A VINTAGE TALE FROM THE VIENNA WOODS

david ellis

IT's best known for St.Stephan's Cathedral, the Schönbrunn Castle, it's  Boys' Choir, the Danube, and something about Tales in its Woods. But David Ellis discovers there's another side to Vienna: it's the only capital city in the world with a thriving commercial wine industry within its city limits.

It takes less than 20 minutes from Vienna's CBD to get amongst the vines and the cute vineyard villages of Neustift am Walde and Grinzing, in the foothills of the beech-tree'd Vienna Woods on Vienna's outskirts.

Window boxes in the historic main street are dripping with red and pink pelargoniums when we arrive, and the wine taverns (known as Heuriger) are already open for tastings and sales, with many also serving hearty traditional Heuriger platters piled with ham, roast chicken, crumbed pork, vegetables and salads.

The lot is washed down with the local specialty white wine Gruben Veltliner, or Sturm (a cloudy, potent drop extracted midway through fermentation and allegedly taken for its digestive qualities.)

There are 700 hectare of vines here within the city limits, managed by 320 winemaker families, and the taverns' are a-buzz now and year-round with tourists and locals alike seeking a taste of authentic Viennese wining and dining.

A genuine friendliness is the essence of life among the grape growers and winemakers, and during harvest many set up small cabins on the roadside to share a drop with neighbours and friends. And visitors, too: simply stop and they'll invite you to join-in a free taste.

Most Viennese wine is made for immediate drinking rather than cellaring, so come August and September the SALE signs go up to ensure plenty of empty barrels are on hand for the new crush.

And on November 11 each year there's Wein Taufe – 'Wine Baptism' that brings the community together for a knees-up few days to celebrate the release of the new season's wine.

And across the Danube River we discover another vineyard community  Stammersdorf, but this one's rarely visited by tourists.

We ask to meet some winemakers and find ourselves whisked off to the roughly-paved hillside Kellergasse (Cellar Street) with its own uniquely-styled roadside shacks-cum-wine cellars, and as in France are referred to as 'caves.'

Petershof is one such 'cave' and owned by Swiss-born former architect Peter Ullreich, a charismatic winemaker fast garnering gold medals at local regional shows.

He takes us up onto the living grass roof of his 'cave' to overlook neighbouring vineyards, and through the power pylons Vienna, and lap-up unexpectedly good wines in the late afternoon sun… while on the other side of the road, a colleague starts a motor mower, to trim not his lawn, but the grass roof of his cellar…)

Peter offers a prized 2003 Chardonnay he's had tucked away and talks of winemaking here and back to the early times of the Roman Empire. And he takes us to another of his vineyards to try his red wines, a 2m-diameter barrel sunk into the grass making our table as the sun disappears and a full moon rises.

This is connectivity with nature, Peter says, also pointing out the strip of native vegetation he preserves between some of his rows of vines for the bees, wild boars and deer.

His Merlot slips down as mellow as the twilight as he talks of how a new breed of winemaker is moving on from producing simply quaffables, to employing sophisticated technologies that are helping take Viennese wines to the world.

One such is Wieninger, also in Stammersdorf that now exports to 19 countries. Along with other winemakers including Rainer Christ, Michael Edlmoser and Richard Zahel, its owner Fritz Wieninger in 2006 helped create a group called "WIENWEIN" to pursue the art of making high quality Viennese wine.

We're coerced into another round of samples (this time Chardonnays, Sauvignon Blancs and a Riesling,) before reluctantly accepting that its time for our driver to get us back to dinner commitments at our Hotel Europa.

But we assure Peter and Fritz and the others that it's not the last they've seen of us, and that another day we'll be back.

See www.wienerwein.at and check out Tempo Holidays 1300 558 987, www.tempoholidays.com for its Taste of Vienna packages, hotels and local tours.

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PHOTO CAPTIONS:

. A COLOURFUL wine tavern in Vienna's Grinzing wine 'suburb.'

. VIENNA'S vineyard's are a stone's throw from the CBD.

. WINES from Vienna are now being enjoyed around the world.

PHOTOS: Courtesy of Tempo Holidays

South Africa

John Savage

Just a short update on the last trip. Former footballers, Dave Jolly, Tim Pickup, Tim’s two daughters Carly and Loren and I flew to South Africa to watch some Rugby and take on the scenery, wines, food and people. It was an outstanding success arriving home last night after two nights in BKK.

Nelson Mandela, I am pleased to say is still the number one personality in South Africa among both black, white and coloured races and most structures in every airport, shopping centre and Park in the cities and regional areas are named after this magnificent man. (I spent 15 mins with him one on one when he came to Australia in 2000) With a shocking 42% unemployment and immeasurable other problems, on the surface the country is moving ahead and most people of all races are very friendly. Things will get worse before they get better and that is a sad fact of life.

Flew into Cape Town. Waterfront dining, Table Mountain, a trip to the Ghettos and Robben Island (where Mandela was incarcerated for 18 of the 24 years) plus high tea at the famous Mount Nelson Hotel were the highlights along with the socializing pre and après the Kiwi versus S A game.

We set off from Cape Town in a dodgy VW luxury Kombi heading the 1774 K’s to Durban on the Garden Route, enjoying some wine and getting close and cuddly with the Cheetahs at Stellenboch then on to Hermanus for the night where we had sensational accommodation and a view of the Whales as they choreographed a personal show for us in the harbour next morning. Next stop literally although it wasn’t planned was in the middle of the main street of Mossell Bay at the centre of roadworks when the clutch on the VW snapped. Three hours later a replacement VW from George and on our way to stay overnight in Knysna where the seafood restaurants are prolific and Ooh the Oysters and cheap!!! And the wines are a good quality and price. Port Albert, Port St John and Anazimtoti were our overnights prior to Durban. Half day tour gave a great insight into this great city. With the Indian influence in Durban it was appropriate to eat that fare after the Wallabies defeated SA.

The highlight of our flying trip to the Victoria Falls was the Chopper ride over the falls and the one night at the 1904 built Victoria Falls Hotel. The lowlight was the lack of aviation fuel in Zimbabwe which meant a 10 min flight from Vic Falls to Livingston for a re fuelling stop which meant we missed our connection in Joburg to Kruger National Park but South African Airways came to the rescue with complimentary accommodation and meals at the new Casino complex near the airport. That was good and bad for our crew as most of us donated to the Casino cause. (We should know not to take another card on 16!!!)

Luxury tent accommodation in Kruger after a communications mix up (there were a few of them) Those non luxury get close to nature tents would certainly have been a challenge for we older guys (the rats were a worry) In the massive park we saw four of the big five, no lions much to the girls disappointment. One of the guides did say it was unusual to come across the Lions. That made us feel a little better.

Back through Joburg airport again (six times in all) so we were on first name terms with security there. Stayed in Sandton the up market part of Joburg, did a Soweto and downtown tour with former political prisoner as a guide. Went to footy to witness the continuance of the Ellis Park hoodoo they have now not been beaten there by the Wallabies for 46 years.

Verdict on South Africa: I’ve kept some Rand for the next trip.

Jol and I stopped in Bangkok on our return and visited three of the cities tallest buildings. Vertigo Restaurant in the Banyan Tree hotel (to celebrate my birthday and you don’t want to see the photograph) the plus was the rib eye steak and oysters. The others were on the river, the Hilton Millennium and the State Tower, Sky Bar all with sensational views of the city and well worth an early evening viewing.

Home until 04 October and then driving one of the buses for the Interlude Europe spectacular for five weeks. Jeanette is getting sick of all this gallivanting around but we already have three trips booked and a couple on the drawing board for next year…oh well tone it down in 2010.

SLIPPERY CONVICT BOTTLED-UP AT LAST

david ellis

WHEN the colourful convict Moondyne Joe was sentenced to Fremantle Prison in 1871, the authorities reckoned that despite having escaped more times than anyone else from prisons and lock-ups, Joe had finally met his match.

In fact so positive was Western Australia's Governor Hampton that his newly revamped prison was escape-proof, he promised if Moondyne Joe escaped, he would personally grant him his freedom.

Joe did escape, and swallowing his pride Governor Hampton granted him a Ticket of Leave to work at the Convict Depot at Busselton in WA's south-west, and a Pardon if he stayed out of trouble for a further four years.

Sadly Joe couldn't help himself and was soon back behind bars, and would doubtless get a kick out of knowing that this month major historic Western Australian winery, Houghton's has honoured his memory on a trio of new wines – even though it was for trying to rob their winery in 1869 that earned Joe one of his many stints in the clanger.

Joseph Bolitho (Moondyne Joe) Johns and a mate were transported to Australia for stealing several cheeses, three loaves of bread, some bacon and a shoulder of mutton from a house in Wales in 1848.

After arriving in Fremantle and getting his Ticket of Leave, Joe headed off to the Darling Range just east of Perth and got work trapping stray stock around what the local Aborigines called Moondyne Springs.

He stayed out of trouble until charged with horse stealing in 1861 and remanded in a local lock-up, but escaped on the horse he had been accused of pinching and which was being held as evidence – and to make matters worse, with the saddle of the magistrate who'd sentenced him.

Not surprisingly, when quickly recaptured Joe got a three year sentence, and soon after being released was charged with illegally killing an ox and got another ten years.

Assigned to a work party on the Canning Flats, Joe escaped after just one week – and for this got an extra year in irons, and when caught trying to escape yet again earned another six months, but escaped once more with two other convicts and held up a country store that won him a further five years.

One of Joe's Fremantle Prison tasks was breaking rocks for road-making, and he soon had a mound of the stuff a couple of metres high that greatly impressed his jailers – until they discovered too late that the-now nick-named Moondyne Joe was also digging a hole in the prison wall out of sight behind his rock pile.

He slipped through the hole into the Prison Superintendent's vegie garden, walked out through his front gate and remained free for two years until a remarkable stroke of bad luck in 1869.

With a healthy thirst upon him, Joe had donned a wheat sack with two 9-litre barrels tied to the front and back, wrapped his boots in sheepskins to cover his tracks, and broken into the Houghton Winery in the Swan Valley.

He was still taking a glass in the cellar at 1am when a police party investigating a nearby drowning was offered a rewarding drop by the winery owner.

Hearing them arrive Joe made a stumble for freedom but ran straight into the arms of the surprised troopers; he got a further twelve months in irons, and when caught making a key to his cell door two years later was sent to the revamped "escape proof" Fremantle Prison where he was promised his freedom if he managed to escape.

Moondyne Joe was declared a free man in 1873, married a lady half his age when well into his 50s, and stayed crime-free. Sadly at 69 he was committed to the Fremantle Lunatic Asylum where he died in August 1900, and is buried in Fremantle Cemetery's Pauper Grave 580A.

Houghton Wines has now released three wines in memory of Moondyne Joe, who had tried to rob their Swan River Cellar all those years ago: The Bandit 2008 Sauvignon Blanc Pinot Gris, The Bandit 2008 Chardonnay Viognier and The Bandit 2007 Shiraz Tempranillo are priced at $19.95 each.

Try them at the winery's Cellar Door in Dale Road, Middle Swan that's 40-minutes from Perth and open daily 10am-5pm.

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PHOTO CAPTIONS:

. MOONDYNE Joe Johns – convict escapologist extraordinaire

. HOUGHTON's Cellar Door today: it was trying to rob the historic winery that landed Moondyne Joe in gaol... yet-again

. THE Bandit Sauvignon Blanc Pinot Gris – one of Houghton's new trio in memory of Moondyne Joe.

Vila: The happiest place on Earth

A hammock strung between two palm trees (tick), some wild concoction in hand (tick), kicking back and watching the palm fronds sway in the breeze (tick): a tropical island getaway a little over three hours from Australia? Confirmed.

Recently voted the happiest place on Earth, it’s no wonder that Vanuatu draws more and more visitors every year. This little South Pacific gem is truly beginning to come into its own, and it’s a pleasure to watch the developments progress.

Most international travellers will spend much of their time in Vila, the capital city as this is where all the international carriers hub through, though there is a movement to begin to draw travellers out to experience further out in the archipelago – after all there are 65 inhabited islands to choose from.

Vila though, has its own charm, while its roads may not be graded and the cars travelling along them have seen much better days, the town centre is relaxed and doesn’t incorporate any pretentions of grandeur.

Here’s a tip, hit the markets in the morning or in the late afternoon, it’s almost like all the 40,000 locals are out loading up on their supplies of coconut, grapefruit, taro, papaw and the like. Feeling adventurous? Join in the fray and grab some fruit, just remember there’s no bargaining so the figure the shopkeeper throws at you is it.

After the sweat and activity of the markets, check out the surrounds, many of the general stores in the area are actually owned by Vietnamese and Chinese traders who’ve been on the island for decades, and the many of the goods themselves in the store have French labels – harking back to the joint French and British rule earlier in the century.

Of course one of the best things about staying in Vila is its proximity to everything, nothing is too far and everywhere needs ten minutes to get to – at least it does if you speak to a local. And catching the local bus is a must, while slightly more costly for tourists it still ends up being between $1 and $3. Flag one down where ever you see a minibus with a red ‘B’ on the licence plate, and if they have a spot (and are going in the direction you are) they’ll stop, if not, they’ll at least wave back.

This just touches on the charm of the local Melanesian people. While they may not have an 80" flat screen television or ultra fast broadband, they’re ready with a smile and a greeting when you walk down the street or need some directions.

And if Vila isn’t enough, day trippers can take advantage of various even smaller islands nearby for a day trip, such as the privately held Iririki, which was leased to the British for 99 years in 1913, or Hideaway, the location of the only known underwater post office in the world, where you put on flippers and a snorkel to post your postcard.

For those with even more time, Vanuatu can only be really understood if you move beyond the island of Efate. Walk up the edge of an active volcano, dive into reef-filed oceans, or simply sit back and watch the land-divers plummet down an assembled wooden tower attached only by the vines on their feet. Of course it’s not perfect, after all it still is a third world country, but take the time to get to know this little nation, and you may just find the secret to happiness.

HOW BRAZIL HELPED FIRE UP OUR HISTORY

david ellis

MOST of us believe it's a fair bet that when Captain Arthur Phillip and his officers, civil servants and their families celebrated the arrival of their First Fleet in Port Jackson in January of 1788, they raised glasses filled with rum or brandy.

After all, they'd hadn't put around 3500 litres of the stuff aboard their eleven ships in Portsmouth the previous May for simply medicinal purposes.

But researchers now believe its also likely taht another fiery drop helped fuel that first-ever booze-up by Europeans on Australian shores – a cheaper sugar-cane-based firewater called cachaca that Phillip had come upon during the Fleet's re-victualling stop-over in Rio de Janeiro.

Yet ironically while cachaca may well have played such a distinguished role in our history all those years ago, apart from amongst our expatriate South American population, it's never really taken off here as a major drink of choice.

And that's something that one of Brazil's premier makers of upmarket cachaca, a company called Sagatiba, now wants to turn around: this month it embarked on an Australia-wide marketing blitz to make us more aware of just what cachaca is – and how it can be used not only as a drink in countless forms, but in a whole range of mouth-watering dishes on the table from entrees to main courses and desserts.

Cachaca is big business in Brazil. Annual production of the stuff is around 2-billion litres bottled under some 5000 different brands, and with 400-million litres of this being exported, it leaves the enthusiastic Brazilians to toss the remaining 1.6-billion litres of their "national drink" down their own throats… that's 11-litres (around 3.5-gallons) every year for every man, woman and child in the country.

Just how cachaca came into being is unclear, but most believe it followed the introduction of sugar-cane farming into Brazil around 1550: slaves forced to work the plantations discovered that by secreting some of the crop from their masters and fermenting it, they had a potent drop that could help cure most things from sore throats to colds and minor wounds… and if imbibed with gusto, bring a glow to their miserable lives.

And while it was long considered the drink of the lower classes and referred to by Brazil's elite as "cat choker" (and sometimes worse,) cachaca is now a highly desired drop amongst all levels of Brazilian society.

Many people mistakenly refer to it as a rum as it is made by fermenting sugar-cane with a variety of cereals, but in fact it is classified as a brandy.

In its countless mixed forms it is called caipirinha and can be mixed with anything from fruit juice to soft drinks, crème liqueurs, milk, coffee and even power drinks, and drunk as an aperitif, a martini, a long drink, as a form of Bloody Mary, frozen or as a hot drink.

And as anyone who has been to Brazil will tell you, it's equally at home in the kitchen where it can be blended into a dressing or a dip, drizzled over green salads, used as a marinade for seafood, to infuse with poultry or meat dishes, and to add zest to such desserts as millfeuille, parfaits or panna cottas.

If you're visiting Rio de Janeiro, you'll discover hundreds upon hundreds of restaurants and bars from Academia de Cachaca to Zuka that specialise in dishes and drinks using cachaca.

Academia de Cachaca is at 26 Rua Conde de Bernadotte Leblon where the dining is upmarket in a laid-back ambience, and whose extraordinary bar staff can whip up any of 500 different cachaca-based drinks without a moments hesitation, while the chefs there flavours every one of their North East Brazilian-dishes with a loving dash of the stuff.

Work – or perhaps stumble – your way through the list until you happen upon Zuka at 233 Rua dias Ferreira, a unique eatery in which diner's tables are grouped around a sunken kitchen, so you can look down on the team of chefs creating dishes that are a fusion of the best flavours of Italy, Brazil and Asia.

To get an idea of how to use cachaca as a basis for summery drinks and in unusual and inspired dining, go to www.sagatiba.com 

And as they say in Brazil – VIVA!
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PHOTO CAPTIONS:

MODERN day Brazil – slaves who once worked sugar-cane farms here created the country's "national drink" called cachaca.

CACHACA is the basis for untold numbers of drinks both short and tall.

AND it can be used in dishes such as this fish with cachaca, herbs and ratatouille.

(PHOTOS – Sagatiba Distillers)

WANDERING WELLINGTON AT MATE’S RATES

frank linn and david ellis

Trust the travel guides, the websites or the brochures? Frank Linn, David Ellis and some mates explored New Zealand's Wellington, based solely on the recommendations of mates who reckoned they knew it. Could they be trusted?

Where to eat and drink, what to see and where to stay were the key questions. So we decide to live dangerously and see how their recommendations pan out.

Recommendation 1: Lodgings. Something central, easy walking distance to everything, and "good value." They all suggest the Novotel. We book, getting one of Accor's weekend deals; it's only a few blocks to the waterfront and shops so we're off to a good start.

Recommendation 2: Te Papa Museum on the waterfront. Perfect because it's  bucketing down and we need somewhere to hide. Here's a fabulous insight into New Zealand's geography, history and peoples.  We weren't told, though, about the The Brewery Bar 50 metres away: a self-discovered gem.

Recommendation 3: Dinner, and its Saturday night. On the list are Logan Brown, Floriadata, Matterhorn, Juniper, Concrete, Martin Bosley – and the "cheap and cheerful" Momma's Kitchen which is what the wallet dictates: Sorry, Momma's doesn't take bookings and there's a 40-minute wait. Floriadata, a smart, buzzy sort of place is next, but it too doesn't take bookings and, as Kevin O7 would say, Do You Know What? A 45 minute wait. Cold and wet, we stumble into La Casa for some home-style Italian fare. It's not on the list but their lasagna's big and with the salad and a Pinot Noir hits the spot.

Recommendation 4: Breakfast at Pravda. But it's not open Sundays! Thanks. Ever resourceful we lurch on and discover Lido in the City Square that comes up trumps.  (We finally make brekkie at the Leninist-themed, minimalist Pravda a few days later, and it proves most worthwhile.)

Recommendation 5:  Start the day with the cable-car from Lambton Quay, close to the Novotel, to the top of the city, then a stroll through the Botanical Gardens. Vote? Thumbs up.

Recommendation 6: Hire a car from Europcar at the airport for the 70-something k's to quaint and gourmet Greytown and check out the pub and the chocolate shop. The pub is great for lunch with exceptional local food and wines enjoyed on the sunny verandah. And the building's something of an original take-away: it got there by truck from Wellington.  At Schoc Chocolate we sample chilli chocolate, chive, lemongrass, rosemary and herb and sea salt chocolate.  Top marks, and purchases made.

Recommendation 7. Motor on to vineyard country and stay at the two-storey colonial-style Martinborough Hotel, dine in their award-winning restaurant, play some snooker in the Whiskey bar, and have a beer with the locals. It's Sunday evening, so the restaurant's closed, the snooker table has made way for more restaurant tables due to Chef's expanding reputation, but the bar's open and serves a light meal. The upstairs high-ceiling bedrooms (claw-foot bath, tasteful decor, wide balcony) are superb, as is breakfast the next day. Worth visiting – and we get in at around half price this Sunday night via a last- minute hotel website (and despite what the website says, the restaurant is open.)

Final Recommendation 8: Back in Wellington, take a spin along the sea-level Scenic Route around the headlands west of the city, the beaches and the cute timber residences (occupied both by weekenders and commuters) hugging the base of the cliffs. An easy, gorgeous drive made all the more pleasant by a flat sea and relatively clear sky; give this a tick.

And while on the road, we're advised, check the Chocolate Fish Café and the bar in the timber-clad Maranui Surf Life Saving Club. And do you know what? Chocolate Fish is no more and the surf club stops serving at 5pm; a pity because it seemed warm and friendly.

We drive on and find La Bach café/bar. A perfect setting for a cleansing pilsner and a cool Sauvignon Blanc. But do you know what? Sorry, we're waiting on our liquor licence! So we head off over the hills and find ourselves in Cuba Street where we successfully become the night's first patrons at the Floriadata .Very good indeed.

(IF you don't have any friends able to share their experiences of Wellington, go onto www.wellingtonnz.com)

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STAMPING A MARK ON JUNEAU’S HEART OF GOLD

david ellis

WHEN mining engineer George Pilz heard in the 1880s of gold to be found in the mountains that tumbled down to the sea around what was to eventually become known as Alaska's Inside Passage, he had no intention of hiking into such inhospitable terrain himself.

Instead he sat back in his office and put out word that if any of the local Indians could bring gold to him, he would reward them for their finds... and come to a deal on searching for more of this white man's treasure that the locals appeared to see little value in.

Some weeks later a chief named Kowee arrived on Mr Pilz' doorstep in Alaska's then-capital Sitka, and showed him a pouch-full of small nuggets recovered from a stream on the mainland opposite Mr Pilz' Baranof Island.

Getting excited, George Pilz hired several itinerant prospectors to go off with Chief Kowee in the hope they could find his El Dorado.

Sadly for him, his prospectors were more interested in hooch than hiking the rugged mountains, and swapped most of the food and fossicking supplies he'd given them, for the local firewater produced by tribes they met along the way… returning to Baranof Island with the news that if there was gold, there wasn't much of it.

Mr Pilz was pondering his next move when Chief Kowee once again turned up on his doorstep, insisting gold was to be found if the right people were sent to find it.

This time George Pilz hired two respected prospectors named Joe Juneau and Richard Harris, and with Chief Kowee they headed for what was to be dubbed Gold Creek – and at the head of this readily recovered handfuls of nuggets "the size of peas and beans."

An ecstatic George Pilz put a larger expedition together and within weeks word had spread south to the United States that there was gold for the taking in them thar Alaskan hills.

The Rush of 1880 was on.

A 65-hectare site was mapped out for a prospectors' camp-site at the foot of the mountains, and within a year this became the first new town to be founded in Alaska since it had been bought by America thirteen years earlier from Russia for a mere US$7.2m.

At first it was called Harrisburg after Richard Harris, but this was later changed to Juneau and quickly boomed with the explosion of one of the world's greatest gold rushes.

Soon mines replaced hand-fossicking the icy creeks and streams for the precious metal, and by the early 1900s more than fifty stamp mills were working around the clock pounding the resultant ore.

And while Alaska's capital was moved from Sitka on Baranof Island to Juneau, like all good things the gold boom ground to an end, although not until around 40-million ounces of the precious stuff had been recovered and with small amounts still being mined to this day.

Gold's demise, however, left Juneau anything but destitute: over 1-million tourists now flock into town each year, most of them by cruise ship between the warmer months of May and September. They visit the old gold mines and stamp mills, and gawk at the unbelievably spectacular scenery that includes the snow-capped and spruce-draped mountains, and the extraordinary Mendenhall Glacier that's over 2.5km wide, 30-metres high at its face and 16km long, and regularly sheds house-size chunks of ice to reveal its dramatic aqua/electric blue interior.

And there's excellent shopping, dining and museums, while Juneau's a treasure-trove of trivia: its one of the world's few capitals not to be served by road from the outside world, with all everyone and everything coming by sea or air.

Yet despite this it's actually got more vehicles than its 31,000 residents.

And amongst more important 'services' subsidised by the local government is the town brewery… while parts of the town itself actually sit on hundreds of millions of dollars worth of gold, because as it grew, it spread over many of the 'tailings' from the old mines.

Only problem is, to retrieve this fortune, Juneau would first have to be demolished.
 
(For information about visiting Juneau by cruise ship, local ferry or air, contact Canada & Alaska Specialist Holidays on 1300 79 49 59 or www.canada-alaska.com.au)

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PHOTO CAPTIONS:

. JUNEAU – built on one of the world's greatest gold rushes

. HISTORIC AJ Gold Mine and stamp mills, one of over fifty that once flourished here and now a tourist attraction.

(photos: Alaska State Library)

Why I Love The Bali Writers Festival

Your body's just been pampered with a heavenly Balinese massage; now it's time to feed your mind with a talk by a famous author.. If you love Bali, and books, then the Ubud Readers And Writers Festival is a gift from the gods.

It's a chance to sip a fresh mango juice at a café overlooking a tranquil rice field, then wander down the road to mingle with literary types.
After an hour or two of workshops, debates, and lectures, it's probably time to find another café, tuck into some nasi goreng and continue talking about books with the friendly person you met at the last lecture.

The annual festival takes place each October in Ubud - Bali's cultural capital, in central Bali. Founded in 2004, the festival was dreamed up by Janet De Neefe, a Melbourne woman who moved to Ubud after falling in love with a Balinese man 24 years ago.

Janet herself is a best-selling author. Her book Fragrant Rice tells of her life with Ketut, with whom she has had four children, and the richness that Bali has brought to her life. (It's also peppered with recipes, as Janet is also a brilliant cook who runs several Ubud businesses, including two restaurants and a bakery.)

Deciding on the festival, said Janet, was "my way of bringing international visitors back here," after the Kuta bombing in October, 2002.

"The effect on our community at that time was enormous and Ubud suffered greatly," she explained. "Many people lost their jobs and for a long time a deep sadness prevailed.

After Fragrant Rice was published, she said, "I'd attended some writer's festivals and then it struck me; why not have one in Bali?"

"With its beautiful ricefields, tranquil surroundings, and wonderful guesthouses and hotels, I just knew Ubud would be an ideal venue."

She formed a committee of supporters, and got to work..

The week-long event begins impressively; with a feast, speeches, then a stunning Balinese dance held at the Ubud Palace. The next few days are a whirl of stimulating talks, food, and workshops, with visitors from Åustralia and across south-east Asia.

Former United Nations assistant secretary general, Shashi Tharoor and Man Booker prize winner Kiran Desai were two favourites at last year's festival. "It's so informal, you feel like you can wander up and ask these people questions without any sense of imposing on them," says Perth film-maker Melissa Hasluck. "I thought the festival was great."

I still have fond memories of the inaugural festival, when a small group of us signed up to join Tony Wheeler, the guru behind the Lonely Planet series, on a guided tour of Ubud. Through the ricefields we trekked, as Tony pointed out temples and other glorious landmarks. We then sat at a small restaurant and chatted about travel.

By day, Balinese volunteer drivers were on hand to whisk us from one venue to another.

A highlight for me was hearing a witty speech by festival regular Nury Vittachi, the Hong-Kong based author of the Feng Shui Detective series.

Inspired by his talk, I bought his book on the spot at the waiting trestle table and asked him to sign it.

We later bumped into each other at the beautiful Lotus Café, overlooking a sea of lotuses and an ancient temple. "Can I buy you a banana juice?" he said politely, as he and his three friends sat down. (Ubud's informality lends itself to this sort of thing.)

Nury, a veteran of many international writers festivals, was entranced by Ubud. "The local people I've met are so friendly and charming, and the children are gorgeous," he raved. "But I also find the expat community interesting. I can see how Bali has seduced them to stay indefinitely."

All the visitors I spoke to agreed they'd loved their week at the festival. Some of us stayed at five star hotels, while those on a budget were content to enjoy the charm of inexpensive home-stays. As ever, the meals were delicious and inexpensive. Aside from the festival, I managed to squeeze in some cycling through nearby villages, whitewater rafting and a stroll through the ricefields.

Try to allow enough room in your suitcase to amass a few treats; I flew home with not just a new Balinese painting, but an armload of books from my newfound friends..

BY JACQUI LANG (COPYRIGHT)

For details visit website www.ubudwritersfestival.com