Monday, January 19, 2009

Going Down Under

We're very excited about the upcoming Australian Adventure Tour! Have been planning this for almost 6 months and now it's less than 2 weeks away! It's going to be a 19 day trip for DH and a 27 day trip for me.
Cities on the itinerary: Sydney, Hobart, Melbourne, Cairns, Alice Springs/Ayers Rock, Brisbane.
Australia is the size of the continental US and has the population of Texas.
A lot of open space!

I've been reading up in preparation. And watching movies!

Here is what I've read so far:

Fiction:(although a few are somewhat based on true events)
English Passengers by Matthew Kneale
Remembering Babylon by David Malouf
True History of the Kelly Gang by Peter Carey
In the middle of: The Sound of One Hand Clapping by Richard Flanagan

Non-Fiction:
The Songlines by Bruce Chatwin
The Devil in Tim by Tim Bowden
In a Sunburned Country by Bill Bryson
The Floating Brothel by Sian Rees

I also have a Fodor's Exploring Australia and a AAA Essential Australia that I'm still skimming and will take with me.

One book that I read a long time ago is The Fatal Shore by Robert Hughes.

I've also watched several movies about Australia or set in Australia:
The Dish
Strictly Ballroom
The Incredible Journey of Mary Bryant
Australia (the new one)
Muriel's Wedding
Rabbit-Proof Fence
Ned Kelly (with Heath Ledger)

Whew!
I'll post packing photos next week when I get that sorted out! What would you take for a 3+week trip?????? Feel free to send suggestions! Remember, 1 suitcase per person!

We used a travel company (About Australia) to help us plan and book this trip, and they've been very helpful. For such a long trip with so many stops, it seemed daunting to do it all ourselves. Of course, after this trip, we'll be experts!

More soon!

1 comment:

M. J. said...

The trip sounds fab. You're certainly covering a lot of territory. Will you take your laptop and blog from the road?