Alice in the Rain

In the darkness before dawn, rain like none Vilis and I had heard since the depths of the Wet pounded down onto the metal roof of our rental house. In first light, I saw flooded raised beds and patios...

Thorsborne Trail Recap

If I had to choose one word to describe backpacking in the Wet Tropics, it would be sweaty. Perspiration poured off Vilis and me when we bushwalked the 32-kilometre Thorsborne Trail on Hinchinbrook Is...

The Significance of ‘Bush’

During the eight months we’ve lived in Australia, Vilis and I have frequently encountered the word ‘bush’ and various permutations of it. Take for example the devastating Black Satur...

Falling Palm Leaves and Tropical Ramblings

In Bicentennial Park this morning, tiny biting midges attacked me with their pinpoints of fire, leaving my skin dotted with red splotches far more obvious than the minute insects that caused them. Mos...