Galapagos of the South

Wildlife rules the roost on the subantarctic islands of Australia and New Zealand

Like a chorus line of overweight, bad-mannered beer drinkers, they gather to recite the only lyrics they know. Cavernous mouths agape and bulbous heads akilter, it’s a strangely musical sound despite the random, belching monotone each can only manage.

Whistlestop conquest of the Balkans

On a nostalgic railway journey across Croatia and Slovenia, Roderick Eime recalls the heady days of Cold War Yugoslavia. 

It was the autocratic, Soviet-aligned Marshal Josip Tito of post-war Yugoslavia who can be credited with developing the comprehensive railway system that bound the quarrelling Balkan republics into something of a unified nation.

Artillery relics around the world

Like so many young boys growing up in Australia, I would always play on the old gun in the park. Later, as I grew older, I came to understand the significance of these war trophies and the immense sacrifice connected, not only with the Great War, but with each individual gun.

Motorcycle Touring: On the road with the ‘Mild Hogs’

The vision of scores of thundering Harley-Davidson motorcycles, line astern and dominating the highway is a vision few of us will forget.

This intimidating apparition, straight out of countless movies, has served to place this venerable US motorcycle brand at the forefront of all things wicked and dastardly. Even so, the ‘don’t mess with me’ persona of the ‘hog’ has ensured Harley-Davidson is the first thing you think of when ‘bad boy’ bikers come to mind.

An African-Style Safari, Just an Hour from Adelaide

An African safari sits high on many travellers’ bucket lists, but reaching the great reserves of Kenya, Tanzania or South Africa requires considerable time, planning and money. Fortunately, it is possible to enjoy a surprisingly convincing taste of the experience much closer to home.

Just an hour’s drive from Adelaide, Monarto Safari Park offers wide-open landscapes, encounters with remarkable animals and the opportunity to stay overnight at either the plush Monarto Safari Resort or the luxury tented Safari Lodge.

Amazon Express

Venturing into the Amazon basin is like exploring the heart and lungs of the planet. With one in ten known species on Earth and 1.4 billion acres of dense forests, the Amazon contains half of the planet's remaining tropical forests. Listen, and you can hear the world breathe.

Words and images Roderick Eime

Additional images as noted

I know that look. It’s that kind of cheeky half-smile, half snarl, like when you’re handed a peanut tin with a spring-loaded fake snake coiled inside. And like the 8-year-old sucker all over again, I fell for it.

Northwest Passage: Ice Would be Nice

A changing climate has turned the treacherous Northwest Passage into a pushover, discovers Roderick Eime

We’re all crowded on the bridge, at least 20 of us, peering out to the horizon with powerful binoculars and telephoto lenses. Surely we’ll see something soon.

Finniss River Lodge: Is this where Crocodile Dundee goes on vacation? [video]

Australia’s Northern Territory really is an untamed land. And with these massive carnivores lurking in the shadows, no one is going to try.  

“Be careful not to get too close,” warns Chase, “they can be a bit unpredictable.”

Vanuatu's Land Divers

There’s something almost suicidal about Vanuatu’s famous land divers. Bungy jumpers have the benefit of an elastic cord to cushion their fall, but not so the legendary N’Gol (land-diving) natives of Pentecost Island.

Words: Roderick Eime || Listen

The origin of this dangerous ritual is clouded in tantalising mystery. One of the more romantic tales tells the story of the abusive husband Tamalie who, in pursuit of his recalcitrant wife, followed her up a tall tree as she fled from him. She, whose name seems to have been mislaid in the passage of time, refused to come down knowing that another beating was in store. Driven by pride and rage, Tamalie lunged at her, but she jumped. Tamalie, intoxicated by fury, lunged after her not knowing she had tied vines to her legs and he plunged to his death while she survived.

Iceland: Trolling About

Be sure to pay your respects to little invisible Icelanders or your journey may end abruptly. Roderick Eime treads carefully.

“If you go walking, be careful not to kick around rocks and things. You could disturb a troll or an elf,” my guide tells me, and I turn to share in the joke. But he’s not laughing.

Intriguing Istanbul: A quick guide for first-time visitors

From domes and bazaars to ferries across the Bosporus, here’s how to navigate Istanbul’s essential sights, neighbourhoods and transport without losing your way.

 If Istanbul is not on your bucket list for 2026, I want to know why. Straddling Europe and Asia, it’s one of the world’s most storied cities, a place where Roman roads, Byzantine churches, Ottoman palaces and modern cafés coexist in a daily, lived-in way. For first-time visitors, the scale and intensity can feel overwhelming, but with a little planning, the city will reveal itself to the patiently curious.

South Africa’s Blue Train - it’s the Ritz on Rails

It's one of the world's most famous luxury train journeys offering a combination of unsurpassed luxury travel, five star-accommodation, fine cuisine & wine, personalised butler service and breathtaking views of the countryside. All aboard!

You are on the shortest tour in Africa,” John, our megaphone-mouthed, trumpet-wielding guide informs us, “the bus will turn left, because it cannot turn right!”

Cruising New Zealand with HAL Noordam - Art Deco Napier

Cruising in New Zealand is an often-overlooked pleasure. But it is also a reminder of past events.

 It was the first day of school for little 5-year-old Gordon Vogtherr and a day he’ll never forget as long as he lived.

Beyond Barcelona: A delicious madness

Catalonia’s capital, Barcelona, is one of the world’s flashpoints for the so-called overtourism phenomenon, but just a short ride by fast train will see you in delightful Girona - or its famous neighbour, Figueres.

The Top Heritage Hotels of Asia

1 Raffles Hotel Singapore

It’s hard not to tip your hat to Singapore’s Raffles Hotel as the top heritage hotel in South East Asia. Dating back to 1887, with the main building and rooms completed in 1899, it is entirely authentic and dripping with history. 

Egypt: Raise a Sail on the Nile

The ancient city of Aswan is just one of the highlights of an Intrepid Travel tour of Egypt

Words: Roderick Eime || LISTEN

Ahmed manhandles the rigging with all the aplomb of a practised hand. There’s just the right amount of wind to fill the big lateen sail and propel us along at an impressive clip.

How a hobby for vintage vinyl and retro HiFi influenced a luxury Thai hotel brand

Devasom Resort Hua Hin has its own type of time machine. Just listen.

When Ath Atirak carefully drops the stylus onto the vinyl, he can feel himself being transported back to another era.

Could you survive an aircraft emergency? This is why you put the tray table up.

Straighten up and fly right

ALL the rules and procedures about flying on planes can make the journey a real drag. Buckle this, stow that, turn that off. Are all these regulations just to intimidate passengers and make aircrew feel important?

Paul (not his real name) flew as cabin crew with a major Australian carrier for more than a decade. I asked him about some of the rigmarole that most of us ignore.

Navigating the Bangkok Mass Transit Systems

No matter where I travel, I try to experience public transport, especially trains and light rail. You’d think that after living in Sydney for 40 years, I would have had more than my fill, but I still have a fascination with the emerging technologies, and I much prefer a ride in a tram or train to sitting in a traffic jam.

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Having visited Bangkok for 20 years, I have noticed the evolution of mass rapid transit in that sprawling city. Despite at least three independent systems (BTS, MRT, and SRT) that initially required circus-like athleticism to negotiate, these once isolated systems are becoming increasingly contiguous.

The Cedars in Hahndorf: The ancestral home of Sir Hans Heysen

Originally published in Australian Country Magazine January 2022

The ancestral home of Sir Hans Heysen is an art and nature lover’s pilgrimage, lovingly preserved by the great painter’s family.

The word ‘iconic’ gets bandied about endlessly in the new vocabulary of inane hyperbole. But I think we can safely say, Sir Hans Heysen rates as the real deal when it comes to the cream of Australian landscape artists.