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World Tour 2019-2020
  • JohnKim Duncan
  • JohnKim Duncan

World Tour 2019-2020

Starting in Morocco, with stops in South Africa, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Botswana, the Seychelles, the UAE, Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand, Malaysia, Australia, New Zealand, & Hawaii, this is the culmination of 5 years of planning. Read more
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  • JohnKim DuncanWorld Tour 2019-2020Traveler
    Local taxi called a tuk tuk

    1st Day in Bangkok

    January 28, 2020 in Thailand ⋅ ⛅ 30 °C

    Today was a much needed day of rest. We pigged out at the buffet breakfast & spent the rest of the day organizing/deleting pictures. At last count we had well over 4000 pics spread over our 2 phones & my camera. We’ve been falling behind in getting them organized. We walked to the major outdoor market area for dinner & a bit of shopping. Lots of merchants, including waiters/waitresses were wearing surgical masks. During dinner, we heard what we thought was a karaoke singer butchering an English song. Turns out the entire band, including the lead singer were wearing masks! Unreal!! Thailand has thousands of these convenience stores.... What are 7-11s Alex? You’re right! We walked about 1.5 kms to the market & passed eight 7/11s. I kid you not... Chiangmai had plenty of them too. Lots of night life & temples. 10 million citizens & tons of tourists here. A very poorly designed city, without adequate infrastructure. The best way to get around the waterfront area is by boat, for sure. Lots of traffic 24/7.Read more

  • JohnKim DuncanWorld Tour 2019-2020Traveler
    Our hotel from the Chao Phraya River
    Decorated with condomsTuk tuk all jazzed upPreshow outsidePreshow outside

    Once & Done City of Bangkok

    January 30, 2020 in Thailand ⋅ ☀️ 31 °C

    After trying to get around in Bangkok, we’ve decided that this is the first & last time we will visit here. We don’t enjoy trying to navigate in Toronto, but when you multiply the population by 3, mix in more tourists, especially on the waterfront, where we are, & motorists general neglect for rules of the road, you get the idea. The best way to get to & from our hotel is by shuttle boat, then skytrain, or city boat. The river is incredibly polluted, with lots of trash floating, to be expected in a city of 10 million I suppose. Our neighbours suggested that we had to go to a restaurant called Cabbages & Condoms, which isn’t exactly as it seems. It directly promotes contraception in rural communities in Thailand with some of its profits & patrons’ donations. The decor is what’s the most interesting as it has many signs, etc promoting safe sex/family planning, and various mannequins dressed in clothing made of condoms. It advertised a traditional Thai dance show that was underwhelming to be kind. Dinner was good, and our bill was about what we’d pay back home, for a similar meal. The trains both too & from were jammed. Today, we set out to find the Siriraj Medical Museum that came highly recommended through Trip Advisor. We took the hotel shuttle boat to a main hub, then the local ferry boat to the museum which was within a regular hospital & not well signed. We walked past it, & had to ask several people how to find the entrance. It was, as advertised. It was divided into several sections. The most disturbing was the Pathological section which housed a number of fetuses in formaldehyde in glass cases. There were conjoined twins, and fetuses with a variety of deformities meant to teach medical students about these conditions. The Forensic section housed human organs & skulls that had gun shot & stab wounds. There was a section devoted to educating about the aftermath of Tsunamis. The Parasitology section had examples of poisonous creatures in South East Asia & showed human organs infected with parasites, & poisons. It was an interesting place to visit. We visited the Siam Niramit Cultural Show. It was a theatrical production showcasing the ancient past of Thailand. The props, lighting & synchronicity of the performers were truly professional. The first scene depicted the distinct cultures of ancient Siam. Act 2 illustrated the Thia belief in the Law of Karma where the way you behave in one life determines how you’ll spend the afterlife. They showed scenes of Hell, Heaven, & Himapaan, which, they believe, is the realm between the human worlds & the heavens. The final act was a journey through the joyous Thai festivals. We took a taxi back to our hotel. The driver misunderstood our hotel name, so we took a little longer to get back, but it was all good in the end.Read more

  • JohnKim DuncanWorld Tour 2019-2020Traveler

    Food Tour, Wat Pho & Grand Palace

    February 2, 2020 in Thailand ⋅ ⛅ 31 °C

    Because we enjoyed our food tour so much in Hanoi, we decided to do another one in Bangkok. The one in Hanoi was a walking tour, but on this tour, we traveled between restaurants by Tuk tuk, which was a lot of fun. We had to make our way to the meeting point by taking two Skytrains, & an MRT train. It was a one hour trip. We met our guide Tukta & a South Korean mother & son who joined us. Tukta joined us in our Tuk Tuk. We enjoyed several “signature” dishes at several famous local restaurants, most of which had been family businesses for 20+ years. The Pad Thai restaurant usually has an hour to a ninety minute lineup outside to get in. Tukta told us that many locals eat in these restaurants or enjoy street food for 60 to 70 Thai Baht (less than $4 CDN) after work most days rather than cook for themselves. We can see why, as the local food we sampled was very tasty & the portion sizes, for the locals, were generous . We discovered that authentic Thai food has a variety of tastes, but is often spicy, & sour. They use plenty of fresh peppers, lime, many different spices, and different thicknesses of noodles. Sticky rice is popular too. We sampled a hot & sour soup, a pork & chicken dish, and egg pad thai, which is a recipe passed down from mother to son, & unchanged for 50 years. We also visited a 24 hour flower & vegetable market, which was quite different than markets in Vietnam. Tukta bought us each a lotus flower which we learned to fold. We took our flower to Wat Pho Buddhist temple to offer for luck at one of the many pagodas. Wat Pho is a spectacular temple which has been a training school for Thai massage for over 200 years. We finished the tour by enjoying a drink on the 5th floor of a restaurant on the river with another magnificent temple on the opposite side. Our Tuk Tuk driver dropped us at our hotel just after 11 pm. Another very interesting food tour, with some sightseeing & learning along the way.
    This morning, Kim visited the Grand Palace and saw the Emerald Buddha enshrined in the Royal Chapel. Unfortunately, no photographs or video are permitted inside the chapel. The palace grounds were extraordinary containing several smaller pagodas, one of which was completely covered in gold mosaic. Ashes from royal family members are enshrined throughout the grounds.    Read more

  • JohnKim DuncanWorld Tour 2019-2020Traveler
    Our swim-up poolWater chairs outside our deckMontador lizard eating shrimp1

    Bangkok to Krabi

    February 3, 2020 in Thailand ⋅ ⛅ 31 °C

    5 am wake up call, 5:20 in-room breakfast. On our way to the airport by 6. We flew to Krabi International Airport, & took a 40 minute taxi ride to the pier. We boarded a long tail boat, similar to the ones on the river in Bangkok. Our hotel is on an isolated peninsula on Railay Beach which is a world renowned beach. We’re checked into a swim-up room, for 4 nights, at the Avatar Railay Resort Krabi for some R & R. There are no cars, & just a few delivery motorbikes on this part of the peninsula. Lots of European tourists. Margaritas & Mojitos for 120 Baht ($5 Cdn) for Happy Hour. We had a great Pad Thai & shrimp dish for dinner. Life is good!Read more

  • JohnKim DuncanWorld Tour 2019-2020Traveler
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    Beach Day

    February 4, 2020 in Thailand ⋅ ⛅ 30 °C

    We slept in a bit, had breakfast at our hotel, & set out to explore a bit. We walked to Phra Nang Cave, took a few pictures & continued to Phra Nang Beach. Unique to this area are the caves, & shear rock formations, popular with rock climbers. We saw what looked like a middle school class trying it today. Nowadays, back home, there’d be no way that activity would be allowed. We laughed when one of the leaders held up a pair of hiking shoes, looking for the owner. As usual no one claimed them despite the fact they obviously belonged to one of them. Next to a huge rock face we photographed a “Shrine of Fertility”. We’ll let the pics speak for themselves ...We had some visitors to our “back deck” this afternoon. One of them snuck up & took Kim’s empty Salted Cashews bag. In less than a half hour he brought it back! We returned to the Thai restaurant we enjoyed last night, after stopping at Bang Bang’s bar, which is little more than a hole in the wall establishment. We both enjoyed our cocktails, Kim a Pina Colada, & John a Pineapple Daiquiri.Read more

  • JohnKim DuncanWorld Tour 2019-2020Traveler
    1Water monitor
    Meeting the Phuket ferryThe "West Railay beach strip". Not a great pic.1Phuket hotel pool surrounded by palm treesPhuket hotel

    Railay Beach to Phuket Thailand

    February 7, 2020 in Thailand ⋅ ⛅ 30 °C

    We waded out to hop in a longtail boat, bags slung over our shoulders, to meet the local ferry to take us to Phuket. It’s here that we meet our Dream Yacht Charter catamaran which we’ll be on for the next week. We received an email that our boat had been downsized to a 56’ boat, meaning there should just be 3 other couples on board with us. We’ll have no internet, unless we travel ashore for a while during our week aboard, so this may be the last post for a while. Our stay in Railay was very nice, our “swim-up” room couldn’t have been nicer. The vibe in that place was one which attracts many tourists from all over the world. Lots of great restaurants & bars, beautiful beaches, with great scenery. We enjoyed people watching. The 2 hour ferry trip, then hour & a half cab ride were uneventful, although my Maps.me app ultimately got us to our “out of the way” hotel for just one night till we board the boat. These are random pics from our stay at Railay, & our hotel near the marina where we’ll meet our catamaran.Read more

  • JohnKim DuncanWorld Tour 2019-2020Traveler

    Setting Sail on Dream Yacht Charter Thai

    February 8, 2020 in Thailand ⋅ ⛅ 29 °C

    At 5 pm we set sail aboard the 56’ Dream Yacht Catamaran called Tere Moana. We met 2 of the other couples before boarding. Kuirt & Cristina from Germany, & John & Elizabeth from Italy. Sylvie & Lawrence, from France, arrived just before we left, without their checked bags, which ended up stranded in Moscow. We motored to where we were anchoring for the night, & enjoyed a delicious dinner. Local rum, red & white wine are included, along with bottled water. We were both surprised that they still used plastic water bottles. The other couples seem quite nice. It should be a fun week learning about their way of life back in their countries. Sylvie & Lawrence seem to understand the least English, so Kim may act as a translator this week, at times.... Update - the Yacht is equipped with WiFi, so we can continue to post updates, or Footprints, as they are called in FindPenguins ....Read more

  • JohnKim DuncanWorld Tour 2019-2020Traveler
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    James Bond Island & Koh Panyee Village

    February 9, 2020 in Thailand ⋅ ☁️ 32 °C

    Today we visited an island where some scenes from the 1974 James Bond movie The Man With the Golden Gun were shot. In fact, the island was the hideout of the villain. Today, the island is simply a photo stop, with some cheap souvenirs. We also made a stop at a fishing village built on stilts. At the time that these villagers first arrived, mostly descended from two Muslim families from Java, only natives of Thailand could own land in this country, so they built their village on stilts to stay close to where they were fishing. The Mosque remains the focal point of the village today, & was built on adjacent land when building on the island was allowed. There is a Muslim school on stilts too. Nowadays tourism makes up a large part of the island’s income, but only in the dry season. Longboats have to transport visitors, as at low tide, the area is cut off from boats that draw any more than about 2’ of water. It’s the same story here. As the fish stocks deplete, the villagers rely more on selling cheap souvenirs to survive. There is a restaurant, built on stilts, that attracts tourists at lunch time.Read more

  • JohnKim DuncanWorld Tour 2019-2020Traveler
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    Tidal Lagoon, Kayaking in Mangroves

    February 10, 2020 in Thailand ⋅ ☀️ 30 °C

    Today we explored a lagoon which only has water in it if the tide is in. It was stunningly beautiful with its high cliffs surrounding it , & peaceful, before the longboats started bringing in more tourists. Our captain & crew constantly monitor the tides, & with experience, can take us to places before they get busy. The highlight of our Dream Yacht tour, so far, was kayaking amongst the mango trees. Each couple had a double, sit on top, kayak, which was surprisingly stable, & because our legs didn’t have to be stretched out straight, was more comfortable than our kayaks to paddle for longer periods. After 2 hours, however, we were happy to get off. We saw monkeys which, we were warned, were adept at stealing anything left lying around in the kayak, including water bottles. We tried snorkeling later, but the water was too rough & stirred up.Read more

  • JohnKim DuncanWorld Tour 2019-2020Traveler
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    Swimming, snorkeling, sailing, shopping

    February 13, 2020, Strait of Malacca ⋅ ☀️ 29 °C

    Over the last few days we’ve spent time motoring/sailing between islands, stopping when the captain decides. We made a stop at Railay Beach again yesterday. It was much more crowded than last week with many longboats, & tour boats visiting. We stopped at Monkey Island, Chicken Island, & Phi Phi Island. The rock formations, & beaches are quite beautiful. This area is much busier than we expected. We hoped to find an area to spend some of our future winters, but there are too many tourists in this area of Thailand. We’ve trolled 2 lines for several days, without so much as a bite, so for that reason alone, this area isn’t for us.....Read more

  • JohnKim DuncanWorld Tour 2019-2020Traveler
    From the 12th floor of the Melia hotel in downtown

    Goodbye Thailand, Hello Malaysia

    February 15, 2020 in Malaysia ⋅ 🌧 29 °C

    We said goodbye today to our captain Yah, first mate Ricky & cook Ko, along with our new friends from Germany, France & Italy. It has been a fun week trying to make ourselves understood. English in many different forms,
    was the first language on the boat, although Thia English was hard for everyone to understand... As the Uncle Tom rum flowed, somehow it became easier. We visited several islands to snorkel, laze on the beach & even shop for pearls on one island... Our flight to Kuala Lumpur was uneventful. It’s only a “jumping off point” for our 5 day tour of Borneo, however. We will be back in a van heading back to the airport just before 7:30 am. We’re flying to Sandakan to meet our tour guide.    Read more

  • JohnKim DuncanWorld Tour 2019-2020Traveler

    Sandakan, Borneo (Malaysia)

    February 16, 2020 in Malaysia ⋅ ☀️ 31 °C

    We flew to Sandakan on the island of Borneo, this morning, a little over 2 hours East of Kuala Lumpur. The currency is still the Malaysian Ringgit. It’s a fishing village/city with a population of around 130000. Our hotel (4 points Sheraton) is the tallest building here (26 floors). We walked around this afternoon & were surprised at how modern the local mall, & grocery stores are. Lots of fresh local produce, & sea food. Everything is reasonably priced too. The mall is well stocked. Relatively few tourists to be seen as we walked. Entire local families were dining together in the waterfront restaurants. We had a terrific meal, local style, for 51 Ringget, or about $16.50 Cdn. We had apps of Calamari & Prawns, mains of Beef, & Sweet & Sour chicken, & drinks. Lots of locals hanging around on the waterfront after dark, despite the abundance of Muslim people. A friendly atmosphere. We’re hoping to awaken early enough tomorrow morning to watch freshly caught fish of all shapes & sizes being unloaded from boats a short walk from our hotel.Read more

  • JohnKim DuncanWorld Tour 2019-2020Traveler
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    Sandakan to Selingan (Turtle) Island

    February 17, 2020, Sulu Sea ⋅ ☀️ 28 °C

    We woke early this morning to walk around the fish market. We saw many different kinds of seafood directly from the local fishing boats, & lots of local fruits, vegetables & other meat. We had breakfast then met our guide, Hadi, and were shuttled to the local pier for the hour & a half trip to Selingan Island. We were very close to the Philippines here. Hadi told us they have to have police presence on each island to avoid poachers from the local Philippine Islands looking to steal Turtle eggs. We ate lunch & walked around the small island. It wasn’t long after our 7:30 dinner that a Ranger announced “turtle time”. We all ran to watch her lay the remainder of her 83 eggs. She was measured, & tagged. She was over 100 cm long. She hadn’t been tagged before, meaning she was likely a first time mother. The rangers collected her eggs as she laid them and we watched them bury them in the sand in the hatchery. Next we got to watch them release 35 little hatchlings into the Sea. It was quite a night. Hadi said we were lucky that we didn’t have to wait too long. Sometimes the rangers don’t spot a turtle laying until after 1 am. We were back at our room by 9:30 pm.Read more

  • JohnKim DuncanWorld Tour 2019-2020Traveler

    Gomantong Caves, Kinabatangan River

    February 18, 2020 in Malaysia ⋅ 🌧 28 °C

    We woke up early & Hadi had a surprise for us. He walked us to the beach & let us each hand release a hatchling turtle. Unfortunately Hadi didn’t fully press the video recording button on the iPhone, but it was a cool experience just the same. We boated back to Sandakan. This time, we were in 6-8 foot seas, so it was a little “bouncy”... Hadi drove us to Gomantong caves, where we walked along a boardwalk through the rainforest (jungle) in a light rain towards the cave entrance looking for signs of primates, native birds or insects. We did see some butterflies & a Pygmy squirrel which was about the size of our thumb. It was impossible to get a decent pic of that little guy! An orangutan was spotted in the cave yesterday escaping the rain, but we weren’t so lucky today. The cave is famous for having millions of swiftlets & bats. We saw millions of swiflet nests which are harvested 4 times a year by locals to sell to the Chinese who use them to make Birds Nest Soup. Hadi told us that depending on the quality of the nest, it can fetch up to 3000 ringget an ounce, or about $1000 Cdn. The nests are made of swiftlet saliva, & their own feathers (black swiftlets) & just swiftlet spit by white swiftlets, which is more sought after. The cave was also home to billions of cockroaches, spiders, & poisonous centipedes that were quite big! We walked on a boardwalk around the cave perimeter. In the middle was tons of guano, which is left there so that the scent will attract the swiftlets back to the cave. Next, we drove to a small dock to take a 5 min boat ride to our accommodation, which was also the take off point for our 2 hour river cruise. We saw a couple of crocodiles, one over 10’ long, lots of long tailed macaque monkeys, several silvered langur monkeys, & lots of proboscus monkeys in the trees lining the river. Several species of birds, including egrets, purple herons, and kingfishers flew around us.Read more

  • JohnKim DuncanWorld Tour 2019-2020Traveler
    Momma Orangutan
    Mom & baby pig tailed macaqueLantern fliesHawk eagle6 year old sun bear10 month old sun bearTree viper - venemousNon stinging honeybees

    Orangutans & Sun Bears

    February 19, 2020 in Malaysia ⋅ ⛅ 29 °C

    Today we visited two wildlife sanctuaries which are side by side a half hour from Sandakan. We left Bilit Rainforest Lodge at 7 am bound for Sepilok Orangutan Centre. The goal of the Centre, with the support of tourists, & foreign organizations, is to rehabilitate these primates, so they can return to the wild. Along the way we spotted this very photogenic Eagle. Hadi told us there are an estimated 42000 wild orangutans left on the island of Borneo. We arrived a half hour before feeding time. We walked slowly to the feeding platform, hoping to see other wildlife. We did get a fleeting glimpse of a red leaf monkey, some geckos, butterflies and various insects, including a pair of lantern flies. At feeding time, a mother and a baby orangutan came. A troupe of pig tailed macaque monkeys cleaned up the rest. We were lucky because yesterday no orangutans came to eat, meaning they’re managing to find their own food, which is the ultimate goal of the program. We then walked to a glassed in building where we could look through one way glass as baby orangutans were fed. We literally walked across the parking lot to the Bornean Sun Bear Conservative Centre, home to the world’s smallest bears. They were doing what North American bears do on a hot day, & that is relaxing in the shade which meant for tough photo opps. We managed to get a glimpse of a Pygmy elephant, a tiny poisonous snake, & a bigger non venomous snake. Both were quite beautiful. A local guide captured a great pic on Kim’s iPhone of stingless bees, that make honey which the sun bears enjoy. Our visit ended with some excitement, as an adult male bear made his way very close to where some juvenile bears are being rehabilitated. Some fast work by the Rangers using some fire extinguishers saved the juveniles from being killed, as sun bears are very territorial, even in captivity.Read more

  • JohnKim DuncanWorld Tour 2019-2020Traveler
    We said goodbye to our Borneo guide, HadiKuala Lumpur, a modern cityLots of English signs in MalaysiaGoodbye sun bear!

    Travel Days

    February 20, 2020 in Malaysia ⋅ ☀️ 31 °C

    We flew back to Kuala Lumpur today, & will fly to Melbourne, Australia tomorrow. We had to fly back here because there are no direct flights from Borneo to Australia. We checked backed into the Melia hotel in downtown Kuala Lumpur, an hour from the airport. An early start in the am, for our 8 hour flight!Read more

  • JohnKim DuncanWorld Tour 2019-2020Traveler

    Melbourne to Warrnambool

    February 22, 2020 in Australia ⋅ ⛅ 18 °C

    Today we picked up a rental car (Skoda) from the Melbourne Airport & drove along Hwy A1 to Warrnambool, which is the beginning of the Great Ocean Drive route. Easier said than done, however, as these Aussies drive on the wrong side of the road! The drive was uneventful & reminded us of home, with lots of round bales of hay, & corn growing alongside the Hwy. Lots of beef cattle & horses too.Read more

  • JohnKim DuncanWorld Tour 2019-2020Traveler
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    Great Ocean Road to Apollo Bay

    February 23, 2020 in Australia ⋅ ☀️ 23 °C

    Today we started driving back towards Melbourne along the famous Great Ocean Road. There are many pull off points to take pictures, & take pictures we did! Not all of the road is along the coast, however, & there are plenty of twists & turns, ups & downs. 150 kms took close to 6 hours, with many breathtaking lookout spots! We took pics at places called Bay of Islands, Bay of Martyrs, The Grotto, London Bridge, & The Arch. London Bridge is famous because in 1990 the “bridge” connecting the two limestone cliffs collapsed (fell down) stranding 2 tourists who had to be airlifted by helicopter to safety.Read more

  • JohnKim DuncanWorld Tour 2019-2020Traveler
    Our rental carCockatoo in Lorne villageOur AirB&B near Torquay

    Koala in the tree

    February 24, 2020 in Australia ⋅ ☁️ 20 °C

    Today we spotted a koala in the wild doing what they do best... sleeping! We left our hotel in Apollo Bay, heading for our next stop, an AirB&B in Jan Juc, near Torquay, which is at the end of the Great Ocean Road. One of our stops was at a place called Kafe Koala, which we thought would just be a cafe with some koala pics on the wall. Turns out there was a trail which, they told us, may have 🐨 in trees. We were lucky enough to spot one high up in the tree, sleeping. I was able to zoom in enough with my Nikon to allow us to determine that it was, indeed, a koala. It just looked like a blob with the naked eye. Friendly ducks were lounging around on the Koala trail. They look like green winged teal, only bigger. Maybe some of my hunting buddies can ID this one. Many twists & turns on today’s drive, as well, & mostly along the ocean. We read where the building of the road was commissioned to provide employment for soldiers returning home from WW1, and that no blasting was used because many vets had PTSD, & couldn’t tolerate loud noises. Therefore much of the work was completed with an axe & shovel. We drove through a number of surfing villages, including Skenes Creek, Kennett River, Wye River, Lorne, Aireys Inlet, & Anglesea. It was a much cooler & overcast day today. The local shop keepers complained that many of the days this summer were much like today. The surfers definitely need wetsuits here!Read more

  • JohnKim DuncanWorld Tour 2019-2020Traveler

    Jan Juc to Melbourne

    February 25, 2020 in Australia ⋅ ☁️ 23 °C

    Today we drove the rest of the way to Melbourne, dropped off our rental car at the airport & took the skybus into the CBD of Melbourne to the Jazz Corner Hotel. We stopped to watch surfers on Bells Beach, which has played host to many surfing competitions over the years. The surf looked pretty good today, but what do we know? Many seal looking, wetsuited surfers were in the water. We walked around a bit & watched the sun go down from our 21st floor balcony.Read more

  • JohnKim DuncanWorld Tour 2019-2020Traveler
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    Melbourne

    February 26, 2020 in Australia ⋅ ⛅ 16 °C

    Today we took the free electric tram (#35). We intended to do the CBD loop, but it was standing room only at 10 am, so we couldn’t see much. We got off & walked to Federation Square, which was underwhelming at that time of day. Nothing going on. Next we walked a bit more to see some building art on three short lanes. Then we visited St Paul’s Anglican Cathedral, which was quite grandiose. We then walked (are you sensing a theme here) across the Yarra River to the National Gallery of Victoria, which was quite interesting. Lots of paintings, textiles, sculptures from various time periods from all around the world. From there, we walked to a Chinese restaurant, in the largest Chinatown in the Southern Hemisphere, for some excellent Dim Sum. We then walked the remaining 2 kms back to our hotel. Another 12K + step day, just over 8 kms. Kim walked to the Queen Victoria night market, just a couple of blocks from our hotel.Read more

  • JohnKim DuncanWorld Tour 2019-2020Traveler
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    Last Day in Melbourne

    February 27, 2020 in Australia ⋅ ☀️ 17 °C

    We had another 12K step day today. We walked to the State Library of Victoria, which was more interesting than it sounds. It was established in 1854 & is the oldest public library in Australia. The balconies overlooking the main reading room house many paintings, & historical documents including diaries dating back to the time of the library’s construction, and Ned Kelly’s armour, and facial bust, cast after he was hanged for killing a lawman in 1880. We walked to the Melbourne Museum which is very much a Science museum. We saw lots of school classes at both places today. We both agreed it was nice not to be supervising kids. Bagpipes, & drums celebrate our short stay in Melbourne! 😉Read more

  • JohnKim DuncanWorld Tour 2019-2020Traveler

    Melbourne to Hobart

    February 28, 2020 in Australia ⋅ ⛅ 13 °C

    We flew to Hobart Tasmania early this afternoon, about a one hour flight. Our first impression of the area was that is was very dry. We took the sky bus into the city which took nearly an hour. Lots of farmland with sheep, beef cattle & horses. The city of Hobart has around 220000, which is almost half of the population of the island. The city is spread out on hillsides around the harbour, which makes it quite beautiful. We stayed in the Customs House Hotel, which was once where ships checked in when they arrived at Hobart with their goods. Lots of prisoners were processed here, as well. Lots of seafood here but prices for most things are quite high. A bustling city centre as there was a huge cruise ship tied up.Read more

  • JohnKim DuncanWorld Tour 2019-2020Traveler
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    Hobart to Port Arthur

    February 29, 2020 in Australia ⋅ ☀️ 19 °C

    We walked a couple of blocks from our hotel to take in the Saturday morning market. There were plenty of food trucks, local liquor stalls, wooden & glass handicrafts, & clothing stalls, lined up. It was very busy with cruise ship passengers. We rented a car to drive to Port Arthur on the Tasmanian Peninsula. We’re in an AirBnB for a couple of nights to explore this area. Our Toyota Camry hybrid is a little annoying, because not only is the steering wheel on the wrong side, but the wiper blade controls & signals are reversed. Switching lanes & turning were met with a few honking horns & stares! We arrived at our place without incident, where we were greeted by our friendly host Cathy, looking forward to cooking our dinner on the barby! Before dinner we drove 4 minutes to one of the most beautiful beaches we’ve seen on our trip, so far, & walked it from one end to the other. Even on a Saturday, the beach was nearly deserted.Read more

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