OZtralia.tv Blog

Australia’s Amazing Reef

By: The OZtralia Producers

Listed as a World Heritage site, and being the largest natural creation on the face of earth, experiencing the Great Barrier Reef is an unforgettable experience. The Great Barrier Reef is most commonly accessed via Cairns or Hamilton Island. We recommend that you experience the Great Barrier Reef from the trendy Port Douglas.

While visiting Northern Queensland, a tour on the reef is a must. There are many tour companies who offer exciting trips out on the reef. If you are a certified scuba diver, you will experience the Great Barrier Reef a lot better than snorkeling as you come face to face with some of the world’s most beautiful underwater sights.

We also recommend that you fly over the Great Barrier Reef. We took a sea plane tour over the reef and were blown away by the seeing the reef from the air as you can see in the above video.

To watch more videos on the Great Barrier Reef, click here.

“Where Land and The Great Barrier Reef Meet”

By: The OZtralia Producers

Cape Tribulation is in the Daintree National Park around 110km north of North Queensland’s Cairns. According to the Queensland government, this is one of the most biologically diverse areas in the world. As such, Cape Tribulation was added to the Wet Tropics World Heritage Area in 1988.

The government of Queensland notes the Kuku Yalanji people as being the traditional owners of Cape Tribulation. Captain James Cook was the first Westerner to land here in June 1770. Cook’s ship ran aground on a reef close by Cape Tribulation. The Great Barrier Reef is very close by. Locals say that this is the only place in the world where the Great Barrier Reef “and land meet.”

Diving Australia’s Great Barrier Reef

By: The OZtralia.tv Producers

Listed as a World Heritage Site, and being the largest natural creation on the face of the earth, diving the Great Barrier Reef is sure to be an unforgettable experience. Most will enter the Great Barrier Reef through Cairns or the trendy Port Douglas, but you can also experience the Great Barrier Reef from Hamilton Island which has coined itself the Great Barrier Reef Island.

If you have your diving certification, you can dive the Great Barrier Reef and we highly recommend it. Sure, you can see a lot by snorkeling, but while you dive the Reef, you will experience colorful fish, caves, and amazing coral. Seeing is believing; watch the video above.

It is very important to protect this World Heritage site. Look, but please do not touch. The Great Barrier Reef took millions of years to create. You will be there only for a short while, so protect it so that the next time you come back, it will be even better.

Researching A Movie in Australia

By: Phoenix Arrien

Greetings from the Kimberley, a vast wilderness in the northwest of Australia.  I am researching the locations for Baz Lurhmann’s multi-million dollar epic ‘Australia’. The world will be hearing plenty about this movie in the next few months as he of ‘Moulin Rouge’ fame releases his baby in many countries.

I am awestruck by the scenery out here. Great gorges, sweeping mountain ranges, wide wild rivers, mangrove swamps, coral reefs, islands and forests that go on for days. Stars Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman also had plenty to say about this awesome place so I will join them in the accolades - balanced by a few negatives such as the ‘industrialisation’ of the Kimberley.

For unfortunately several companies, including Inpex (a Japanese energy company) and Woodside Ltd, have submitted proposals to develop the region’s Browse Basin gas field to the State and Commonwealth governments.

Certainly energy is an issue for everyone however the impacts of industrialisation, including proposed liquefied natural gas (LNG) plants, would go a long way to destroying one of the last large and remote coastal wilderness areas left in the world.

Back to the subject of ‘Australia’ the movie, I am also heading to Bowen on the east coast in a few weeks. This is where Baz also filmed some scenes. Bowen is right by the Great Barrier Reef (another controversial endangered area) and next to rainforest so I will try and tread lightly.

It should be a fantastic experience. Bowen was set up as Darwin the 1940’s so just having been to Darwin I am interested in seeing the ‘old Darwin’.

More about the movie: www.australiamovie.net

Not so long ago, the Australian Tourism Board launched a new version of www.Australia.com.

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Summer is definitely on its way and most Aussies know what this means Festival Season! The Australian culture is obsessed with music festivals, so to gain the full experience of this amazing country you must attend.

Scorching hot sun, carefree dancing, good mates, great music and a few drinks are definitely on the top of our agenda.

Last weekends Parklife festival in Brisbane’s Botanical Gardens was a succuss with thousands of people attending. The event sure did amaze audiences with an international, all star line-up consisting of some of the most cutting edge electro/hip-hop/breaks/house and progressive artists to come to town.

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I just got off the phone with a close friend of mine on the Gold Coast. He said that the weather is getting warmer and the mood has shifted from winter to summer.

Ah, such a great time to be in Australia.

Many folks now will travel from the northern hemisphere to the southern and experience all that Australia has to offer. Before you go and while you are there, our team hopes you enjoy our coverage of Australia.

When I was just a young lad, I had a dream to go to Australia. That’s right; I said that one day I was going to go college in Australia. Coming form the farming town of Culdesac, Idaho (population around 300) in the United States, that idea was a bit of a stretch. But I have a secrete to share with you: When you set your mind to something, you can do anything.

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