Unseen Cities that you Must See

There are millions of people who dream of visiting Australia one day, and we have been so lucky to have been based here for the last 2 years due to Emma attending University in Sydney. At the same time, this piece of Earth is the smallest continent and the biggest island in the world. Its culture and its nature are completely different from any other place on the planet. However, it is important to know certain things before reaching Australia, so that your travel across this amazing continent is well spent. 1. It is REALLY Big Australia is the 6th largest country in the world. Occupying a territory of 7,692,024 km², which is more than the size of ALL European Union countries! Yet it has one of the lowest population densities in the world of only 2.6 people/km². Half of the roughly 20 million people living in Australia are actually from only three cities, Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane. When we first flew into Sydney arriving from Abu Dhabi, it took us over 4 hours fr...

With waves crashing in the not-so-far-away-at-all distance, the sun beaming through the winter sky and a fresh breeze to take the edge off a steaming hot bathtub, one really must beg the question: Is this the world’s most scenic bathtub? I’m lying in a tub of bliss on the rugged East Coast of Tasmania, feeling a world away from reality and civilisation. In fact I truly am a world away, in a paradoxical attempt to “go off the grid” for a few days in a luxury four-separate-buildings holiday home, where the only bother for the day is to fetch wood for the two wood fires inside my sleeping quarters. Of course, it is much less a bother as it is a novelty to go back to basics for a few days. Checking In to Thalia Haven At precisely 3pm in the afternoon I arrived to check-in to my new home for the next couple of evenings. I have absolutely no idea what I’m in for (as I never do too much or nearly enough research before impromptu getaways), so I read the welcom...

After a crazy three months in Australia and New Zealand, this month was all about slowing down, taking it easy and catching up on work. And yet, having said that, the start of the month included one of my most stressful travel moments… Oh, you know, that time when I realised I’d forgotten to apply for an Australian visa 12 hours before I was due to fly to Melbourne? When I hadn’t bothered to do any research because the thought hadn’t crossed my mind that I’d possibly even need to apply for a new visa? When I suddenly went into a panic 12 hours before the flight when I checked on the Australian immigration website and realised that I’d need to apply for a new one and that the site was about to go into scheduled maintenance? Yep. An Australian visa is valid for six months so I’d assumed I’d be fine — I’d spent a month in Australia before coming to New Zealand and my New Zealand trip was for two months. There would be plenty o...

Interested? PIN NOW, read later! Australia! The biggest island in the world! Everything is big there… Including its mining industry. There is an extraordinary amount of underground resources and companies dig it out all over the place: coal? Iron ore? Oil and gas? They have it all. Mining is everywhere. And I kid you not, it is the best way to work and travel Australia, all you need is a ton of patience! The story started around 170 years ago when a guy stumbled upon a chunk of gold in the state of Victoria… All of a sudden, people from all over the world flocked to this new Promised Land to get their share of the bounty, creating a real pioneer style gold rush. Arch desert condition, primitive tools and fierce rivalry were the rules and a fair few didn’t make it alive. But others, the lucky ones, did get what they came for. Somewhere else in the desert, aboriginal people saw white men digging deep holes in the middle of nowhere. These white men would bring up from unde...