Category: Travel

What a Difference Eleven Days Make!

It’s hard to believe that only eleven short days ago, we were weighing the pros and cons of canceling our trip to Morocco. Unless you are living in a cave, on an island, without cell reception, you know how the world has been turned upside down by the CoronaVirus. The tragedies in China, Iran and Italy are all heartbreaking and sobering.

On March 4th, when I last posted, the conventional wisdom (and internet info) said that if you washed your hands, didn’t touch your face, stayed six feet away from sneezers and had a relatively robust immune system, then you were in good shape to win the CoronaVirus battle. Okay, then. The more cautious (or as my mother used to say–the more REASONABLE) member of this traveling duo voted for immediate cancellation, while the other advocated to “wait and see”. My family has absolutely no problem figuring out who was who.

Ultimately we did both. We waited five more days, then canceled. It seemed like every hour, we were getting notified that something else was being postponed or canceled, like basketball, political gatherings, Broadway shows, our speaker series. As it turns out, a few days later, our tour company, Overseas Adventure Travel announced that ALL March and April departures were canceled. Those who had not yet canceled could get a voucher for a future trip.

Some friends are currently out of the country. I just heard from one in Egypt. She said that OAT is cutting her trip short because of all the flight cancellations. Her group will be getting a pro-rated refund. Talk about a positive attitude–the group is already thinking about when they will be able to return. Another friend made it to JFK, then learned that Argentina had closed its borders to all travelers from countries with CoronaVirus outbreaks. HER trip ended before it even started.

We are concerned about the impact this is having on the wonderful tour guides we traveled with over the past several years. We hope that they, especially the ones in Italy, are safe and are not economically hurt too badly by this slow down in tourism.

So, where are we now? For the past few days, we have been practicing “extreme social distancing”. Today, we were notified that our local Y is closing for two weeks. We had stopped going two days ago, not because we are panic stricken, but because we wanted to do our part to help keep our community safe. Let’s hope that together we can all take the necessary steps to “flatten the curve”.

To GO or Not TO GO, THAT is the Question

In September of 2018, we signed up with Overseas Adventure Travel for a March 2020 trip to Morocco. Why plan so far in advance? We wanted to travel with friends, OAT limits their groups to 16, and popular trips sell out quickly. We had no difficulty recruiting 11 friends to go on the tour with us. So far so good. Fast forward to today, with departure date rapidly approaching. As my favorite philosopher, John Lennon, once said, “Life is what happens when you’re busy making other plans.”

Well ol’ John was right. “Life” has certainly jumped up and slapped us in the face. Within the last two months three travel buddies had to drop out. One member of a couple was diagnosed with a serious medical issue, then another fell and fractured her knee. Their future absence made us realize how much we were looking forward to spending time with them.

Because the trip is so popular, their spots were quickly taken by other OAT travelers –also known as friends we haven’t met yet. So, there will still be 16 of us on the trip. But wait, we aren’t finished. Unless you are in a coma, you have probably heard about the coronavirus. So far, none of us has allowed it to disrupt our plans.

Fortunately, according to our State Department, Morocco is looking safe. Still, we have to fly to get there and back, and our plans include a three day stopover in Paris before we enter Morocco. Although the State Department hasn’t identified France as a “do not travel” country, another source indicated that several cases have popped up in France.

What to do? Sadly, we have to acknowledge that being over 65, we have aged into the “at risk” group. Fortunately, we are relatively healthy, and are up to date on all of our shots. Still, we recently experienced another country’s health care system, and although the outcome was positive, visiting my spouse in the Alice Springs Hospital was not a high point of our trip to Australia. (Clearly, it wasn’t my spouse’s either.) On a positive note, although we learned just how wonderful our medicare supplement coverage is when we are outside of the USA, we hope to never have to use it again!

As of today, according to the US State Department, Morocco and Paris have only the usual warnings about terrorist activities, but that is the world we live in. Given our record of gun violence in schools, churches, shopping malls, movie theaters, we could just as easily be mowed down by a home grown terrorist shooting his assault weapon. I refuse to let terrorists, either here or elsewhere, win. A virus, however, is another matter.

As of today, Morocco has reported its first case of the coronavirus; its victim, a man who returned from a visit to Italy, is being treated in a Casablanca hospital.

In Paris, a protest by workers closed the Louvre for two days, until the Museum staff assured the workers that “proper measures” to ensure their safety were being taken.

What happens if we get to Paris, and Morocco decides not to let anyone into the country from France –or from the USA? Let’s face it, several states have reported outbreaks, with many of the victims having no known source of contact. Our response is being managed by Mike Pence, who is not noted for his expertise in the medical and scientific arena. Maybe other countries will view US as being problematic? What if we make it to Morocco, an outbreak occurs and we can’t fly home? What if we catch a cold or some other nasty thing on the flights, either to or from our destination and we have to be quarantined until we are tested and certified as okay? So many “what ifs”. One thing that’s certain, if we go, my plan to travel with “carry on only” has been abandoned. I want to be sure we have enough clean clothes to get us through any “what ifs” that come our way.

In addition to cancelling all trips to China, South Korea and Mongolia, OAT has allowed travelers that signed up for their Italy trips the option to cancel right up to the date of departure, choosing either to apply their payment to a future OAT trip or to get a refund, minus a small processing fee. That gives us peace of mind.

What will we do? We will prepare as if we are going to take the trip, watch the news, check the internet and wait to see how it all unfolds.

Trip Insurance–Is it Worth It?

Here’s the Cliffs Note version: It all depends. For some, trip insurance is definitely worth it. But there are caveats. Know what you need, know what you are buying, choose a reputable company, consider other options.

If you read my Australia blog posts, you will recall that my husband had a freak accident, which put him in the Alice Springs Hospital for three days. We missed several days of our trip, but were grateful that everything ultimately turned out well.

Tips for Filing a Claim

  • Notify the insurance company as soon as you realize you will be submitting a claim. They can email you the claim form, tell you what to include when you submit your claim and provide moral support. The medical team at AIG Travel Guard was wonderful. Although I didn’t need their help, it was nice to know they were available, if I wanted them to check up on me and my husband.
  • Keep ALL receipts. I immediately bought a spiral bound notebook and scotch tape, so that I could enter every receipt, by day, into the notebook, with notations indicating what the expense was for. It is very easy to lose small pieces of paper, like taxi receipts.
  • If you can, pay everything with one credit card. It makes documentation much easier. If you are in a foreign country, your credit card statement will have a record of the currency exchange rate for that item. You simply match the receipt against the credit card charge, and you save the claim examiner that extra task, which brings me to the next point.
  • Make it as easy as possible for the claim examiner to pay the claim. A claim for trip interruption is far more complicated than one for trip cancellation, so more information was needed to process our claim.
  • I created a “claim package”, with a cover letter and a table of contents. I explained what was being provided and identified the attached exhibits. I also created a spreadsheet showing what I expected to collect. It took me a day to get everything organized, but I didn’t have any back and forth with either insurance company.
This will give you an idea of the paperwork I submitted. Can you see why I wanted to help the claim examiner out?

Know What You Need
Medicare does not cover you when you are out of the USA, so for some people, the main reason for buying trip insurance is to get medical coverage. We are fortunate enough to have a very generous medicare supplement, which DOES cover us for emergency services wherever we are in the world. So, for that reason, I chose the AIG policy that offered minimal medical and dental coverage, and the medical coverage was secondary. (That means they will pay after other insurance has paid first. So, you need to submit to your primary carrier, and then whatever isn’t covered, you would submit to the secondary carrier.) If your health plan has a high deductible, and high out of pocket maximum, then you may want or need more generous travel insurance benefits.

For some people, “cancel for any reason” protection may make sense. This might be true for someone still in the work force, who may have to change vacation plans because of work responsibilities.

Our main concern has been trip cancellation for health reasons (either ours or a family member), or trip interruption. Remember when the volcano in Iceland erupted and people were unable to continue with their original travel plans? That’s the sort of thing that worries me.

You can get plans that offer trip interruption at 100% of the cost of the trip (the amount you are insuring) or 150% of the cost of the trip. Why would you want to purchase coverage for more than the cost of the trip? Well, if your trip is interrupted, you may have to stay in another country longer than planned or you may have to change flight arrangements (which could be very expensive).

But what if you are not on a group tour? What if you are traveling on your own, to hotels that allow you to cancel within a day or two of arrival? You may not need any trip insurance at all.

Know What You are Buying
I use Insuremytrip.com to compare various travel insurance options. There are other companies, such as Squaremouth.com, but I’ve had good luck with Insuremytrip, so they are the only company that I have had experience with.
Others may be more comfortable using an insurance agent to find the plan that best meets their needs. If you DO decide to do it on your own, be sure to download the complete policy and read it carefully so that you know exactly what you are getting.
Things to look out for: Pre-Existing condition exclusion clauses, what qualifies as a covered reason for trip cancellation, what level of coverage is offered for things that are important to YOU and is that coverage primary or secondary?
For example, I never check anything valuable when I travel, so I don’t care about the level of coverage for lost luggage. The airlines offer some coverage for delayed or lost luggage, and the airline is usually considered primary.
If you are uncomfortable purchasing a plan from the internet, you can speak with a representative for Insuremytrip.com. They are not paid commissions, so they do not have a financial interest in your choice of plan. That may be true of similar companies.

Choose a Reputable Company
Take the time to read the reviews. Insuremytrip, for example, includes Better Business Bureau ratings, AM Best ratings, years in business, and reviews by users for each of the companies offered, and allows you to do a side by side comparison of the plans. You can also do a google search.

Other Options
Check your credit card for any coverage they might offer. You need to read the booklet that they give you when you first enroll, or compare the benefits of the various companies on line.
I had never considered the Chase Sapphire Reserve card, because of its $450 annual fee. Then I read a post from a fellow traveler who explained that Chase reimburses you up to $300 for any travel expenses you incur during the year. They also offer trip interruption and cancellation insurance up to $10,000 per person and $20,000 per occurrence, with a $40,000 per year maximum. That coverage is easily worth the remaining $150 per year charge to us.
Some of my friends swear by one of the premium American Express cards. It is also possible that Citibank has something competitive, but I have had no experience with either.
You may also consider purchasing the insurance that your tour group offers. I always take a look, but so far, have been able to find more attractive options. That may change as we get older.

Bottom Line
It all comes down to how risk averse you are, what you want to spend, what coverage is important to you, how much time you want to spend researching alternatives.
Every situation is different. Make sure you choose the best option for YOU.
Please feel free to share YOUR experiences and trip Insurance knowledge with the rest of us. Happy travels!

Melbourne, Part Two

Okay, I’ll admit it, I felt really, really guilty, when I learned that while I was having a grand old time on the Great Ocean Road, my beloved husband was suffering in a Melbourne hospital, as I confessed in my last blog post.

After seven days in a town that is hotter than hell ( well, maybe not hell, but definitely purgatory), I feel my penance has been completed and I am free to share the rest of the photos from our glorious time in Melbourne.

Originally called The Sow and the Piglets, these rock formations were wisely renamed The Twelve Apostles, despite their originally being only nine of them. One has since crumbled, so now there are only eight. I spent most of my career in marketing, so hey, I get it. Nine was close enough, if you just round up.

Not surprisingly, the gambit worked, and the rest is history. The Apostles are definitely a beloved Australian tourist attraction.

The beach is lovely too, and if you are willing to walk down (and climb back up) eighty steps, you too can get your picture taken on this gorgeous beach.


I was definitely game. My favorite photographer was otherwise occupied, but one of our fellow travelers offered to take my picture. Foolishly, I neglected to check my phone until I got all the way back to the top, only to discover a technical glitch. No photo. Andy, who you will soon meet, wearing a bird for a hat, offered to go back down with me, so he and I got to climb down (and UP) 160 steps!


Given that I’m looking a bit chunky, that extra exercise was probably a GOOD thing!

Our stop at the bird hangout was great fun, although I will admit it’s a bit of a jolt when one of these guys unexpectedly lands on you, but Andy took it all in stride.

Paul, our tour guide, (shown instructing Jenny, a member of our OAT group) , kept us enlightened and entertained during our entire day together.

He told us The Great Ocean Road was built to employ returning war veterans. (Sorta like FDR’s CCC during the Great Depression).

About 3,000 former soldiers labored to build the road for almost thirteen years. Because of what we now call PTSD, dynamite couldn’t be used to break through rock; construction was done with pick and shovel.

This war memorial was built to honor the thousands who never came back from the war.

Other highlights from our time in Melbourne included a visit to the Mornington Peninsula, where we visited the Moonlit Sanctuary.

Unlike the Tasmanian Koala, this guy was awake. These animals sleep twenty hours per day, so somehow we managed to time it just right.

We didn’t have as much luck with the wallabies and kangaroos. They clearly were used to being fed frequently, and weren’t motivated to hop over for a snack. But the ducks and birds were quite happy to take a handout.

And this wombat? All we could see were his feet and hands! I think he had a “Do Not Disturb” tag hanging on his barrel!


Another notable visit was to the Abbotsford Convent. Now art studios and an educational center, it was once a “Magdalen Asylum” where up to 400 women and girls were sheltered. They were either orphans,”fallen women” or had no where else to go. They were also a source of free labor.

For “three hots and a cot”, they worked doing laundry for hotels and the weathy of Melbourne. As you might expect of a Catholic institution, prayer and chapel attendance were mandatory, as was penitence. This went on until 1975.

Today, the convent is beautified by art. I was particularly intrigued by these hand painted fabrics, which were very creatively displayed. I leave it to your imagination as to what this artwork symbolizes. It certainly has meaning for ME.

Here’s a close up of one of the fabrics. They were all different and were all exquisite.

Tomorrow we head for Sydney, our final destination on this slightly modified tour of our seventh continent, so I’ll leave you with one last example of what my new iPhone 11 camera can do.

Alice Springs, Australia

In the early ’80s I was captivated by a Masterpiece Theater Miniseries, “A Town Like Alice”, so much so that I read the book upon which the series was based. Who knew that about 35 years later we’d be spending two nights in this “bonza” town in the Northern Territory, right after our stay in Melbourne.

There is still so much more to say about Melbourne, and I will eventually get to that, but first, I bring you Alice Springs with a summary of why this is a town we will never forget.

Our hotel, the Doubletree, is located right across from the Todd River. Both the river and the mall (among other things) are named after Sir Charles Todd, who brought communications to the area by constructing telegraph wires or stations or something along those lines. (Clearly I wasn’t all that interested). His wife’s name was Alice, and I’m guessing that at one time the area had a lot of natural springs?

Check out the Todd River.

What, you’re having trouble finding it? That may be because the “river” is bone dry. You see, this area can go for YEARS without rain. It actually looks a whole lot better on Google maps, portrayed as a blue ribbon surrounded by green borders. But no. It is all brown and dry. But the walkway is nice.

So, why did Mike and I decide to skip Uluru and the Great Barrier Reef to spend an additional five nights ( count ’em, FIVE nights !!!) in Alice Springs?

It was a nose bleed. Yes, you read that right. But WHAT a nosebleed! Enough to warrant a 3AM ambulance ride, a hospital stay of three nights, with a trip to the operating room thrown in for good measure. Thanks to the wonderful doctors and nurses in Alice Springs, our hero is out of the hospital and on the mend. But he needs to rest up, so we are hanging out in Alice Springs for those extra days, then flying to Sydney, where, if all goes well, we will be able to rendezvous one last time with our wonderful group before we all fly home.

Exactly HOW did Mike get that geyser of a nosebleed?

No, his boomerang did NOT circle back and whomp him in the nose!

It all started in Melbourne. He awoke very, very early with what he thought was strep throat. (It wasn’t). Being the considerate, resourceful guy that he is, he didn’t want to wake me or our tour guide, so he surfed the net to find St Vincent’s Hospital was close by. (Bad idea). I woke as he was headed out the door, unfortunately not alert enough to shout “NOOO. Don’t do it.” But then I figured he knew what he was doing, he’d get his antibiotics, then return to the hotel to spend the rest of the day sleeping off his illness.

While I was enjoying the magnificence of the Great Ocean Road, Mike was having his nasal passage assaulted. A nurse decided to ram a swab up his nose to do a flu test. That caused his FIRST nosebleed. (The afore mentioned nosebleed in Alice Springs was the SECOND one). The doctor cauterized the wound, (but not well enough) kept him in the hospital overnight and discharged him early Saturday morning, clearing him to fly to Alice Springs.

Although if we’d had our druthers, Mike would have skipped learning about another country’s health care system, however there WERE a few positives.

  • We felt lucky we weren’t in a remote area devoid of medical facilities AND grateful we both understood the local language (sort of).
  • We HAD purchased trip insurance plus we have high spending limits on our credit card, so we were okay paying (charging) up front.
  • We learned more than we ever wanted to know about travel insurance, electronic devices (phones, SIM cards, hot spots) which provides me with lots of material for future blog posts.
  • The hospital was only a mile away, so I got plenty of exercise walking along the “river”, from hotel to hospital and back, a couple of times a day.
  • I was able to download “A Town Like Alice” to my phone and reread it while waiting for Mike to get out of surgery. I had forgotten that I had liked the miniseries so much more than the book. Still it was a good distraction and it reintroduced me to the word “bonza”. What do YOU think it means?
  • We discovered how tuned in Australians are to what is happening in America, and how well informed they are about Trump, Pence, even Mike Pompeo! Some of them probably know more than many Americans. The nurses were curious about what Americans think of Trump, so we gave them our views and others’ views. Being liberals, that’s what we try to do. Present the facts. We had no idea how much other countries are counting on us to vote him out, something we heard frequently on our trip.
  • The hotel has a pool, so I could imagine I was taking a “sit in the sun and do nothing” kind of vacation. It didn’t take long for me to remember why I never go on that kind of vacation any more!
  • So, that’s why I haven’t been posting much these past few days. I know. A blog is an unusual way to inform friends and family of a somewhat traumatic event. (Mike’s nose was traumatized, as was my psyche).
  • Thankfully, all is well now. Happier posts will follow with better photos!

    • Magnificent Melbourne

    What can I say about this glorious city? The OAT Australia itinerary was recently changed to include an extra day in Melbourne and I’m so glad it did. We could have easily spent a week here and not run out of things to see and do. No matter what interests you, you’ll find it in Melbourne!

    Incredible Architecture

    Melbourne has it all: the old, the new, and everything in between.

    This photo of the very futuristic buildings in the Docklands area was taken with the wide angle lens of my iPhone 11, without any editing. The sun just happened to be in the perfect spot.

    The beautiful reading room at the Melbourne Library is best viewed from the 6th floor.

    Where else can you find a shopping mall built around a preserved tower, where ammunition was once made?

    For those yearning to learn more about 19th century ammunition, you can duck through one of the clothing stores in the mall to visit this Museum.

    Is this a cool city or what?

    Glorious Gardens

    It seems like everywhere I looked, there was a park, a square or a garden with jaw dropping plants and flowers. MY digitalis never gets this tall!

    The Royal Botanic Garden truly is a special place, which is why it was not surprising to stumble onto this photo shoot. The model was as gorgeous as the setting. once again, my iPhone rose to the occasion and handled very trucky lighting quite well.

    Street Art

    Walking through a random alley, we came across this wall of remembrance. The plaque tells the story better than I could.

    Churches

    After traveling for a few years, and making the mandatory church visits, the interiors all start to look alike– but Melbourne’s St Patrick Cathedral had something I’d never seen before–a spectacular entrance–with a water feature.

    What I’m calling a “water playground” is right nearby the church. Can’t you picture the kids running through the fountains in their Sunday best, right after Mass?

    You all know what food looks like, so I won’t share photos of our meals. Let’s just say Melbourne is like a giant Alice’s Restaurant. “You can get anything you want” as Arlo Guthrie so aptly sang.

    There’s more to say about our stay in the Melbourne area, but that will have to wait till the next post.

    Getting High Down Under

    At OUR age, getting high usually means getting to the top of a mountain, using whatever means available to us. But admit it, the title got your attention.

    And, to be honest, some of the scenery we encountered around Cradle Mountain reminded me a bit of a different kind of trip that I took in my youth. No passport required.

    We were warned that Cradle Mountain temperatures could be in the 30’s (that’s F, not C) with the possibility of snow.

    We were not misled!

    A trip with so much variation in temperature demanded that we make hard packing choices. Do I bring my waterproof hiking boots or my Keen Sandals? I didn’t want to lug one while wearing the other. My decision? The snow and cold weather should only last a day or two, so I decided that my keens, fortified with two pairs of wool socks and hotel provided shower caps would do the trick, and they did!

    I’m pleased to report that my feet remained warm and dry during all of our treks. I WAS going to bring my silk long underwear, but forgot it but two pairs of pants worked quite well. As Laura, our Patagonia guide, stated, “There is no such thing as bad weather, only bad clothing choices”.

    We hiked to the top of that white rock in the distance, then down to the water’s edge. The views were spectacular!

    We also earned bragging rights for “experiencing” one of the great walks on this planet: The Overland Trail. Well, at least we posed by the sign…

    Our final Tasmanian destination was Launceston, where we visited The Platypus House, Seahorse World and Cataract Gorge.

    The platypus were smaller than I expected and challenging to photograph, so I resorted to video. The echidna, however, were quite fearless and were content to waddle among us.

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    I had mistakenly thought that after visiting the wonderful Aquarium in Monterey, I wouldn’t be impressed with Seahorse world, but I was wrong. Seahorse World breeds and supplies these wonderful creatures to aquariums throughout the world.

    But my favorite was this Sea Dragon.

    We will be boarding our flight to Melbourne shortly, so I only have time to upload a shot or two of Cataract Gorge taken during our hike, before we say goodbye to beautiful Tasmania.

    No time to proofread for typos!

    Enroute to Cradle Mountain

    Sometimes it’s both the destination AND the journey. This is one of those times.

    Our drive to Cradle Mountain was punctuated by multiple stops, all of which were notable for reasons that were thoroughly explained by Mike, our tour guide.

    Check out the windows on our chariot! Our bus would have been comfortable even if it had been filled to capacity. With only five of us on the tour however, it was quite luxurious. A bonus? Gordon, our driver (and bus owner) also provided commentary. Were we lucky or what?

    Our first stop in Oatlands was really just a “comfort” stop, but I thought the windmill and espaliered apple trees were photo worthy.

    Ross, our next stop, is famous for its main (only?) intersection. On its four corners are buildings representing Temptation (the hotel), Recreation (city hall), Damnation (the jail) and Salvation (the church). Am I the only one who thinks it’s pathetic that CITY HALL is the source of the town’s recreation?

    Ross’ City Hall and our bus.

    Ross is also the site of one of MANY bridges built by convict labor. The finished product was thought to be so beautiful that the grateful townspeople pardoned the stonemasons.

    Our next stop, Campbell Town, memorialized the convicts’ infrastructure contributions via one of its many tree carvings. In between the convict and the soldier you’ll see a good replica of the bridge. I was quite impressed because in New Jersey, we just carve squirrels and other animals out of OUR dead trees.

    Moving right along, to our lunch stop in Deloraine, our guide pointed out the numerous little sculptures sitting atop posts. I particularly liked this one, entitled “balance”. It made me think of yoga class.

    We also visited Railton, Tasmania’s topiary “capital”, where the citizens have whimsical creatures in their front yards,

    and Sheffield, where you can spend hours walking around, ogling the murals on the buildings. How cool is the one on this record shop? I suspect this is a self portrait of the shop’s owner.

    Every year, Sheffield holds a mural contest, and the entries are hung in a little public park so that viewers can vote for their favorite.

    Sadly, I didn’t pick the winner.

    Here’s the accompanying description:

    Pretty timely, wouldn’t you say? I chose it even before I noticed the artist is a woman from the good ol USA.

    Here’s the winning mural:

    Which one do YOU prefer?

    As is frequently the case with my posts, my blogging is bumping into happy hour, so a description of Cradle Mountain will have to wait till tomorrow.

    Two Days in Hobart, Tasmania

    What a fantastic trip, and we’re only at the beginning! Our two days in the Hobart area have been action packed, with far too many wonderful experiences to recount in one post, so I’ll just focus on three highlights.

    Bonorong Wildlife Sanctuary

    During our private tour of the sanctuary, we met a wombat,

    gently touched a sleepy koala,

    and fed kangaroos and wallabys.

    Yes, that IS a “baby on board”!

    We were warned to steer clear of Tasmanian devils. These little guys LOOK cute and lovable, but their jaws are powerful, and when irritated, can (and do) bite.

    Most of the animals were rescued when they were injured or their mothers were killed. After they are healed, those that are able to survive in the wild are released.

    MONA (Museum of Old and New Art)

    I’ve been to a lot of museums all over the world, but nothing even comes close to THIS place!

    Admit it, how many museums have YOU visited that have write ups like this?

    Although it is possible to drive there, our experience began with a short ferry ride from Hobart’s waterfront. You enter the building on the top floor, a walk up that my fit bit told me was the equivalent of 6 flights of stairs. No wonder the place has a wine bar! You’ve earned a glass before you even get started.

    I guess the best way to describe the art is that it was an immersive experience. It was sometimes hard to tell whether you were viewing artwork or another museum visitor. Take a look:

    Did YOU figure out the boys in the first photo were art and the second was a visitor experiencing the art?

    The entire building was a work of art. Tunnels led off into different directions,some leading into little side rooms.

    I was sufficiently impressed with this one to include two photos of it.
    The outdoor “art” was equally engaging.

    That IS a trampoline and the young woman, although not a performance artist, DID perform a couple of back flips. Had I visited the wine bar before, I might have been tempted to give it a go.

    Port Arthur

    Although the prison complex was interesting, my favorite part of the trip was the stops along the way. Check out this gorgeous scenery.

    We leave Hobart this morning for Cradle Mountain, where it is snowing!

    Dueling Cameras

    My original intent was for Australia to be my first trip traveling without a camera, just using my new iPhone 11 PRO to capture those “Kodak” moments. After all, that’s the only reason I upgraded — to take advantage of its improved camera with three, yes count ’em, THREE lenses.

    I had been doing some soul searching, pondering exactly why I take pictures. I realized there are only two reasons: to remember, and to share. I know I will never be as skilled a photographer as my friend Nancy, or some of the other bloggers whose photos blow me away. So maybe I an lighten my load a bit more. At the last minute, however, I chickened out. My Canon SX740HS can fit in my pocket, weighs next to nothing, and has a 40X zoom, which might come in handy. After all, it’s not like I plan on coming back next week to take more photos, so why not?

    Then I thought, I could take the same shot using my IPhone and my Canon, post them both, then let my blog followers decide which version they prefer. Or perhaps the difference might be too small to matter? Of course, I could have done that before I left home, but I didn’t think of it until we landed in Melbourne.

    All shots are straight out of the source, with no adjustments.

    One of Melbourne bridges over the Yarra, Version 1:

    OR version 2

    Sculpture Bridge Version 1

    Version 2

    After dinner last night, we walked over what I am calling the Sculpture Bridge. That’s when I discovered the “walls” along the bridge each bore the name of a country, in alphabetical order. I was already up to Canada before I noticed that, but I imagine the first panel bore the name of Afghanistan. The last panel was not Zimbabwe, but was instead “All Other Countries in the World”. Man, those Aussies are smart! They took into account how unpredictable global political entities are!

    For this next comparison, I’m going to mix it up a little

    Canada, Version 1

    And USA, Version 2

    Do you feel like you’re at the eye doctor? “Which is sharper, one or two”? I always HATE that experience, yet I’m doing it to you.

    Some final shots before I wrap this up:

    Version 1

    Version 2

    Or Version 3

    I’d love to hear what you think!