As the title of this blog post suggests I'm of that generation that let Men at Work convince us that Australia was a land down under. The song asks: "Are you from a land down under?"
The song was so catchy that at the time I didn't stop and ask about the Eurocentric (or perhaps Anglocentric) view it implied. My feeble excuse was that it had a catchy tune and the band were Australian after all! Perhaps, as I start this year's holiday blog it is a useful reminder that when visiting a land so very far away I need a number of different perspectives and certainly not only the Anglo or, perhaps more specifically in my case, the Cymric version of the world and its history.
The lesson of names and perspectives will I suspect be an important part of the holiday experience as we travel to Boorloo (known by some as Perth), Warrane (also known as Sydney) and Kamilaroi or Gamilaroi (also known as Tamworth, New South Wales) as well as other places with multiple names. I hope the blog will live up to this expectation.
The other perspective that I suspect won't be far from my mind with be Terry Pratchett's The Last Continent, which like so many of his books does a wonderful parody on its location and peoples - in the case of this book, Australia! I remember it includes references to elements of "Australian" culture like Crocodile Dundee, Mad Max, Priscilla, Queen of the Desert, Vegemite, Flip-Flops, cork hats, the Peach Nellie and Waltzing Matilda, to name a few 😀. I hope it hasn't prejudiced my view of the country to much!
Places we will visit
The map below (and as the background to the blog when viewed on PCs/iPads) highlights the main elements of the route we are travelling in Australia. Though of course doesn't capture the epic journey to get there and back.
 |
| Australia |
Close up maps will appear when the holiday gets underway.
Travel
This year the holiday includes coach, plane, ferry, bus, subway and car travel. A different mix from last year. The travel days of the holiday are captured in this spreadsheet:
A Trip Around Northern Europe
| Day | From | To |
|---|---|---|
| Thursday, September 5th | Cardiff | Heathrow |
| Friday, September 6th | Heathrow | Perth (arrive 7th) |
| Wednesday, September 11th | Perth | Sydney |
| Monday, September 16th | Sydney | Newcastle |
| Tuesday, September 17th | Newcastle | Port Macquarie |
| Wednesday, September 18th | Port Macquarie | Coffs Harbour |
| Thursday, September 19th | Coffs Harbour | Ballina |
| Friday, September 20th | Ballina | Brisbane |
| Saturday, September 21st | Brisbane | Sunshine Coast |
| Sunday, September 22nd | Sunshine Coast | K'gari |
| Tuesday, September 24th | K'gari | Toowoomba |
| Wednesday, September 25th | Toowoomba | Tamworth |
| Monday, September 30th | Tamworth | Tokyo |
| Saturday, October 5th | Tokyo | Cardiff |
Comments on the blog
As ever I invite you to comment on the blog, be you friends, family, neighbours or indeed any strangers reading this. I hope the blog will make you feels some of the excitement I feel for my travels around the world. Being a long way away means the time difference may be a barrier, but feel free to comment at a time that suits you.
You are most welcome to join us on the journey and your comments, updates and corrections (yes, I mean you Robin and Janet) are always very, very welcome.
A gentle request: If you use the anonymous feature to comment please add your name to the message. I want to make the blog as accessible as possible, so won't limit to to people logged in to a Google account, but in the past I've ended up replying to someone who wasn't actually the anonymous person I thought they were, so if you aren't logged in, please leave your name!
The holiday starts before we leave
Even though it is a few days before the holiday actually begins, the excitement has started already. My emails include indications of what is to come:
- A reminder of our booking with the restaurant we will eat in the night before we leave Cardiff, to avoid washing up on the morning we leave.
- A reminder of our ferry booking for next Monday between Perth/Boorloo and Rottnest Island/Wadjemup
- An email from the hotel we will be staying in at the airport the night before we leave
LET THE HOLIDAY COMMENCE!
Tomorrow
Tomorrow's post will explore the planning and booking which went into this trip - I look forward to welcoming you back then.
I am suitably excited and all set for your trip. Bring it on! Beware of the dingos 🐺.
ReplyDeleteBeware of Dingos, I thought you and David were making every effort to make sure Drew was eaten by one 😉🐺
DeleteDavid and I don't mind which of you is attacked by one as long as there is a good story. I'm impressed by Robin's call on the song lyrics. I'm fairly certain the record lurks in my attic and thought you were too old to enjoy it 😉
DeleteI agree it should be a good story. I think the song was popular in my last year in college.
DeleteHow clever, setting your blog to show Australian time (Tamworth) when I post.
ReplyDeleteHi Janet,
DeleteYes, I wondered what time to set. I've often left it set to UK, given that's when most people would read it. But given I'm in one time zone for such a long time, it seemed to make sense to set the blog to that time zone.
I'm sat in row 3, popcorn and Pepsi at the ready.
ReplyDeleteCurious how the background picture shows the Perth to Sydney route, but the one published in the blog doesn't. Are you taking the train from Perth?
DeleteHi Anonymous,
DeleteJust a reminder of the comment in the blog:
A gentle request: If you use the anonymous feature to comment please add your name to the message. I want to make the blog as accessible as possible, so won't limit to to people logged in to a Google account, but in the past I've ended up replying to someone who wasn't actually the anonymous person I thought they were, so if you aren't logged in, please leave your name!
I think I can guess, but it would be nice to be sure 😂
As regards the different pictures it shows the development of the trip, something I'll be reflecting on tomorrow.
DeleteThe initial plan included the train - but it wasn't to be - so the one in the blogpost is the most up to date representation.
Apologies for the anonymous post. I was using my Chromebook which didn't sign me in, and wouldn't allow me to do so. Now on Windows 11 and working fine.
DeleteI remember the song well, although I think it was about Australians visiting Europe, not the other way round!
Delete"I said 'do you speak-a my language?' And she just smiled and give me a Vegemite sandwich."
And when I mentioned the train, I had this in mind: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b0bq3jnv. It was something like 4 hours of film where almost nothing happened!
DeleteHi Robin, I'm glad I was able to guess who it was. A distinctive (and very welcome) tone of voice.
DeleteAh, I'd never done a contextual analysis of the lyrics - it makes sense now you've explained it.
DeleteThe Ghan is the north-south train, the one we were looking at was the Indian Pacific
DeleteI think the Indian Pacific is 4 days, and several thousand dollars. And not much happening for most of the time!
DeleteYes, I think not making it on the train has made me look at what Perth has to offer. A day in Perth itself, a day on Rottnest Island and a day in Fremantle looks really fun. None of that on the train.
Deleteyes mate, we are all on Aussie time, good on ya. Can't wait for this one, so many memories of that part of the world, backpacking, working, playing, proposing, family, friends, it has been a constant in my life; Bris Vegas one of my guilty pleasures, hadn't realised Olympics also there in 8 years.
ReplyDeleteBris Vegas - a first visit for me, so I wonder if it is as exciting as you say. Perhaps I'd not given it enough time, but I was focussed on getting to K'gari, for reasons I'll discuss tomorrow. The fact the Olympics are there in eight years' time wasn't lost to me, but I'm assuming they won't be too far ahead with plans yet?
DeleteI am a little confused your post show 3 Sept but we are on 2 Sept!😉Good luck with all the things that can kill you over there! Seriously happy hols to you both.
ReplyDeleteHi Linda,
DeleteAs my sister notes in her earlier comment the blog is set to Australian time. It is 6.40am on Tuesday in Sydney/Brisbane/Tamworth etc.
I look forward to hearing your journey and most importantly the goodies hope you have a fantastic time
ReplyDeleteThanks Chris, some good food planned, as well as lots of travelling.
DeleteHave a wonderful holiday and come home safely .Cant forgive you for not taking me in your suitcase .Enjoy ! Sheila
ReplyDeleteThanks Sheila, I reckon it will be great - I'm afraid you'll only be able to join in virtually 😂
Delete