Australia History

Travelling Australia as a Coeliac

Calling all people with food issues! I had pizza and beer the other day for the first time in years. For most of you that is no big deal. But for those with Coeliac Disease, or those people who have a gluten intolerance (almost 1% of the population) This is HUGE! Coeliacs and others with food intolerance’s make up a pretty substantial sector of the population. This sector is generally tentative to travel due to their dietary needs. Take heart and fear not if you are coming Australia!

The Aussies are doing a fantastic job of catering for all kinds of dietary needs. Their labelling laws are quite strict with Allergy information required to say thing like “contains soy and wheat” as opposed to having to sift through an ingredient list. Every major grocery store has a Health Food aisle. Gluten free breads, yeast free breads, Lactose free, etc…. pretty much every group can find something in just your local Coles or Wollies. How good is that! I was in the States a couple of weeks ago and STUGGLED to find anything even at the Whole Foods type stores.

Driving Australia, Survival Tips #1

The last couple of weeks have seen me hitting the roads of New South Wales, so I thought I’d share a couple of observations to help a few of you first timers out there. While I do enjoy a good road trip and certainly enjoy getting out to see this country, there are a few things of which you should be aware. First in a series to come.

General Road Conditions: The weather being mostly temperate, the roads of Australia are basically in pretty good shape. The paving is generally smooth and the gravel roads are generally grated to allow for decent, if not great, travel. I’ve definitely driven on worse. That said, I find them unnecessarily winding. This is the source of much debate from the passengers in my car and myself as to whether winding roads/major interstates are more fun to drive on or just plain dangerous. I will point to the fact that the government here can’t figure out why they have so many accidents, maybe it is because there is a 90 degree turn on a major interstate that is two lanes wide that trucks have to navigate at high speed????? (an exaggeration of course, the turn was only 87.5 degrees with a round-about just after….) While the road rules are basically the same, driving is FAR more challenging here than in North America and most parts of Europe.

Passing: There are very few of what would be considered major highways. I regularly get annoyed trying to get out of Sydney on what is considered the M1 as I sit at a stop light. On some of the smaller motorways, there are only two lanes. Occasionally the RTA (Highway Authority) will add a third lane on the outside of the highway for slower traffic to move into so others may pass. This third lane will generally end with little to no warning and the slower traffic has to merge back into the original lane. Keep very aware during this maneuver. Passing and no-passing zones are marked with the international broken or unbroken center line.

Flight Centre, Travel Around Australia and the World

The Following is a Sponsored Review:
I adore Flight Centre. Considered a top employer, I know a few of the folks that work there, in fact I play soccer with two of their talented travel specialists. Soccer aside, I’ve personally used Flight Centre on at least two occasions to help me out with last minute international flights.

While I consider myself fairly savvy with finding affordable airfares, with their Low Price Promise, they were able to beat the lowest price I was able to find with searching the Internet on my own. To top it off, their agent Edwina Brodie contacted me when there had been an airline related itinerary change. She worked to ensure I was aware of the change and to make sure there was minimal interruption to my holiday plans. Now talk about service!

A convenient Internet search and book option allows you to compare and choose from the best available fares on most major airlines in Australia. In fact, it allows you to mix and match airlines for round-trip travel to make sure you get the best possible price and schedule.

Hot Flight Deals, Flight Search Options, Rail, Hire Cars, and Specialist travel are some of their easy to use options. The Rail and Specialist Travel sections really set them apart and make their agency unique from other websites. In addition to Australian train travel, you can book Eurail, Asian, and other Global Rail deals as well. The Specialist travel section includes options like Group Travel, Business Travel, and Working/Volunteering Travel.

What's on Melbourne

G’day Folks! I’ve had a request for information from other cities outside of Sydney… What! Is there really life outside of Sydney!…He He just kidding. Check out some of these amazing events in Australia’s other city… Melbourne.

What’s on Melbourne. City Search

Come out and help turn your liver…err I mean the beer green! St Pats

The Wicked Food and Wine Festival. 16-30 of March sees events such as Wicked Sunday (25 March) which is promised to be the “Tiffany diamond of the festival – indulgent, decadent and a must-taste!” Victoria’s …

NSW South Coast Accomodation, Culburra Hideaway

Looking for an affordable surfie get away? Want to see some real wild and untamed ocean? About 2.5 hours south of Sydney, the Culburra Hide Away, located on Culburra beach near Jervis Bay, is sooooo chillaxed.

A true 1960’s beach pad, it has modern amenities, but beachy charm. Capable of sleeping up to 7, it has an eclectic decor, and not posh, but comfortable and homey furnishings. Bring your friends, own linens, food, and sporting equipment. There is a BBQ, DVD, TV and radio available if you plan to spend anytime indoors. With so much to do and see in the area, that is a major challenge.

Perfect for a weekend getaway or a week long total relax session, the house itself is opposite the surf beach, main beachfront and about 200M from the local surflifesaving club. Access is via a walkway. Penguin Point at the end of the street is breathtaking at high tide. There is a beautiful reserve lake 200 metres away at the end of the road with forest around it. The famous Jervis Bay town of Huskisson is a short drive away where you can snorkel, dive, most times see dolphins, and grab a beer and a meal at the Husky.