Hello
All!!! As most of you know I just got back from my Easter Break trip across the
great land of Australia. Most other Exchanges I know did a trip to New Zealand,
Cairns in Queensland, Tasmania, or Melbourne for the week but I wanted to do
something a bit different. So I booked a trip to the South Australian state
capital of Adelaide and then booked the second half of the Indian- Pacific
Railroad to Perth. (The Indian Pacific RR runs from Sydney to Perth about 2,700
miles connecting the Pacific and Indian Oceans (hence the name)).
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| Clouds on the flight to Adelaide |
The next day I went to the Art Gallery of South Australia and reflected for a while on some great pieces of Australian Art. I took some pictures of my favorite pieces:
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| Hell Goblin |
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| Australian Soldier |
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| Music Practice |
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| Adelaide Manor |
The next couple days were filled with hanging with new friends
from the hostels (Aussies, Italians, Slovaks, Germans, Brits and Argentinians
were all in the mix), went to a couple fun bars, saw some local bands, caught a
movie, and explored the outskirts of Adelaide (like the McClaren Vale wine
region), Glenelg [the beach town were Adelaide was originally founded] and North
Adelaide), had some nice park picnics, saw some architecture, and generally
relaxed in this quiet city for the holidays.
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| In my element |
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| Thought my mom would love this picture |
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| Glenelg |
With my final Adelaide adventure I unintentionally got a
little bit crazy. On the last day I was in Adelaide I decided to go for what I
thought was a leisurely ride up to the vantage point at Mount Lofty Summit. I
had no idea what I was getting myself into when I hired a bike and headed up
into the Adelaide Hills. Three and a half hours, 2339 feet vertically, 18km
uphill, and buckets of sweat later I arrived at Mount Lofty Summit (such an
innocent name how could I have expected a Brian Veldhuizen/ Lance Armstrong-esque
trek). In the end, I made it to the top and got a great view of Adelaide, the
ocean, the world renowned Barossa Valley wine region, Glenelg, and Port
Adelaide. Here are some pictures from the ride up to Mt. Lofty Summit and the great view from the top.
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| Koala X-ing |
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| ...Kangaroo X-ing |
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| Mount Lofty Summit View |
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| Backside of the Mountain |
I was however really proud of myself for this ride because
there were some trying times on the way up where I almost turned around. My
spirits were almost broken when two legit cyclists (with their thousands of
dollars in equipment, clothing, bikes and gear) asked me if "I was a long
way from home?" I could see where they are coming from seeing as I was
riding a rickety old rental bike in sperries, grey high socks, swim trunks, a
pocket tee, and my massive twenty pound book bag. But still that comment got to me. However I
overcame the physical and mental obstacles and nothing was better than pulling
up at my destination to a great view of the area. I guess the poets and philosophers are right when they say, “the steeper the mountain
the harder the climb, but the better the view from the finishing line.” My
hard work also paid off because I got back from MLS in thirty minutes flat
because I truthfully flew down the mountain. When I finally I got back from the hostel I told the old man
behind the counter that I just rode up to MLS and he exclaimed the only way an
Aussie could saying, "you're bloody mad, mate".Overall it was a great way to get some much needed exercise
before my 3000km journey aboard the Indian-Pacific Railroad.
After the bike ride and a couple last minutes preparations I
was finally ready to hop aboard the train. Sadly, when I got to the station it
had been noted that the train was to be three hours late because of a
derailment of another train causing ours to be rerouted. The station was fun though
and I met some kids from Germany and Wales. Waiting for the train was interesting
mainly because I got to people-watch those around me (one of my favorite
activities) and came to a realization about the passengers getting ready for
the trip. This realization was about the breakdown of the train’s passengers.
Firstly, about 30% people under the age of 25. Backpackers, travelers, students
(like myself) and the like represented this group. The other 70% was above the
age of 60. This created quite an interesting mix of the youth and the
experienced. The reason for this was because backpackers/students got a
discount (about 50% off the regular price) and then the pensioners discount was
about 70% off. After my observations we were able to take off at about 9:30 pm
(exactly three hours after we were scheduled to leave). The chairs were
spacious and quite comfortable and I was lucky enough to have one of the two
empty seats in the car (of about 50) next to me to place all of my belongings.
The Thursday night went by uneventful and I slept quite
soundly amidst the occasional jolting of the train. I woke up Friday, ate
‘breaky’ and got a couple hours of reading in hours before we stopped in Cook,
SA. If you look on a map of Australia you will see that Cook is in the middle
of the Nullarbor (Null-no, arbor- tree) Plain. This town has a total population
of 5 and serves as a place for the train passengers to hop out and stretch
their legs. I arrived to a warm but comfortable 83 degrees. I was relieved with
this temperature because my Italian friend in Adelaide had told me that when he
rode the train, Cook had an above average temperature of 118 degrees. Here is a true Outback photo from Cook:
After the stop in Cook we trekked straight on through to
Perth actually making up the three hour delay. However during this Friday night I got to witness a breathtaking sunset. One in which the pictures don't give it the full credit it deserves-a true Outback Sunset.
The total recap of the trip
entailed a one full day and two nights covering 3000 kilometers. This was an
experience I will never forget and I am glad that I was able to partake on such
an epic journey across such a beautiful land.
So I arrived into Perth on Saturday morning and immediately
caught the subway into the city.
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| Perth Skyline |
I explored the city for a bit and then made a
snap decision to head down to the beach/port town of Fremantle. Fremantle is
the main Wester Australia Port and a huge sailing town where the America’s Cup
was held back in the late 80’s. This made for some great local beaches and my
first dip into the Indian Ocean.
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| Indian Ocean- South Beach- Fremantle, West Australia |
I spent Saturday night in a hostel in
Fremantle and got up at 8am Sunday to explore more of the surrounding areas. I
went to Cottlesloe and Scarborough then headed back into Perth.
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| Cottleslow Beach Early Morning |
After heading into the city Idecided to rekindle my
love for coins in Perth as I stopped into the Australian Mint building and was
lucky enough to see some gold bars worth $700,000 (pictures were not allowed).
I perused their expansive coin collection (making me think of my grandparents) then got some meat, bread, and fruit
for an epic and amazing lunch/dinner picnic in the beautiful King’s Park.
King’s Park is about three times the size of Central Park in NYC and the Botanical
walk throughout was divine. Here are some pictures of my picnic and a
breath-taking view over the City and the Swan River.
I only
expected to stay in the park for about an hour then go explore some more of
Perth but it truly was so refreshing and calming in the park that I ended up
staying there for about 4 hours. Also how could I leave a sight like this?:
There I was just sitting around on the grass,
reading, snacking, and recapping this amazing trip truly feeling blessed to
have this opportunity.
After the sun set on Perth I hoped on the bus to the airport
and waited around for my Redeye flight back to Sydney. I watched about half of
the movie The Artist (which I highly recommend) on the plane and got into
Sydney at 6:00am. Then slept for about 2 hours til 10am and went to class from
11-6… Overall it was a liberating and free experience. A trip I will never forget and one in which I
learned a lot not just about Australia, its culture, its art, its history, its
people, its land, its animals and its natural beauty, but also a lot about
myself.
