Welcome to my Australia page.
I didn't know what to expect in Australia before I got here - maybe seeing Kangaroos hopping everywhere? Or people playing with boomerangs and throwing shrimp on the barbie? Maybe even those crazy Aussies wrestling crocs for fun. These stereotypes of the land down under are the faults of the American media. It's similar to foreigners thinking that all Americans have guns and weapons. I only have a semi-automatic machine gun in my backpack, but that's only for self protection... including my grenade launcher.
It's been an exciting 3 months, even if I did meet one of the top 3 most annoying people in my life. Aussies are one of the friendliest people I've ever met. They also like to give cute nicknames to things. For example, brekkie = breakfast, saltie = salt water croc, freshie = fresh water croc, etc. They do greet you with a friendly "G'day", and reply "No worries 'mate!" with a smile when they help you out. In the morning, they do have the cute but annoying "wakie wakie" phrase to get you out of bed. Are descendents of ex-cons all this friendly? :) Anyway, on with the journal.
As before, click on a picture to see a larger version.
$ - US$1 = A$1.81 (A$1 = US$0.55)
The best and worst of Australia. Note that this is my personal opinion and I only had limited exposure to the country. If there are any other categories you would like me to list, please send me an email.
| Places to eat (on a backpacker's budget): | Best: NSW: Pho noodle bar in Sydney's Chinatown - A$5 for a huge bowl; QLD: Mrs. ?'s Meat pies galore - A$2; NT: Treat yourself to huge delicious plates of blackened barramundi, pork ribs, or chicken at the Mississippi Queen (A$10).
Worst: Fish n Chips - grease, grease, and more grease.. |
| Places to get smashed/drunk/pissed: | Backpacker pubs mentioned in the journal. |
| Hostel: | Best: Sun Seeker Condos - we lucked out and got a condo with pool, sauna, whirlpool, and ocean view for A$25 each in Noosa.
Worst: I've lucked out, but there are some very nasty ones in Cairns. Check out the rooms before you commit. |
| Activity: | Best: Sydney, Great Ocean Road, Fraiser Island, Sail the Whitsundays, Diving/Snorkeling the Great Barrier Reef, Exploring the parks around Alice Spring, Kakadu in Darwin, camping on the beach along the east coast.
Worst: Melbourne (this should get me some hate mails... heh...) |
| Scenery: | Best: Same as activity above. |
| Chilling Out:: | Best: Camping on the beach with fire and sleeping under the stars on the east coast. Camping with fire and sleeping under the stars around Alice Springs. |
| Danger: | Killer box jellyfish and blue-bottle jellyfish and blue-ringed octopus in the ocean, salt water crocs in the fresh and salt water estuaries, 2 very poisonous spiders and 9 of the world's 15 most poisonous snakes. Be careful! |
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