Did you know that in Australia they will let you rent a car regardless of where you are going or if you have had any experience driving in a country where left turns are like right turns and right turns are just… confusing?
Well, you can rent one without either qualification, a mark of Australia’s signature “she’ll be right” attitude, a way of saying that there’s no problem, no worries.
Or maybe Australians are addicted to adventure, and therefore think any type of trip is bound to be a good one.
Just as easily as you can rent a car here, you can find yourself in that car’s backseat anxiously convincing yourself that you are not anxious at all as a friend you’ve just met days before navigates you out of the city of Melbourne in a manner that can only be described as questionable.
Once we hit the highway, the anxiety is mostly behind.
Everything is fine and I’m not crazy for agreeing to this unplanned, last-minute, Mapquested-moments-before road trip.
By the time my friend is twisting and weaving through country roads, my mind gives into the scenery and excitement for my ultimate destination – the beach. But not just any beach.
After another hour on the same country roads, under a slowly darkening sky, I begin to wonder where this famous “Great Ocean Road” is and why it seems like it’s mostly been one road, with several dirt roads leading off it.
I silently wonder if this is the beginning to pretty much any horror movie ever made; setting: Australian middle of nowhere.
I look around the contents of the car and think about how little help the various pillows, backpacks, kilo-sized tub of Nutella or 24-pack of beer will be in saving us from a crazed serial killer and/or monster.
As nerves mount and the sole container of hummus runs out, I finally ask, “Where is the beach, guys? Seriously, we’ve been driving fo-,” and then, there it is.
The ocean finally breaks through the forest, interrupting and calming my nerves.
With little questioning and few words exchanged, we all make a beeline for the nearest beach, everyone pining to get out of the car and catch the sunset before it is gone.
This sunset is – by leaps, bounds, miles and light years – the most beautiful sunset that has ever existed anywhere.
Whether it’s the idea of being one person in a new continent or maybe said continent is just magical, the sky actually looks bigger and encompasses more of the sunset than any I’ve seen before.
The view and familiar salty smell are complemented by Frank Sinatra’s voice floating through a nearby café’s outside speakers.
The validity of only bringing strawberries, Nutella, pita and beer is now apparent and we all sit any enjoy the view, eat, drink and take pictures that do not even come close to the real thing.
I repeat what seems to be my mantra since my plane landed a few weeks prior: “I’m in Australia.”
I realize that Australians definitely have it right.
Any adventure, trip or experience that gets you out of your comfort zone is bound to be not only enjoyable, but also unforgettable.
All you need is a destination.
Katie Gruzd is a mass communication junior studying abroad in Melbourne, Australia. She can be reached at
