Another city I never tire of is New Zealand’s mini-capital of Wellington: its harbour, its history, and its surprisingly wild nature — ATOP the rather Dalek-like political offices called the Beehive, lame-duck Prime Minister Chris Hipkins was awaiting his marching orders this November, following the defeat of his Labour coalition in the 14 October 2023 general election, While we awaited the final results, I popped into an almost equally famous pub across…

Back up north again, to a land of waterfalls and uranium just south of Darwin — DEPARTING from Alice Springs, I hit the road once more for the 1,500-kilometre drive back to Darwin. The worst part is the drive from Alice Springs to Tennant Creek, as this part of the Stuart Highway crosses a very thinly populated desert region where one of the best-known localities is…

A visit to the central Australian outcrop also known as Ayers Rock — WHILE I was in Alice Springs, I decided that I couldn’t miss a visit to Uluru, or Ayers Rock, even though it was a surprisingly long drive, more than 440 kilometres even when you are starting from the Alice.

An Oasis in Australia’s ‘Red Centre’ — AT LAST, after driving nearly 1,500 km from Darwin, slightly less than the distance from Auckland to Queenstown by road and ferry, I made it to Alice Springs. The town known locally as the Alice, or just Alice, has a population of just over 25,000, making it the largest town…

Heading down the Northern Territory’s Stuart Highway — a long, fascinating way! — AFTER Katherine, I embarked on a long trip south — nearly 1,500 km in total from Darwin — to Alice Springs. This railway map that I saw on a wall is an excellent guide to some of what’s on the way, whether you go by train, bus, or car.

A lovely town with gorges, gallery, and museum — KATHERINE, a sizable town of more than six thousand, with lots of cafés and street art, was a good place to relax for a few days after my actually rather adventurous times in Kakadu National Park.

Heading southwest along the Kakadu Highway past the Warradjan Aboriginal Cultural Centre, Yellow Water Billabong, and the Jim Jim Falls — AFTER Jabiru, I decided to head southwest along the Kakadu Highway to Pine Creek, and from there southward along the Stuart Highway to the town of Katherine. This would take me through another part of Kakadu National Park, and on down past another national park called Nitmiluk National Park, which…

Birdwatching at Kubara, a boat trip on the East Alligator River, and ancient Rock Art Sites — Saturday: Birdwatching at Kubara There are 300 species of birds in the Northern Territory, and birdwatching tours are popular. In fact, it was the local birdwatching festival week. And so I chose to do a birding tour, with NT Bird Specialists, in a sandstone area called Kubara.

Heading east from Darwin into nature, before I head south — AFTER DARWIN, I set out to explore the natural parklands to the east of the city. The following local tourism map, which I photographed in Darwin, doesn’t show everything: but it does do a very good job of showing where I went, along the Arnhem Highway to the Corroboree Billabong…