I just finished his book on Australia, In a Sunburned Country, and was once again amazed with his stamina in travel, finding the most obscure things to explore (he finds attractions that even the residents don't know they have), and interesting things to report back that I never thought I needed to know.
On Australia, he concludes after he leaves the continent that, "life in Australia would go on, and I would hear nothing, because once you leave Australia, Australia ceases to be. What a strange, sad thought that is.
I can understand it, of course. Australia is mostly empty and a long way away. Its population is small and its role in the world consequently peripheral. It doesn't have coups, recklessly overfish, arm disagreeable despots, grow coca in provocative quantities, or throw its weight around in a brash and unseemly manner. It is stable and peaceful and good. It doesn't need watching, and so we don't. But I will tell you this: the loss is entirely ours.
You see, Australia is an interesting place. It truly is. And that really is all I'm saying."
I just got home yesterday and I loved the tiny corner of the country that I got to see. I know I only got to see one beach town on an enormous continent, and only saw a sliver of the culture. What I saw were friendly, happy people, idyllic beaches and lush green forests, alive with all kinds of creatures. What a beautiful place. As with most places I go, I hope I get to go back.
2 comments:
Love that book and Bill Bryson. He's a great writer and really does capture the the true realities of the places he writes about.
Welcome home!
thanks alison! isn't he great? which books have you read? he has another book on australia too, and i've heard his book on Appalachia is good. Notes from a Small Island was my first book by him and it made me realize how LITTLE of the UK I saw .. He's a THOROUGH traveler.
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