Holidaying On Bruny Island, A Desperate House Sale And A Sad End to A Romance

A little late but here are some stories of people I met the weekend before last.

Travelling home on United Airlines was an American couple who had spent a few weeks holiday on Bruny Island. I had to think for a moment and picture exactly where this was. It's actually a small island off the southern coastline of Tasmania and certainly well off the normal tourist trail. They went there the first time about 8 years ago and loved it so much that they bought a property there to come back and stay in regularly. The landscape reminds them of the upstate New York area where they live. Apparently there are only about 500 people that live there on a regular basis but that swells to about 5000-6000 during the peak holiday season.

The current economic crisis is affecting people in all sorts of ways. I met a woman on Qantas who was planning her emigration to Australia. She had just spent time with her son and daughter in the Central Coast and Port Stephens areas of NSW but had been trying to sell her house back in England for many months and was continuing to reduce the asking price. She was still hopeful of having enough money to be able to buy a property here.

There was an American guy who I chatted to who was in the wine business and had spent his time in the Barossa Valley. It was also fascinating to hear that he had been to Cuba. Officially US citizens still cannot travel there but he had done it via Mexico and didn't get any stamp in his passport. Cuba is one of those places that would be great to see and experience before it eventually and inevitably changes and modernizes.

I came across an English guy on his way home who wasn't terribly happy. I then discovered why. He had come to Sydney to marry his fiance but it seems they broke up instead and he spent the last part of his stay alone in the city.

A happier traveller was an English backpacker on his 3rd trip here and had spent 5 months travelling through WA, NT, NSW and QLD. He raved in particular about the great Whitsunday Islands cruise he had done.

What a mixed bunch of visitors that was!!

Peter

Souvenirs Australia Warehouse