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Laura, who comes from Telšiai, tells the news portal tv3.lt with a smile how her love for Australia was born: her distant relatives lived there, with whom the family kept in touch, so she knew from an early age that the distant continent.
PHOTO GALLERY. Moments of traveling in Australia
The story of Martynas de Panevėžys laughs, not so beautiful: not all exams were passed well, so he was drawn to study in Denmark. The studies turned out not to be very interesting, so I had to work as a pig farm cleaner for a couple of years to have the funds to travel to Australia.
“We met through mutual friends. I studied at one of the universities in Australia, where I met another Lithuanian woman, she invited me to join a camping trip for the weekend. I knew all his company of friends in Australia had been in Australia for at least a couple of years, they were all there, so I was there like a white crow, I met Martyn there, “Laura smiles and Martynas adds that he didn’t even He greeted me at the first meeting because but fate has arranged it so that now the couple is counting for the fifth year together.
At the rear – works, in front of all of Australia
The guy jokes that he infected Laura with a camping love affair and, after two years of friendship, Martynas offered to travel to Australia by car; then they both got excited about the idea.
And there was a lot of installation work: it was necessary to install two batteries, which could be used to charge the refrigerator and other devices, such as telephones, cameras. It was also necessary to solve the problem of water, install a tent on the roof; It is extremely popular in Australia, and even safer, because snakes abound on the ground.
The couple started planning more seriously a year before the trip: Australia is very big, it has different seasons in the states, so I had to decide what they wanted to see and when to leave. M. Valančiūnas worked for more than 5 years in a logistics company, where he was responsible for procurement planning, communication with suppliers and international logistics, so when he decided to travel, he had to leave work.
Laura managed to save the project manager’s job – she was offered to work remotely, just to reduce working hours. They both knew they would have to quit their jobs when they got ready for the trip, but Laura laughs that she was asked a lot to stay, so she agreed to work remotely. Here, the couple saw pros and cons: Laura could work from anywhere and already had additional funds for travel, but finding an internet connection that worked in remote locations was not easy, so I had to deal with stress at times.
“It just came to our attention then.” The boy spoke.
In two years, refining the idea of the trip and putting together plans, more than 300 places that the couple wanted to visit have been put on the map. It is true that both realized that it was not possible, but they were fascinated by the choice.
“There were many places, of course, we knew that we would not visit all of them because we traveled for 5 months, we would have reached a couple of places a day and the distances are inhuman, but we wanted to know that we had options and when we drive to a place that we know that we can choose. We knew the places we really wanted to visit, and we looked for more depending on the situation, ”Laura smiles.
Planning is marked by doubts
When the plans emerged, the coronavir struck unexpectedly. The couple say they remember that day perfectly – they were traveling through New Zealand at the time with a couple of friends.
“Suddenly we decided to stop the trip and return to Australia earlier than planned and closed the Australian border the same night we landed,” Laura recalls, adding that if she was late, she could still get stuck in New Zealand.
Australia has effectively dealt with the spread of the virus, but the couple make no secret of the fears – it was never clear where the borders might close and where they might unexpectedly get stuck, but now that they are laughing at the end of the journey. , the pandemic has completely thwarted the plans.
“We were planning to start the trip in December and everything went well for us. There were many months of hesitation before the trip began, as we followed the news in Australia, all states were closing their borders, it was our greatest concern because we were afraid of not leaving our state or entering others. Although there were not many cases and they did not infect us, the states of Australia were also closed to any travel within the country. We were afraid of failing and having to travel alone in our own state.
We followed the news, we hoped that everything would be resolved, in September we began to talk that states should open their borders for Christmas. There were various thoughts, but we managed to leave successfully, ”said L. Daukšaitė.
After swearing fears to the country, on December 19, in a heap, he drove to South Australia by car. In a 5-month trip we had to travel 27 thousand kilometers, sometimes the distance traveled per day reached 800 kilometers, and the trip at that time took 22 thousand kilometers. Australian dollars, which on an Australian scale is a very small amount.
“At first we didn’t realize that 5 months would require so much driving, it was only at the end that we realized that Australia is a really big country. We would call our trip “budget” because it is expensive in Australia and there are many places where money can easily be spent.
“Australians themselves often choose to travel with campers, which requires stops at paid campsites, which are not cheap, and with full equipment, we could afford to park in free spots or even on roads where camping is allowed,” smiles Martynas.
However, both do not hide any charm in Australian travel culture, even when they stopped to take photos or videos on the sidewalk, passing drivers stopped to ask if there was a problem.
The places visited were lovely
I had to deal with excruciating heat during the day and it was difficult to rest at night – the tent could heat up to 30 degrees and above. And where are the mosquitoes and other wild animals?
“We call this trip of ours ‘survival’ because we have to face challenges every day: heat, strong winds, rain, impassable roads, the biggest beetles, non-replaceable flies. Finally, I also felt tired, because there was a lot to pack all of them. the days, a tent, a small kitchen, literally our whole life was stacked in a car. The heat has also started to bother me at night, when there is not the slightest breeze, and you do not sleep, although you are tired ” remembers the girl.
When asked who remembered the trip the most, they both admit that it is not easy to choose between more than 200 places visited, but Laura almost hesitates to say that Uluru is one of the largest rocks she remembers the most.
“For me, that place is something magical, unreal. Furthermore, we arrived out of season, it was very hot, tourists do not travel that season. Standing next to that stone, looking, there is nothing around, a really magical feeling.”
Martynas says he also had to visit a very interesting mining town: Kuber Pedi (Coober Pedy), most of which is underground because the weather is so hot. The girl laughs that it felt like Mars there and stayed in an underground hotel for one night because it was interesting to find out how it felt.
The couple spent a lot of time by the water, and Ningalu Reef was the most memorable – it’s less known than the Great Barrier Reef, but life here is boiling.
“It’s so easy to reach: you walk from the beach, dance in the water and swim over the reef. I was very impressed with this place, we spent a couple of weeks in Exmouth. Especially flour“You don’t have to do any tours, you choose the places to dive and decide how long you want to spend there,” the girl smiles.
On the journey – for the first time
There were not only charming images, but also new experiences. Almost the thing most stuck in memory is diving with great white sharks.
“We booked a day trip to South Australia, we took us to the Neptune Islands for about 5 hours, we climbed into cages, we let them into the water and we waited there for the sharks to appear. We had already seen sharks while diving, but we knew they were reefs, good ones and great white sharks, something else, we really wouldn’t like to meet them sailing in two ”, the interviewee shares.
The guy is happy not only to be able to touch the wildlife, hold the crocodile in his hands, swim with the turtles and see the blankets, but also contribute to its cleanliness, leaving the place where he stayed, leaving it cleaner than he could find. .
And where there are new and tasteless flavors, after getting acquainted with the ranger, camel meat was served.
“We met a ranger who told me that camel meat is valued here, which the locals eat in central Australia. Camels are like pests here, there are many here, running in the deserts and often roaming the national parks, so the park rangers have to eradicate them so they do not harm the environment, “said the girl, and Martynas added that it was the Most delicious burger I had to try.
After traveling to Australia and saying goodbye, they both returned to Lithuania permanently. So far, they have stayed in Telšiai, but they say they do not know where to continue their life, in the capital or Klaipeda. However, even after returning to Lithuania, Laura and Martynas are not without optimism and create plans for the future.
“We have an idea, because we have returned to Lithuania, we want to buy a bus, build a house and take a trip to Europe. Now let’s see, everything will take a year, two. We still have to get into life, after all we have lived in Australia for a long time, I am six years old and Martin is nine years old. We are right after the trip, still living with his impressions and experiences. We have many plans, we will see how we will achieve it ”, Laura explains the future plans, but Martynas adds that the biggest dream is to travel to the United States.
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