December 7th never happened in my lifetime. Losing a day is a strange phenomenon that occurs when a traveler flies east to west and crosses the International Date Line.
This trip began in December 1999 when Jeff and I, two Americans, flew to Australia to celebrate the turn of the millennium in a very big way. A decade later, it seems not much has changed, especially off-the-beaten-path. Follow the blog as it takes you on a journey by train, plane, and automobile - a journey across a continent similar in size to the continental United States.
An American in Oz is my story.
Day 1 of 55:
Arriving in Sydney that warm summer day, the first item on our agenda was to find a place to stay the night. Jeff and I flew into the country with only one reservation in place, to take a train from Sydney to Perth the following morning (distances and locations explained in the next blog). We were traveling on a "No Plan" plan and fortunate to have found the Great Southern Hotel in Sydney. It was close to the train station and offered ideal accommodations.
(The photo above is one of Qantas' aircrafts set against an aerial view of the famous Sydney Opera House and Sydney Harbor Bridge. If you'd like a closer look, click on the photo to enlarge.)
