Back from Australia

[atilla]

Last month, the wife and I spent about three weeks in Australia. Started off in Syndey, out to the Blue Mountains, up to Darwin (where we spent a few night camping in the Kakadu), over to Cairns. We rented a car and spent a few days driving around the Atherton tablelands. Then on to Brisbane for a few days before heading back home.

The Australians are very cool people, as a whole. I also got to eat a lot of fun stuff like kangaroo, salt water crocodile and camel. And I licked an ant's ass...there's this ant down there with a green ass - aboriginess use them in food. If you pick it up by the head and lick its ass, it gives off this lemon-lime flavor...and usually grosses out everyone around you, which is even better.

If you like seeing cool animals, it's packed full of fierce critters. You've got crocs, cassowaries, taipans, tarantulas and various other nasties.

If you're a beer snob, microbrew is in short supply, but there are some good ones. Lottsa wine, though.

If anybody here ever decides to take a trip and wants some travel tips, let me know!

Oh, yeah...did I miss anything while I was gone?

[Cygnus X1]

Sounds a lot like Arizona...
Nothing happened here.

[fett]

Hun, that sounded like a cool trip. Before I branch out, I'm going to see America first.

[Stinkbug]

Sounds very similar to a trip my wife and I made a few years ago. We also licked those ant asses...perhaps we licked related ant asses and we are now related through ants...

Did you do the harbor bridge climb?

[QuantumRider]

My wife and I are headed to Cairns and Sydney next month.

Is it customary to tip in Australia? If yes, is it 15% of the check as in the states?

[bibz]

No tipping here unless they deserve it, its not customary at all!

Cool to see you had a good time here, doin all the aussie stuff I haven't
And I cant believe green ants have a tasty butt! All I knew them for was stinging like a mofo'

[VitaminG]

hey, I was in Brisbane last week too! And today. Actually, most days - I work there

If you'd dropped into Coober Pedy, you would've just about completed the American Chopper Australia Tour

glad you had a good time. y'all come back now!

QR, tipping isn't customary. Wait staff are paid well enough to pay their rent without having to rely on tips. If you think the service warrants it, though, my wife is always happy to accept a tip.

[442w30]

Hun, that sounded like a cool trip. Before I branch out, I'm going to see America first.

Get you a BioDeisel duallie, hook up the new trailer and drive around with the windows open. That should air it out, and you'll save on a hotel room while seeing the US of A.


I have a brother in Australia. Haven't talked to him since he landed there 3 months ago! He is on a "walkabout" I guess

[atilla]

hey, I was in Brisbane last week too! And today. Actually, most days - I work there

If you'd dropped into Coober Pedy, you would've just about completed the American Chopper Australia Tour

glad you had a good time. y'all come back now!

QR, tipping isn't customary. Wait staff are paid well enough to pay their rent without having to rely on tips. If you think the service warrants it, though, my wife is always happy to accept a tip.

Man, we want to come back and check out Cooder Peeby. That place looks totally unearthly! Brisbane is a pretty awesome city. Riverfire started the day before we left, so we got to enjoy the F-111s streaking around with their afterburners lit. Very cool!

[atilla]

My wife and I are headed to Cairns and Sydney next month.

Is it customary to tip in Australia? If yes, is it 15% of the check as in the states?

You guys are in for a great time. If you want any specific tips, you can hit me at [email protected]. Looks like you already have the tip question answered. Another cool thing is that most stuff like hotel rooms include the taxes and fees in the price, so there's none of the American-style creep!

There's a lot of cool stuff around Cairns. Pt. Douglas and Cape Tribulation are pretty awesome, and the Atherton tablelands are a short distance away. There's this little town called Yunguburra with a distillery that'll knock you out!

[atilla]

Sounds very similar to a trip my wife and I made a few years ago. We also licked those ant asses...perhaps we licked related ant asses and we are now related through ants...

Did you do the harbor bridge climb?

Nah, we skipped that for the maritime musuem...and the Redoak Boutique Beer Cafe! We got our climbing in out in the Blue Mountains and the Kakadu, though.

Is it not a blast to see someone's face when you say you gave an ant a rimjob?

[QuantumRider]

bibz, Gary, and atilla-

Thanks for the info regarding tipping!

We plan to take a day trip to either Green Island or Michaelmas Cay, and to check out a night safari while in Cairns.

After that, we're headed to Sydney, where we'll play it by ear.

BTW, what's the going rate (i.e., not the tourist ripoff price) for a didgeridoo?

[Stinkbug]

Nah, we skipped that for the maritime musuem...and the Redoak Boutique Beer Cafe! We got our climbing in out in the Blue Mountains and the Kakadu, though.

Is it not a blast to see someone's face when you say you gave an ant a rimjob?

The maritime museum was great!

It is pretty funny...even funnier when my wife tells it. She doesn't look like the type to lick ant butts or eat termites.

[Stinkbug]

bibz, Gary, and atilla-

Thanks for the info regarding tipping!

We plan to take a day trip to either Green Island or Michaelmas Cay, and to check out a night safari while in Cairns.

After that, we're headed to Sydney, where we'll play it by ear.

BTW, what's the going rate (i.e., not the tourist ripoff price) for a didgeridoo?

We did a night surfari on the Daintree (sp?) river. It was a blast all kinds of great animals. Bring bug spray. My wife got worked over by sand flies.

We also did a survialist like tour with Safari Pete. He was great we went through the rainforest and learned about how to live off the land. It was a blast. If you are interested I can find his info.

Many years ago I had a didgeridoo a friend brought back and after a few months these huge bugs emerged from it. They were wood eating insects about the size of a large bee. They ate all kinds of stuff in my apartment. Kind of scary really. I ended up chopping it to bits, spraying it with raid, and leaving it in an aquarium for a while to make sure they were all dead!! I was at ASU at the time and contacted someone in the bug department. They were really interested, but I decided not to take them a bug just in case they caused a severe problem for the state! :-) Needless to say I didn't buy another when I was there...but I really wanted to!

Austrailia is a great country we had a blast. If you like sports the Footy games are really fun too.

[atilla]

There's a place in Darwin called the Didgeridoo Hut. I believe they also have a location in Cairns. Their prices are really reasonable. I actually have played didgeridoo for the last few years, so I really wanted a good player. Most of the places in Cairns are a rip-off. Ditto Port Douglas and places like that. The Didgeridoo Hut can get you a really nice one for about $200 AU, which is about the best deal going for one of the more authentic ones that isn't bored out. There's also a place called Gavala in Syndey on Darling Harbour. They're not bad, either.

bibz, Gary, and atilla-

Thanks for the info regarding tipping!

We plan to take a day trip to either Green Island or Michaelmas Cay, and to check out a night safari while in Cairns.

After that, we're headed to Sydney, where we'll play it by ear.

BTW, what's the going rate (i.e., not the tourist ripoff price) for a didgeridoo?