On the Road is a weekday feature spotlighting reader photo submissions.
From the exotic to the familiar, whether you’re traveling or in your own backyard, we would love to see the world through your eyes.
BretH
Continuing my series from my trip to Australia we’re still in Melbourne and I have several days on my own to do as much exploring as I can.
I am an avid tennis player and spent weekends in my youth watching tennis on TV – Jimmy Conners, John McEnroe, Bjorn Borg, the US Open, Wimbledon, and the Australian Open. I woke up at 3AM in 2017 to see Roger Federer defeat Rafael Nadal in an epic match at the Australian Open that marked the beginning of Federer’s renaissance just before retirement. So it was natural that I visit the site of the Australian Open in Melbourne. I had arranged for a tour of Rod Laver stadium but that was canceled at the last minute but the grounds are open for wandering and photographing. Highlights are the iconic statue of Laver outside his stadium, and a small tree-lined square surrounded by the busts of famous Australian tennis players, from the distant and the recent past.
On the plane over to Melbourne I was told by some residents that I simply must take in a game of Australian Rules Football. And Melbourne happens to have next to the tennis complex the largest stadium in the southern hemisphere the Melbourne Cricket Ground. So I got a ticket to se a highly anticipated match between the Adelaide Crows and the Collingwood Magpies (the local team). It was an amazing experience – so many people – and polite here too! The festivities started off with an elderly indigenous man paying tribute to the original inhabitants, and a stadium-shaking didgeridoo song. The teams were ushered in with their team songs with the stadium happily singing along while waving their little team flags, most of them sporting a team scarf (the equivalent to wearing a team jersey here).
The game is odd, played on an enormous oval field with four freestanding goalposts at each end, but the rules are easily grasped: players run, pass and kick a football to each other to advance down the field. A caught pass means a live ball and the receiver is immediately surrounded by opposing players trying to tackle him or strip the ball away. A tackle or contested possession means their version of a jump ball where the referee slams the ball down so it bounces twenty or so feet into the air and the teams vie for possession from there. Out of bounds is a jump ball, no matter who touches the ball last. A successful kick and catch means the receiver has a free zone to kick or pass again. Seeing how the players were set upon when they merely caught a pass this seemed a Very Good Thing. Points are scored by kicking the ball through the goalposts – one point for either of the two outer areas and six points for getting it through the center set of poles.
Chilled without my own team scarf I left at halftime but was pleased to hear that the Magpies held on to the substantial lead they enjoyed at the half and soundly defeated the despised Crows.
Just below Melbourne, a short train ride away (or my more challenging scooter ride) is the resort area of St. Kilda. A beachside community it boasts a view of Melbourne across the bay water and a pier where visitors can see little penguins (well specifically Little Penguins – Eudyptula minor). Sadly the pier was closed for renovations but the the trip was worth a visit and a beer in one of the many little bars along Acland street. Here I also found a fine example of the amazing graffiti that abounds in Melbourne.
One thing I did when we arrived in Melbourne was was to look up “hikes near public transportation”. Lo and behold, there was one, the Dandenong Ranges National Park walkable from the Upper Ferntree Gully train station about an hour out of the city. The notable hike nearest the station was something called the Kokoda Track Memorial Walk, ominously also called the “1000 steps”. This walk is pretty much in an Australian rain forest and it climbs the sides of a ravine using, you guessed it, 1000 (give or take a hundred or so) damp, uneven and very challenging steps.
The history behind the Kokoda Track Memorial Walk is even more challenging: how a small army of what were more like the Australian National Guard held off the far more experienced Japanese army for as long as they could in the early days of WWII in the pacific. This took place in the Owen Stanley Range in Papua New Guinea, in some of the most torturous terrain in the world, in a true and proper rain forest.
Even though it’s not the same as the rainforest in New Guinea the vegetation along the steps was impressive: prehistoric ferns and other plants, towering eucalyptus trees and the ever present squawking of the cockatoos.
The Memorial Walk is dotted with markers commemorating different small battles along the route the Japanese took, and with placards honoring individual soldiers at the top. To this day the Australians are rightfully proud of their fighting force and the feats they performed in that war were nothing short of heroic. * For those who have about a week of podcast time available and love history I highly recommend Dan Carlin’s Hardcore History. His “Supernova in the East” series about the motives and strategies of the Japanese in WWII consists of six brilliant episodes and in one he relates the story of the Kokoda Track in detail.
It’s hard to show in photos the extreme nature of the 1000 steps. They just go up, up and up for what seems like forever. There are little flat rest pads next the trail at places but that is about the only respite. With the humidity and the crazy bird sounds it is truly an immersive experience.
After hiking the 1000 steps with my wife, we were short of time and had to return to the city so quickly I knew what I was going to do with one of my full days by myself. So I returned to the park, hiked the 1000 steps again and spent the rest of the day wandering the almost deserted trails around the top and back to the train station. The ecosystems are quite different in places – leaving the rain forest at the top of the ravine the trails at the top are dryer and less congested with undergrowth, then wetter and thicker as I descended towards the station.
I happily spent the day wandering, getting rained on, meeting a very few (polite) people – who told me to look for wallabies – and was sad when I had to leave. Despite peeling my eyes all the way down it wasn’t until almost the bottom that I was fortunate enough to see a wallaby alongside the trail. Looking like a miniature kangaroo with dark fur it hopped casually away from me showing how it is perfectly adapted to that area. (Sorry, no wallaby in this shot – the only one I have is a hasty iPhone shot that isn’t worth posting here).
Anyway
Nice travelogue, nice pictures! What fun taking in a local sports event – stadium looks packed. The Kokoda track history and terrain is fascinating— cool that it’s accessible by public transport and it’s the kind of “tourist” event I like to do. Enjoying your series!
Layer8Problem
Thank you for these.
Aussie Sheila
Thank you for that. My father fought in New Guinea and my grandfather at Gallipoli.
US citizens at large have no idea about the war in the Pacific absent their own heroics.
Australians remember very well what happened when the UK scarpered out of Singapore and left us to our fate. It was the Australian Infantry, composed of very young men and boys who fought like hell in New Guinea along the hell hole that was the Kokoda trail, assisted it should be emphasised, by the Papuan people who hated the Japanese cruelty even more than the careless Aust/UK imperial BS they had to suffer after WW1.
It was the Australian Labour Party that told Churchill to go to hell, and demanded Australian troops be returned to Australia to defend our giant island continent under attack from a formidable and capable Japanese army.
That’s why Churchill isn’t held in very high esteem here, and why an older generation likes the US more than the Brits.
Not me.
I know history repeats with a rhyme and the same thing will happen again if the US decides it would be a good wheeze to have a war with China and everyone else can get fucked.
Our landmass is as big or bigger than the US continent. And our population is 25.5 million, 80% of whom live in 5 capital cities, 100ks max from the sea.
Nations have interests, not friends.
Four generations of males in my family are testament to that, having fought for the British Empire, Australia, and Australia again and again.
I curse the turn to the US.
But I absolutely honour Prime Minister Curtin whose courage and resolve saved us from the worst that can befall a nation. A foreign invasion under force of arms. Which was absolutely on our cards in 1941-1942.
The US is safe from that and always has been no matter the high strikes and hysterics of its bat shit right wing.
However other nations aren’t.
And that’s something US liberals should understand. And US social democrats should understand that they have achieved a fraction of what every other democratic nation has achieved under circumstances a lot less propitious that than the US.
It would be lovely to have the world’s reserve currency.
raven
Watching and Australian Rule football game will help you understand why so many Aussies are recruited to kick for US university teams.
pattonbt
Can I just say if you want to see the most beautiful beaches and water, check out Esperance. A bit out of the way (like most things in Australia) but stunning. Too bad the water’s frigid 😆
Hoodie
@Aussie Sheila: I’m sure that you have your reasons, but sad to hear your views of the US. My dad slogged through the jungles of New Guinea with the 1st Marine Division and always had a deep appreciation and affection for Australia from his time there.
Raven
“US citizens at large have no idea about the war in the Pacific absent their own heroics.”
pfft
Raven
@Hoodie: And the RAR in Vietnam was small but very formidable.
Trivia Man
@Aussie Sheila: Thank you for that excellent insight. Australia is a unique place unusual in so many ways. Americans basically know kangaroos and ayers rock. If that. So much more depth!
Trivia Man
As Sheila pointed out, most of the people live in a small area, so most of the AFL teams represent neighborhoods rather than distinct metro areas. About half the teams are from greater Melbourne so several use the MVG as their home field.
jame
You didn’t mention the Australian rules football uniforms – no massive pads like US, and oh, those tiny, tight shorts! It’s a much livelier game.
stinger
Wonderful photos and travelogue. I’m indifferent to sports, but what a great stadium shot!
Hoodie
@Raven: The statement about the public at large might be somewhat accurate (witness Trumpian attitudes towards NATO) but I’d say that would not be the case within the defense community. That’s a smaller community that is very cognizant of the importance of historic relationships with close allies. Our forces are structured around those relationships, i.e., our allies and US expeditionary forces hold the line until the full weight of US logistics can be brought to bear. That happened in WWII with the Australians holding out in New Guinea and the US in Guadalcanal and the Philippines. Any war with China (god forbid) would likely hinge on the defense of Australia.
Trivia Man
@raven: It used to be automatic – australians were very dismissive of American football – the pads and helmets made them sissies and proved Americans weren’t tough at all. After a few came over and played they reported back that the pads and helmets ate absolutely necessary because of how the hits happen and what is legal contact. My impression is that it is no longer considered as much of a softie sport as it used to.
I am surprised there aren’t even more punters from the AFL, the accuracy and distance they kick is crazy.
Trivia Man
@jame: I rarely get to see full games but they have an interesting response to fights. Play On! Umpire bounces it up and you can choose – keep fighting or follow the ball.
And an absolute game changer IMO, after every match they review the tapes and hand out penalties for rough play. There can even be suspensions so the players have great incentive to keep it clean.
Trivia Man
I like dan carlin, ill do that one next.
Slightly_peeved
Slight correction – you referred to the Crows as being despised, when that would be Collingwood. Nobody likes Collingwood – except for Americans, to be fair, as they have the American Mason Cox playing for them.
Slightly_peeved
@Trivia Man:
A rising tide lifts all boats. Apparently the US punters have learned a few Australian techniques, with Pat McAfee crediting the AFL-style drop punt for extending his career.
And we shouldn’t get too greedy, now we’re talking to jobs of WWE champions and lead NBA point guards in addition to all the action hero jobs we’ve taken.
Viva BrisVegas
@jame: Aussie Rules is played on a cricket ground. Hence the C in MCG. The originator of the sport wanted a game that would keep cricket players fit during the winter season. Which also explains the peculiar rules for tackling, which were designed to prevent broken bones for valuable cricket talent.
Something most people don’t realise is that Aussie Rules was the dominant football code in the states of New South Wales and Queensland through the 1860s and 1870s, until it was supplanted by Rugby Union in the 1880s. This change did not occur south of the Victorian border, hence the separation of Australia into two football zones which largely persists to this day.
TheOtherHank
As Sheila mentioned, there was a division of Aussie troops in North Africa when things got dicey in the Pacific. The Australian government demanded they be brought home to fight the Japanese. Imagine the change they had to deal with: one day you’re fighting in the desert. The next you’re fighting in the mountainous jungle where nature is trying at least as hard as the enemy to kill you.
Oh, and MacArthur was notorious for putting out press releases where if any American troops were involved in a battle it lead with “American troops did the thing.” If it was only Aussie troops fighting the press release said “American and Allied troops did the thing.”
Trivia Man
@Slightly_peeved:. 👎🏽 To the Colliewobblies
currawong
Great to see a bit of love for Melbourne. I moved here from the UK in 1998 and have loved it. The alternative to the Ferntree Gully trip would have been to take the other branch of the line up to Belgrave. Just a short walk over the road is station for Puffing Billy – an iconic train ride through the forest.