go-see-do guide for adventurous travellers
Approach south eastern Victoria’s magical Bright region Victoria from any direction, spot Mt Buffalo’s impossibly scenic bulk dominating the skyline and you’ll swear you’re not in Australia! It’s difficult to believe the soaring granite cliffs and outcrops leading to the extensive plateau more than 1200 metres above sea level were once much higher. Right at the end of the Aussie[…]
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Most people know what a traditional Scotsman wears under his kilt*. But far fewer people know what a Frenchman wears under his sarong! I’d never given this tragic gap in my knowledge any consideration whatsoever – I mean, who associates Frenchmen with sarongs? But if this vexed question HAD been keeping me awake at night, I certainly wouldn’t have expected[…]
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My mother was born and bred in Western Australia, right in the heart of the fabled wildflower zone. If I had a dollar for every time I heard how wonderful the Western Australian wildflowers were compared to anywhere else in Australia – if not the world – I could have travelled round the world to find out for myself! But[…]
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The pairing of Australians and Cane Toads works well. Almost as well the pairing of pavlova with pepperoni! Although, come to think of it, while the Cane toad is an introduced species, so are its colonial counterparts … but I digress! 77 years after ‘experts’ deliberately introduced the Cane Toad (Bufo Marinus) into the wild, this alien animal has infested[…]
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A good morning in Kununurra starts really early. That’s because this town in the East Kimberley is just west of the Northern Territory border and the Central Australia time zone. Crossing the border into Western Australia means you gain 1½ hours so what was 7:30 am in the Northern Territory is now 6:00 am! And the sun is well and truly up[…]
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Cairns is one of the best Australian travel destinations – and I’ve got the photos to prove it! This laid back city 2000 km north of Brisbane between World Heritage Listed Rainforest and the Great Barrier Reef, has come a long way from its sugar-cane farming roots to become Far North Queensland’s tourist hub. Cairns has just as much to[…]
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Think of ‘Australia’ and ‘Paradise’ in the same sentence and I’ll bet you’re thinking tropical. White sandy beaches, palms and and clear blue sea. Colourful fish, corals and lush rainforest. Balmy, moonlit nights and cocktails under the stars. But that splendid vision – while undeniably fabulous – is only one of many versions of utopia in this country of diverse[…]
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‘What goes up must come down,’ she twanged, immediately identifying a) her astonishing originality and b) her country of origin. Suitably dressed for a dusty, rocky climb through clinging vines, a charred mountainside and tropical humidity in a white ‘resort’ dress and gold sandals, this gem fell from her pinkly glossed lips and dropped like pearls of wisdom before swine.[…]
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Sometimes, not planning turns out best. And sometimes the planets align and fabulous weather, bizarre experiences, brilliant destination and perfect moments all come together on one fine day … Fine in every sense! And the sky! The glorious sky!! Yes, Innes National Park at the very southern end of South Australia’s York Peninsula was already one of my favourite places.[…]
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The benign, blue sky stretches away to infinity around western Queensland’s Boulia, mostly unrelieved by clouds, birds or planes. Unremarkable – at least by Outback standards – Boulia’s boundless blue backdrop is the ultimate Big Sky luring travellers to the Outback. But it’s not the splendidly panoramic sky of daylight hours that attracts visitors to this remote capital of the[…]
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