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What I Did on My Summer Holiday
Two years ago, my husband and I left on a 7 month long journey around the world. Taiwan, Vietnam, Cambodia, South Korea, Japan, US, New Zealand and Australia. I wrote about my first impressions while on the road. I tried again, a year and a half later, to take the long view. What lesson, if […]
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Escape from Perth
On 11 March 2020, the World Health Organization formally declares Covid-19 a pandemic. On that day, Frans is swimming laps at our seaside resort in Swansea, Tasmania. Countries begin to close their borders. Other countries go into their first lockdown. On 12 March 2020, Frans and I are hiking Douglas-Apsley National Park. My phone lights […]
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Foodie Down Under
In case you haven’t noticed yet, I’m a foodie. I know, foodie is a loaded term. It can imply anything from elitism to the corporate dumbing down of the Western world. In my case, all I mean to say is: I love to discover tastes and recreate them in my kitchen. And even more so […]
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Body and Soul
Women’s art is one of those vaguely suspect labels. On the one hand, it’s reductive to describe an artist’s work by way of her gender. On the other hand, I find myself drawn to work created by women. Even when I have no idea who the maker is. This happened to me in Hobart. There […]
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Wallaby World
A wallaby is a kangaroo that’s about my size. An adult male wallaby stands 1.5 meters tall. The female has a pouch and four teats for the benefit of the baby, known as a joey. There’s a fatter version of a wallaby called a pademelon. We’ve come to Bruny Island in Tasmania to find these […]
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Stargazing
Hobart is the capital of Tasmania. It was founded in 1804 as a British penal colony. We’ve come here to learn about Australia’s convict past. Secretly, my plan is to catch a glimpse of the stars. One such star is David Walsh, founder of the Museum of Old and New Art that lies a ferry […]
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Melbourne
Melbourne was the reason my husband set off on our round-the-world journey. In February 2020, we finally arrive. I had two points of inspiration that led to this moment: a book and a client. The book is The Fatal Shore. It is a vivid and often gruesome account of the colonization of Australia by convicts […]
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A Cold Wind
We were living the dream. Traveling from one exotic location to the next. Awed by art and food and nature. We had to wake up somewhere and in our case, that was New Zealand. Don’t get me wrong. New Zealand is awesome. It exceeds its reputation for natural beauty and then some. The Kiwis are […]
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The Hump
In month 5 of our 7 month round-the-world trip, I hit the hump. We had just arrived in Auckland. It was the start of a 5 week stay in New Zealand. The day we landed, the sky lit up with particulate matter drifting over from the bush fires in Australia. My husband and I had […]
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Kalalau Trail
Kalalau Trail runs along the Nāpali coast of the island Kauai in the US state of Hawaii. It consistently rates among the top 15 bucket list trails. What in the world made me think I could do it? I blame our friends on the Big Island for suggesting the Kalalau Trail in the first place. […]