In summary: My month in Australia

On November 8th, I set off on my first trip ever to a country below the equator – and I went way down. I went down under, to the beautiful and diverse country of Australia, where I spent four beautiful weeks in five different locations.

I’ve explored the cities of Melbourne, Adelaide, Sydney, Canberra and Brisbane; travelled around hilly landscapes in Victoria, mountainous regions in New South Wales and stunning national parks in Queensland; and roadtripped two beautiful islands – Phillip Island and Kangaroo Island.

I’ve met up with old friends and gained new friends. I’ve stayed on a farm in the countryside in Ferny Creek; had my first couchsurfing experiences in Adelaide and Sydney; experienced the hostel life in Airlie Beach; and stayed with a beautiful family in Logan City.

I’ve climbed the Remarkable Rocks on Kangaroo Island; hiked in the Blue Mountains; gone snorkelling in the Great Barrier Reef; chilled on the most beautiful beach on Earth, Whitehaven Beach in the Whitsunday Islands; gone on spectacular coastal walks in Sydney and Byron Bay; and experienced a tropical storm in Queensland.

Of all the things that I have experienced in Australia, the wildlife that I saw has been the most memorable.

Finding wildlife was on my itinerary for Australia! I wanted to see as many different native Australian species as possible, so I was thrilled when I spotted my first 100 kangaroos while driving from the airport in Melbourne to Ferny Creek – on the day of my arrival to Australia! I was thinking that I wouldn’t be lucky enough to see any kangaroos, but I saw loads!

Later on during my travels, I also saw wallabys, pademelons, fairy penguins, koalas, sea lions, fur seals, glow worms, snakes, dolphins, possums, tropical fish, a black swan, parrots, lyrebirds, brush turkeys and other exotic birds. I really wanted to see a shark as well (not near me or any human ofc), but I didn’t get that lucky. I feel pretty blessed to have seen all of those animals though and I loved every one of them!

There are a lot of differences between Denmark and Australia, although I wouldn’t call it a culture shock – there were just a few things that I noticed were different. First of all, there is the language, the geography, the wildlife, the landscape, the driving on the wrong side and the weather. Then there’s the fact that they call McDonalds Macca’s and even have signs with it on. And then there’s the terrible invention called vegemite.

But the one thing that really surprised me about Australia, is the fact that the moon is not the same as in Europe. Well, it’s the same moon, but the “face in the moon” is turned sideways, where in Europe it’s upright. I found that so strange! I don’t know why though, because everything in Australia seems to be upside down. Even the toilet flushes the opposite direction.

Although I found some things about Australia rather odd (or should I say funny), I really enjoyed my stay in the country. This trip was the first time that I had spent so long in one country. I would normally try to fit more countries in when travelling for that long, but that’s much easier in Europe, where Germany, for example, is just a 2-hour drive away from my home in Denmark.

Australia is huge and a month could never be enough to discover the entire country. Although I’ve just come back from Australia, I already know that I need to come back, as there’s just so much left to see. And I want to see it all, so someday, I will.

Read all about my adventures in Australia here!