The closest thing I have to a travelogue is the Facebook postings I made in near real-time. Here is a compilation of those.
April 10
We are on our way to the Total Solar Eclipse in Australia. This was the first leg of the trip, a 13-hour flight to Incheon, Seoul, South Korea – in 13 seconds. Courtesy of the external cameras on the Airbus 380. Next stop, Singapore.
April 11
We arrived in Singapore, and went to the Jewel, a shopping center attached to the airport. They have a central waterfall called the Rain Vortex.
April 11
Some more pictures of the Rain Vortex located inside of the Jewel at the Changi Airport in Singapore.
April 11
We went back to the Rain Vortex for a nighttime light show, but it turned out to be more of a commercial for Disney. But, during the rest of the evening, the waterfall was lit up with changing-colored floodlights. Some still shots of the Rain Vortex lite up with colored floodlights.
April 12
We had a busy day wandering around Singapore yesterday. We walked about 10 miles in the high humidity and heat, but it was worth it.
April 13
A compilation of three light shows we saw at the Marina Bay today. Proper pictures to follow sometime tomorrow (maybe).
April 13
Yesterday we went to the ArtScience Museum at the Marina Bay and saw the Future World light show. Then we went to the Gardens by the Bay and saw the light show at the SuperTree Grove.
April 14
We have arrived in Perth, along with about 90 people on the TravelQuest tour. I was told that about 90% of those are repeat offenders.
April 15
Yesterday’s tour was a two-parter. In the morning, was a city tour of Perth. Then in the afternoon, we drove 2-1/2 hours up the coast to visit Hangover Bay, the Pinnacles National Park, and the Gravity Discover Science Centre.
April 16
Today’s tour was of Fremantle, the original settlement near Perth. Where once the British immigrants to Western Australia settled, it is now the home of the richest residents and other hipsters. We visited Cottesloe Beach, the Fremantle Market, the prison, High Street and more.
April 17
Today we visited Rottnest Island. Now a tourist attraction, it is known for it’s snorkeling, biking and hiking. It is also known for the Quakka, a small macropod about the size of a cat. The Quakka has become better known in recent years thanks to the efforts of a number of Aussie celebrities taking selfies with them. Fortunately, they are slow, and very used to being around people. But we were warned not to feed them human food.
April 19
Today we took a river cruise on the Swan River to Sandalford Winery. A very relaxing day.
April 19
Today we took a boat ride with Perth Wildlife Encounters to swim with the dolphins.
April 20
The O’Dark Thirty Report – Wheels up for Exmouth in a few.
April 20
We had a successful solar eclipse! The conditions were perfect. No eclipse shots yet, we were hustled out of there so fast onto our chartered plane that we had no time to download images. We just stepped off the plane, and will barely make it to the post eclipse dinner, then an early flight out in the morning. So, stay tuned for something in the next day or two. Meanwhile, here are some pictures on my phone from the eclipse site.
A couple of quick tests of images taken of the solar eclipse yesterday. These are just automated combines done by Lightroom, no real processing. But they show some promise. Off to Alice Springs.
Earth Sanctuary – World Nature Centre, Alice Springs, NT Australia.
April 21
The trip still hasn’t allowed us to process any Eclipse Day images. I often tell people Australia it’s like the US in the 1970s. But I didn’t imagine I meant pre-Internet. The hotel’s Wi-Fi is not functioning, and 3G is very spotty. but here are a few pictures from my iPhone last night’s dinner, a combination of dinner, singing, and stargazing.
Erldunda Roadhouse, NT Australia.
April 22
At last, and Island of 3G, in an ocean of no bars.
Curtin Springs Station, Petermann, NT, Australia.
April 22
We made it to our next oasis of 3G coverageon the way to Uluru.
Uluṟu-Kata Tjuṯa National, Parkulara, NT, Australia.
April 22
We made it to Uluru and had a quick afternoon tour of Kata Tjuta and Uluru, before stopping to watch the sunset on Uluru.
I got a chance today to get some images off my cameras from the day of the Eclipse.
Desert Gardens Hotel, Yulara, NT, Australia.
April 22
Some astronomy images I took at our first night near Uluru. We hiked up to a nearby viewing point a half mile from the hotel, carrying cameras, tripods, and tracking heads. Later, we came back at 4 am to get the Milky Way at the zenith.
Sounds Of Silence Dinner, Yulara, NT, Australia.
April 23
The farewell dinner for the Uluru portion of the trip was held at the Sounds of Silence. There we had great views of Uluru and Kata Tjuta. In addition, we had a star show.
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