This last weekend I came across plenty of interesting travellers. These included an Aussie woman who had been working in Bangladesh for 2 years and was heading back for the last 6 months of her stint there. It was fascinating to get her insights into a country that we normally hear very little about other than the frequent natural disasters that it seems to endure.
There were a couple of Aussies heading off to Thailand to live and work there. One of these was a teacher who already had 'Mai Pen Rai' tattooed on his arm. This is a common Thai saying which loosely translates to 'Never Mind', 'No Problem' or 'No Worries' as us Aussies commonly say.
I also chatted to a guy who had been in Sydney to be part of the crew on 'Black Jack' in the Sydney-Hobart yacht race but unfortunately couldn't take part due to to being unable to complete safety requirements in time. He was pretty good spirited and not too upset about it.
A Dutch guy I spoke to who was flying home on Malaysian Airlines had come all the way here for only 3 days. And he was proudly wearing his Dutch clogs footwear at the departure gate.
Among the other visitors on their way out at the weekend were an Indonesian girl who had just got married here, more Asian students on their way home and a lot of people who had been here to visit family or friends.
Till the New Year.
Peter
Souvenirs Australia Warehouse
Sunday, December 28, 2008
Wednesday, December 24, 2008
A Birthday Party in Goa, An English Dentist and an Emigrant to Newcastle
There have still been lots of overseas students heading home for a break after their year of study. These included 2 Malaysians, 1 Thai postgraduate student and even one from Myanmar.
I came across a young English dentist who had been working in Bunbury, Western Australia for a year or so and was now working in Mildura, Victoria. According to him there is plenty of work here for overseas dentists at present.
On a flight back to London was a UK guy who had been working in Newcastle for a few weeks at the airport there. He was going home for a few weeks to get his wife and children organized to emigrate here in January and take up a permanent position in Newcastle. Quite a big step for a young family to take. And coincidentally he had spent some of his childhood years growing up in Newcastle, England.
Heading to New Zealand was an English lady and her young son who had been here for a few weeks accompanying her husband who had been working in Scone, NSW.
A very friendly Indian gentleman was on the Thai flight to Bangkok and then onto India. He was heading for Goa where they were going to have a birthday celebration for his son. His son and other family members were already back there. Afterwards the rest of the family were going holidaying in the USA while the father was coming back to Oz to work and earn a few more dollars to pay for it all!
More traveller stories next week.
Peter
Souvenirs Australia Warehouse
I came across a young English dentist who had been working in Bunbury, Western Australia for a year or so and was now working in Mildura, Victoria. According to him there is plenty of work here for overseas dentists at present.
On a flight back to London was a UK guy who had been working in Newcastle for a few weeks at the airport there. He was going home for a few weeks to get his wife and children organized to emigrate here in January and take up a permanent position in Newcastle. Quite a big step for a young family to take. And coincidentally he had spent some of his childhood years growing up in Newcastle, England.
Heading to New Zealand was an English lady and her young son who had been here for a few weeks accompanying her husband who had been working in Scone, NSW.
A very friendly Indian gentleman was on the Thai flight to Bangkok and then onto India. He was heading for Goa where they were going to have a birthday celebration for his son. His son and other family members were already back there. Afterwards the rest of the family were going holidaying in the USA while the father was coming back to Oz to work and earn a few more dollars to pay for it all!
More traveller stories next week.
Peter
Souvenirs Australia Warehouse
Sunday, December 14, 2008
A Conference, A Large Family Group Aussie Holiday and More
I've only been working one day a week lately at the airport but still managing to catch up with lots of interesting visitors.
This week I spoke to 2 passengers on the Taipei flight who had both been attending a large academic conference at a Sydney university. Also on the same flight was a Filipino/Taiwanese student on her way home after spending the year studying here.
On a flight to Hong Kong I spoke to a young member of a large family group of 9 who were here for a one week holiday in Sydney, Melbourne and Canberra. Between them they spent about A$2500 per day on accomodation & food and drinks alone so they certainly helped our economy. s
Heading back to London where she is now living was an Aussie woman who had come back home for a short stay mainly to do gardening work at her house in Nowra, NSW.
Other visitors of note this week were a Fijian guy here for a week on business, an American guy here on business who I had also come across on his previous trip 'Down Under' and a friendly couple from Pennsylvania, USA who had just spent 2 weeks in Oz and 2 weeks in New Zealand and had a great time.
Till next time.
Peter
Souvenirs Australia Warehouse
This week I spoke to 2 passengers on the Taipei flight who had both been attending a large academic conference at a Sydney university. Also on the same flight was a Filipino/Taiwanese student on her way home after spending the year studying here.
On a flight to Hong Kong I spoke to a young member of a large family group of 9 who were here for a one week holiday in Sydney, Melbourne and Canberra. Between them they spent about A$2500 per day on accomodation & food and drinks alone so they certainly helped our economy. s
Heading back to London where she is now living was an Aussie woman who had come back home for a short stay mainly to do gardening work at her house in Nowra, NSW.
Other visitors of note this week were a Fijian guy here for a week on business, an American guy here on business who I had also come across on his previous trip 'Down Under' and a friendly couple from Pennsylvania, USA who had just spent 2 weeks in Oz and 2 weeks in New Zealand and had a great time.
Till next time.
Peter
Souvenirs Australia Warehouse
Sunday, December 7, 2008
Uranium Mining, Stranded Thai students and Filipino and Indian Family Visits
On the flight to Manila this week was a Filipino guy who had spent some months working in the uranium mines at Roxby Downs in South Australia. His work cycle was a continuous 2 weeks on and then 1 week off in Adelaide. While the money was good it's not something that I think that I could do for any length of time. He was not expecting to be back again for a few months as BHP have already scaled down mining activities due to the global economic downturn.
I came across some Thai students in transit in Sydney from New Zealand and finally on their way home to Bangkok. They had spent an extra unplanned week or so in Wellington after their studies for the year were over due to the airport closure in Bangkok. So they were very happy to be home within a few hours.
I also chatted to a friendly Vietnamese student who was travelling back to Saigon (Ho Chi Minh City) via Kuala Lumpur after completing his computing studies. His English was great and he was able to give me some tips on travelling in Vietnam for when I finally get to do my long awaited holiday there.
Other interesting visitors on their way home this week were a Swedish family who had travelled down the East Coast, a middle aged female Dutch backpacker, a Saudi who had been doing a TESOL (Teaching of English as a Second Language) course and some Filipinos and an Indian couple here for family visits.
As always, till next week.
Peter
Souvenirs Australia Warehouse
I came across some Thai students in transit in Sydney from New Zealand and finally on their way home to Bangkok. They had spent an extra unplanned week or so in Wellington after their studies for the year were over due to the airport closure in Bangkok. So they were very happy to be home within a few hours.
I also chatted to a friendly Vietnamese student who was travelling back to Saigon (Ho Chi Minh City) via Kuala Lumpur after completing his computing studies. His English was great and he was able to give me some tips on travelling in Vietnam for when I finally get to do my long awaited holiday there.
Other interesting visitors on their way home this week were a Swedish family who had travelled down the East Coast, a middle aged female Dutch backpacker, a Saudi who had been doing a TESOL (Teaching of English as a Second Language) course and some Filipinos and an Indian couple here for family visits.
As always, till next week.
Peter
Souvenirs Australia Warehouse
Wednesday, December 3, 2008
International Students Going Home, A Scientist and a Contiki Tourer
At this time of year I come across many international students who are studying in Australia and are on their way home for their end of year break. One of these was a student at ANU who was staying at a residential college on campus just down the road from the one I used to live in a very long time ago - way back in the 70's. Brought back some pleasant memories. :)-
I also talked to a scientist who had been here doing some research in collaboration with Adelaide University. He did tell me his field of interest but it now escapes my mind, I'm afraid.
Then there was the young English girl who had just done a Contiki tour from Cairns to Sydney and a German sister and brother who took a campervan down the Queensland coast. Talking to some of these people certainly contunies to whet my appetite for all the parts of Australia I should hurry up and go and see!
Others on their way out of the country included a guy who had attended a friends wedding in the Kangaroo Valley area in NSW, a conference attendee at Sydney University and a middle aged UK couple who were disappointed about missing their Bangkok stopover on the way home due to the airport closure and political turmoil in Bangkok. They did have a good Aussie stay though.
Till next time.
Peter
Souvenirs Australia Warehouse
I also talked to a scientist who had been here doing some research in collaboration with Adelaide University. He did tell me his field of interest but it now escapes my mind, I'm afraid.
Then there was the young English girl who had just done a Contiki tour from Cairns to Sydney and a German sister and brother who took a campervan down the Queensland coast. Talking to some of these people certainly contunies to whet my appetite for all the parts of Australia I should hurry up and go and see!
Others on their way out of the country included a guy who had attended a friends wedding in the Kangaroo Valley area in NSW, a conference attendee at Sydney University and a middle aged UK couple who were disappointed about missing their Bangkok stopover on the way home due to the airport closure and political turmoil in Bangkok. They did have a good Aussie stay though.
Till next time.
Peter
Souvenirs Australia Warehouse
Monday, November 24, 2008
2 Days of Advenure, A Domain Name Conference & A Midwife
This week I chatted to a Sri Lankan guy who had been working in Tonga for a few weeks and had a 2 day stay in Sydney (which was all he could have on a transit visa for Australia) which he filled with action packed adventure activities including power boating and a Bridge Climb. He was not your average laid back tourist.
I also came across an American who had attended a Domain Name conference on the Gold Coast. As domain name investment is another field of interest for me, we had an interesting discussion.
Family visitors included a woman from the UK who was visiting her daughter who is now working as a midwife in Townsville. They travelled together down the Queensland coast, Daydream Island and to Sydney.
Another conference attendee was an English lady who had attended a risk management conference in Perth. Quite topical in the current financial environment.
Other interviewees of note included a Singapore student studying Maths/Finance in Sydney who was going home for his end of year holiday break, a UK woman here for her nieces wedding in the gardens at Parliament House in Canberra and a young Fench girl who had been working here for 10 months.
Till next week. Take care.
Peter
Souvenirs Australia Warehouse
I also came across an American who had attended a Domain Name conference on the Gold Coast. As domain name investment is another field of interest for me, we had an interesting discussion.
Family visitors included a woman from the UK who was visiting her daughter who is now working as a midwife in Townsville. They travelled together down the Queensland coast, Daydream Island and to Sydney.
Another conference attendee was an English lady who had attended a risk management conference in Perth. Quite topical in the current financial environment.
Other interviewees of note included a Singapore student studying Maths/Finance in Sydney who was going home for his end of year holiday break, a UK woman here for her nieces wedding in the gardens at Parliament House in Canberra and a young Fench girl who had been working here for 10 months.
Till next week. Take care.
Peter
Souvenirs Australia Warehouse
Wednesday, November 19, 2008
From Horticulturalists to Futures Traders and, Of Course, Another Wedding
I met a friendly older couple from the US who had just completed a horticulture tour of our East Coast visiting botanic and other public gardens as well as many private gardens. The gentleman was in his 80's and he and his wife had done horticulture tours of many other countries already. Japan and possibly China were next in their sight to explore.
In sharp contrast to the above was a chat I had with a US futures and commodities trader who had been in Sydney to run training courses. It was good to get his persepctive on the current doom and gloom in financial markets.
A group of Contiki tour participants was on a flight home this week to the USA. They had done a trip up the Queensland coast and while they had a pretty good time, it seems it may have been a bit rushed and tried to cover too many stops in the 2 weeks they had here.
Other visitors of note on their way out of the country included a Dutch couple who had seen a lot of our continent, others here for family visits and a couple who did a campervan journey from Townsville to Brisbane.
And of course, as I have struck continually over the last few weeks, yet another couple here to attend a wedding in Sydney. Spring must be the season for weddings.
Till next time.
Peter
Souvenirs Australia Warehouse
In sharp contrast to the above was a chat I had with a US futures and commodities trader who had been in Sydney to run training courses. It was good to get his persepctive on the current doom and gloom in financial markets.
A group of Contiki tour participants was on a flight home this week to the USA. They had done a trip up the Queensland coast and while they had a pretty good time, it seems it may have been a bit rushed and tried to cover too many stops in the 2 weeks they had here.
Other visitors of note on their way out of the country included a Dutch couple who had seen a lot of our continent, others here for family visits and a couple who did a campervan journey from Townsville to Brisbane.
And of course, as I have struck continually over the last few weeks, yet another couple here to attend a wedding in Sydney. Spring must be the season for weddings.
Till next time.
Peter
Souvenirs Australia Warehouse
Monday, November 10, 2008
Rave Review for Jenolan Caves, the Horse Show Pub in Tassie and Yet More Weddings!
On Saturday I spoke to an Indian gentleman here with his wife to visit their daughter and son-in-law in Sydney. While they were taken to the Gold Coast and Brisbane which they enjoyed, his most positive comments were about Jenolan Caves. He described it as an amazing natural wonder that should be better promoted to international visitors.
I also came across a middle aged American guy who was here as a tourist with his father. They had spent time on our mainland, then over to NZ and back for a week in Tasmania. They enjoyed the week driving around Tassie and he made very favourable remarks about the meals to be had at the Horse Shoe pub in Cambridge. So it would probably pay to check them out next time you're down on the Apple Isle.
It certainly seems to be wedding season for overseas visitors in Australia. I met yet another young lady and her aunt who were here for not one, but two weddings. The brother and sister had timed both their weddings one week apart so a large family group from the UK could attend. One wedding was in Canberra and the other in the Hunter Valley.
Other travellers I spoke to this week included a young female Japanese backpacker who travelled here on her own for 2 weeks in Sydney, an English backpacker here for a year with a working holiday stint of a few months in Melbourne and an older group of family and friends from Singapore for a one week package holiday in Melbourne and Sydney.
Hearing about the adventuires of overseas visitors to our country continues to whet my appetite for my own trip around as much as possible of our huge country.
Till next week.
Peter
Souvenirs Australia Warehouse
I also came across a middle aged American guy who was here as a tourist with his father. They had spent time on our mainland, then over to NZ and back for a week in Tasmania. They enjoyed the week driving around Tassie and he made very favourable remarks about the meals to be had at the Horse Shoe pub in Cambridge. So it would probably pay to check them out next time you're down on the Apple Isle.
It certainly seems to be wedding season for overseas visitors in Australia. I met yet another young lady and her aunt who were here for not one, but two weddings. The brother and sister had timed both their weddings one week apart so a large family group from the UK could attend. One wedding was in Canberra and the other in the Hunter Valley.
Other travellers I spoke to this week included a young female Japanese backpacker who travelled here on her own for 2 weeks in Sydney, an English backpacker here for a year with a working holiday stint of a few months in Melbourne and an older group of family and friends from Singapore for a one week package holiday in Melbourne and Sydney.
Hearing about the adventuires of overseas visitors to our country continues to whet my appetite for my own trip around as much as possible of our huge country.
Till next week.
Peter
Souvenirs Australia Warehouse
Friday, November 7, 2008
An Israeli Surfer and Another Wedding
Talked to an Israeli guy this week on his way back home via Tokyo. He had spent some time here on work then had a few days in Fiji and had given himself a spare day on his way through to spend surfing at Bondi Beach. I don't come across that many Israeli travellers and I don't think I've met an Israeli surfer before.
On the Jetstar flight to Bali I came across an English couple who had rented out a house on the Gold Coast for their wedding. All went well and they had quite a few guests come out from England to attend as well as Aussie relatives and friends. And of course they were looking forward to their Bali honeymoon.
Other interesting visitors this week included a middle aged couple from Hawaii who had really enjoyed their stay here and a Thai lady who had recently married an Aussie and had been staying in the small town of Griffith, NSW. What a change from the hustle and bustle of Bangkok to the quiet country life in Griffith!!
Till next time.
Peter
Souvenirs Australia Warehouse
On the Jetstar flight to Bali I came across an English couple who had rented out a house on the Gold Coast for their wedding. All went well and they had quite a few guests come out from England to attend as well as Aussie relatives and friends. And of course they were looking forward to their Bali honeymoon.
Other interesting visitors this week included a middle aged couple from Hawaii who had really enjoyed their stay here and a Thai lady who had recently married an Aussie and had been staying in the small town of Griffith, NSW. What a change from the hustle and bustle of Bangkok to the quiet country life in Griffith!!
Till next time.
Peter
Souvenirs Australia Warehouse
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
The Long Way to Vanuatu, Stevie Wonder Concert in Sydney & Another Prospective Emigrant
This week I chatted to a fellow who was travelling from Fiji to Vanuatu via Sydney. He'd arrived in Sydney in the morning from Fiji and was off to Vanuatu in the evening and hadn't left Sydney airport. That's what you call the 'real long way round'. Well there are direct flights, unfortunately there were none on this particular day of the week.
Then there was another UK guy living in Berlin who had only 2 nights in Sydney to visit a friend after a stay in New Zealand. He ended up going to the Stevie Wonder concert after purchasing the ticket at the last minute on the recommendation of his friends partner who went to the concert 2 nights in a row. He was in New Zealand checking out job options and had to decide in the next few days whether to take a position and move his family from Germany to New Zealand.
I came across a few others here for short term business or work trips. One was an American who had worked on a new water desalination plant currently being built on the Gold Coast. There were also quite a few visitors here to catch up with family including a 16 year old German girl who travelled here on her own to visit family in Sydney.
Other memorable travellers included a couple of young Swiss girls who rented a car and drove from Brisbane to Cairns and a German woman who really hated Cairns but loved Port Douglas.
I often come across people who are considering emigrating Down Under. This week I talked to a guy from Qatar who had visited most of the major Australian capitals to determine where he liked best. He had done some sort of qualifying immigration test while he was in Melbourne. His overall verdict was that he liked Perth best so we just might be soon welcoming him as a new resident over in the West.
Till next time.
Peter
Souvenirs Australia Warehouse
Then there was another UK guy living in Berlin who had only 2 nights in Sydney to visit a friend after a stay in New Zealand. He ended up going to the Stevie Wonder concert after purchasing the ticket at the last minute on the recommendation of his friends partner who went to the concert 2 nights in a row. He was in New Zealand checking out job options and had to decide in the next few days whether to take a position and move his family from Germany to New Zealand.
I came across a few others here for short term business or work trips. One was an American who had worked on a new water desalination plant currently being built on the Gold Coast. There were also quite a few visitors here to catch up with family including a 16 year old German girl who travelled here on her own to visit family in Sydney.
Other memorable travellers included a couple of young Swiss girls who rented a car and drove from Brisbane to Cairns and a German woman who really hated Cairns but loved Port Douglas.
I often come across people who are considering emigrating Down Under. This week I talked to a guy from Qatar who had visited most of the major Australian capitals to determine where he liked best. He had done some sort of qualifying immigration test while he was in Melbourne. His overall verdict was that he liked Perth best so we just might be soon welcoming him as a new resident over in the West.
Till next time.
Peter
Souvenirs Australia Warehouse
Sunday, October 19, 2008
Honeymooners, A Wet Wedding and R & R from Iraq
I continue to meet a lot of honeymooners who have chosen our country for their special holiday. This week I talked to an Italian couple and UK couple who both had a great time 'Down Under'.
There was also the UK lass who had come with friends to attend a wedding in Noosa and a few days in Byron Bay. Unfortunately they struck the wettest few days there in some time so the wedding had to be brought indoors. But a good time still had by all.
I also came across a US soldier who was in Sydney on an 'R and R' break from his term of duty in Iraq and a Swiss women and her daughter who raved about their great travel experience in Broome and the Kimberleys region. It reminds me of so many parts of this huge country that overseas visitors explore but most of us locals have never been near.
There are students from all over the place in NSW these days. I met a couple from Saudi Arabia at the weekend. Other visitors of note were a fellow from Vanuatu who had a couple of nights in Sydney in order to obtain his Swiss visa, the young Italian backpacker who had been in Central Australia and Sydney and was so sad to leave and a nice elderly UK lady who was here to visit her son and 5 week old grandson.
Till next time.
Peter
Souvenirs Australia Warehouse
There was also the UK lass who had come with friends to attend a wedding in Noosa and a few days in Byron Bay. Unfortunately they struck the wettest few days there in some time so the wedding had to be brought indoors. But a good time still had by all.
I also came across a US soldier who was in Sydney on an 'R and R' break from his term of duty in Iraq and a Swiss women and her daughter who raved about their great travel experience in Broome and the Kimberleys region. It reminds me of so many parts of this huge country that overseas visitors explore but most of us locals have never been near.
There are students from all over the place in NSW these days. I met a couple from Saudi Arabia at the weekend. Other visitors of note were a fellow from Vanuatu who had a couple of nights in Sydney in order to obtain his Swiss visa, the young Italian backpacker who had been in Central Australia and Sydney and was so sad to leave and a nice elderly UK lady who was here to visit her son and 5 week old grandson.
Till next time.
Peter
Souvenirs Australia Warehouse
Wednesday, October 15, 2008
A Brand New Lawyer, A Tourism Teacher and Canberra Property
There was another good mix of people leaving Sydney last weekend. I came across a pleasant young Singapore lady who came here with her mum for her official admittance to law practice. She had studied at Uni here for 5 years but was only here for a week this time and already had a job lined up back in Singapore.
Another friendly respondent was a New Zealander who also came here with her mum for a holiday just in Central Australia. It turned out she teaches tourism in New Zealand so this made her quite interested in be questioned about her stay in Australia.
Then there was the Aussie guy, travelling on an Indian passport, who has been living and working in Bahrain with his family for the last 10 years. He had come back to purchase property in Canberra and had formerly lived in the same suburb (and only a few streets away) as I had in Canberra back in the 80's and 90's. It's a small world......
I also spoke to a young Indonesian lady who had spent her whole 3 months in Australia with a friend in Coffs Harbour and a New Zealander who was here for only 4 days sadly for a funeral.
Till next time.
Peter
Souvenirs Australia Warehouse
Another friendly respondent was a New Zealander who also came here with her mum for a holiday just in Central Australia. It turned out she teaches tourism in New Zealand so this made her quite interested in be questioned about her stay in Australia.
Then there was the Aussie guy, travelling on an Indian passport, who has been living and working in Bahrain with his family for the last 10 years. He had come back to purchase property in Canberra and had formerly lived in the same suburb (and only a few streets away) as I had in Canberra back in the 80's and 90's. It's a small world......
I also spoke to a young Indonesian lady who had spent her whole 3 months in Australia with a friend in Coffs Harbour and a New Zealander who was here for only 4 days sadly for a funeral.
Till next time.
Peter
Souvenirs Australia Warehouse
Sunday, October 5, 2008
Thai Honeymooners, a Russian in Bangkok and a very young Italian backpacker
Came across plenty of the regular NZ businessmen heading home for the weekend but also some other friendly people such as a young Vietnamese lady visiting her cousin who lives in New Zealand. She had a good few hours in transit in Sydney so went into the city and fulfilled her main desire of seeing the Opera House close up (and of course the Bridge and our great harbour). I also met a New Zealander of Chinese origin who is currently working in Hong Kong. She chose to spend her day in transit with some friends here.
On a Thai flight I met a Thai honeymooning couple who had spent 10 days in Melbourne and Sydney and the husband had listed virtually all expenses by listing them on a sheet of paper. This careful accounting even included items of less than $5. Maybe the Thai tax office allows deductions for honeymoon expenses????
Another Thai flight included a Russian who was currently living in Thailand. She works for an online hotel reservation businesss and was here to try and sign up some hotels for their web sites.
Yet another passenger flying Thai was a very young Italian backpacker travelling on her own. She was only 17 and was as confident as an experienced traveller many years older. She had spent 3 months in Australia, then off to Fiji to get another Aussie visa for her second stay here. And of course she had a great time down under!!!
Leaving on SQ was an Aussie who had been living in China for 9 years and came back to spend a week with the family and to literally just 'hang out on the back verandah' of the family home.
Other visitors heading out included Indians studying and working in Oz, a Japanese businessman here for a few days and a Thai who attended a conference in Cairns.
Till next week.
Peter
Souvenirs Australia Warehouse
On a Thai flight I met a Thai honeymooning couple who had spent 10 days in Melbourne and Sydney and the husband had listed virtually all expenses by listing them on a sheet of paper. This careful accounting even included items of less than $5. Maybe the Thai tax office allows deductions for honeymoon expenses????
Another Thai flight included a Russian who was currently living in Thailand. She works for an online hotel reservation businesss and was here to try and sign up some hotels for their web sites.
Yet another passenger flying Thai was a very young Italian backpacker travelling on her own. She was only 17 and was as confident as an experienced traveller many years older. She had spent 3 months in Australia, then off to Fiji to get another Aussie visa for her second stay here. And of course she had a great time down under!!!
Leaving on SQ was an Aussie who had been living in China for 9 years and came back to spend a week with the family and to literally just 'hang out on the back verandah' of the family home.
Other visitors heading out included Indians studying and working in Oz, a Japanese businessman here for a few days and a Thai who attended a conference in Cairns.
Till next week.
Peter
Souvenirs Australia Warehouse
Sunday, September 28, 2008
From Ireland to Lightning Ridge
Met an Irish couple on their way to NZ who had spent most of the time in Australia well off the beaten tourist track. They had one night in Dubbo and then the rest of their stay in Lightning Ridge, a small outback NSW town known mainly for its opal mining. It turned out their daughter was living and working as a nurse there and had already started a family after meeting an Aussie guy on her travels around Australia. The reason for their vist to NZ was to visit another daughter who had settled there. I suspect they'll be making a few more trips Down Under in the future.
Among others I spoke to this week were a Singapore woman who had been holidaying with her husband in Coffs Harbour and a Sri Lankan lass who had come for her cousins wedding in Sydney.
I also interviewed a young Thai student who had been studying hospitality at Uni in Armidale and was soon to be working under a major Australian chef in Brisbane. She was very excited about that.
Want to know more about Lightning Ridge? Find it here.
Talk again soon. Don't forget I'd love to hear your comments or stories about overseas travellers you have come across in Australia.
Peter
Souvenirs Australia Warehouse
Among others I spoke to this week were a Singapore woman who had been holidaying with her husband in Coffs Harbour and a Sri Lankan lass who had come for her cousins wedding in Sydney.
I also interviewed a young Thai student who had been studying hospitality at Uni in Armidale and was soon to be working under a major Australian chef in Brisbane. She was very excited about that.
Want to know more about Lightning Ridge? Find it here.
Talk again soon. Don't forget I'd love to hear your comments or stories about overseas travellers you have come across in Australia.
Peter
Souvenirs Australia Warehouse
Wednesday, September 24, 2008
The Wrong Sydney and Russian & Kiwi Family Visits
As per usual I met some nice friendly visitors to the land of OZ in this last week but also a few more people than normal that weren't keen on talking.
There were quite a few family gatherings that included a Russian lady from Petersburg who had just spent 6 months with her daughter in Canberra and a very sociable Kiwi who had been babysitting the grandchildren in Sydney while the parents were holidaying in Europe. I also spoke to an Irish woman who had come a long way to see her sick sister in Sydney.
I sometimes get some very interesting passport/nationality/ethnic/residency mixes. One this week was a Thai who was travelling on a Swedish passport and came to visit a friend in Sydney. She had been married to a Swede but was now separated and back in Thailand while her children were still at school in Sweden.
Other friendly chats I had included one with a student from Saudi Arabia studying in Sydney and a Canadian guy in the hotel business who had been in Sydney for work for a few days and was on his way to Beijing also for business. While we have large numbers of Asian students now studying in Australia, I hadn't come across any from Saudi before.
One person I didn't get to talk to was an Argentine tourist who ended up in Sydney, Nova Scotia, Canada instead of Sydney, Australia. Read about it here. She booked the flights online so maybe she should use a good travel agent next time!
Till next time.
Peter
Souvenirs Australia Warehouse
There were quite a few family gatherings that included a Russian lady from Petersburg who had just spent 6 months with her daughter in Canberra and a very sociable Kiwi who had been babysitting the grandchildren in Sydney while the parents were holidaying in Europe. I also spoke to an Irish woman who had come a long way to see her sick sister in Sydney.
I sometimes get some very interesting passport/nationality/ethnic/residency mixes. One this week was a Thai who was travelling on a Swedish passport and came to visit a friend in Sydney. She had been married to a Swede but was now separated and back in Thailand while her children were still at school in Sweden.
Other friendly chats I had included one with a student from Saudi Arabia studying in Sydney and a Canadian guy in the hotel business who had been in Sydney for work for a few days and was on his way to Beijing also for business. While we have large numbers of Asian students now studying in Australia, I hadn't come across any from Saudi before.
One person I didn't get to talk to was an Argentine tourist who ended up in Sydney, Nova Scotia, Canada instead of Sydney, Australia. Read about it here. She booked the flights online so maybe she should use a good travel agent next time!
Till next time.
Peter
Souvenirs Australia Warehouse
Wednesday, September 17, 2008
Life in Zimbabwe and Stories about God
Came across a friendly Italian guy last week who was working in Oz for a few weeks. Turned out he was a technician for aluminium manufacturing machines and for the past 8 years has spent 3 weeks out of every 4 travelling the world fixing these machines. I didn't ask him how many frequent flyer points he had!! He was due to go to Iran next month and wasn't particularly looking forward to that visit.
I also interviewed a young Irish guy heading to NZ last weekend. The book he was reading caught my attention - the title was 'God Is Not Great'. I made a comment about it and he then showed me the card he was using as a bookmark. It was given to him by someone who saw him reading the book in a Maccas somewhere up on the North Coast of NSW. I'm trying to remember the exact wording but it was along the lines of 'The cost of sin is death'. The interesting part though was that when you turned the card around the other way you could read the wording 'the belief of faith is life'.
Vicki has passed on some details of memorable people she has interviewed in recent times which I have included here.
* Some time ago I spoke to a very nice New Zealand woman who had been to Australia to deliver her very sick daughter to a live-in eating disorder clinic as they don't have any in NZ. The daughters illness was at the life threatening stage and I often wonder how the story ended.
* Also a while ago, I chatted to a very quietly spoken American who was part of the US navy and also part of the team that rescued the Russian sub off the bottom of the ocean. He was very interesting.
* I think my most enthralling interview to date was a young white woman from Zimbabwe who shared with me just what it is like to live over there. No power for at least 15 hours a day, no running or hot water and living off the blackmarket. She had a well paid job as a school teacher and earnt just $US160 per month. It certainly made me appreciate our lifestyle here!!
I also interviewed a young Irish guy heading to NZ last weekend. The book he was reading caught my attention - the title was 'God Is Not Great'. I made a comment about it and he then showed me the card he was using as a bookmark. It was given to him by someone who saw him reading the book in a Maccas somewhere up on the North Coast of NSW. I'm trying to remember the exact wording but it was along the lines of 'The cost of sin is death'. The interesting part though was that when you turned the card around the other way you could read the wording 'the belief of faith is life'.
Vicki has passed on some details of memorable people she has interviewed in recent times which I have included here.
* Some time ago I spoke to a very nice New Zealand woman who had been to Australia to deliver her very sick daughter to a live-in eating disorder clinic as they don't have any in NZ. The daughters illness was at the life threatening stage and I often wonder how the story ended.
* Also a while ago, I chatted to a very quietly spoken American who was part of the US navy and also part of the team that rescued the Russian sub off the bottom of the ocean. He was very interesting.
* I think my most enthralling interview to date was a young white woman from Zimbabwe who shared with me just what it is like to live over there. No power for at least 15 hours a day, no running or hot water and living off the blackmarket. She had a well paid job as a school teacher and earnt just $US160 per month. It certainly made me appreciate our lifestyle here!!
Till next week.
Peter
Wednesday, September 10, 2008
Some Memorable Travellers
To start things off I'll recall a few travellers that I've spoken to in recent weeks and then try and update this on a weekly basis.
The first one is actually from some time ago - perhaps 18 months or so. He was a young guy in his early 20's, a New Zealander I think, and he had spent only one night in Sydney and then 3 or 4 nights in Thredbo. That was his entire stay in Australia and as this was during the summer period I was a little curious as to his reason for visiting Thredbo.
It turned out he was a mountaineer and was progressing towards his aim of climbing the Seven Summits, ie. the highest mountain on every continent. His father had already achieved this and he was well on the way, having climbed at least 2 or 3 of the others before Kosciuszko. I can't recall those those he had already done but do remember that it didn't include Everest. I reckon Kosciuszko was the easiest one to achieve as even I've done that one.....
A couple of weeks back I interviewed a young German girl who had spent a few months in Australia. At first I thought she was just another backpacker who had travelled and partied up the East Coast but it turned out there was a little more to her story. She had worked as a jillaroo for a couple of months on outback farm in South Australian and then spent a couple of months working in the pub in an outback S.A. town of only 7 people. Presumably there was a reasonable amount of passing traffic. During this stay she met an Aboriginal Australian guy and was now engaged to him. He now has his trip to Germany planned for later in the year. Just shows that you don't know where your travels will lead you and where you'll end up finding love.
I met an Australian woman recently that was working in the Cayman Islands as a speech therapist and her husband is a lawyer there. She'd been there 3 years already and was just visiting family back home. It never ceases to amaze me how far and wide our 1 million Aussie expats are spread around the world.
An Indian gentleman I spoke to recently after his few days stay in Sydney told me about the family wedding he had attended in Hua Hin, Thailand. I was curious and asked why in Thailand - did some of the family live there? Was it a Thai style wedding? He said that no, it was an Indian wedding and none of the family or other guests lived in Thailand. As some guests were in India and others were in the USA, they just decided to have it in an in-between place. I have been to Hua Hin - its a weekend beach resort more for Thais than international visitors - and am still getting my head around how the locals reacted to a big Bollywood style wedding in their midst!!
On MH140 a couple of weeks back I met a Malaysian civil engineer who was working in Sydney on a 4 year contract on a 457 visa. He was enjoying it here and bringing his family down in December. It seems that there are rapidly increasing numbers of overseas workers arriving on these visas who have skills in fields where there are shortages in Australia.
I recently also spoke to a British guy who had been living in Bangkok for the last 5 years and was working as a lecturer in ecology at Mahidol University. He had come here for a conference in Cairns and was looking at moving there to live. This made sense as his particular field of interest was coral.
Last month I interviewed a young male German backpacker in a group of 3 who gave me World Youth Day as their main reason for coming to Australia. He then told me about how he had hitched around NSW and Queensland after WYD activities getting lifts with truckies and even sleeping in a shower/toilet block in one place. Then the 3 of them started eyeing off some young attractive women that sat down in the departure gate area nearby and told me that they were having a week in Bangkok on the way home. They just didn't seem to fit the WYD pilgrim profile that I'd come to expect....
Feel free to make comments or tell me about other interesting travellers you've met in Australian or other airports or on planes.
Till next time.
Peter
Souvenirs Australia Warehouse
The first one is actually from some time ago - perhaps 18 months or so. He was a young guy in his early 20's, a New Zealander I think, and he had spent only one night in Sydney and then 3 or 4 nights in Thredbo. That was his entire stay in Australia and as this was during the summer period I was a little curious as to his reason for visiting Thredbo.
It turned out he was a mountaineer and was progressing towards his aim of climbing the Seven Summits, ie. the highest mountain on every continent. His father had already achieved this and he was well on the way, having climbed at least 2 or 3 of the others before Kosciuszko. I can't recall those those he had already done but do remember that it didn't include Everest. I reckon Kosciuszko was the easiest one to achieve as even I've done that one.....
A couple of weeks back I interviewed a young German girl who had spent a few months in Australia. At first I thought she was just another backpacker who had travelled and partied up the East Coast but it turned out there was a little more to her story. She had worked as a jillaroo for a couple of months on outback farm in South Australian and then spent a couple of months working in the pub in an outback S.A. town of only 7 people. Presumably there was a reasonable amount of passing traffic. During this stay she met an Aboriginal Australian guy and was now engaged to him. He now has his trip to Germany planned for later in the year. Just shows that you don't know where your travels will lead you and where you'll end up finding love.
I met an Australian woman recently that was working in the Cayman Islands as a speech therapist and her husband is a lawyer there. She'd been there 3 years already and was just visiting family back home. It never ceases to amaze me how far and wide our 1 million Aussie expats are spread around the world.
An Indian gentleman I spoke to recently after his few days stay in Sydney told me about the family wedding he had attended in Hua Hin, Thailand. I was curious and asked why in Thailand - did some of the family live there? Was it a Thai style wedding? He said that no, it was an Indian wedding and none of the family or other guests lived in Thailand. As some guests were in India and others were in the USA, they just decided to have it in an in-between place. I have been to Hua Hin - its a weekend beach resort more for Thais than international visitors - and am still getting my head around how the locals reacted to a big Bollywood style wedding in their midst!!
On MH140 a couple of weeks back I met a Malaysian civil engineer who was working in Sydney on a 4 year contract on a 457 visa. He was enjoying it here and bringing his family down in December. It seems that there are rapidly increasing numbers of overseas workers arriving on these visas who have skills in fields where there are shortages in Australia.
I recently also spoke to a British guy who had been living in Bangkok for the last 5 years and was working as a lecturer in ecology at Mahidol University. He had come here for a conference in Cairns and was looking at moving there to live. This made sense as his particular field of interest was coral.
Last month I interviewed a young male German backpacker in a group of 3 who gave me World Youth Day as their main reason for coming to Australia. He then told me about how he had hitched around NSW and Queensland after WYD activities getting lifts with truckies and even sleeping in a shower/toilet block in one place. Then the 3 of them started eyeing off some young attractive women that sat down in the departure gate area nearby and told me that they were having a week in Bangkok on the way home. They just didn't seem to fit the WYD pilgrim profile that I'd come to expect....
Feel free to make comments or tell me about other interesting travellers you've met in Australian or other airports or on planes.
Till next time.
Peter
Souvenirs Australia Warehouse
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
