G-day Mates!
I am happy to tell you, that about a week and a half ago my gamily and I left japan to go “Down Under”. We left our nice, but cramped, apartment in Tokyo, and flew into the Southern hemisphere, for a one month trip RV in rural Australia.
Anyone who hasn’t been to Australia, including me before we arrived, probably imagined Australia a bit like this: Open plains with nothing but dust, the sun beating down relentlessly on your backs as you hike through the Australian outback. You’ve been told that the chances are very slim that you make it through the hike, and that you’ll probably be attacked by some poisonous snake along the way. Your mouth is parched, and the only sound, other than your footsteps, are the howls of hungry dingo’s somewhere in the distance. Occasionally you see a kangaroo hop by, but other than that you are alone, unless of course you are hiking with your family.
So, does that match your idea of Australia in some way? Well, that is what I thought, but I was pleasantly surprised. 70% of Australia is considered desert, making it the driest inhabited continent on earth. Only Antarctica is drier. This desert part of Australia is called the Outback, and almost no one lives there. My family decided to stick the Eastern coast of Australia, which is a lot cooler, though you can still get burned after only 5 minutes outside, and is inhabited.
Well, back to first impressions: I had that picture of the outback in my head as my family and I prepared to disembark from the big commercial plane we were in. As I stepped of the airplane and into gold coasts small airport, the first thing I noticed was the incredible heat. It hit me with a punch in the stomach. The air was heavy and humid. I immediately struggled for breath, and sweat began to trickle down my face. Whew! That part of my imagination of Australia was correct, the heat was unbearable! Now that I think back to it, that first day was actually relatively cool compared to some of the extreme heat we experienced later that week.
The first few days in Australia, we parked our RV outside of Nina’s house, our former au pairs, and spent the time with Nina her husband, Tom, and their two Australian Kelpies, Travis and Isa (short for Isabelle). Once again, I was pleasantly surprised by the landscape. They lived on the Sunshine Coast, a blossoming new county that attracts many young Aussies and families. And, the beach is never far away. The beach was even nicer than Santa Cruz beach. The sand was a beautiful white color, and incredibly fine. The water was the most mesmerizing turquoise I have ever seen, and it was warm. Since we arrived in Australia we have probably gone to the beach a dozen times, and each beach seems more picturesque than the last.
Now, remember my initial picture of Australia? So far, I have been correct about the heat, but incorrect when it comes to the landscape. But remember I mentioned the kangaroos, dingos and snakes? Yes, it is time to go over my first impression of Australia's wildlife. You might, or might not, know that Australia is home to to the ten most deadliest snakes on earth. Australia is also the home of many lethal spiders, insects, and lizards, and the Blue Box Jelly Fish, one of the most deadliest animals in the world, swims among its waters. I was nervous thinking I would encounter these animals every bend in the road, but of course I didn’t. I did see a venomous spider in Nina and Tom’s yard, but she showed me where its web was and warned me to stay clear of it. I have also seen a few dead Blue Bottle Jelly Fish washed up on the shore. Don’t worry, this isn’t the Blue Box Jelly Fish I told you about earlier. A Blue Bottle can’t kill you, it only causes skin irritation. Besides all of these venomous animals, there are pesky mosquitoes, sand flies, and March flies. March flies supposedly only come out in March, hence the name, but we encountered them in November. March flies are huge flies, that bite. There are also wild dogs, or dingos. I only saw one, but it was on a leash. People can train these animals to be pets. Sharks also ravage the sea’s, so you just have to keep your eye out. There are also plenty of wild turkeys that stalk you and try to steal your food, and birds like Magpie’s and Plover’s that will attack you if you happen to get to close to their nests.
Now, last but not least, the kangaroos and koalas. I have seen kangaroos in the wild twice already, once at Nina and Tom’s university, and another time at the campground I happen to be at as I write this blog. I also had the chance to pet and feed kangaroos in captivity at the Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary, where I also held a koala, which smelled oddly of cough drops, at the LKS. I haven’t actually seen a Koala in the wild yet.
Anyway, back to my initial imagined version of Australia, real Australia has: the heat? Check! Landscape? Nope! (not everywhere) Animals? Check and nope! So as you see Australia is a lot different from what I originally thought, and even though the heat is almost unbearable, and there are lots of dangerous and scary animals, the breathtaking coast and the hip, kind, played back people definitely make up for it. I highly recommend visiting Australia, snakes and all.
Toodoloo!
Liv the Explorer
I am happy to tell you, that about a week and a half ago my gamily and I left japan to go “Down Under”. We left our nice, but cramped, apartment in Tokyo, and flew into the Southern hemisphere, for a one month trip RV in rural Australia.
Anyone who hasn’t been to Australia, including me before we arrived, probably imagined Australia a bit like this: Open plains with nothing but dust, the sun beating down relentlessly on your backs as you hike through the Australian outback. You’ve been told that the chances are very slim that you make it through the hike, and that you’ll probably be attacked by some poisonous snake along the way. Your mouth is parched, and the only sound, other than your footsteps, are the howls of hungry dingo’s somewhere in the distance. Occasionally you see a kangaroo hop by, but other than that you are alone, unless of course you are hiking with your family.
So, does that match your idea of Australia in some way? Well, that is what I thought, but I was pleasantly surprised. 70% of Australia is considered desert, making it the driest inhabited continent on earth. Only Antarctica is drier. This desert part of Australia is called the Outback, and almost no one lives there. My family decided to stick the Eastern coast of Australia, which is a lot cooler, though you can still get burned after only 5 minutes outside, and is inhabited.
Well, back to first impressions: I had that picture of the outback in my head as my family and I prepared to disembark from the big commercial plane we were in. As I stepped of the airplane and into gold coasts small airport, the first thing I noticed was the incredible heat. It hit me with a punch in the stomach. The air was heavy and humid. I immediately struggled for breath, and sweat began to trickle down my face. Whew! That part of my imagination of Australia was correct, the heat was unbearable! Now that I think back to it, that first day was actually relatively cool compared to some of the extreme heat we experienced later that week.
The first few days in Australia, we parked our RV outside of Nina’s house, our former au pairs, and spent the time with Nina her husband, Tom, and their two Australian Kelpies, Travis and Isa (short for Isabelle). Once again, I was pleasantly surprised by the landscape. They lived on the Sunshine Coast, a blossoming new county that attracts many young Aussies and families. And, the beach is never far away. The beach was even nicer than Santa Cruz beach. The sand was a beautiful white color, and incredibly fine. The water was the most mesmerizing turquoise I have ever seen, and it was warm. Since we arrived in Australia we have probably gone to the beach a dozen times, and each beach seems more picturesque than the last.
Now, remember my initial picture of Australia? So far, I have been correct about the heat, but incorrect when it comes to the landscape. But remember I mentioned the kangaroos, dingos and snakes? Yes, it is time to go over my first impression of Australia's wildlife. You might, or might not, know that Australia is home to to the ten most deadliest snakes on earth. Australia is also the home of many lethal spiders, insects, and lizards, and the Blue Box Jelly Fish, one of the most deadliest animals in the world, swims among its waters. I was nervous thinking I would encounter these animals every bend in the road, but of course I didn’t. I did see a venomous spider in Nina and Tom’s yard, but she showed me where its web was and warned me to stay clear of it. I have also seen a few dead Blue Bottle Jelly Fish washed up on the shore. Don’t worry, this isn’t the Blue Box Jelly Fish I told you about earlier. A Blue Bottle can’t kill you, it only causes skin irritation. Besides all of these venomous animals, there are pesky mosquitoes, sand flies, and March flies. March flies supposedly only come out in March, hence the name, but we encountered them in November. March flies are huge flies, that bite. There are also wild dogs, or dingos. I only saw one, but it was on a leash. People can train these animals to be pets. Sharks also ravage the sea’s, so you just have to keep your eye out. There are also plenty of wild turkeys that stalk you and try to steal your food, and birds like Magpie’s and Plover’s that will attack you if you happen to get to close to their nests.
Now, last but not least, the kangaroos and koalas. I have seen kangaroos in the wild twice already, once at Nina and Tom’s university, and another time at the campground I happen to be at as I write this blog. I also had the chance to pet and feed kangaroos in captivity at the Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary, where I also held a koala, which smelled oddly of cough drops, at the LKS. I haven’t actually seen a Koala in the wild yet.
Anyway, back to my initial imagined version of Australia, real Australia has: the heat? Check! Landscape? Nope! (not everywhere) Animals? Check and nope! So as you see Australia is a lot different from what I originally thought, and even though the heat is almost unbearable, and there are lots of dangerous and scary animals, the breathtaking coast and the hip, kind, played back people definitely make up for it. I highly recommend visiting Australia, snakes and all.
Toodoloo!
Liv the Explorer