Shopper’s Paradise
January 28th, 2008 by Tiffany Miller
The name Surfers Paradise conjures up some vivid images of long, glassy waves peeling toward the shoreline with a backdrop of palm-lined empty beaches and a few grass shacks. The city of Surfers Paradise is laughable in comparison. You see it from Coolangatta and the view of the Q1 tower gets heavier as you drive into the concrete jungle. I had read that it was a party town, a trendy nightlife hotspot, a shopping mecca. But I hung on to my fantasy image until the bitter end: cruising down the Gold Coast Highway (now called Surfers Paradise Drive). Passing by a succession of kitsch tourist shops, real estate agencies and luxury designer boutiques, I was still hoping for the grass shacks to show up on the hills ahead.
Alas, there is nothing close to a shack in Surfers. There are lots of five star resorts and sky-high apartment buildings, though. The cars scream money, as do the labels on the backs of tall, bronzed models sipping lemon water at overpriced caviar burger joints. There are 14 shopping malls and arcades, glossy Louis V storefronts, and a couple of corner Starbucks. What the…
The next day I ran down to the beach after work to see what all the hype was about. The sand is definitely white. And soft. And abundant. The water is warm and glistening. The waves… well Im not sure I would say paradise, but there is some potential. All I saw were some gentle Waikiki-style rollers with about 500 bodyboards flailing in the whitewash. It may have just been a small day. I dunno. But now I imagine that those surfers you see walking through intersections check to see who’s looking before waxing their boards.
Im gonna take a wild guess and figure I can find much closer to my kind of paradise somewhere else along the coast. With world-class surf in either direction (Kirra was beautiful the other day), smaller crowds, and cheap burritos, I think its feasible. If shopping and people watching is your thing (and that’s cool too) this may be the hedonistic playground you would love. The nightlife is excellent. The girls are skimpily clad and sociable. The drinks are expensive.
I’m going north.
Detour to Lismore
January 27th, 2008 by Tiffany Miller
After spending some time wandering around the eccentric hippy town of Nimbin, I decided that I had seen enough. More than enough for my taste, in fact. The town is perfectly set up for the busloads of daytripping tourists to come through and buy their souvenirs and, well, supplies… Honestly, the drum circles on the sidewalks and the dodgy characters hawking their “goods” to passers-by was a bit overwhelming. Although the psychadelic storefronts make for good photos and there are tons of funky little cafes to stop in, I was put off by the intensity of it all (and slightly nauseous from all the burning incense), and jumped back into my car. Distracted by all this chaos, I ended up heading the wrong way out of town and drove south through The Channon and on to Lismore.
The Channon was a sleepy little village in the midst of beautiful subtropical rainforests. It is an enchanting drive, and my frustration from the escape out of Nimbin was quickly diminishing; but there is not much to the town. Since I had taken a really long way around, I thought it best to keep moving. I then came to Lismore, which is in my opinion totally underrated. It still has a slightly hippyish alternative vibe to it, but is decidedly less brash and touristy. The art galleries and animated cafes in town make it an inviting place, and the student population give it a youthful vibrancy. Luckily for me it was Saturday and the market was on. So I meandered through and picked up some fresh bread, organic peanut butter and honey for lunch. Sitting on a bench with a spectacular view of the surrounding hills, I struck up a slow conversation with one of the old farmers who calls this place home. I felt a million miles away from the madness of Nimbin.
I have the feeling that if a YHA were to open here it would quickly become a regular stop on the backpacker circuit. It deserves it more than a few of the places Ive been through. Either way, it is definitely worth a stop if you have a car and are in the area.
Australian Driving Tips for Rightsiders
January 23rd, 2008 by Tiffany Miller
Besides our obvious handicap of driving on the right (and for some of us, being used to an automatic transmission.. ahem..), there are a few things to learn about Australian traffic rules before you start your “roady.”
First thing’s first: roundabouts. Many of us, unfortunately, have never driven through them. The most important thing to remember- go left! But before you glide into oncoming traffic, yield to any cars already in the roundabout. Then, keep to the left if you are going left or straight ahead. If there are two lanes, pull into the right (inside) lane and use your right indicator (blinker). Also, remember that your indicator is on the right. I can’t say how many times I have switched lanes using my windscreen (windshield) wipers. And always signal left when exiting.
This isn’t New York. Don’t use your horn unless your’e about to have a smash (accident).
Driving on the highways is pretty straightforward. Stay to the left; go right when overtaking. And save your car (and your heart) some damage by trailing a large truck or bus. Those koala signs are not just there for photo-ops. Hitting a kangaroo will do serious damage; swerving to miss it could do worse. Mornings and sunsets are the most dangerous times.
Then, find yourself a buddy or two. Not only will this help with petrol costs, it may save your life. Many points of interest are two or three hours apart. So get yourself a passenger (hostel walls are the perfect place to advertise), put on some driving tunes (no Radiohead, please) and fill up the coffee mug. The long stretches of highway, are full of dreamy coastline and hills of dramatic gum trees. It is lovely, but after a while it will put you to sleep. Many Aussie towns’ and cities’ road signs are scarce, so get a navigator and a good road map, and get off the beaten track.
Why does everyone have an irrational fear of hitchhiking?
January 9th, 2008 by Tim Uden
I was interviewed on ABC Radio yesterday afternoon to introduce a phone-in topic about hitchhiking.
Basically I was asked about my opinions on hitchhiking and was asked to give advice for anyone thinking about this type of travel. Most of the advice can be found on the BUG Australia hitchhiking pages.
Another major topic was the fear that many people have about hitchhiking. All travel has its risks and hitchhiking certainly isn’t as safe as riding a train or plane, but the general perception of the dangers is grossly overestimated and it is not as dangerous as most people would have you believe. It is a safer form of transport than cycling in traffic.
There are a lot of people with irrational prejudices against hitchhiking and it is important to work towards dispelling myths while also recogising the dangers and advising ways to minimise the risk.
Basically millions of people hitchhike every year with no adverse incidents and the biggest dangers concern being hit by passing traffic or being involved in a car accident. However all motorists and pedestrians face similar dangers.
50% off Greyhound Australia’s west coast fares
December 18th, 2007 by Tim Uden
Competition among buses, trains and airlines on Australia’s east coast has meant that this has always been a much cheaper place to travel than the west coast. However Greyhound Australia have a special running until 31 March 2008 that gives you a 50% discount off bus fares between Perth and Darwin.
There are a few conditions: you can’t have any further discounts (ie. no HI/YHA discount); there are no refunds or changes permitted and the special isn’t available on shuttle services connecting the main west coast (Perth-Darwin) route to Kalbarri, Monkey Mia, Coral Bay or Exmouth.
Tiger’s celebrates innaugural flight with $19.95 airfares
November 23rd, 2007 by Tim Uden
Tiger Airways inaugural domestic Australian flight from Melbourne to the Gold Coast took off from Melbourne at 7am this morning.
Tiger celebrated its first Australian domestic flight by offering 75,000 flights for only $19.95 (including taxes and charges) on flights between Melbourne and Adelaide, Alice Springs, Canberra, Gold Coast, Hobart, Mackay, Newcastle and Rockhampton.
I tried to get a bargain but the cheap fares weren’t available on the dates I wanted to fly, but Jetstar released a batch of $19.95 flights to response to Tiger’s promotion so I snapped a couple of those up instead. Isn’t competition great?
It is a 24 hour sale but will probably continue until all the $20 flights are sold.
Air Asia X almost ready to fly
October 4th, 2007 by Tim Uden
For most of the past year the Malaysian low-cost airline Air Asia has been talking about launching an upstart long-haul low-cost airline, Air Asia X and now it looks like they are almost ready to get off the ground.
The new budget long-haul airline will connect Australia and the UK with fares as low as half what other airlines are charging. Their planned destinations have been released with Adelaide, Gold Coast, Melbourne Avalon, Newcastle and Perth earmarked as their Australian destinations and London Stansted and Manchester in the UK. All flights will require a stop in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia and it is rumoured that there will also be a refueling stop somewhere in the Middle East (my guess is Sharjah).
Air Asia X’s first route will be Gold Coast to Kuala Lumpur, which is now selling on Air Asia’s website for AUD$199 one-way (including taxes) for travel from 2 November 2007 onwards. Although flights are starting in less than a month, September next year is when Air Asia X is really expected to shift into top gear when it gets its hands on its fleet of 15 Airbus A330-300 aircraft. It will most likely operate with just one or two leased planes until the new planes are ready.
Air Asia is one of the biggest low-cost airlines in the world and is often called the Ryanair of Asia. Like other low-cost carriers, Air Asia X will offer a no frills service where you book online, pay extra for your own food and depart from secondary airports such as Gold Coast (instead of Brisbane), Melbourne Avalon (instead of Melbourne Tullamarine) and Newcastle (instead of Sydney). The secondary airports mean much lower landing fees and the possibility of more flexible departure times so the planes spend more time in the air. When the new planes come into service in September 2008, they will be fitted with seats nine abreast as opposed to the standard configuration of eight abreast for this type of aircraft. This will enable the airline to squeeze in more than 80 extra passengers
I don’t have a problem sitting on a bus for 24 hours so I certainly don’t mind sitting in a narrow seat on a budget airline for that long either, especially if it means that I can afford to travel to Europe twice as often.
15% off Greyhound Australia Kilometre Passes
September 9th, 2007 by Tim Uden
Greyhound Australia have dropped the prices of their Kilometre Passes (between 5,000km and 20,000km) by 15% until the end of 2007.
This special is available for both Adult and Concession Passes.
For example the 5,000km Concession fare was $692, NOW $588, saving of $104! The 15,000km Concession fare was $1789, NOW $1521, saving of $268!