It was 1.45 am when a bugle sounded, loudly breaking through the still, cold August darkness. it was immediately followed by 900 united Japanese voices shrieking "Banzai"!This was the beginning of the infamous Cowra Breakout. It remains the largest Prisoner of War breakout in modern military history. Startled out of deep sleep and startled by the unprecedented turn of events, the guards, rushed to their posts. Privates Ben Hardy and Ralph Jones rushed off in...

 Ever been to a cave that is big enough to drive through?Well at Jenolan caves in the Blue Mountains the road goes right through the Grand Arch! We weren't expecting it, and, after winding down a long steep hill, suddenly we had arrived but there seemed to be nowhere to stop or park. The road just continued on through the cave with instructions on signs of "no stopping" and "put your lights on". After driving through this huge cavern it became clear that the...

We are never ones for major highways. They are boring, rushed and are only for getting from A to B quickly. We have six days to get from Brisbane to Sydney, from where we take our second cruise to the Pacific Islands, so we set off to meander on some scenic roads and to find some of the UNESCO World Heritage Parks noted under the listing of Goodwana Rainforests of Australia.We actually had one day less than planned, because on the way back from our PNG cruise, tw...

Stopovers. Surprisingly they go quite fast. Looking at a flight itinerary that says 4 hours as this one does, it would seem a long time but with the time it takes to deplane (why oh why do people take SO long?!) and to move through transit to find the new departure lounge, there is often over an hour gone already. Toilet breaks and finding the best way to spend the last bit of currency (in this case we won't need Aussie dollars for eleven months) takes more t...

Sydney, what a lovely city, home to the famed and world recognizable Harbour Bridge, Opera House, and also to recently reopened Luna park.We were lucky enough when we stayed in Kirribilly for only one night to see the PM (Little?) John Howard being driven away in his Limo, front passenger seat to boot!.Thank you also to Milto and Ghewa (met on the road friends) for showing us around and for your hospitality!!Footnote: Sydney Opera House, Sydney, Australia is an o...