In April, I went on a once in a lifetime trip to Australia!

I attended the Romance Author and Reader Event in Melbourne. The event was fantastic. I appreciated all the organization and planning that went into it, everything went smoothly (for me, at least; there were some Amazon glitches for some authors). I had my daughter as an assistant, and she was also organized and took a gazillion photographs, handled the payments, and multiple other tasks. I loved talking to readers! It’s such a special joy to talk face to face and I want to thank everyone who came by my table. I even got gifts!

Look at my beautiful banner!

There was also some sightseeing/research, because OF COURSE I now have to write an Australian hero! We spent one week in Melbourne. I love this city! The skyscrapers are beautiful. We stayed on the wharf and were able to walk along the Yarra River and have a drink and meals. We explored the business district with beautiful older buildings, the tiny lanes with graffiti, churches, and parks. We did some tours outside the city as well, including the Great Ocean Road, a walk through the rainforest, and Shipwreck Coast where the Twelve Apostles. The walk down to the beach where Tom and Eva were shipwrecked was magical. It had just rained so we were there alone and it was quiet and tranquil—almost spiritual.

I have to mention the coffee! At first we were surprised at how expensive it was, and how you don’t get refills. Then we tasted it and realized it’s all freshly made espresso. I ordered a long black each time, and OMG so delicious. I’ll never get used to a pot of drip coffee again!

There was also a lot of wine… that is orange wine I was drinking…

We saw the Brighton Bathing Boxes, then went to see kangaroos and koalas and wallabies, then the magical little penguins who come out of the ocean at dusk.

Then it was on to Sydney for a week. We visited the Blue Mountains and rode a cable car over the valley. Incredible. We took a ferry to Manly Beach, went to Bondi beach, Darling Harbour, and on our last day we shopped!

Things that did not impress me about Austraila:

I ate a beautiful shiny mandarin orange expecting it to be amazing, and it was tasteless.

We tried a Violet Crumble chocolate bar. It’ls like a Crunchie bar, which I LOVE but it had a funny taste.

Things that impressed me in Australia (Besides the friendly, polite people and gorgeous landscape and ocean)

Ordering your drink and/or meal from the QR code on the table. And I mean, you order your meal on the app and pay for it. In a few minutes someone brings you your wine, then your meal, and when you’re done you just walk out.

The coffee (as above)

The tap on/tap off on public transportation. We took the ferry, trains, and buses. We just had to use our credit card to tap on, then tap off when we got off. SO EASY

Free wifi everywhere (even on the beach)

No tipping (because I’m happy to know that people make enough money that tipping isn’t necessary)

The commitment to reconciliation—the tour guides were very open about Australia’s history of colonization and even used the term genocide to refer to how indigenous people were treated, which is very brave and honest and admirable.