The Pursuit of Happiness: The Indian Pacific

Alright, 4 day's of traveling later and I'm finally here! I got here using a rail line called the Indian Pacific. It is the only rail line connecting Western Australia with the rest of the country. It runs from Sydney to Perth and vice-versa. I boarded the train at 3 p.m. Friday, January 28th in Sydney, and got to Perth at 10 a.m. Tuesday, February 1st. I loved every minute of it. The train travels through the Outback, making stops in Broken Hill, Adelaide, Kalgoorlie, and finally in Perth. During each of the stops passengers are allowed to get out and explore; I'll tell you more about these later. I met people from all over the world on my three day train trip. There were people from France, New Zealand, Canada, the States, a boy from Denmark, a couple from either Sweden or Switzerland (I can't remember), and of course a few Aussies. As the train leaves Sydney, the view out the windows is green, lustrous, and very hilly. As you near the Outback, the land becomes flatter and drier as one might expect, but still very enchanting. Believe it or not, there was no part of the Outback that was completely without plant life. If ever traveling in Australia, I highly recommend the Indian Pacific, or the Ghan (which takes you north and south over Australia). Pack your own food though, train food is expensive and not very good.