Final thoughts on Australia

Here are just some random fun facts that we learned while we were here. One… They have an entire sub-culture of extreme off roading. Most people get these crazy sooped up 4x4 vehicles with 4 spares, a snorkel (as most trucks have) and 2 entirely separate gas tanks and all sorts of other stuff. If I had to do it all over (and had the money) I think this is the best and most fun thing to do here. For every paved road there are 10 unpaved ones to explore. We have heard that you can go 3 days without seeing anyone at all! It is quite the adventure though because some of the roads are gnarly and all you see is abandon wrecks but along the way you will see truly indigenous tribes, which are becoming more rare.
3 months, a nice 4x4, and a good map would be the ideal way to do Australia. We met a father and son from Amsterdam who were doing just that. (dad, he reminded me of you so much). They were having a great time driving around. There are lots of special maps and guides to the best off roading experience.
Two… The culture over here is basically American. Canada is more European then Australia, but I think that it does have its quirks as any group of people do.
Three… Food, their pies are not gooey fruit filled goodness but rather meaty and cheesy. This is the most poplar thing to eat. They also love to drink their flavored milks- coffee, strawberry, vanilla, peppermint mocha, honey crisp. Random. After that fish and chips and kabobs are another fav, but its not like a skewer. They have a big chunk of meat on a vertical pole, it cooks from the outside, and they carve it away as they need it (for the Californian’s- its like the Mexican Pastor meat style BBQ thing but not as spicy.) One thing we tried that was “real Australian” was the condiment “Vegemite” You put it on toast or sandwiches. It tastes like salt and some kind of vinegar and celery a bit but for the most part it is gross. Apparently it’s basically concentrated flavored yeast. Yuck!
Three… O my road kill. We saw everything from a Koloa to kangaroo, to cows to a camels!
All in all the people were great, the beaches were the best I have ever seen. We need a few more months to see the rest at a not so rushed pace. Maybe next time!

On to New Zealand!