Bunko.T Loc: Western Australia.

My choice to visit would be spring. July,august,sept, october. Winter in the southern half is miserable but good for indoor stuff like wine tasting etc.Winter is also the best time to visit the northern half. Not so hot & plenty to see.
Altho these eastern states have their various beauties, don't ignore the west. We have some of the most spectacular country in the nation. Queensland is the next state of Japan but beautiful.
Depending on your mobility & budget, it's as mentioned else where,a big country & every thing is a long way apart & a lot of not much in between.
I'd research the sites you want to see & organise to suit. I live here & there's a lot i haven't seen but would love to.

Bunko.T Loc: Western Australia.

A greaat Aussie name that. Sorbet. I wonder what the French would say to that??

Underwaterant

Queensland is the next state of Japan but beautiful.


Ha ha. Almost. They almost own it.

CoffeeShots Loc: Brisbane, Australia

Best thing to do is get out a map and have a look at the place. Then have a look at the Southern part of Tasmania and the Northern tip of Queensland. You'll soon realize the climate ranges from Panama to Seattle, so the best time of year depends on where you want to go. Don't be fooled by the size of Australia on a map. Many from overseas have a notion they are going to drive from Sydney to Perth for the weekend. Well, that aint going to happen. Its 4,000 Km. (New york to Los Angeles is 4,400 Km). That being said, it is a beautiful place and every state has some extraordinary places to see. I have lived here all my life and although I have seen great chunks of it, I've only scratched the surface.

workhorse Loc: Nashville, TN

Thank you one and all. I will try vegemite, if for no other reason than to be able to add my 2 cents to it's virtues. I have been protecting my wife from wild creatures all of our married life. She survived my three teenage sons with my constant oversite, (he says with toung in cheek). Sorbet, I know I have seen a report about that on some show but I can only remember the name. I will have to look that up since I do all the cooking in my home. I can tell all of you that I will pour over all of these replies, share them with the wife, Denise (the goddess of wine), and come up with a much more informed plan for a most enjoyable visit. She has already determined that Kangaroo Island is a must. Again, let me offer all and each of you my thanks for your assistance and knowledge. I am sure I will have more specific questions as time goes by.

susanl Loc: Brisbane QLD Australia

Wendy, You've had me worried sick about what treat you were trying to think of. By the way we call them "Ice Blocks" not "Icy Poles". Are you sure it's a Splice which is basically vanilla ice cream on a stick coated in a flavoured soft ice e.g. Pine/Lime Splice (my personal favourite).
Check out the link below. These Weis bars are Sorbet with real fruit like you were explaining about earlier. AND it does have an 'S' in it!!!

http://www.weis.com.au/#/products/weis-bars
Have a look at all the different products on the website. You may see something you recognize. Then again, I could be wrong.
Cheers Susan.

John N Loc: HP14 3QF Stokenchurch, UK

Read DOWN UNDER by Bill Bryson. When an American refers to a place as big it's BIG! Never been there but keep reading snippets thinking I will one day - have a great trip.

Wendy2 Loc: California

Hi Susan,

It is Splice. I checked it out on their web site. When I went to their web site it all came back to me, Unilever, Streets and Splice. That is definitely the product I had. Absolutely loved it. Wish they were here in the States. They would make a big hit here, I'm sure.

Verd Loc: Toronto, Canada

The wife and I visited Sydney for 2 months, (Sept.-Oct) in 2010. The weather was a bit cooler than at home (Toronto) to begin with, but improved as the weeks passed. We were pretty much tied to the Sydney area as our visit was purpose-driven as in the birth of our grand daughter...our daughter had emigrated to Oz from Canada about 3 years before. Not to worry...there's plenty to see and do around Sydney. No end of photo ops! The city is an absolute gem. You could spend a year thoroughly exploring Sydney Harbour. The beaches at Bondi and Manley as well as several other nearby beaches are very much deserving of a visit. Of course, no visit to the area would be complete without a tour of the Blue Mountains...spectacular!

Coming from Canada, I had anticipated that nothing about Aussies would be terribly different, seeing as how we originate from the same stock, and that is true for the most part. Then again, not much is exactly the same. (What would be the point of travelling if it was?) The Aussies have a language all their own. They may use the same words as you do, but they might not mean the same thing. It's best to make sure that you and your server are on the same page in restaurants or you may be in for a surprise, often pleasant surprise, but some times not so much. Just get a description of the dish you contemplate ordering. For instance, things like red, green, sweet or hot banana peppers are all simply called capsicum. Somebody already mentioned that ketchup is known as tomato sauce and while that may be true, it's really quite different from that which you are used to. The only problem I was never able to resolve was getting a North American style coffee. Long black is something like coffee americano in the U.K. but I never did find any coffee cream in Oz.

The Aussies themselves are as friendly and outgoing as any people you're likely to meet. They'll bend over backwards to help out with directions or information. They are very proud of their country and justifiably so! I managed to do something in Sydney I would never try in Toronto. I dropped my wallet containing all my I.D., credit cards and a sizeable amount of cash in a taxi and didn't discover the fact until the next day. Imagine my panic, being in a foreign country. I called the local police to report the loss. 15 minutes later they called back to tell me that the cabbie had turned my wallet in at a police station. I recovered the wallet and everything it contained. The cabbie accepted my thanks but refused any other compensation.

One word of caution. While the Aussies are, in the main, lovely folks, they seem to go through some sort of metamorphosis when they get behind the wheel of a car. It is highly advisable to never, as a pedestrian, be the cause of an Aussie motorist having to actually touch the brakes or move the steering wheel. The motorist may miss hitting you (but not by much!) but you will most certainly be told off in no uncertain terms, not that you will understand much of what was being said to you. Suffice to say, that in polite company, those expletives generally get deleted. Just one more thing...I saw a very attractive young lady in Sydney, nothing unusual about that, but she was wearing a jacket bearing the "Roots" logo. Nothing unusual about that,either...in North America. However, in Oz, 'root' is an euphemism for a particular male organ. The poor girl was the subject of many a peculiar glance and not a few comments!

If (when) I get back to Oz, I will have learned to photograph the night sky. The stars are different than those we can see in the northern hemisphere and some of them are very much brighter than any we have in our skies.

Enjoy your trip, it won't be hard to do. I'll look forward to seeing any photos you share.

Tradscot Loc: Cairns, Australia

This thread is beginning to sound a don't go commentary, show me a place without some risks and we'll call it "Nirvana" or "Utopia"
Workhorse, if you have an IPod or IPad, Apple do a freebie APPS called "Discover Australia" it's worth a look as it covers a lot of territory.
I've been to the USA many, many (32)times, never had an unpleasant experience with the people or "critters" up there, so you and the missus come on down, you will love it!! you don't have to try Vegimite, after all it is made by KRAFT, thats American, is'nt it?
Tradscot.

Wendy2 Loc: California

Oh no! Every place has negative situations. You must definitely go. So many wonderful things to do and see and lovely people, the Aussies.

cdhakl Loc: Townsville, Queensland - Australia

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Just finished uploading a slideshow onto YOUTUBE. If you still haven't zeroed in on a destination for you first tour of Oz, take a short slideshow tour of North Queensland with me. Even if you don't get up this far north, you might see something you will want to look at on your next trip(s)........................

http://youtu.be/JhnFxjp_thU

Curt H. (el Condor loco)

Denisedancer Loc: Sydney Australia

cdhaki, I had a look at your slides. It looks beautiful up your way. I had an Uncle live in Townsville and another in Charters Towers and they both loved it there. Unfortunately I was never able to visit them, both gone now. I stayed at Trinity Beach Cairns once and loved it. Next time I get up that way I think I'll fly to Townsville and then drive up to Cairns. It's such a long way from Sydney unfortunately.Thanks for putting up the slides.

lachmap Loc: Sydney Australia

I've got a couple of slideshows on YouTube. You might like to see them.
Some Aussie birds http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pI_WMyxuBdo

Snake attack http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gk2mBxpJFTs&feature=relmfu

Kangaroos attacking for food http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wV1Nm3XB2M8&feature=relmfu

Used to love splices, love Weiss bars. Love the Blue Mountains and Jenolan Caves.

workhorse Loc: Nashville, TN

Not to worry, in my small amount of traveling I have found many wonderful people tucked away in some charming places. On the other hand I always keep my wits about me and never place temptation in front of people by leaving valuables unattended. Except for the time in Wassila, AK. at the Moose Dropping Festival when in a crowded little shop I set my new Nikon on the counter while I paid for an item and walked out of the place without my camera. A block away I realized what I had done so the wife and I rushed back and as we walked in the woman announced in a loud voice that she had not seen any camera and don't bother asking about it. She said this before I could get a word out of my mouth. She reached under the counter pulled out my camera and said that she could sell me "this old thing" pretty cheap. Even if I had not found it, while I would not have been happy, I would not have blamed anyone but myself and remember, it's only a thing. Things can be replaced, people can't. So I am still pressing on with plans for a trip and now I have found that because I don't have a birth certificate betting a pass port may be my hardest part. Literally there is no record of my birth in any govt. office because I was born at home, on a farm and the Dr. failed to register the event. I am singing the song "We Shall Overcome"