March 14, 2002
Living it Up Down Under


Australia has been fantasic:  spectacular scenery, really weird wildlife, and friendly people who have made us feel right at home.

After spending a few days in Melbourne -- a city that is both relaxing and full of vitality -- we took a drive on the Great Ocean Road, which is a bit like US1 around Big Sur.  We stopped at a wildlife park, where we saw wombats, wallabees, Tasmanian devlis and echidnas (like porcupines.)  The best part was petting baby koalas with soft, thick fur, and hand-feeding young kangaroos, which were much smaller and goofier than we expected.

Tasmania (an island the size of Ireland off Australia's south coast) was not so wild and rugged as its reputation.  The parts we saw were beautiful, tame and had a small-town feel.  We were very lucky to be able to stay with two women we had met in Samoa last month (one lives in Northern Tasmania and the other in Southern "Tazzy" as they call it here.)  As you can imagine, they made our stay all the more memorable.  We are always amazed at how welcoming people are wherever we go.

The past few days, we drove along dirt tracks near Alice Springs, in the center of the country (the Outback.)  It was more lush than we expected -- because it has rained more than usual over the past few years, the red dusty hills have sprouted lots of green grass and bushes.  Seeing Uluru (Ayers Rock) up close was breath-taking.  It is sacred to the Aboriginals and they ask visitors not to climb it, though many do anyway.  We chose instead to do some walks around the base of the rock, where we saw ancient cave paintings, sacred watering holes and wild kangaroos.  Later, we saw a four-foot lizard crossing the road!

We also visited a cattle ranch, where we learned that most of the cows are exported alive to Southeast Asia and the Middle East.  I hope cows don't get seasick!  The family's children had school over a two-way radio, with teachers miles away and classmates on remote cattle stations throughout the Northern Territory.

One fascinating difference we noticed between Australia and New Zealand:  the Maori people of NZ appear to be much better integrated than Australia's Aboriginals.

We're in Sydney now and it seems like a terrific city.
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