Who invited the geek along?

I have added a 'TAG' board at the bottom of the right hand side bar. It allows you to 'TAG' me. In plain English it's like a wee message board on which anyone can write an abusive entry; call me names, say I smell and dress funny, that type of thing.

Gotta dash, I think the train that's coming in is a Loco 2415-GC-9 class (cool!) and my weak lemon squash from my thermos is getting warm.

Dreamtime Echo Bus & safe sex

And another couple of things about Broome, right...

Despite having been pricked and stung by Morticia Addams in Perth, I still needed to get a couple more jabs to complete my Hepatitis (A/B/Z?) inoculation so it was off to the Broome medical centre. Two things happened here. At the reception I was told that I was already registered with them. Odd I thought, never having been to Broome before. Sure enough they had an Anthony Spratt already on their books! Wait a minute...do ya think?...surely not?...but what are the chances?...pretty good actually. Could it possibly be the Anthony Spratt of Dreamtime Echo Bus fame? The Anthony Spratt that appears at No.1 in the Anthony Spratt Google hits? I'd like to think so. A namesake rather than a doppelganger, I think you will agree.

After this moment of high reverie, I went in to see the nurse - a charming American lady who completed the formalities painlessly. She then said in a stern voice:

'Now, Anthony, I can't stress the importance of this enough...practice safe sex...practice safe sex...practice safe sex.'

OK, a little odd to chant a safe sex mantra at me although the sentiment was appreciated. What was more weird was that as she said those sagely words she pinched her earlobes with the thumb and forefinger of each hand and stamped her heels down on the floor rather hard and in time to the ringing out of each syllable. Strange. If I followed her lead, I would certainly be practicing the safest form of sex there is! I hadn't the heart to tell the no doubt childless lady that she may be doing it wrong.

Broome - a clean sweep

Ah ha, hello again my dear! Well, I have just spent a chuffing age uploading a selection of pictures from my time in Broome, Western Australia onto my Flickr site. There are some goodies in there and quite a disturbing number of sunsets over Cable Beach - never knew I was that interested but they were pretty impressive, it is after all sunset capital of Oz.

Below is a small selection of what awaits you if you click the above link. Go on, I dare ya!

Broome, Western Australia, 26 Feb - 4 Mar, 2007

It was in Broome that I met up with JoCam, Jo Bole, Bret, Megan and their two nippers Malacky & Macy one again. This was planned, it wasn't a wierd coincidence. Boley & Cam were doing some work in Broome, not sure what it was, something to do with destorying coral reefs in the process of extracting hydrocarbons from under the sea with which they were going to increase global warming, I didn't catch the nitty gritty. I also moved out of my slumming it backpackers' accomodation (although the Kimberly Klub was pretty cool or should that be kool?) and into the five star Cable Beach Resort, distinctly tagging on the shirt tails of Boley and JoCam. From backpacker to flashpacker! Cocktail anyone?

A few things about Broome:

• It is probably the most sticky place on earth
• It was founded as a pearling town & still has a big pearl industry
• It is a city and you can walk to the airport from the main street in 10mins
• It has a fab outdoor cinema unchanged since the 1920s (although they now show speakies, not just silent flicks)
• Did I mention it was bloody sticky?
• Errr...
• ...it's sticky

At low tide and a full moon there's this spectacular event called Staircase to the Moon. I could describe it but I think the picture does it so much more justice.

Amazing, huh?

Not content with reeking global catastophe and endangering most of the world's population with her evil scheming, Jo also insisted on abusing the local baby ponies.

Below are a couple of snaps that amused me.

This is what we would call a Toffee Crumble in Blighty.

The no-boozing sign actually has a can of Emu beer on it. Presumably the local mayor hates Emu beer. It's a bit vindictive but having tried Emu beer, I concur with them.

It was also in Broome that I had to bid farewell to another trusty couple of travelling buddies: Dusty Sandals and Shorty Blue. It brought a tear to my eye. They have been replaced with Dusty Sandals Jnr and an alternative pair of cak coloured shorts.

Backed up with Blog-Block

Yeah, it's happened again but this time it's a record - I'm three countries behind although actually not that much over a month. Blog says: Australia, the truth says: Thailand (having been through Singapore and Malaysia in the interim). The problem is my wayfaring, itinerant lifestyle with nary a day and a night in one spot, and if there is, it's some tropical beach (with all the usual trappings I hasten to add, like cobalt blue water, unerring sunshine, Bob Marley...hmmm) unsullied by the pervading creep of the devil's portal. So updates have proved difficult. I shall try and get ontop of things and at least bring the wayward beast into BST.

For those that are plotting my progress on a big map-o-the-world wall chart with coloured pins linked with yards of garden twine (I think that's just Mrs Goringe, my probabation officer, as usual) I'm in Krabi, on the coast of SW Thailand.

Childish but amusing: in Thai it's polite to say crap at the end of most phrases. In a restaurant complimenting the chef: You're food is very fine crap. Stop it, it's not clever.

Start of a new career?

Got an email the other day via Flickr (that's where all my pictures are, you know the dancing images on the right of the screen, click on the badge...actually do it later). It was from a lass, Brigit, who was interested in one of my pictures, oddly enough it was the one of a 2.8km iron ore train in Western Australia. Here it is:

Epic stuff huh?

Whatever floats your boat, love. Apparently she was doing an annual report for a mining company and thought it would look perfect as an illustration. Errr...yeah...sure. In our email conversation, the subject of money came up and I suggested 55 wholesome golden pounds. She thought this a very fair price indeed (which made me wish I'd asked for a touch more like...2500GBP...but hey). Then the How to pay you? bit. She suggested I send her my bank details and she'd forward the cash directly. Hmmm. I got that uneasy feeling that a scam was coming on: random stranger, an offer that seemed to good to be true, no work needed on my behalf etc. etc.

In a parry to her thrust I suggested that it is far more safe and secure to use Paypal and she could pay into my account by credit card. How simple is that? I even raised an online Paypal invoice for her and thought 'Well, that's probably the last I'll hear from Brigit.'

It was.

Until about four days afterwards and sure enough Paypal notify me I have been credited with 55 livres. Genius! Emailed the image off to the darling Brigit et voila, she's as giddy as a schoolgirl on acid with her locomotive portrait and I'm digging the first bit of earned (hech hem) readies in over seven months.

Western Australia - feast your peepers

Rather than wittering on about going up the western side of Australia, here is a kind of visual diary. I will say that WA is bloody remote. The Badger would hate it as it's HUGE. I have never before seen a sign saying 175km to a destination and thought, 'Blimey, we're almost there'.

Shark Bay - 13 Feb, 2007





Coral Bay - 14-20 Feb, 2007

Assorted snaps of Western Australiana - 20 Feb, 2007

Pardoo Cattle Station - 21 Feb, 2007



Karanjini National Park - 22 Feb, 2007

Destination Broome - 24 Feb, 2007