Round the World 2008

I went and saw the Phillip Island penguin parade yesterday. I didn’t realize it was one of Australia’s top attractions. Unfortunately no photos were allowed, which wouldn’t have made much difference anyway since the penguins come out of the water just after dusk when they are safest from predators (though not from humans). Hundreds of penguins marched out of the water after a day of fishing towards the dunes where their burrows are. Amazing to see.

Earlier in the day I was biking around the island and came across the Phillip Island Wildlife Park where I spent a few hours watching kangaroos, koalas and Tasmanian devils.

I didn’t rent a car in Melbourne and instead took the bus, train, ferry route to Phillip Island. An afternoon later I was in Cowes, the largest town on Phillip Island. It’s like a Jersey Shore town during off-season, but restaurants, shops, etc. are all open. My apartment is right by the water off of the main strip. It’s a one bedroom apartment and it will be nice to have a real home for a while. This will be a perfect place to unwind before I travel up to Asia late next week. I’ll get a full day and night in Seoul next Thursday before I arrive in Ulan Batur, Mongolia on Friday.

I was told the best way to see Phillip Island is by renting a bike. There’s a koala reserve here as well as a nightly march of penguins on the beach, a couple of wineries and there’s a film festival happening here this weekend.

A few more photos from the Outback:

We traveled 1875 miles, roughly the distance from New York to Utah, over the course of 10 days driving from Adelaide to Alice Springs. For 10 nights we slept outside underneath the stars around a campfire. We were lucky to be traveling at the peak of the Aquarid meteor showers during a new moon, so there was no light pollution. With clear skies, most nights we fell asleep watching meteor after meteor streak across the sky. At the end of each day we found a spot where we made our fire and cooked our dinner. There were ten of us including Steve our guide and we all contributed to getting the camp set up and making meals. Steve was a real Aussie who educated us on all the Australian slang. The group was made up of Europeans from the UK, Holland, Germany and Switzerland. I was the only American. There was a nice group dynamic which was good since we were with each other 24/7 for 10 days. 

Our vehicle was a Land Cruiser and most of the driving was on dirt road or through sand. You really get a sense of how vast and barren Australia is driving through the Outback. There were long distances between points of interest and for the most part there was nothing but flat dusty desert with little life. The area around Ayers Rock, the Olgas and Kings Canyon was much like red rock country in the American Southwest. Ayers Rock (Uluru is the Aboriginal name for it) was a spectacular sight rising up over 2800 feet out of the flat desert. Hiking the 8 kilometers around it and then watching the light from the sunset illuminate it made for an unforgettable day. Close by are the Olgas which are rock formations which rise over 1500 feet above the plain. We did a day hike there as well as at Kings Canyon which I thought was the best trek of the trip.

We encountered all types of wildlife including kangaroos, emus, rock wallabees (like a miniature kangaroo), wild camels, snakes, dingoes and parrots. One night we came back from a swim in a waterhole and found a dingo snooping around the campsite. It ran off when it saw us. To me they just look like a dog…just meaner and leaner. They were brought to Australia thousands of years ago by the Aboriginal people and have been living in the wild ever since.  One of the best camping nights was at Dalhousie when we ended one day and started another in a large lake that got its water supply from hot springs. There were hundreds of colorful wild parrots in the trees around the lake and the water was the temperature of a warm bath. In the morning steam rose from the lake and we jumped out of our swags (sleeping bags) into the cold air and directly into the hot water. We didn’t want to get out until the day warmed up. The days were extremely hot and the nights cold. At a few campsites where people had fed kangaroos they were extremely friendly and came up to us. Deep in the wild the kangaroos were clearly frightened of us.

We spent one evening camping on Aboriginal land and a guy from the Aboriginal community played guitar and sang songs for us around the campfire. In the morning he included us in a Aboriginal spiritual ceremony where we got our faces painted. Their philosophy is very environmental and is based upon respecting the land and nature.  There are often disagreements about land use with the government. For example at Uluru, the Aboriginal community consider the rock a sacred place and have signs asking visitors not to photograph it at or climb it even though the National Park Service allows it.

We stopped at some unusual towns and met some quirky people who live in the Outback. Coober Pedy is an opal mining town where 70% of the town’s population of 3000 live in dugouts which are houses built into the rock. We saw the inside of one of the houses and it really is like living in a cave. There were even underground churches, bars, and stores. It’s also the most ethnically diverse town in Australia. People from all over the world settled there to make their fortunes in opal mining. 

I think the friendships I made on this trip were stronger and will be longer lasting than on other trips because we were physically so close together for such along period. We had some great nights chatting around the fire and shared some incredible experiences together. Last night we went out for our final night in Alice Springs and it was odd seeing the group clean and in a restaurant after so many days of being covered in red dust around a campfire. 

I flew to Melbourne this evening.  I plan to go to Phillip Island which is a few hours outside the city tomorrow for a quiet week at an apartment I traded for a week at my Utah condo. Phillip Island is famous for the nightly march of little penguins and good parks and beaches. 

For all the people who emailed me that they can’t keep up with me, I’m still here in Sydney.  My days have been busy, usually based around one or two activities.  Today for example I walked over to Sydney Harbour and went into the Sydney Museum.  A good museum about the city’s history but not as compelling as some of the other museums I’ve been to during the week.  Then a ferry ride to Manly Beach and a walk along the coast to Shelley Beach.  Perfect sunny day, but a little cool.  It’s autumn here but there were still people bathing and surfing.  I laid out in the sun and even slept for a short while.  I’ve been feeling tired lately…I think all the travel is catching up with me. Other things I’ve done these past few days:

• Sky Tower which had some incredible views of the city and surrounding waterways.
• The Powerhouse Museum which is like Australia’s Smithsonian.  A fascinating exhibit on cyberspace and a temporary exhibit on Princess Diana which was surprisingly interesting.
• The Art Gallery of New South Wales where I spent almost an entire day.  Good classic and modern plus a large photography collection.
• Got a day pass for the monorail which loops around the city center stopping at Chinatown where I had an excellent Vietnamese lunch, Darling Harbour and the Galeries Victoria, a large city mall.

But mostly I’ve been walking, which is the best way of getting to know a city.  Tomorrow I’m going to an afternoon symphony at the Opera House.  On Saturday I fly to Adelaide.  The Outback tour starts there on Sunday.

Also, I finalized my new plans for Asia.  Malaysia and Singapore have replaced Tibet and Nepal.  After the Beijing-Shanghai-Tokyo tour, I’ll fly to Kuala Lumpur and spend some time there and in Singapore which is a 4 hour train ride away. Then I’ll do a tour of Borneo where we’ll trek to the top of Mount Kinabalu which is the highest mountain in Southeast Asia and go on a jungle safari where we’ll see wild boars, elephants and orangutans. 

Here’s a dizzying view from the top of Sydney Sky Tower:

I’m staying at a B&B in the Potts Point section of Sydney. Christina, a nice Greek woman runs it with her children. Since it’s Greek Easter this weekend, she promised to bring me some tsoureki, Greek Easter bread. I spent the first day in Sydney walking around, getting to know the neighborhoods. Christina gave me a good briefing on what I should hit on the first day. After a few hours I realized that 3 days in Sydney wouldn’t be enough, so I scrapped my trip to Tasmania scheduled to begin Monday and I’ll stay here until the end of next week instead.

Walking to the harbor from the B&B I walked through the Royal Botanic Gardens which was pretty wild for a city park…all kinds of tropical birds (parrots, parakeets) screeching and making all kinds of noise. Close your eyes and you’d think you were in the middle of a jungle rather than in the middle of the city. The walk along the Sydney Harbour is just beautiful and the Opera House is really one impressive building. This morning I got up early and took the Opera House tour which was great because we got to go into all the theaters. Now that I’m staying for the week I definitely plan on going to see a performance there.

After the Opera House I went to the Museum of Contemporary Art in the Rocks neighborhood which is the oldest neighborhood in the city and has lots of character. My list of things to do here is getting longer the more I explore. There are ferries to other sections around the city which I was told I should see, museums, parks, shopping, the harbor cruise, the aquarium, going to the top of Sydney Sky Tower…

I may end up going to Tasmania anyway. I have a week in Melbourne after the Outback tour, so maybe then. Also, I was told by the tour company that they are cancelling my trip to Tibet so I’ll have to make some changes to my Asia itinerary this week. I’m looking forward to the week here in Sydney. Mostly it will be nice to be in one place for 8 or 9 days after so much moving around.

Today is my final day in Lima (and South America until my planned return to Brazil in October).  I’ve had some time to post photos to Flickr and you can see a slideshow of the Inca Trail photos I’ve posted so far.  The slideshow will update automatically as I add new photos. 

My hotel is in the Miraflores section of Lima which is on the beach and has lots of hotels, casinos and shopping.   I’ve spent the last two days exploring, wandering about and catching up on email.  The most interesting spot in Miraflores is the Larcomar mall which is on a cliff and overlooks the beach.   

I’ve been thinking about the last 6 weeks I’ve spent in South America and it would be hard to say what I enjoyed most — what comes to mind though is the natural beauty of Patagonia, the experience of living and teaching in Santiago and the challenge and fun of the Inca Trail. 

My flight for Atlanta leaves at midnight and I’ll arrive in Auckland on Sunday morning to begin the next phase of the trip:  6 weeks in New Zealand and Australia.  After being with groups for much of the time I’ve spent in South America, I’m looking forward to traveling on my own in New Zealand.  The plan is to rent a car, spend about 5 days on the North Island, take the ferry across to the South Island, and then spend 8 days there before leaving from Christchurch to go to Sydney.  My next group trip is in May to travel the Australian Outback.

I’ve started planning for the Australia/New Zealand segment of the trip:

April 13 – 17 New Zealand North Island

April 17 Ferry North Island to South Island (Wellington – Picton)

April 17 – 25 New Zealand South Island

April 25 – 28 Sydney

April 28 – May 3 Tasmania

May 4 – 14 Outback Tracks (Intrepid)

Experience life in the outback, Join in a bush tucker hunt, Step back in time in ancient Wilpena Pound, Listen to Aboriginal dreamtime stories, Head underground in Coober Pedy, See a magical sunset over Uluru, Hike through King’s Canyon, Discover the stark beauty of Australia’s desert landscapes.

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I leave from Melbourne to Mongolia on 22-May. I’m going to leave the last week open for now.