I live in a spaceship.

By Steven Shoppman in

April 23, 2007 – 5:24 pm

It has been about a week since taking possesion of the vehicles.  After spending two months without the trucks, it is easy to forget what real freedom and conveniences are like.  Daily we have to double our travel time, work out three or four different modes of trasportation and revolve our schedule around timtables.  Since leaving the United States, accomodation has not been stationary for more than four days at a time.  This feeling is not foreign, but it is something that you never get used to.  After this week, all this changed.

We are still on the move, but at least my home is now consistent and comfortable. The tents we received from Marmot are a nice shade called Sunflower. Marmot actually did some research a few years back when they introduced their tent line and found that people reacted best to confined spaces with this color of fabric.  This small portable home is about as regular of sleeping quarters as I can expect over the next couple of years.  There are no complaints here.  Beyond Marmot’s well researched choice of colors are my inflatable sleeping pad, $5 pillows, custom made sleeping bag…thanks Mom, and headlamp as a nightlight that do the trick of giving some peice of mind at the end of the night.  Athough I cannot walk around the corner to my bathroom in the morning, the view as I roll out of my tent is a welcome replacement changing from canyons to beachlines to mountain backdrops daily.

As many have noticed from my blogs over the course of the last couple of months, things have not exactly been a walk in the park.  Many days my inbox is filled with worried emails and advice to lighten up or chill out.  Some emails have even gone as far as telling me that this honesty is unprofessional if the objective is to get more sponsors on board.  Trying as the last couple of months have been, they are hands down some of the best of my life.  This is an adventure, not a vacation afterall.  The months ahead will certainly be rocky like the past, but the amount of knowledge and enjoyment that come out of an experience like this certaily surpass a holiday of mai tais on the beach.

One of the largest hurdles we have had to overcome is the vehicles, their paperwork and the shipment to Australia.  This may not fall into the category of enjoyment, but it is a mountain of knowledge about a plethora of different subjects.  I am your man if you are looking for advice on the United States DMV (Department of Motor Vehicles), customs, quarantine, insurance, international shipping, logistics, carnet documents, the Canadian Automobile Association, Letters of Credit…I will spare you the rest of the list so as not to put to much strain on the transfer limits of your internet connection.  Some of these lessons I enjoyed learning some were not.

The most recent and amuzing of all these lessons is the process of getting our cars off the boat and through customs.  As you might expect it was not as simple as showing our passports and paying a few fees.  The vehicles arrived on the 7th of April. Being the Easter weekend holiday for Ausralians, they appropriately took a 4 day weekend to honor it…So we waited. 

When business resumed on Tuesday, the phone rang with our new master of ceremonies for the circus act of receiving our vehicles over the next few days.  Ray, the freight forwarding manager for our shippment, informed us that our appointment with the customs and quarantine officers would be on Thursday…So we waited. 

After a quick conversation with the coordinator at ANJ, the unpacking company, we were allowed access to film the unpacking of the vehicles. This was only a tease.  The unpacking of the trucks is just the beginning of the receiving process. Nonetheless, a tease like this is still a soothing feeling watching the trucks roll out of the container safe and sound with the engines purring.  Even though the waiting continued one more day before taking possession, I slept easier later that night knowing that the trucks waited safely in the ANJ warehouse.

The next morning we rode the bus and train back out the the Sydney suburbs again to finish the process.  We met the friendly quarantine officers and oddly enough had a good time talking with them and going through all of our gear to make sure it did not pose an environmental danger to their country.  They were quite interested in our journey, which undoubtedly made our time in customs and quarantine much easier.  With their authority, they waived us from having to meet with the customs officers at all.

Another handful of hours and hoop jumping passed as we gathered our paperwork from another suburb about 2 hours away, allowed ANJ some time to finish cleaning the trucks and rounded up the rest of the team.  It is still a mystery to me why our paperwork was in one place, our vehicles were in another, the manager of this process was over 1000km away, and cleaning the undercarrage of two trucks takes over four hours at a price of $220. At this point I was done asking questions. By about three that afternoon and $2700 worth of unexpected fees later, we were pulling out of the unpacking yard and on the road.  We finally achieved our original goal of having our own vehicles and being free of trains, buses and timetables.  We have been on the road for over 2 months, but until about 5 days ago, the adventure had not truly started.

Over the last week we spent a few days in the Blue Mountains, drove up the coast to Byron Bay and camped in many gourgeous spots.  The comfort of having our own vehicles certainly eases all of our minds.  On the contrary the foreign look of our vehciles is most certainly alarming to the unsuspecting Australians as we fly down the road in our unusual looking Toyotas.  Between the turning heads and lifethreatening manuevers our fellow road warriors attempt to get a look at our vehicles, you would think that we were driving spaceships down the road.  I would like to personally send a thanks to all of these Aussies for the looks and smiles…the is the mobile spaceship that I call home.

By Steven Shoppman | Posted in Australia, Expedition Updates | Comments (1)

10 Things You Wouldn’t Expect From Australia

By Elena Evans in

April 20, 2007 – 7:07 pm

Australia, the land down under, is depicted as a wondrous place of surf beaches, kangaroos, wineries, and all the comforts of home. This investigative report delves into what the average tourist may not anticipate when going down under!

1) Kangaroos are considered pests. Cars armor themselves due to eminent kangaroo crashes that occur with alarming frequency around dusk and dawn. That’s right, the national emblem can frequently be seen on the side of the road.

2) The land of surf beaches has a strict dress code in which flip-flops are not appropriate attire for many establishments. You, your money, and your fine attire will get turned away if your little toes are showing. However, they allowed me to wear my hiking boots.  Apparently this dates back to earlier times and Aboriginal racism as many of them did not and still do not have shoes.

3) If you order a sandwich you will be asked if you want salad.  This does not mean a Caesar salad or anything of that sort. Instead it means would you like lettuce, tomato, onion, or something of that sort.

4) You can’t tell that the toilet flushes the wrong way, they are all low flow so there is not enough water flowing to see this effect. The most notable thing about the toilets is that there are two buttons; one number one and the second for number two.  This is much due to the regular drought conditions experienced down here.

5) Driving on the left hand side also means you are supposed to walk and pass on the left hand side. Many collisions reaffirm this.

6) Long blacks, short blacks, and lattes are easy to come by than regular filter coffee. Many times the baristas do not even know what you are talking about.

7) Mullets are the style, it has been that way and will continue to be whether modern fashion denotes it or not.

8) Australian’s do not think that Fosters is "Australian for beer." Fosters is not on tap at most establishments and even hard to find in liquor stores .

9) Steve Irwin, the crocodile hunter, had more of a following outside of Australia than in it.  However, he is still highly respected by many for his commitment to the environment.

10) Black beans and green chili are nearly impossible to find. As a result, good Mexican food does not exist here.

By Elena Evans | Posted in For some laughs | Comments (2)

The Great Ocean Road – In the event of a Blackout… call Michael.

By Caki Shay in

April 19, 2007 – 7:07 pm

Every morning Elena’s head dangles upside down from above awaking the rest of the van with a smile and a laugh. That meter high nook in the top third of the camper van has been her home for nearly 3 weeks. The vans certainly made the trip down The Great Ocean Road an easy one… where ever they parked was home. But is a 3 man camper van the only way to see the beautiful coast of southern Australia? The Great Ocean Road offers travelers a variety of ways to enjoy themselves along their journey down the coast. It was time for The World by Road Crew to get a taste of the luxury The Great Ocean Road has to offer.

On Wednesday morning Steve Shoppman informed the team that the following night in Port Campbell we would see the coast from the other side of the tracks. Damian Fusili and Michael Jojic kindly made room for The World by Road crew at their establishment, The Southern Ocean Villas.


Arriving tired and dirty late Friday night, the words "luxury villas" danced in our heads. Steve checked in and shortly after turning the key everyone’s mood lifted to the sight of beautiful hard wood floors and all the modern conveniences we missed the past three weeks in the vans. The villas lived up to every expectation. After a delicious feast of pasta and pizza in Port Campbell the team sprawled out on the couches, did loads of laundry in our very own laundry room, and began plugging in the computers. Unfortunately, that was not the only thing that was plugged in… in our elated state we failed to realize that we plugged in all the electronics, chargers, a couple of the heaters, ran the washer and the dryer, and when Elena turned on the last light in the bathroom upstairs, blackout!

The past three weeks of camper van living experience came in handy as immediately the darkness was illuminated with tiny flash lights strapped to our heads. A team attempt to fix the fuse situation proved unsuccessful, and moments after a call to the front desk Michael himself was at the front door eager to help fix the problem.

One of the best parts of these small towns is that businesses are small, and a great amount of pride goes into running them. This was evident the next morning when Michael took the time to escort the crew down to film all of the sites Port Campbell area has to offer. The combination of a refreshing nights sleep in a clean and comfortable bed and Michael’s gentle kind demeanor made for a wonderful morning of filming. Everyone was eager to get some work done and enjoy a sunny afternoon by the ocean. The good time in Port Campbell proved to be an excellent ending point for the journey westward as the vans turned east again to begin the trip back to Melbourne.

By Caki Shay | Posted in Australia | Comments (0)

Thule Hookup

By Steve Bouey in

April 17, 2007 – 12:38 am

It is about time to tell everyone a little bit about one of our sponsors and the great people that work there. Thule (pronounced "too-luh") has joined on as a sponsor of the expedition and, as you may or may not be aware, produce some excellent roof rack systems and storage devices. We have been working with Thule USA and their marketing director Steve Doviak for some time, but have only recently outfitted the vehicles as a result of timing issues and the long wait for the cars to arrive in Australia. Luckily, Thule USA was able to work with us and our ever evolving schedule and put us into contact with Adrian Van Bellen of Thule Australia.

Immediately after peeling out of the shipping yard with the Tundra and the Sequoia, we headed strait to Thule Australia’s headquarters north of Sydney where Adrian was already waiting for us. Adrian gave us a tour of the retail shop and warehouse, revived us with some refreshments and had an Ocean roof box for the Sequoia and a Ranger 90 weather-proof storage bag for the Tundra set aside and ready to be installed. Adrian was a great help and his genuine enthusiasm and excitement about the expedition was welcome after a long day finalizing the shipping of the Toyotas.  In hardly no time at all, we had some great looking equipment on the vehicles. As everyone knows, there have been some ups, downs and challenges to overcome, but it is with support from people like Adrian and companies like Thule that recharge our spirits and keep us focused on the road ahead. 

By Steve Bouey | Posted in Expedition Sponsors, Expedition Updates | Comments (1)

Where are you from?

By Elena Evans in

April 15, 2007 – 6:30 pm

One of the first questions out of new acquaintances mouths while in the southern hemisphere has been "Where are you from?" This seemingly simple question is usually answered with "America." Those who want to get to know me better or can not think of another small talk follow-up question will continue with where in America? Beaming with state pride I answer "Wisconsin" with that hard "o" vowel enunciation that only those who hail from Wisconsin can successfully achieve. My smile usually dims at this point as the person on the other side of the conversation usually nods or says "oh" full of incomprehension barely hidden in their facial features. With the addendum of two hours north of Chicago, the blank expression quickly clears up and we carry on with our conversation.

Our team currently contains representatives from the states of Wisconsin, California, Colorado, and Oregon, yet we are all classed as "Americans." The cultural variation within the United States of America is something that many people treasure under the auspices of state pride. This is not possible while abroad when most people are unaware of the locations and cultural identity of these states.

"Are you German? Are you Norwegian?" are questions that have also been demanded of me. Perhaps these people were not fond of asking the primary question of "Where are you from?" and decided to jump directly into conclusions. Although their profiling is partially accurate since I have some German and Norwegian ancestry, these assumptions also demonstrate that Americans do not look one particular way. As soon as I open my mouth, my accent clears away any doubt.

As a friendly person, I am regularly initiating conversation. Good or bad it makes things interesting. One specific conversation included a kid from Denmark ridiculing Americans for their stupidity and weight. He asked where I was from and I said Wisconsin (blank stare) near Chicago. Internally I began to boil and rage about his ignorance of the fair state of Wisconsin. Upon a deep breath I reflected upon my knowledge of Denmark. The only knowledge I have of his country is the capital city of Copenhagen and vague knowledge of their royalty. So how could I begin to take offense?

We will have to be conscious of this in our travels. As the old saying goes about assumptions…better to smile and give the other person the benefit of the doubt. It will only help!

By Elena Evans | Posted in For some laughs, Trip Thoughts | Comments (1)

Great People on the Great Ocean Road

By Elena Evans in

April 15, 2007 – 6:36 am
A lovely woman named Denise at the Otway Lighthouse kept feeding us hot chocolate and other treats. I remarked to Caki that I wish she had been my kindly next door neighbor while growing up. Envisioning her with a nice little house that would be filled with treats was not difficult. As we were packing up, I went to thank her for her hospitality. Handed her our card, I told her a little bit about our trip around the world.

She asked, "Are you going through Tibet or India?" I replied, "Yes…"

Her face became animated as she explained that she had been the study abroad coordinator for Antioch College’s Buddhist studies program. My "kindly next-door neighbor" began to spin tales of her adventures throughout India, Tibet, and Iran. The stories were sprinkled with warnings, advice, religious history and stories. We came away from our talk with Denise bearing sheets upon sheets of paper full of people we should talk to or visit and the guide book we must buy. My next-door neighbor had quickly morphed into the exciting world adventurer I hope to be.

Paul, the keeper of the lighthouse, later arrived to give an interview. Personal insight from the man who lives at the point like many other keepers before him gave us an interesting perspective on the area and history. He augmented the lighthouse story provided by our tour guide on our in-depth 45 minute tour. Paul went further than most, however, when he offered to put some of our pictures and possibly a link on the lighthouse website. The generosity of this gesture was highlighted by the fact that he only met us that day and had no prior knowledge about our expedition.

For the Great Ocean road grand finale, we stopped by the Longboard Winery where Matthew and his adorable daughter Lulu showed us around. Lulu accompanied us throughout the tour and it was easy to see how Lulu and Matthew spent their time together. It was almost as though we had become part of the family. During our three hour tour, Matthew, Lulu, and Matthew’s partner, Roger, showed us their estate, taught us about wine and wine making, discussed the current drought and the effect the drought had on the local wine industry. It was the most comprehensive wine tour I’ve ever been on. Despite walking into this winery knowing that the Longboard name was related to the surfboard, Matthew regaled us all with his in-depth knowledge about the history of surfing. Not only did he have surfing knowledge but also the personal connection to surfing. Many surfing greats have visited Longboard and sipped on a glass of wine with Matthew while trading surfing legends.

Needless to say, we will all remember the Great Ocean Road for the scenery and activities but the experience would not be as memorable if it were not for all of the kind, generous, and interesting people who we met while on the road. My dad always says “It never hurts to say hi.” The people of the Great Ocean Road prove that you never know who you will meet and what knowledge they will reveal.

By Elena Evans | Posted in Australia | Comments (0)

We have the trucks.

By Steven Shoppman in

April 13, 2007 – 10:22 pm

Things are truly on the up and up.  We now have the trucks and are in the Blue Mountains outside of Sydney.  Now that we have our gear we were able to go canyoning in an amazing canyon and abseil some waterfalls.  We have limited internet right now, but we will be taking some photos of the trucks and have them up in the next couple of days.  Our last week has been action packed and we will put together some great updates for you as well.

The adventure has truly begun now!!!

By Steven Shoppman | Posted in Australia, Events, Expedition Updates | Comments (0)

Shed a little light

By bchap in

April 13, 2007 – 8:18 pm

Neptune’s fury has been delivering mariners to the depths since before recorded history, so the need for lighthouses dates back thousands of years. The Greeks and Romans built lighthouses all over the Mediterranean, Atlantic and Brittan to keep the trade flowing regardless of weather, offshore hazards, and peninsulas and to more easily locate ports of trade.

Ever since I was a child I have always held a fascination for lighthouses. There is a story behind each one that you wish the lighthouse itself could tell. However, since that will never happen, we are fortunate enough to have volunteers with a love and passion for their history and the willingness to share that history with others and one such individual took us around the Cape Otway lighthouse. 

The lighthouse is situated on the south coast of Australia, separating Bass Strait and the Southern Ocean. Bass Strait is a sub sea shelf between Australia and Tasmania and is one of the most dangerous bodies of water in the world. Unimpeded seas coming from the South West from Antarctica and the North East via the Pacific and the Tasman Sea all get funneled into the shallow water of the shelf and can create monstrous seas big enough to swallow a ship whole.

There are over 500 shipwrecks in these waters but it was the loss of a ship in the 1840s carrying over 400 settlers that created the demand to build Cape Otway lighthouse. It only took ten months to build the lighthouse, and it was built without the benefit on an infrastructure or nearby harbor which in and of itself is a feat of Australian ingenuity and resolve.

During the gold rush in the 1860s the lighthouse was undermanned but a telegraph weather station also existed at the same location. At one point, the lighthouse keeper had requested help from the telegraph officer to keep the light lit. However, since the telegraph officer was part of another governmental organization and was not getting paid to help keep the light lit, he refused to assist. This created a rift between the two that lasted over thirty years. This rift was so deep that even though the two lived only meters apart, they did not speak to one another and in order to communicate, the light keeper would give a message to a passing ship to take to Melbourne where it would then be telegraphed back to the telegraph operator if something needed to be said. This is just one of the many stories I find fascinating about the life of lighthouse keepers and their duties. 

The experience became more unique after climbing inside the lens assembly to see the actual light itself. This was a huge treat because typically, this is a part of the lighthouse that visitors seldom see. The original lead crystal lenses cost an equivalent of $5,000,000 to make back in 1848 and give you the feeling of being in a crystal ball as the lenses turn around you.

 We were also fortunate to have gale force winds during our visit and the full force of huge waves crashing along the rocks combined with the scream of the wind through the trees gave an ominous feeling to the entire experience. I could truly feel for the early mariners navigating along this rugged coastline without the benefit of modern navigational equipment, imagining how relieved they would feel seeing the beacon of light shining through a storms fury. Only by visiting a lighthouse such as Cape Otway, can you truly appreciate what a lighthouse represents.

By bchap | Posted in Australia | Comments (1)

More than just a drive down the coast…

By Steven Shoppman in

April 10, 2007 – 8:03 pm

When hearing about a stretch of road acclaimed to be one of the best drives in the world, it is easy to brush it off as a bunch of tourism propaganda to entice a visit to the area.  A name like "The Great Ocean Road" seems a little holier than thou coming from the Australians presenting this road as some sort of stage for a romance story out of an old novel.  After spending a week in campers, lighthouses, villas, rainstorms, helicopters, jungle canopies, vineyards, and beaches, a new confidence arrives in the naming of this road.  It is nothing short of a setting for a great novel and an experience along this road easily produces stories to tell for years to come.

After meeting with Roger Grant (see previous blog), we started our journey along this road built by World War I vetrans as a memorial to all Victorian soldiers in the war.  Before I left his office, Roger gave me a copy of the 1918 Charter to build this road.  The charter bills the road before it was even built as "A thing of beauty and joy forever." The delivery of this statement comes with relentless success.  Each turn of this 500 km section of highway presents many unexpected surprises even after only driving 220 km of it.  A road with such a rich past only adds to the experience, creating a desire delve deeper into the history of this place, not just simply see the beautiful scenery. 

From the first day of this journey, we were already deep in the history of this road as we passed through the town of Tourquay.  The energy that these veterans put into building this road led to many historical markers over the next century including the birth of many well known companies that have pushed surfing as a sport through the 50s, 60s and today.  Tourquay is home to Quicksilver, Rip Curl and many other of the huge brands that run the surf industry today.  The reason for the start and success of these companies is partly due to the fact that the next piece of history along this road is Bells Beach, the first surfing reserve in the world.  It is home to many of the world’s largest surf competitions and famed for it large waves coming out of the deep waters of the Southern Ocean above Antarctica.

These tumultuous waters sprinkle the coastline with many other pieces of history including the Cape Otway Lighthouse, which is the southernmost point in Australia.  This beacon of hope was built to assist in the safe passage of immigrants to this continent.  Standing at the top of this lighthouse and talking to the keeper gives a new perspective on the beginnings of Australia and certainly allows you to see what makes Australians rough around the edges.  Navigating the shipwreck coast and cold, unforgiving waters here makes immigrating to the United States at Ellis Island look like a walk in the park.  People down under have no time for nonsense because it is ingrained in their culture since the island was populated by Europeans.  There were certainly no princesses on these ships.

Traveling further down the coast we saw the site of the first US casualties from World War II, walked along high suspended walks through the forest, enjoyed a personal tour of a vineyard owned by a family with deep roots along the coast, and generally had a nonstop run of cultural richness. Encountering some wild Koala’s for the first time and the interesting characters along the Great Ocean Road changes an experience of driving down a well known tourist drive from a cliche experience into an unforgettable journey.  Over the coming week we will be posting the individual stories that make up our camper van extravaganza down this coast.  Who knows, our stories and photos of wild animals, overly hospitable staffs at every establishment here, and picturesque scenery may have you booking your next adventure to the South of Australia.

Click here to see all of the photo galleries.

By Steven Shoppman | Posted in Australia | Comments (1)

Sydney- people, sites and giant bats

By kira in

April 6, 2007 – 11:27 pm

I wrote this blog after arriving in Sydney, but did not have a chance to post until now…Coincidentally we are back in Sydney again.

Stepping off the plane at Sydney International airport three things struck me. The first is the suffocating humidity, second, the total exhaustion from 15 hours in airplanes and third, utter disbelief that I actually pulled this off. Six weeks ago I stumbled across The World By Road website and made a bold decision to drop all aspects of my life- my job, my car, my friends- and join this expedition.

Three days later I am certain I made the right decision.

Sydney is a wonderful city. I spent the last three days meandering through a sea of tall, leggy, fair-haired and friendly people. As a very clean city full of young professionals in starched shirts and ties hurrying off to work, it shows very little signs of poverty in the city center.  Overall Sydney looks very modern with many sleek buildings, but it will occasionally surprise you as you turn a corner and are confronted by a beautiful old stone cathedral or a breath taking view of the surrounding harbor. Visiting the famous Opera House is definitely one of the highlights of my sightseeing. It is truly amazing and no matter what angle photographed from, after trying many I don’t feel like I could capture how stunning this piece of architecture is.

My favorite experience thus far was losing myself in the lush rainforest trails of the city’s Botanical Gardens. We stumbled upon hundreds of Red Flying-Fox bats hanging from the trees- dripping from the highest branches like giant ebony raindrops. These large wild fruit bats are pretty active during the middle of the day and were creating wonderful, deafening screeches that will be hard to forget. The only down side so far is that three days of gray skies have this sun-worshiper and photographer a little frustrated and desperate for some golden light and long, deep shadows.

Regardless of what the weather will be I can’t begin to explain the sense of excitement and optimism I feel about this expedition. I have joined this incredible, dynamic group full of people who have so much to offer and learn from. It’s so wonderful sharing in the responsibilities of the trip. Instead of little ol’ me by myself scratching my head by trying to decipher the train schedule, I’ve become a part of this wonderful team who shares my love and respect for other cultures.

It’s going to be one hell of a ride.

By kira | Posted in Australia, Trip Thoughts | Comments (2)