“A city is the pulsating product of the human hand and mind, reflecting man’s history, his struggle for freedom, creativity, genius-and his selfishness and errors.” (Charles Abrams)

Here are Road Junky Travel’s 10 favourite cities. Our votes: Cape Town, Sydney, London and Bangkok (all SWAP destinations!). More

Out of these 10 countries which would best be adapted to you? Find out here!

1) United Kingdom: 24.6% Pictured: Bangers and mash with peas.
(Note: The rest of the vote was divided among a number of other countries, most with less than one percent each.) More

Matador Network’s Alex Nolette took the beefy challenge of picking 50 of the world’s best burger joints. He came through with a list of the most recommended, droolific burgers on earth. More

You always hear about the distinction made between tourists and backpackers, but even among backpackers, we love to group each other into categories by who is the better traveler. Check into any hostel, and you will find a variety of different travelers wearing their distinctive tribal gear. Here are some of the more common that can be found in a hostel’s jungle  …More

photo by Cormac Mulhall

What is Busking?

Busking is the time-honored practice of performing for spare change in public – generally on the street or in a park. Most buskers are musicians, but if you have any sort of talent, you can generally make some good money by putting on an honest performance in a high traffic and relatively affluent area.

If you’re looking to get a sense of the local culture, street performance is a great way to do it. Your status as a foreigner adds to the exoticism of your act, so it can help give you a leg up on the locals.   …More

It’s been voted the World’s Third Most Livable City and is as diverse with its sub-cultures as it is with different drinking establishments. With the competition between watering holes being so high, you’ll find it difficult to find a place in Melbourne that you disagree with, or find without having to venture down alleyways and corridors.

Cookie

The whiff of subtle (yet pleasant) Thai dishes engulfs your right nostril and the banter of the crowd hijacks your left ear. The Cookie’s cocktail list is elaborate, the top-range beer is book-sized, and the presentation is even more impressive.

Even on busy nights, bartenders will create lavish cocktails without breaking a sweat or aimlessly look for an abstract liqueur up the ladder.

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A Queensland surfer has fought off a shark with his fists in waters east of Bundaberg in south east Queensland.

A woman who witnessed the attack, which happened late yesterday at Archie’s Beach, says the water around the surfer began to bubble before he started punching the sea.

The man, who had been surfing with his son, returned to the beach unharmed and told lifeguards his board had been hit by a “large grey shape”.

Queensland Shark Control Program manager Tony Ham says it was most likely a tiger shark.

“We catch quite a number of tiger sharks off Bundaberg each year,” Mr Ham said.

“At the end of the day the reality is we know they’re present all year round.

“I guess we’re warning people to be proactive and be a bit clever.”

Mr Ham says the attack may be linked to the region’s turtle breeding season.

He says nesting turtles along the coast provide a feeding ground for lurking tiger sharks, and it is likely the shark mistook the man for a turtle.

“Sharks, particularly tiger sharks, are one of their natural predators so they’re out there having an opportunistic feed,” he said.

I’m not ashamed to admit that my travels are often planned around alcohol – trips to vineyards, distilleries and breweries are always toward the top of my travel to-do list – but I do get sick of the disparaging looks this admission generally receives. Tell someone you travel in order to taste new foods and you’re congratulated on your willingness to embrace other cultures. Tell someone you travel for booze and you’ll invariably be met with raised eyebrows and a look that suggests what a sad life you lead.

But really, a country can be understood through its alcohol just as well as its food. Top tipples tend to represent top crops, hence Russia sips vodka (potatoes), Japan knocks back the sake (rice), and Mexico downs tequila (agave). Simple things like weather dictate how a nation drinks, whether it’s escaping cool winters or dismal summers in northern Europe’s cosy pubs or soaking up the sun with an ice cold beer on an Aussie beach.

More interesting are the many rules and regulations that come with enjoying a pint or a shot in different lands. Few areas of life seem to come with as many traditions and potential cultural gaffes as going out for a drink, so here are a few rules to remember when you’re imbibing around the world.

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Now that summer is in full swing in Australia, why not take in a movie outdoors.

Moonlight Cinema
It’s a well-loved Sydney tradition: pack a picnic, head to Centennial Park, hire a beanbag, ward off mosquitoes, watch a film. This year, Moonlight delivers their usual line up of cinema’s latest and greatest – and, course, it wouldn’t be an outdoor cinema without a screening of The Rocky Horror Picture Show (Sat 3 Jan). It’s just a jump to the left…

Flickerfest
Renowned as Australia’s first beachside cinema, Flickerfest is a collection of the best short films in competition from Oz and beyond screening 8–17 January under the Bondi stars. Ride the Flickerfest wave with Shortsbeats, funky shorts with a musical beat, Oscars® shorts, Flickerkids and Stories on Human Rights. Flickerfest goes green with organic food and drinks available at the panoramic festival bar overlooking the beach. Catch the short film fever!

more outdoor theatres>

Ten Australian summer music festivals definitely worth checking out the next time you’re down under. A very merry summer, indeed. more>

It’s quite natural to claim your home city as the best and to look down your noses at the heathens in your rival city.

Sydney has held Australia’s spotlight for some time now as the “place to be”. They have the Opera House, Harbour Bridge, and beautiful beaches. They had the 2000 Summer Olympic Games. Sydney is car-centric. The roads are massive and the vehicles plentiful. Public transport is a pain to use, and the bus drivers are very unfriendly.

But it seems times are changing as Melbourne is quickly gaining status as the best place to live in Australia.

Melbourne has the Australian Open, the Melbourne Cup, the Formula 1 Australian Grand Prix. It has the cafes, the compact and interesting CBD, and an outstanding music scene. The shopping is second to none.

”Melbourne now leads by a long, long way the other Australian cities. If you go back to the 1990s it’s a very different story, where Sydney was miles ahead in all of these areas.”

Not any more. The biggest increase comes in support for our cafes, bars and clubs. In 1999, 34 per cent said Melbourne had more interesting cafes and bars; now 49 per cent choose our cafe culture over Sydney’s.

Melbourne has even gained the edge over the Harbour City as a more ‘’stylish and romantic” destination.

What do you think? Would you prefer the hustle and bustle of Sydney or are you drawn to the lifestyle of Melbourne?

· Vegemite: This sticky black yeast extract is the salty stuff that Aussies love to spread on their toast – and taunt foreigners with. Expect the worst and it’ll slightly exceed your expectations. But eat it every day of your trip and you might turn into a fan.

· Lamingtons: These small cakes are provided to new Australians after citizenship ceremonies, so they must be good; unlike Vegemite, most foreigners seem to like them. Basically made up of sponge cake squares dipped in chocolate and coconut, you can find them in any Aussie bakery.

· Kangaroo meat: While this used to be a cheap meat fed only to pets, kangaroo meat has gone through a renaissance since Aussies discovered that it’s one of the leanest meats there is. It’s still not exactly common, but can be found in many a restaurant menu and in most supermarkets in a ready-for-the-BBQ pack.

· Tim Tams: These chocolate biscuits are a must-try. They come in different varieties these day, but the original is best. Aussies will encourage you to try a Tim Tam Slam: bite both ends off the biscuit, then drink your coffee using the biscuit like a straw. The soft insides melt, and this really works. If you practice.

· Meat pies: An Aussie meat pie might not have exactly been invented in Australia, but it’s the snack of choice if you’re at any sporting event or just feeling hungry on the road. Wikipedia says that the average Australian eats 12 meat pies a year and the important point to note is that you can’t ask for ketchup with your pie – you have to use the Aussie equivalent, tomato sauce.

You can do some awesome things for $10 (or 13 AU$) in this sunny Aussie city, and we don’t just mean lounging around on the beaches, chugging cocktails or surfing…. in fact, there were so many amazing things that you could do with an extra $10 in Sydney that we found it difficult narrowing it down!

Here’s our favourite ten, but feel free to let us know if you have any other top tips for $10… more>

Would you go in the water?

Director Spike Jonze chose to film “Where The Wild Things Are” on location with puppets, rather than in front of a blue screen; an expensive gamble that paid off, considering the movie brought in 32.5 million dollars this weekend. To get the location just right for his adaptation of the beloved children’s book, Jonze considered locations in Argentina, Hawaii, New Zealand and California before settling on Melbourne, Australia. Here’s a look at where you can go “wild” in Melbourne. more>

The Air New Zealand Matchmaking flight is about too finally taking off tomorrow. Nothing like a little loving in the sky! more>

Surfers boycott British Airways and get results! more> 

A pall of red dust blown in from the Outback clogged the skies over Sydney on Wednesday, diverting international flights, disrupting public transport and prompting a spike in emergency calls from people suffering breathing difficulties. more >