Around the World adventure

Floyd and I wanted to take a trip around the world in one direction. After flying to Atlanta, we pulled out our laptop and started checking the flights to destinations that would get us there. We were able to make this around the world trip and visit two places that we've never been.

We flew on Delta for 15.5 hours from Atlanta to Cape Town, South Africa. We stayed at the Best Western for 3 nights. I liked South Africa. The Rand was about 7.70 per dollar, so everything was in our budget.

While there, we rode the cable care up to the top of Table Mountain. When we came down, we drove around Cape Point, the Southwestern tip of Africa. We saw wild baboons daring somone to stop and play. They're smart too. The road signs warned cars to stay in the cars and lock the doors. Apparently, the Baboons know how to open doors. We had to stop several times for ostriches to cross the roads too. We went to a penguin colony. Most of them were younger penguins just trying to figure out how to get in the ocean against the current.

Another day we went on a tour of their wine country. There are over 100 wineries, mostly family owned. The country was beautiful. Our tour guide was so impressed with the Tomboy Tools that I sell, that she is now trying to set up a franchise to get them there. We had a pretty long lay-over in Johannasberg on our way to Sydney, but didn't leave the airport because we heard that it's very dangerous there.

We flew Quantas Airways (the Australian airline) from Joberg to Sydney. It was the first time that I ever had to fly across the ocean in Coach. It wasn't too bad, even though it was a 12.5 hour flight. We stayed at the Marriott Circular Quay hotel for 3 more nights. This hotel is just a couple blocks from the Sydney Opera House and the Harbour. The Australian Dollar is 1.19 per American dollar, but prices were much higher there. Everything in Sydney seemed very expensive, especially compared to South Africa.

While in Sydey, we went on a tour of the Blue Mountains and learned that there is a bluish haze around that area because of the oils that are generated by the Eucalyptus Trees. It was pretty, but not as beautiful and majestic as the Rocky Mountains. We also went to a wildlife refuge where we were able to hold the koala bears and play with the Kangaroos, which was the best part of the day. We went to the oldest brewery in Sydney, which opened in the late 1800's. While there, we met a really neat Australian couple that we got to know. We're planning a trip to go back to visit them in their fall, so maybe May. On our way back to the hotel, we stopped to enjoy a Kangaroo Pizza. It was surprisingly good. It kind of tasted like Elk. Our friends said they eat Kangaroo at least once a week.

Another day we went on another tour of the Hunter Valley wine country, about 2 hours outside of Sydney. There are over 250 wineries there and the country was really pretty. We stopped by the Stinky Cheese Factory, where they sold some unique, but yummy, cheeses and stuff. I was a couple minutes late coming back to the tour bus, so I had to sing the National Anthem. Floyd helped me though, so it wasn't as embarrassing. When we returned to the Sydney we went over to the Sydney Aquarium, which made us regret not taking our scuba equipment. We will go back to Australia for sure so we can dive at the Great Barrier Reef.