Aug 27. From Three Sisters To Jurassic Park.

This was quite probably one of the most enjoyable single days I've ever had. My wonderfully generous host, Peter Rodgers, had offered to drive all the way to Katoomba and the Jenolan Caves. This excursion involved an early start (we were on the road by 7am), but turned out to be well worth it.

Essentially, the day broke down into three parts. First we reached Echo Point and had a good look at the Blue Mountains. And yes, they really do look blue, apparently because the local flora produce oils or resins which hang in the air and lend it a blue-ish tinge. This is a stunning and very beautiful effect, but one which will suffer in the translation to this here web page. Just trust me: they are stunning and you should go take a look if ever you get the chance. More words and pictures here.

After the thrills and joys of the Blue Mountains, we went over to Scenic World, a truly unforgettable place in all the right ways. There, we were able to take a ride on the world's steepest railroad, stroll through a genuine Jurassic forest and travel on an eerily futuristic Skyway cable car. It was also where I met the young lady pictured below right. More words and pictures here.

Last but not least, we reached the Jenolan Caves themselves, and took two amazing guided tours through these symphonic compositions of light and limestone. Words and pictures here.

Aug 28 - 30. Ayer's Rock: Four Views In 24 Hours.

Aug 28th was a relatively quiet day, mostly given over to preparations for the next 48 hours. The following day I was due to fly to Ayer's Rock, and I would be returning to Sydney the evening of the day after. However, when I got back I would be going immediately to a Skeptics Society dinner at which I was the entertainment. In other words, this was my last chance to prepare for the Ayer's Rock trip and for a show I would be giving 48 hours later.

Aug 29 - 30.

As soon as I knew I was coming out to Australia, I knew that I wanted to visit Ayer's Rock. I'd read about this incredible phenomenon ever since I was a child, and the more I saw of it, in books and on documentaries, the more certain I became that one day I would see it for real, up close and personal. And I did.

This was such am amazing experience, and I took so many photographs, that I have created four separate pages devoted to this amazing excursion. They start here.

Aug 31 - Sep 1. A Sword At The Barbie, A Soak At Barnaby's.

Large parts of my final two days in Australia were devoted to rather mundane tasks such as finalising the next leg of my trip, to Indonesia. I will just mention a couple of social highlights.

Alynda Brown insisted that my trip would not be complete without an authentic Australian barbeque, and so I was delighted when she and her husband David kindly decided to host one for myself and many other friends. It was an excellent party in all respects. Alynda is a superb hostess of many talents, not least the ability to serve up a variety of moderately lethal cocktails from her own very well-stocked bar. She also took me through some of her scary collection of martial arts weaponry, and showed me how to use a rather fearsome sword.

Alynda's family, including her delightful and very smart children, made me feel very welcome. David presided over the most elaborate charcoal grill I've ever seen, and proved himself a master of barbeque cuisine. Richard Saunders set up his laptop so we could see his photos from the Skeptics Conference. Steve Walker brought along his guitar, strummed a few tunes and also allowed me to pluck a string or two. This was a great favour. When I'm travelling, one of the things I miss most is KT, my beloved Maldonado classical acoustic guitar. I play with her almost every day when I'm at home, so when I'm far away and guitar-less my fingers soon begin to pine for her.

All in all it was a delightful party, thoroughly enjoyed by myself and all the other guests. And it's true: for some reason, barbeques do taste better south of the equator!   

On my final night, I was taken to Barnaby's restaurant for a farewell session of food, drink, chat and magic. The latter element was provided by Steve Walker, since Barnaby's is where he works as the resident close-up magician. One trick went wrong in rather spectacular fashion, resulting in a pint of beer spilling all over me!

And so ended my first visit to Australia. I was very pleased that I had managed to pack so much into so short a time, albeit with the help of my tirelessly generous host, Peter Rodgers, and my many friends Down Under. It had been a wonderful and enlightening trip, sometimes tiring in a good way but never dull. The value of any journey ultimately comes down to the people one meets and spends time with, and this trip had featured a rich cast of good people, all generous and helpful to a fault. There are many nations that pride themselves on their warmth, kindness and hospitality, but on the basis of this trip I'd have to say that Australia stands second to none. And it's got koalas too. What more could you want?

The next stage of my journey was to travel to Indonesia, to the island of Komodo and the world's largest lizards: the Komodo Dragons. This is a separate journey, and if you want to read about it, you can start here [link not yet provided].

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