Victoria, Australia
Here’s my Favourite Thing in Each Australian State:
1. Tasmania: Kate’s Berry Farm in Swansea — man, I was sorry when I ate the last of her jam. If you go, it would be a huge mistake to leave without trying her ice cream!
Bridport, Tassie
2. Queensland: I took a flight over World Heritage listed Fraser Island in a six-seater plane. The runway was “The Great Sandy Highway”. It cost a bit more but at the prospect of going up to look for whales, how could I resist? The view of the sandblows’ path was so cool.
Fraser Island
3. South Australia: Barossa. Barossa. Barossa. Definitely going back to see the rest of the vineyard areas.
4. Northern Territory: Some (silly people) say “it’s just a rock”–but it’s not. Kata Tjuta National Park offers more than the World’s Largest Monolith (the sandstone formation formerly known as “Ayers Rock”), what early European settlers called “the Olgas”, the Kata Tjuta hikes made me so happy.
(PS. Read up on all of the knowledge the traditional owners of this land already had for which we needed computers and technology to re-discover.)
5. Victoria: Ok, Melbourne is a wicked city. So I’ll give you another place I loved instead: The Buchan Caves are Buchan good!
6. Western Australia: I climbed a 60 metre tree without any rope–but just 2 feet long pegs in the tree (not very environmentally-friendly; they’ve been there a long time). I was a little worried about this and the fact that the supposed “safety net” was chicken wire which looked like it would probably do more harm than good should I fall. But the view from this old fire-lookout, and the photos I took mid-way make me happy. The Gloucester Tree is in The Valley of the Giants (needless to say, it’s a BIG forest), between Perth and Albany.
7. New South Wales: Surprisingly, I’m not going to say the Opera House. Or Mardi Gras. Try the Jenolan Caves and tell me you don’t love them. Go ahead–tell me. I know, two cave recommendations–but what can I say? I love them!
8. ACT (Canberra): The National Gallery was terrific. I have never enjoyed art more than when I stood in front of the Turner to Monet exhibit and experienced the colours used Van Gogh used in his massive canvasses. I’m not an arty-type.
