Australia : True Stories of Life Down Under (Travelers' Tales)
"Australia's like an open door with the blue beyond," wrote D.H. Lawrence. "You just walk out of the world and into Australia." Who better to show you the wonders Down Under than Pico Iyer, Paul Theroux, Jan Morris, Bruce Chatwin, Tony Horwitz, and a host of other travel-writing luminaries?This evocative volume of Travelers' Tales provides a vibrant introduction to the country and its people. Visit well-known sites like Bondi Beach and Uluru (Ayer's Rock), get lost in the outback, forage for platypuses, slog through billabongs, walk along ancient song lines, and land on a deserted island for a Robinson Crusoe adventure that will make you think twice about leaving home. You'll even receive advice from Tim Cahill on learning to speak Australian:"Most of us flaming septics (septic tank rhymes with Yank) visiting Oz either shoot through like the Bondi tram or muck about playing silly buggers and never properly apprehend the lingo. I was pondering this phenomenon one day while demolishing several dozen stubbies ... at a rubbity (dub-pub) in the town of Coen, whose quaint motto is "Eat Beef, You Bastards."Whether you're heading to Oz to see the sights in Sydney, adventuring in the outback, or scuba diving the Great Barrier Reef,True Stories of Life Down Underwill show you that there's much more to Australia than Vegemite and Foster's beer.--Jhana Bach