Baggage allowance: The tables have turned

When I first left the US three years ago, I was a nervous new long-term traveler. I had taken short trips out of the country before, but never had I spent such a long time away from home. I was so worried I wouldn't be able to find my favorite things overseas that I grossly overpacked, causing the scales at airport check-in to scream weigh-limit alarms.

Just a few days ago, at the check-in counter in Sydney, the aisles were lined with people unpacking & repacking, trying to get each piece of luggage under 20 kilos - exactly as I had done at LAX three years ago. It's nice to know I'm not the only one.

Touring Australia

I've just finished traveling around the eastern part of Australia. I went from Sydney to Hobart to Melbourne to Cairns back to Sydney in ten days. No small feat considering the size of the country.

Hobart is a cute little port town with one of the best museums I've ever been to. If you're down that way, be sure to check out MONA. I really want to go back to see the rest of Tasmania as well. There are so many mountains & canyons & rivers & wild spaces to see there. Maybe next time I'll get the chance to see a Tasmanian devil too.

Melbourne was cold & rainy, so the city didn't really get the chance to impress. However, Phillip Island made up for it in spades. We saw koalas up close, & watched as the tiniest penguins in the world came in from the ocean to nest on the shore for the evening. Waddle waddle.

After the chill of Hobart & the rain of Melbourne, Cairns was a pleasant change - sun, beach & palm trees. We spent a full day out on the Great Barrier Reef. It always thrills me to see something in person that I've only ever heard about. It stops being a story & becomes absolutely real. I love that.

The second day in Cairns, we took a tour of the rainforest. This was no ordinary tour. It wasn't the scenery that was so amazing - though at every stop we saw a beautiful waterfall or lake or rainforest path - incredible all on it's own. But the tour company really made the day one to remember.

We spent the whole day singing & laughing & waving at strangers as we drove from place to place. We played road trip games, drew pictures on the windows, splashed around in the water, tried to play the didgeridoo, & went in search of the elusive platypus. It was good clean non-stop high-energy fun for the entire 12-hour trip. If you go to Cairns, don't miss Uncle Brian's Fun Falls & Forest tour. It's a winner!

Now, back in Sydney, I'm getting my stuff in order to fly back to the US. It's been over a year since I've been back, & almost three years since I left to wander the globe.

This trip home will be relatively long. I have a summer job as a tour leader in the national parks, which will go through October. Afterwards, I'll spend the holidays with my family for the first time in four years. I'm really looking forward to that.

I'm not sure what's in store for me next, but I've had such an amazing time traveling over the last three years, & I've learned so much about life, the world & myself. I know there is so much more to discover out there, & I hope to continue my trek around the globe for a long time to come.

A brush with fame

For the past month I've been staying with friends in Sydney. It's been so nice to relax into family life for a while. I teach classes online during the day, & when everyone gets home from work, we all have dinner together. After we eat, we gather on the comfy couch for some TV time & a cuppa (tea).

One of the shows we've been watching is Australia's version of The Voice, a talent competition judged by four famous voices: Keith Urban, Delta Goodrem, Joel Madden & Seal. There's a running joke in my Sydney household about Seal & his yellow nail polish.

I wasn't that familiar with any of the judges before coming to Australia. I knew who Keith Urban & Seal were, but I probably couldn't name any of their songs. The other two were completely new to me. Now, after watching several episodes of The Voice, I find myself recognizing their faces in magazines & on billboards all around Sydney. (Although I still couldn't tell you what they sing!)

So imagine my surprise when at 6:30 on a Tuesday morning I saw Seal exit customs at Sydney International Airport! Strangely enough, if it weren't for The Voice, I would never have recognized him. & if it weren't for a visit from a friend from the US, I never would have seen him. Thanks Michelle!

Volunteering

Yesterday I went out to Lane Cove National Park with the Conservation Volunteers. They have several projects in Australia's national parks - planting trees, maintaining trails or cleaning up protected areas. I spent my day with CVA pulling out invasive species (read: weeds) at the car park (read: parking lot) at Lane Cove.

The weather was perfect - not too hot, not too cold & a little overcast so we didn't burn up while we were working. Our supervisor kept a keen eye out for any yummy caterpillars or crunchy beetles we might unearth.

Since we were volunteering, the trip out to the park was free. There were some interesting people in our group, & we spent the afternoon trading travel stories as we yanked out the weeds.

Conservation Volunteers does longer trips as well - overnight or several days in a park. You have to pay a minimal charge for accommodation and food on the overnight trips, but it's what you would pay if you went to the same spot on your own anyway.

It felt good to get out & do something physical, & at the same time do something good for the national parks. Even though I'm just a visitor here, I was happy to contribute to the preservation of Australia's natural spaces.

Reading the local news

I love reading the local paper in the places I visit. They give a lot of insight into what's important to the community, & since I'm not personally invested in the outcome of the stories, it's a little bit like eavesdropping on the lives of the local residents.

I'm currently in Sydeny, Australia, where surfing & beach lounging are a big part of summer life (Australia is just going into autumn now), which is reflected on almost every page of the local Manly Daily. Not only that, but the slant of the articles shows just how strong Australians can be when faced with a challenge.

Take, for example, this article, in which a surfer rescued herself when no trained lifesaver (American English: lifeguard) came to her aid.

 

Or this one, which describes a routine training session on disentangling a whale from a fishing net.

But I think this one is the most telling of all: "A number of surfers remained in the water" after being warned that a shark had been sighted there.

Last view / First view

Last view of New Zealand

First view of Australia