Day 37- Carn The Saints!

The last train journey was time for reflection. I didn't need to look out the window anyway, as the couple behind me provided a running commentary: "that road has an overtaking lane... Back to single carriageway again... A lady walking her dog... We're going over a bridge".

Perth to Auckland in Numbers

3- number of laws knowingly broken. I ran across the road in Poland, helped to smuggle designer shoes into Mongolia, and carried a satsuma across a state border in Australia.

13- average speed of the journey in miles per hour.

30- number of different nationalities I met along the way. Some of the more unlikely ones were Egyptian, Brazilian and Argentinian.

300- number of hours spent travelling (246 on trains).

Perth to Auckland TopTrumps

Top sight- the approach of a sandstorm. It looked as if the world was about to end.

Top sound- those buskers in Darwin, who brought the sounds of old and new together with their didgeridoo/ drum set combo.

Top smell- eucalyptus leaves.

Top taste- that seafood on the beach at Dong Hoi, with lemongrass, chilli and pineapple.

Top touch- the cooling water of a river in Ke Bang national park after a sweaty cycle.

Top advice- "Ching", as he called himself, taught me in a roundabout way not to follow strangers.

Top smile- Dava, the Mongolian man who I took a picture with onboard the Trans Siberian. We communicated through Chess, chocolate, and eventually a girl who could translate. We parted at Ulaanbaator with all the respect in the world for each other.

Top wildlife- the huge vultures that were caricatures of themselves, and struck me with a fear of being carried away for a moment.

Top architecture- Marina Bay Sands Hotel in Singapore is just showing off (look for a pic if you don't know it). I will stay there when I'm rich, instead of getting bed bugs in that cheap hostel.

Top t-shirt slogan- Boy Parking Only: all others will be unfollowed. The random English words on Chinese clothing entertained me for hours at Beijing railway station.

Carn the Saints!

I arrived in Melbourne at 7pm. By 8pm I had acquired a free ticket, and found a seat at an AFL match (I didn't even know Australian Footy was a thing). For their name, I supported Saint Kilda, but they lost pretty heavily.