Posted in Logistics, Now that I know, Sightseeing, Uluru on Jan 31st, 2008 1 Comment »
I’ve been thinking about the issues surrounding the monopoly at Ayers Rock Resort, and how I’d do Uluru (photos) differently next time. Because the person I called at Ayers Rock Resort was great about changing my stay without penalty with one day’s notice due to my sinus infection, I really did not have much [...]
Posted in Food and Drink, Sightseeing, Sydney, Walks on Jan 23rd, 2008 No Comments »
And finally, we arrived at the last night. Not sadly, it’s time to go home. But I wanted the last night to be a time of reflection before getting back to the chaos. When I toured Europe alone for a similar length of time in 1993, I spent most of the final [...]
Posted in Sightseeing, Sydney on Jan 23rd, 2008 1 Comment »
I’m not a big zoo fan. I’ve never been to the Brookfield Zoo in suburban Chicago, and I’ve only been to the Lincoln Park Zoo a couple of times. I keep meaning to go to the San Diego Zoo, but something always comes up. But it’s impossible to go to Australia, and not go to [...]
Posted in Sightseeing, Sydney on Jan 23rd, 2008 No Comments »
I overslept this morning, but fortunately the sunlight woke me up at 8:20am. Today was going to be a very busy day, and I couldn’t afford to start late!
The first stop of the day was the Sydney Opera House. I had purchased a ticket for the tour for the first Sunday of the vacation, but [...]
Posted in Sightseeing, Sydney on Jan 21st, 2008 1 Comment »
The saddest thing about wasting Monday night at the Ayers Rock Resort is that I could really use one more day in Sydney. As it is, my flight leaves at 10:55am Tuesday, and with the time change I will get to my hotel room at about 5pm. I will have essentially 43 hours left on [...]
Posted in Sightseeing, Uluru on Jan 21st, 2008 No Comments »
On Monday, I was up at 4am for the main tour I had purchased: the Desert Awakenings 4WD tour. At A$130, it was not cheap, but it promised the most interesting small-group experience.
I had reconfirmed my reservation when I got to the resort, and was told that I’d be picked up at 4:40am. [...]
Posted in Sightseeing, Uluru on Jan 21st, 2008 1 Comment »
Or is it Uluru aka Ayers Rock? After all, the indigineous people were there first….
So you read the articles and the guidebooks, and you know that it is big. But no matter how much you prepare yourself, you still cannot believe how big this sandstone is: 9km in circumfrence, 4km at its widest point. It [...]
Posted in Car Rental, Sightseeing, Tasmania on Jan 18th, 2008 No Comments »
Today was a fun day. I slept in, left the hotel at about 11, spent most of the day driving (up to Devonport which was bleh, then over to the Tamar Valley wine region), killed about 90 minutes back at the hotel’s off-track betting area wagering a whopping $15 over the course of an hour [...]
Posted in Sightseeing, Tasmania on Jan 17th, 2008 No Comments »
After getting a long night’s sleep last night, I’m going to spend this afternoon driving around Launceston and the Tamar Valley wine routes. I don’t intend on picking up any wine, by the time I pay the excess shipping charges I may as well just buy it in Chicago.
I have to get out to the [...]
Posted in Sightseeing, Tasmania on Jan 16th, 2008 No Comments »
The penguin tour last night from Bicheno Penguin Tours was outstanding. I only got a couple of very bad photos because one of the rules of the tour is no additional light beyond what they provide. The tour started after dark (I originally thought it would be at sunset) because the penguins are out on [...]
