for  READ MORE »