JVC has sent me 2 of their Picsio GC-FM1 Handheld Video Recorders to giveaway in a competition.

The winners will be 2 people who write a comment on this blogpost with a photo taken by them (Picasa or Flickr link preferred) in a remote location they’ve visited during travels in Australia and 200 words describing their experience.

Conditions: Entry is only open to people with an Australian postal address. Entries close 11th February. This is not a competition of chance but of skill in writing and taking photos. The 2 winners will be chosen by me and informed via email.

Many people who live in Sydney aren’t aware of the wide range of short, half-day and day walks spread across the city along the harbour and coastline.

You could visit lots of websites to find out about these walks or simply buy the Sydney’s Best Harbour and Coastal Walks guidebook by Katrina O’Brien which lists each walk including directions, basic maps and a bit of information about the history of the area each walk passes through.

In fact when I mentioned that I was reviewing this book, my friend Catriona Pollard told me:

That is the book we use for our coastal walks. Its EXCELLENT! We are on a mission to do all of them!

I would suggest starting with the very popular and quite easy Spit Bridge to Manly Walk which includes several different landscapes along the way including rocky harbour steps, a forested section, small beaches where you can swim and finally a concrete sidewalk at the end when you’re approaching Manly Beach

The photos in the following Spit Bridge to Manly Walk Photo Gallery slideshow were taken using different cameras and camera phones across several different times I’ve done this walk.

More serious walkers will love the 2 day 26km Bundeena to Otford walk which is partially covered in Sydney’s Best Harbour and Coastal Walks upto the 40% mark at Marley Beach.

I did that walk in 2007 and while it was tiring I had a lot of fun and unlike many other easier Sydney walking tracks there were few other people on the Bundeena to Otford walk track besides myself and my friends. The full details for that walk are included in Sydney’s Best Bush, Park and City Walks by Veechi Stuart.

NOTE: A copy of this book was sent to me for review by the publishers Woodslane after they found the Spit Bridge to Manly Walk guide on this site.

GUEST ARTICLE: With its famous street cars and endless slopes, San Francisco has the feel of a cosmopolitan European city without the congestion. You might even forget you’re in the United States with so many public transport options and the prevailing green is good mentality.

Getting from San Francisco International Airport to the middle of town couldn’t be easier using Lorries Airport Shuttle service. Just pre-book online ($US 15), let them know when your flight arrives and they’ll pick you up and take you to your accommodation.

The Fisherman’s Wharf YHA is located nearby the historic Fisherman’s Wharf precinct, a tacky tourist strip featuring a Ripley’s Believe It or Not Museum, American fast food outlets, seafood restaurants, souvenir shops and chain hotels.

But don’t let this put you off. The hostel is situated in the Fort Mason Reserve, a quiet parkland with spectacular views of the Golden Gate Bridge and Alcatraz Island just a stones throw away.

If you’re a backpacker looking for a quiet hostel close to the Bay and amenities like a Safeway Supermarket, the F-line street car and some restaurants, then this is the place.

Dormitory beds start from $US 26. Dorms are very simple and rustic, featuring old wooden bunks, large under bed lockers and old wooden windows.

The price includes: a basic waffle/bagel and juice breakfast at the in house Café Franco, lockers, WiFi, parking, linen and a comprehensive walking tour led by a keen and informative local. Guests can also make use of the large kitchen and dining area, lounge room, games room and laundry facilities.

A highlight on the Fisherman’s Wharf strip is the Boudin Bakery where you can sample some original San Francisco sourdough with a view of the waterfront.

Kids will lap up the activities and shops that surround the city’s premier tourist attraction, the heavily touristy Pier 39. Adults might want to swing by the Hard Rock Café.

Walk across the Golden Gate Bridge if you want to save yourself about US$30 hiring a bike from popular local operators such as Blazing Saddles or Bay City Bike.

Walking allows you to pause and snap away from all the different angles possible without having to jump off a bike every few minutes. Make sure you visit the North and South viewing points on either side of the bridge to get the best views.

Just note that if you’d like to visit the quaint town of Sausalito across the bridge, cycle or drive as a road replaces the footpath beyond the North viewing point.

If your stomach is rumbling by the time you reach Sausalito, head over to the Sausalito Bakery & Café (571 Bridgeway, Sausalito) or Giovanni’s Pizza‎ (629 Bridgeway, Sausalito) for a tasty budget bite.

If you’ve walked the bridge and want to save your legs while treating your eyes to amazing views across the Bay, hop aboard the Golden Gate Ferry, voted one of the worlds’s leading ferry trips.

Alcatraz Cruises offers a great service to and from Alcatraz Island. The Early Bird cruise (US$26 adult) includes a brilliant self-guided audio tour narrated by former prisoners and wardens enabling you to re-live the trials and torment of inmates without the crowds.

You can easily spend up to 4 hours exploring the island and taking in the sweeping views of the Bay that the prisoners could never enjoy. If you’re lucky, you might also catch a guided tour of parts of the island open to the public.

Night cruises are also available. If you visit the island during the day it is advisable to take some food and drink with you.

If you’ve booked a ticket aboard Amtrak’s California Zephyr train service and haven’t picked up your tickets, you can do so at the Ferry Building Bus Station, located on 101 The Embarcadero.

From here, an Amtrak connecting bus can take you across the Bay Bridge to nearby Emeryville station where you can begin your rail journey.

This article has been written by Pranav Bhatt. He is a graduate of the Faculty of Economics and Business at Sydney University. He has an interest in world travel, cricket, politics, technology and the media.

If you’ve travelled somewhere off the beaten track, can write well and have good quality photos I encourage you to contact me and I’ll consider publishing your travel diary here including generous attribution and links back to your website as thanks for your contribution

GUEST ARTICLE: Catch the Amtrak California Zephyr train service and experience a cross section of the real America without being stuck behind the wheel or up in the clouds for hours on end.

Flying across America is fast and cheap, but what do you actually see apart from runways and clouds? Driving isn’t for everyone either, particularly solo travelers on a tight budget and those that get freaked out by left hand drive automobiles.

This is where the Amtrak California Zephyr train service comes in.

Mention Amtrak to most Americans and they’ll either laugh or apologise profusely. It happened to me every time.

Amtrak runs a number of train services across America. Many are crippled by chronic under investment and lengthy delays. The California Zephyr is different.

Sure, it isn’t always on time as it shares the track with freight trains but any delays are more than made up for by the views. Check out Amtrak Delays to find out more about train reliability.

The California Zephyr cuts through the heart of the Rocky Mountains, follows the Colorado River and climbs through the Sierra Nevada, making the ride from San Francisco to Denver the scenic highlight of the journey.

Scenic highlights along the journey to Denver include:

• Lake Tahoe emerging through the woods on the border of California and Nevada
• Vast red earth and rock formations of Utah
• Mountains, canyons and rivers alongside Glenwood Springs
• Approach from the 6.2 mile Moffat tunnel into Denver, “the Mile High City” lit up at night at an elevation of over 9000 feet

Depending on your ticket, you can break your journey in a number of places such as Reno, Nevada (known as “The Biggest Little City in the World”) for some action on the roulette tables or hit the ski resorts in Salt Lake City for some world class skiing.

Alternatively, if you want to take in the entire experience, from the comfort of your seat, compartment, the sightseer lounge/café car or the dining car, you can book a ticket that takes you from San Francisco’s Emeryville station to Chicago Union station – all possible in about 60 hours, or 2 1/2 days.

The “sightseer lounge” features large panoramic windows and some seats that spin 360 degrees. This allows you to take in the view from both sides of the track.

You’ll be able to take plenty of good photos as the train ambles along at a leisurely pace.

To optimize your shots, find a clean window and wipe the glass down with a clean cloth to remove smears. Turn the camera flash off, select a fast shutter speed and keep your lens on or as close to the window as possible. Use a polarizing filter to eliminate any remaining glare and reflections.

You’re bound to run out of snacks as your eyes and camera are fixed on the natural scenery outside the window, so put your name down early to reserve a spot in the dining car or head down to the café car.

The Dining Car Steward will allocate a seat for you, which makes sure you mingle with other passengers. You’ll end up meeting a good mix of locals from many parts of the States, many eager to share their story.

Many passengers I spoke to had never known that their country was so beautiful, as their previous trips were confined to endless stretches of tarmac or clouds in the sky.

If you want some privacy and a bit of comfort, book a Superliner Roomette. It includes two seats, two pillows, a flip out table and a mini coat cupboard. It is a very small compartment but breakfast, lunch and dinner served in the dining car are included in the ticket price.

The Sleeping Car Attendant will convert your seat into a full-length flat bed in the evening and will assist in making your journey comfortable. Don’t forget to leave them a small tip to show your appreciation (at least US$ 5).

Find out how you too can Get on board the Amtrak California Zephyr train.

This article has been written by Pranav Bhatt. He is a graduate of the Faculty of Economics and Business at Sydney University. He has an interest in world travel, cricket, politics, technology and the media.

If you’ve travelled somewhere off the beaten track, can write well and have good quality photos I encourage you to contact me and I’ll consider publishing your travel diary here including generous attribution and links back to your website as thanks for your contribution

GUEST ARTICLE: On our first day in Port Vila on Efate Island (Vanuatu) we decided to rent a car (I would highly recommend it!). While at the Discount Car Rental office in downtown Port Vila I noticed they also operate a small airline specialising in private plane tours to a number of the surrounding islands.

One tour in particular caught my eye; it was the original vine bungee jumping (land diving) on Pentecost Island. This traditional event called Naghol only occurs between the months of April and June.

Being such a special event I could only assume that all tours were probably booked out months ago. I was right on that but on this particular day luck was on our side, two people had just cancelled!!

The price was hefty ($800AUD for two) but seeing as this was one of those once in a lifetime things and that the moons just happen to align for us, how could we not?

The next morning we met at the domestic airport and boarded our little 8 seater plane. One hour later after flying across some of the most beautifully brilliant coloured reefs, volcano and deep green jungle we landed at the little Lanonore Airport at the Nangol site in Pentecost.

The weather was brutally hot and humid, not a place to forget the sunblock and water. After meeting our tour contact we made our way into the jungle to the revered bungee sight. I had watched this marvellous event on the National Geographic Channel but there really is nothing compared to the real thing.

The giant bungee tower looked truly magnificent in the small clearing with a back drop of jungle, brilliant blue sky and the structure itself accompanied with fully garbed tribal bodies preparing for the jumps.

The tower was a crude structure with 5 bungee levels made out of native wood held tightly together with homemade ropes made out of liana vine. It was situated on a slight slope and the ground in the front was freshly tilled to help break the fall of the jumpers.

Traditionally the jumps are for males only and they signify acceptance into manhood, to ensure a good yam harvest rite and never to be tricked by woman again.

It is said that this tradition started because of a woman who was beaten by her husband and then ran away up a tall tree. Her husband told her if she came down he would then only beat her only a ‘little’, but if he had to go up to get her she would be sorry.

In the end the husband ended up going up the tree after her but just when he was about to grab her she jumped from the tree, he too followed but she was saved because she had tied liana vines around her ankles. So the story goes.

We nestled ourselves among a few other small tour groups and locals and anxiously awaited the first jump. The first jumper was a young teenage boy decked out (if you could say that) in nothing but a tiny native grass thong and both ankles liana vine-bound.

He tentatively inched his way out onto the first platform (about 20ft up)and with a large group of native tribes people singing in the background, he swayed his arms over his head, looked up to the sky gave a few loud “whoop-whoop’s” and dived.

It’s hard to watch the dive, many potential tragedies run through your mind … did they tie the vines tight enough, is there too much rope?… but before you know it he’s bounced back just in the nick of time and everyone’s rejoicing.

We watched this incredible event 6 times as they got higher and higher. Although I have to say that the last jump, the one from the very top was nail biting, I’m not quite sure how high it was, maybe 60ft?

In any case it was high enough for me and the suspense when his face just grazed the dirt was heart stopping. It was a glorious sight to see this very old tradition still being practiced, to hear their traditional songs and to see the tribe dressed in their traditional wear.

It was truly an honour and I will no doubt cherish this memory for the rest of my life.

This travel diary has been written by Rob Gower, a traveler who works part-time for a bus hire company and enjoys traveling along roads less traveled!

If you’ve travelled somewhere off the beaten track, can write well and have good quality photos I encourage you to contact me and I’ll consider publishing your travel diary here including generous attribution and links back to your website as thanks for your contribution

The Sydney Harbour YHA rooftop balcony provided me with the best vantage point I’ve had for Sydney’s New Years Eve Fireworks shows at 9pm and Midnight including a panoramic view of Circular Quay, the Opera House and the Harbour Bridge

A handful of my photos are displayed below, along with a bigger slideshow selection of some of the better fireworks photos. Read my Tips To Take Best Fireworks Photos: Location, Camera Equipment and Settings if you want to improve your photos.

The photos were taken by me with a Canon 500D digital SLR using a 15-85 EFS USM lense kept steady by a Velbon Sherpa 750R tripod.

Photo Slideshow – Sydney Fireworks Midnight New Years Eve 2009

Disclosure: The camera and tripod were on media loan to me so I could review them. YHA Sydney Harbour gave me accommodation for the night of NYE in exchange for being able to use my photos in their marketing materials.