After Uncle Boy's we went to Rotorua, a city that don't smell pretty. The reason: Rotura is an area of high geothermal activity. And that means you have hot springs and boiling mud pools and all sorts of exciting things - and you have sulphur. A lot of it, really. So the whole city smells of rotten eggs. More »
Seeing the love-hate relationship between the Aussies and the Kiwis can be really funny at times. You know, they love each other dearly, but they can't stop taking the piss at each other. Take Nathan, a Kiwi who recently went to Australia. More »
We spent a very, very special night with a group of Maori in Makatu in the north of New Zealand. "Uncle Boy", a Maori elder invited us to his house and fed us. Afterwards some kids from the village showed the girls how to do the Poi and us guys how to do the Haka, a Maori war-chant. It was absolutely amazing! More »
New Zealand is great! There is so much happening and so much to do that I hardly find the time to sit down and update my blog. But it's all good. I'm having a great time on the Stray bus, we do loads of things and get to see loads of things and so far the people on the bus have been pretty cool (and pretty pretty) as well. More »
Just wanted to share an observation with you regarding the indigenous people of New Zealand, the Maori. Before I arrived in New Zealand I had assumed het the Maori would be more or less like the Aborigini. But that couldn't be further from the truth. More »
I never realized that Kiwis were a bunch of totally crazy, fucked up adrenaline junkies! I mean, seriously: everything you can do here seems to involve elements of mortal danger. And why do they keep insisting all the time that activity X or Z will accelerate you to "terminal velocity". What do they mean - "terminal"? Today I already saw someone jump off the highest building in the southern hemisphere! And according to the guy who showed us around, that is just the beginning. More »
The flight from Alice Springs to Sydney worked out (thanks, Chelsea) and I've been back in Sydney for a few days now, getting ready to leave Australia. One thing was funny, though: when I checked in they told me, that since I was flying stand-by, I'd have to leave the plane in case it was overloaded! So, can you imagine - me scanning the departure-area for fat people? LOL. But everyone on board was young and slim and it all went well :-). More »
On thursday I returned from my three day tour of Ayers Rock (or Uluru as it is mainly called now), the Olgas and Kings Canyon. I was dirty and tired and my clothes reek - but I had a really good time. And yes, I did climb The Rock. You see, climbing it is slight controversial, 'cause the traditional owners, i.e. the Aboriginal tribes, request that you don't climb it, since it is holy to them. But you can still do it, if you really want to and hundreds of people do it every day. So while me climbing Uluru might not have been a great display of cultural sensitivity, I'm still happy that I did it. More »
I just arrived in Alice Springs, smack in the center of the continent. That I am here and not in Sydney is a bit of a surprise for me as well, but here I am an it's all good. And tomorrow I'll leave for a three day camping trip to Ayers Rock and its surroundings. How I got here was a bit chaotic, though. More »
It seems like the car liked me more than I ever realized. Either that or I just had the most uncanny feeling for when to sell the car and to whom. Why? Because the guy who bought the car sent me this txt-message: "The car blew up after 30 minutes of use". Ooops. More »
After Canberra coming back to Sydney was a real relief: The city is beautiful, there is heaps of things to do, I met some old friends and made some new and I sold my car! At first it looked like selling the car might be quite difficult: There are hundreds of backpackers who are currently trying to get rid of their cars, and at you can read their mounting desperation on the sales-signs you find at the hostels: "Holden/Ford, Good condition: 2700 AUD, 2000 AUD, 1600 AUD, 1000 AUD, All offers considered". More »
I just arrived in Canberra, Australias lackluster capital. Everybody in Australia dizzes Canberra, but since it's on the way between Melbourne and Sydney I decided to spend a night here. It turned out that even the people living here don't like their city! When I told the girl at the reception that I just came from Melbourne she exclaimed: "Oh, Melbourne! Melbourne is so much nicer than Canberra!" More »
Today I had to leave Melbourne - unfortunately. But I have to get back to Sydney to sell my car. I really hated to leave Melbourne and The Nunnery, though. Together with the Innetown Hostel in Margaret River this was nicest hostel with the nicest group of people I've stayed at in Australia. More »
I visited the Melbourne Museum today and was once again reminded how huge this country is! They currently have an exhibition on Aboriginal history at the museum and next to a photo of members of an Aboriginal tribe was a notice that this tribe had it's first contact with Europeans in 1983! More »
Holy cow! Someone almost stole my car last night! Fortunately they didn't get very far - those immobilizers seem to be a good idea after all! More »