viaggio and freedom

The inland is the real heart of Kangaroo Island and it's known as Parndana. Here the ex-soldiers from War World II were given the task of farming the island in return for an allocation of 1200 acres of land that could be paid back later, so Parndanda is home to the Soldier Settlement Museum. The freshwater crayfish, marron, is farmed on KI and at Andermel Marron Farm, the marrons are kept in tanks, while at the Marron Cafè, they are served on plates to delight your palate. Another unique place is in the heartland of KI is The Islander Estate Vineyards, founded by the french Jacques Lurton, who after travelling around the world, was inspired by this spot for grape growing and wine making.  Western Kangaroo Island is one of the most visited sites on the island. It has the Flinders Chase Visitor Centre, that is opened daily and explains some of the history of the island's formation and of the settlers; plus there are some beautiful spots all along the coast with wildlife and...

Kangaroo Island is one of the few unspoiled places on Earth. It is internationally knowns and famous for its wildlife and wilderness. It's home to echidnas, goannas, koalas, kangaroos, Australian sea-lions and New Zealand Fur Seals and the last penguins that survive are still to be seen on a tour. Native birds are everywhere and beautiful eagles fly high in the sky. Not only the island is appreciate for animal and wilderness but for food and wine as well: sheep's cheese, yoghurt and organic honey from the Ligurian Bees, plus wines and freshwater crayfish are there to supreme your palate. If you love the ocean there are plenty of water activities to do, swim with the dolphins and/or scuba diving, sailing and surfing. Just make sure to go there when the island gets warm and nice, because it's really windy and in spring could still be very cold and freezing. Other activities on the island are craving, bushwalking, quad biking and sand boarding. KI, as it is called ...

Clare Valley is south of the Flinders Ranges and is home to a cluster of villages and wineries and to the Australian Riesling (white wine named after the Riesling trail of the valley). It is one of Australia's best known wine production regions, first settled by english, irish and polish; many of the original buildings are still unique and have a charming appearance.  The best way to enjoy the valley if you want to wine tasting is surely a ride on the Riesling trail around wineries. The Riesling trail is long 35 kilometres and it goes from Auburn to Barinia Road, White Hut. It is divided in sections, so that it is easy to stop in the main towns and it is possible to jump on the track from different towns. There are even three different loops that head to west or north and bring you in other parts of the valley, with several cellar doors and interesting and rewarding views of the country.  Clare is the main service towns for the region and for visitors, it offers plent...

This article relates to Outback and Flinders Ranges, SA as I'm gonna write what I have experienced and visited in this area that I missed in my other articles. I've written full articles about Coober Pedy - see link http://viaggioandfreedom.blogspot.com.au/2013/11/coober-pedy-south-australia-outback.html?m=1 about the Southern Flinders Ranges - see link http://viaggioandfreedom.blogspot.com.au/2013/11/outback-and-flinders-ranges-sa.html about the Flinders Ranges National Park and Central Flinders - see link http://viaggioandfreedom.blogspot.com.au/2013/11/central-flinders-and-flinders-national.html On my travelling around South Australia I could stop and visit (from a north-south direction after Coober Pedy): - Woomera, that is where the largest land-based missile and rocket range of the western world is located: it was at first a joint project between Britain and Australia and nowadays the site still hosts space activities for Australian and even interna...

It would be ideal at least spend a long week end in this part of the region and be able to do some 4WD tracks. The fast track goes north of Quorn , through Hawker, Parachilna, Beltana, Leigh Creek and then either Maree or Arkaroola in the Northern Flinders that unfortunately I didn't have any chance to see. Another route is the scenic route, that goes from Adelaide to Arkaroola via Melrose and Wilpena Pound. Both the route are sealed, but few 4WD tracks cross the Flinders and the different gorges in the middle.  My journey started in Adelaide and went north to Blinman, crossed west back to Parachilna and south again. I spent 5 days there and make some outdoor activities, as hiking and abseiling in Moonarie creek, middle way between Rawnsley Park Station and Wilpena Pound. From Adelaide to Port Augusta and Quorn, the first stop has been an aboriginal cultural site with painting on the rocks, Yourambulla Caves, that is just before Hawkler; the end of the day was at the camp...

I had the opportunity to see the Flinders Ranges region more than twice: on my way south to Adelaide from Alice Springs, on a long weekend trip in the Central Flinders Ranges and on my new experience in the Wirrabara Forest, in the heart of the Southern Flinders. I couldn't visit all the places unfortunately and see the northern section, but I know quite good the Southern Flinders and I spent 5 days cruising around the Central section and the Flinders National Park. I've written this article from my little old caravan accommodation offered by the family I'd been visiting: it is located in Wirrabara Forest on a private property known as Talaree Orchard.  web site: www.talaree.com.au It's a wwoofing experience, that means I'm supposedly a willing worker on organic farm. I'm in the right place because Talaree Orchard is an organic farm and produces its own jam, stone fruits and honey but I'm probably not a willing worker, I need to finish the days...

Eccomi a raccontarvi di nuovo della mia esperienza che continua, e spero potrò restare per un secondo anno in Australia. Ho concluso venerdì gli 88 giorni richiesti dal governo australiano in ogni campo che riguardi settore primario e quindi agricoltura o pastorizia e/o costruzioni e miniere. Come avevo già annunciato, ho fatto la maggior parte dei miei 88 giorni in Northern Territory, nella cattle station e in una roadhouse dispersa sulla Stuart Highway, mentre ho concluso le ultime settimane in South Australia, nelle Flinders in una farm organica. Premetto non sono mai stata interessata a nessun tipo di lavoro che ho dovuto svolgere e non so se in futuro avrò mai intenzione di coltivare e crescere verdure e alberi da frutto, ma per lo meno ho acquisito delle qualità in più che mi potrebbero aiutare ad avere un piccolo orticello o almeno ad avere una conversazione con qualcuno riguardo ciò. Premetto inoltre che non avevo molta intenzione di far gli 88 giorni appena arrivata in Aus...

Coming south from Northern Territory and entering South Australia the first form of settlement you can find is a weird place, something that looks unreal but it's not. People live underground, leave everything they have and try to make a fortune mining all around. 689 km south of Alice Springs there is the town of Coober Pedy, also known as Opal Capital of the World. Discovered in 1914 by Willie Hutchinson by accident, he was desperately looking for water and he ended up finding Opal and a waterhole nearby. The first Opal rush took place in 1919 and the selling started in 1920 when the first buyers visited the place. Since then Coober Pedy started to grow and now it is a multi cultural mining community with 3500 people, coming from over forty different nationalities.The community expanded significantly during the 1960's when many European migrants made their way to the town, hoping in a big fortune and a different lifestyle. Some of them were lucky enough and "grew...

Uluru and Kata Kjuta National Park is the most known national park of Australia and a World Heritage-listed site. Uluru is the aboriginal name for Ayers Rock, the world's most famous monolith and the icon of Australia; while Kata Kjuta is the aboriginal name of the Olgas and means many heads to explain the enormous domes that rose millions ago east of Uluru. The geology of the rocks is explained at the visitor information centre and in the national park at the cultural centre that lies in the shadow of Uluru. History of the Olgas and of Ayers Rock is well explained in the park and a big importance is given to the Anangu culture. The Anangu are the aboriginal people that lived the area before and during the presence of white people around Ayers Rock and the Olgas. As demonstration of the importance of their culture, the park is managed by local aboriginal guides together with white people and lot of tours include explanation and history of the aboriginal dreaming stories and traditi...

Watarrka is the aboriginal name of Kings Canyon that is situated in the red centre, 4 hours drive from Alice Springs or 3 hours drive from Uluru (Ayers Rock). The canyon is from 100 to 150m high and it was formed over 440 million years ago. It has eroded over millions of year to form a gorge filled with jagged red cliff peaks and plants that are the left over of a past age. In the gorge there's a permanent rock pool, that forms the so called "Garden of Eden" and bring you back in an ancient time when vegetation and dinosaurs inhabited the area. The Kings Canyon Resort Hotel brochure writes: "Kings Canyon is for adventurous minds, for couples, for families, and for travellers searching for something out of the ordinary [...] to experience the wonder of ancient Australian landscapes on their own terms". I will say Kings Canyon is quite impressive and majestic and a walk on the rim is a must. The walk is 6 km long and not to easy for unfit people, at least for...

The West MacDonnell Ranges includes waterholes, junctions, gorges, dams, rivers and much more. A trip there is memorable and worth. There's incredible sights and breathtaking views from some of the lookouts set in every spot of the ranges. Including national park and private reserves, there is plenty of places and activities to do. One of the highlights of the ranges is considered to be Standley Chasm: one break in the ranges, less than 9 meters wide and 80 meters high is at his top during noon, when the sun is shining in the sky and change the colour of the rocks. Another private reserve is Glen Helen Outback Resort: it was built in the 1900's, it's located on the banks of the Finke River and offers every sort of accommodation and a refreshing gorge. Both the places can be reached through the Namatjira Drive, that starts approximately 50 km out of Alice Springs. Leaving Alice Springs on the Larapinta Drive, the first place you encounter on the west MacDonnell Ranges is ...

Alice Springs is a country town in the middle of the Red Centre of Australia. One of the brochure says it's a "modern town rich in history" and proposes a heritage walk in the CBD. It is easy to walk from one side of town to the other as well as find signs and information about the main attractions, such as either the Royal Flying Doctor Service or the School of the Air or the reptile centre. There is plenty of tours and companies that help you to plan your perfect holidays around Alice Springs, or your visit to some cultural places. Out of town, just 5 minutes by car from the main street, there's the Old Telegraph Station, now a museum to discover the history of the first pioneers and the first residents of Alice. It is the best preserved of the 12 stations along the Overland Telegraph Line, which was established in 1872 to relay messages between Darwin and Adelaide. A visit is worthy: there's lot to learn about how the telegraph line worked, about the mors...

Darwin is a sort of funny and young city. Everybody loves Darwin and its climate, especially during the dry season that goes from May to November. The city is attractive and full of attractions and places to experience. On the local guide that you can find at the visitor information centre there's a full list of attractions, that spreads from indoor to outdoor, from cultural activities to sportive ones. The guide deals with Darwin, its suburbs and most of the Top End. I've already written about the Stuart Highway from north to south and some of the places that are interesting to stop by and in this post I'll write about Darwin itself. I've been there more than three months ago, end of June and beginning of July. At this time the weather is not really wet, the temperature is nice and warm and lots of places come alive, as the Mindil Beach Sunset Market, one of my favourite spot in the city. Settled in 1869 due to the development of gold mining and the Overlan...

Leaving the northern territory after almost three months, I'm heading to South Australia on a road trip. The road trip started already more than one week ago and it took me to explore the red centre way of the Northern territory, the part of territory I was missing and the most natural and/or touristic one. After I'd left the cattle station in Barrow Creek, I've reached Alice Springs for a big shopping day and some commissions, in order to get ready for the big adventure: a visit to the west macdonnell ranges, to some beautiful gorges and relaxing spots, a 4WD ride through the Mereenie Loop, home of the Arrernte people, that connects last gorge of the westmacdonnell ranges to Wattarka National Park, where the Kings Canyon is situated, and finally a visit to Uluru - Kata Tjuta National Park to see The Olgas and Ayers Rock, learn about the culture of this places, learn about their scientific formation, live the environment and atmosphere of this places, especially duri...

Nusa Lembongan is a paradise on earth. The island is just south east of Bali and it takes 45 mins on a speed boat from Bali to Lembongan. The island is small and familiar. People on it are friendly and open to tourist, but they maintain their own distance and live the way they are used to, developing and growing seaweed. The tourism over there is still not intrusive, is not massive but I've heard that years ago was less developed and frequented by tourist. Some resorts are growing on the hills of the island, with stunning views and pools that face the ocean, as well as expensive café and restaurant, built up just to satisfy the client's habits. I discovered the island at first on the LovelyPlanet book, it was the closest place to Bali airport Denpasar where to dive and enjoy ocean activities. From LovelyPlanet I had the contact details of WorldDiving Lembongan, so I sent some emails and booked two days of diving experiences with them. The diving centre is really nic...

Ieri, a pranzo, dopo circa 10 mesi che non vedevo la tv in italiano sono riuscita a seguire il tg1 su tv satellitare. C'era da aspettarsi qualche sorpresa in particolare? Le notizie sono sempre le stesse, nulla di particolare è cambiato in Italia. Parti politiche che combattono l'una contro l'altra, dati statistici più o meno stabili per quanto riguarda il tasso di disoccupazione e il mercato del lavoro. La percentuale di giovani italiani disoccupati è salita al 40% e il mercato del lavoro ha una domanda in diminuzione in ogni settore, dal primario al terziario. Ogni paese sta vivendo la crisi economica, l'Australia non è da meno, ma qui ha un impatto inferiore rispetto ad altri luoghi. Non c'è molta differenza in tutti i paesi, anche in Australia ci sono persone che lavorano in nero per la cifra di 9 dollari l'ora, quando il minimo sindacale è 16 e queste persone provengono specialmente dai paesi asiatici limitrofi. Ci sono backpackers che vengono sfruttati...

Sono forse l'unica persona andata a Bali e che ha pernottato a Kuta, il centro della vita notturna di Bali, che la sera è rimasta nella propria stanza piuttosto che uscire a godere della vita. Le ragioni sono più di una: 1- stanchezza dopo giorni di viaggio e sightseeing; 2- la paura di uscire da sola, come femmina, in un posto del tutto sconosciuto e talmente diverso da ciò che è abituale, come l'ambiente asiatico; 3- il fatto che Bali sia anche conosciuta come una delle mete turistiche sessuali (ed ho avuto occasione di apprendere in prima persona, quando un ragazzo balinese ha tenuto a precisare come Bali sia conosciuta agli occhi dei bianchi: fun and sex!!) 4- la voglia di non immischiarmi in un ambiente di divertimento che implica alcohol e droghe (come ho appreso poi in un programma televisivo, Bali e Kuta in particolare non è poi il paradiso che si vede nei depliant e del tutto sicura come sembra) - devo precisare però che la mia esperienza è stata del tutto posi...

In my adventure in Cairns I had the opportunity of meeting Allan and share some nice moments whit him. He was born in Thursday Island and now he lives in Cairns, where he owns an art gallery near the centre of the city, in the Pier Shopping Center. In his gallery Allan has different paints and art crafts that he made by himself. his art represents animals of the Thursday Islands and australian animals, as snakes, kangaroos, turtles, platypus with the colours of his land, such as warm colours and blue or red like the shades of the sun or the sunset/sunrise time. A common though that the islanders and the aborigines has is the strong connection they have and feel with nature and mother earth; from this connection is born aboriginal arts and the passion that drives indigenous people in their artistic creations. Allan tries to pass some of the indigenous belief and feelings through his art and his gallery and he's willing to help the aboriginal community of Yarrabah, just n...

FAaITH art gallery è una galleria d'arte aborigina in Cairns. Allan George Lee è il proprietario della galleria, nonché artista di molti quadri e dipinti. La galleria si trova al Pier Shopping Center di Cairns, vicino alla Marina. Ho avuto modo di conoscere Allan di persona e di condividere alcuni momenti di piacere in sua compagnia: è originario delle Thursday Islands nel Far North Queensland. Ciò che vuole rappresentare con la sua arte e ciò che vuole trasmettere con la sua galleria è tutto ciò che fa parte del suo passato e del suo presente, che risale alle sue origini e che vuole tramandare e sia tramandato al giorno d'oggi dalla comunità aborigena, ciò che è rimasto di una cultura tanto antica e tanto ricca come quella aborigena. https://www.facebook.com/FAaITHCairnsFNQ Nonostante ci sia differenza tra la popolazione aborigena e quella originaria delle isole (gli indigeni sono chiamati islanders e non aborigines dagli australiani), Allan co-opera con una comunità a...

The Greyhound bus takes around 26 hours to go from one place to the other. I choose to travel on a backpacker bus, because it included some stops and dinner at Daly Waters Pub, one of the most famous and popular on the Stuart Highway. Northern Territory is literally cut half way in the middle by this highway and there is plenty of places, where to stop and learn about the history of this state. Furthermore there are a lot of spots to discover and walk nearby.  It is absolutely outback and the kilometres to travel from one place to the other are big, it could take 3 or 4 hours to reach one place after having left one. While travelling not miss the sunrise or the sunset that bring different colours to the land around, to the rocks and the sky. It's stunning and astonished. On the way south after leaving Darwin at 6 am, we had a quick stop at Hayes Creek, it just have a small service station with bar and toilets. It's located before Pine Creek, but after Batchelor and Ade...

Mondo è paese! Viaggiare apre la mente, amplia le vedute e fortifica il cuore. Se si è ben disposti e aperti a ciò che la scoperta e l'avventura porta con sè si scopre che in tutte le parti del mondo ogni piccolo paese, ogni persona che si incontra e ogni situazione sembrano verificarsi nel modo più semplice possibile. Porto con me una frase che mio padre usa ripetermi ovunque io vada: "tutto il mondo è paese". Il significato della frase è ben chiaro e non c'è molto da dire a riguardo, ma ad esso voglio aggiungere ciò che l'esperienza del viaggio implica in sé ed è la capacità di superare tutte le barriere che si erano innalzate nel piccolo paese, vuoi per paure, per rivalità, per noia o altro. Il viaggio aiuta ad accettare ed accettare significa andare oltre ciò che si era creduto immutabile, ciò che si è sempre visto come giusto e difficile da obiettare e in questa ottica si può vedere tutto il mondo come paese appunto. Durante il viaggio ci si sco...

The park is 129 km south from Darwin and became a national park in the 1986. It is home to the Aboriginal Wagait people but it's named after Frederick Henry Litchfield, member of the Finnis Exploration, the first european one in the area.  Before becoming a national park, the area was the centre for tin and copper mining. All major attraction are accessible nowadays with normal cars by sealed road, but some interesting part are just unsealed road and accessible with a four-wheel drive vehicle during the dry season only, that goes from May until September/October. The only way to stay overnight is camping and some camping fees are charged, while no entry fees are applied. I visited the park in four days and saw some of the unsealed road and not most common touristic spots, where the tour operators bring tourist on a daily trip. Driving from Darwin via BERRY SPRINGS, the first stop of my visit to the park has been Wangi Falls, that is the most popular point due to the easy...