Australia frog-travel tips
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Don't flush the frog: Our 10 dumbest travel mistakes, so far

We're experienced world travelers but that doesn't mean we don't occasionally make stupid mistakes. From flushing frogs down the toilet to being mistaken for a dominatrix, here are our top ten travel mistakes, so far: Top travel mistakes 1)…
Christmas in New Zealand Kiwi bird Auckland parade
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Christmas in New Zealand and Australia

Christmas in New Zealand and Australia comes in the summertime so it was a bit different for us, northerners raised with visions of a "White Christmas." In Auckland, we stood on the sidewalk waiting for the Santa Parade and took in the…
Man with fish illustration-sydney fish marke
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Getting fresh at the Sydney Fish Market

The other day I read an article that highlighted the 12 worst tourist traps in the world. One of them was a place we were due to visit the following day, the Sydney Fish Market. We thought about not going there but were we really going to let…
Victoria barracks Sydney cannon

Australia, a nation forged by sand

Australia is often thought of as a laid-back nation whose relaxed citizens seem to be on permanent vacation. Perhaps this carefree attitude is due to more than 90% of the population living within the siren call of the beach. While much of their…
kangaroo animal crossing sign
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Lions and tigers and ... animal crossing signs around the world

When we were driving all over the world we saw some unusual animal crossing signs that were different from the typical signs for deer we see at home. As we bounced along some pretty rough roads we took these warnings seriously, can you imagine…
Cairns great barrier reef fish

Free things to do in Cairns, Australia; even free scuba

Cairns is a popular jumping off point to explore the Great Barrier Reef. There are many free things to do in Cairns, we'll even give you some tips on how you can scuba for free. Since Australia is so expensive, you have to take advantage…
Michael eating pizza
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The surprising best pizza in the world

Pizza is our go-to food on the road, our favorite is New York-style. And when we return from a trip it's usually the first meal we eat. On our year-long journey we tried pizza on six continents, including at its birthplace in Naples, to…
Unique Places to stay Little petra Bedouin camp
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7 unique places to stay in the world

From a kitschy throwback hotel in North Korea to a nudist B&B in Portugal, we found a few unique places to stay in the world. Here are some of our favorites: 1) Little Petra Bedouin Camp, Jordan   The Little Petra Bedouin Camp…
Bali beach trash
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Drowning in a sea of plastic

One of the more sobering aspects of our journey has been the environmental abuse we’ve seen, sometimes in the least likely places. Although we've traveled all over the world and written about some incredible sights, the story that resonated…
Mad Max

Chasing Mad Max in the Australian Outback

There could hardly be two more disparate Australian films than Mad Max, the post-apocalyptic tale of a policeman trying to survive in a world without water, and The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert, the story of three drag queens…
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Pictures: Seeing the forest and the trees

I'm usually not much of a nature boy, saving the passion of the outdoors for my forester brother. But in the Southern Hemisphere I couldn't help take pictures of trees that are really different from the ones at home. The tree picture above…
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Don't drink from the toilet!---and other odd signs around the world

We've come across some unusual signs in our journey. Some funny signs caution people about not doing things that would seem to be self-evident. Like the sign posted above. It's in the bathrooms at the Adelaide Airport in Australia. Not that…
Holden driving in Australia Outback
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Images from an Australia Outback road trip

We love road trips. Most of the ones we've taken in the past have involved cruising America on old roads like Route 66 and the Lincoln Highway. But driving in the Australia Outback presents the ultimate road trip challenge. Towns and gas stations…

Having a cow in Australia's bush country

Larissa was staring at a beautiful a tree frog; its tiny, bright green body with huge black eyes and cute little pods on its feet that were perfectly designed by nature to stick to any surface.  There was only one problem . . . those cute…
rtw plane ticket australia

Plane spotting heaven at Perth Airport

The shiny new Emirates 777-200LR was zooming down the runway right  towards us, its General Electric engines screaming to create 110,000  pounds of  take-off thrust. Along with dozens of other plane geeks we were leaning over the railing…
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Digging a hole to China

When we were kids and dug around in our backyards our parents would ask if we were digging a hole to China, so we always assumed China was directly opposite our little patch of Earth. As we got older we finally realized that China and the…

Free things to do in Sydney

We stood at the center of the Sydney Harbour Bridge on a breezy sunny day.  Down below us ferries cut through the turquoise water as they carried passengers to hidden coves shaded by palm trees. White sails of pleasure-craft swelled in…
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Shocking video: Vegemite taste test

Vegemite, a yeast-based extract, is the official food of Australia. It is smeared on toast and crackers just like we would use jelly or butter. The dark brown substance looks a bit like Nutella but please don't let that fool you. It may look…