Tag: Travel

At The Top Of The World In The Land Down Under

Timothy Price43 Comments

“From Maxy to Billie T”

On November 25, 2025, Miriam with Out n’ About posted The DMax stops in Charters Towers. I thought their unplanned adventure was an incredible story. When I finished reading the post, a chorus popped inot my head, and I jotted down:

Now we’re driving around in a rented Yaris

Looking for a brand new caris

At the top of the world in the land down under

Life’s twists and turns, one has to wonder

I sent the chorus to Miriam and asked her if she could rewrite the story of the broken DMax and finding its replacement into lyrics. She sent me the lyrics. I added the chorus and arranged the lyrics into an intro, chorus, fives versus, two bridges, a reprise, and an outro. With the help of AI music, I came up with a song that we all liked. Miriam named the song “From Maxy to Billie T.”

Charters Towers and Townsville City

The grand perspective

Miriam and Doug have been driving around Australia with a camp trailer in tow for several years. Miriam writes about their adventures and publishes them in a travel magazine and on her blog. She found some time to make a video for the “From Maxy to Billie T” adventure, sent me the video, and I added the music to her video.

Putting the lyrics and music together, and then adding the music to the video were fun collaborations, and I wanted to share the results with everyone.

Maxy to Billie T
By Miriam Blacker

[Intro]
We’re tripping Outback Queensland
In our DMax and mobile home 
The car’s driving brilliantly 
but little did we know 
That testing times would find us 
And we’d need a bloody tow.

[Chorus]

Now we’re driving around

In a rented Yaris

Looking for a brand new caris

At the top of the world

In the land down under

Life’s twists and turns, one has to wonder

[Verse 1]
We travelled far and wide
on remote roads and dirt tracks 
To Karumba, Burketown, Lawn Hill and more 
Our adventures never set us back. 
Until one day it found us 
We were heading for the north
Charters Towers, bound for Townsville 
The engine coughed and burst. 

[Verse 2]
Not really a blow up 
more a splutter and a clank
Doug hoped it’d be minor 
I never thought we’d need a bank. 

[Verse 3]
Trouble found us but we had help
I rang the RACQ
A nice guy called Jay
He saved the day 
towed our van back to Charters, 
and our DMax too. 
But the Dodgy servo back in Charters
I won’t name them though I should
They took one look at our Vic plates
And tripled the quote, bloody crooks! 

[Bridge 1]
Your engine’s buggered 
It’s no good, they said 
as they trashed the dash 
bust the ignition barrel.
Our car’s as good as dead. 

[Verse 4]
We’re guttered and caught
We’re shocked, holy schmuck
What the hell do we do 
With a van and no truck.
There’s no rentals in town. 
Townsville’s more than 100kms away. 
We can take the train, 
there’s gotta be a way. 
Kindness always finds us
A serendipitous chat in a pool
leads to a ride to Townsville
With a couple oh so cool.

[Reprise]
There’s no rentals in town.
Townsville’s more than 100kms away.
We can take the train,
there’s gotta be a way.
Kindness always finds us

[Chorus]

Now we’re driving around
In a rented Yaris

Looking for a brand new caris

At the top of the world

In the land down under

Life’s twists and turns, one has to wonder

[Bridge 2]
Now we’re in the Mazda sale yard 
Craig seems a real nice guy 
But is he a shark in sheep’s clothing 
who wanted us to buy
But our dealing isn’t finished
We know now what’s for us
We haggle back and forth for days 
The BT’s quite a bus. 

[Verse 5]
When we tried to buy the car, 
to test pay a dollar for the truck 
The accountant laughed
Craig whatcha doing
Ya can’t sell a BT for a buck! 
Here’s a lesson that we learned 
don’t drive more than three hours 
make sure you arrive by 3pm 
Don’t blow up Number 3 Cylinder, 
especially near Charters Towers. 

[Outro]
Finally we’re leaving town 
Billie T’s our smooth new ride
We’ve said goodbye to Maxy
now we’re heading Southside. 

Now we’re driving around
At the top of the world
In a new bus that is perfect for us
Billie-T is really nifty
To wander in the land down under
Given life’s twists and turns
one simpy has to wonder

Sounion

Timothy Price32 Comments

Flowers on Easter morning

Meow Meow meowed at the door last night. I let him in, and he was wet from the rain. He stayed around for a while comforting me. Then when he was dry, he asked to go back outside.

Back From Belgium. Gone To The Dogs!

Timothy Price40 Comments

It was raining in Geel this morning

You can’t have my cake or eat it either, Niki!

You can’t eat the Eurasian Magpie, either…

Or the Eurasian Collared-Dove…

Or the Eurasian Jackdaw..

Or the cute Common Chaffinch!

“What? Are you just going to let me starve?”

Herman took me to aother old church this morning.

There were several of these locked, grated grottoes around the outside of the church with lighted votive candles inside them.

A man driving a small utility truck filled with lighted votive candles in the back stopped and said hi to us and explained to Hermin in Flemish that his job was to keep the candles lit. He had done it for ten years and loved the job.

Nike was watching for us to return from his bed in the garage.

I got back in the late after noon, and returned the rental car. Then we went straight from Enterprise car rental to Trivia at the Irish Pub. There were a couple of Golden Retrievers that came to Trivia Night. The white one really like me, and I had to pet it most of the time. It would put it’s head in my lap when I stopped petting it.

Tristan snuck a picture of me petting the dog. We are not supposed to use phones while a trivia round is in play.

Karlsruhe

Timothy Price29 Comments

Squirrel Nutkin was jumping around in the trees on my morning walk

We went to Karlsruhe today, where Tristan and Craig had some business to take care of. It’s an hour and a half from Bruchmühlbach-Miesau, but we had a long roundabout way back after the police closed the AutoBahn.

This place is said to be a TikTok sensation for having Octopussy Gyros

Deutsche Postal delivery riders done delivering

Peacock flew into the elephant enclosure at the zoo

Eurasian Blackbird with an earthworm

Bridge over the River Rhine

I know my bike is in there somewhere

Sunset in Landstuhl

Böser Osterhase Osterfest

Timothy Price23 Comments

We went to Sankt Wendel for the Bad Easter Bunny Easter Fesival this morning. The streets were full of people acting like bumper cars in a demolition derby. I’ve been in much denser crowds in Mardrid, Paris and Rome, and people did not bump into each other like they were at the Böser Osterhase Osterfest today. You would think Früling would bring out the best in people.

Atlas: “Oh nein! Nicht ein böser Osterhase!”

Sunrise

Common Chiffchaff

I saw Squirrel Nutkin on our walk this morning.

Eurasian Blue Tit

Carion! My wayward Crow. Where hast you been, and where dost you go?

Red kite

The sign claims the St. Wendeler Easter Festival is the most beautiful spring festival. It brings out a bumber crop of people.

A Red Kite was looking to make a meal of the Böser Osterhase.

Carion the wayward Crow fallowed us to Sankt Wendel.

Carion Crow clocking in.

Plank roasted salmon seems to be a staple at festivals

The Basilica of St. Wendelin

I missed the mice in at the alter of the church, but, fortunately, Tristan got them.

She also noticed a fishy doorknob.

WWI memorial

Stations of the Cross

The City Council building seems appropriately named.

It’s safe to look now, Atlas!

Gimmeldingen Mandelblütenfest

Timothy Price34 Comments

Pink was the theme at the Gimmeldingen Mandelblütenfest

Despite Freyja blocking the way, we rode the train to the Gimmeldingen Mandelblütenfest (Almond Blossom Festival).

Atlas thought it looked like fun

On second thought…

Graffiti along the way

Vineyards, almond trees and towns around Gimmeldingen

There were a lot of people, kids, and dogs celebrating the Almond Blossoms.

Roasting salmon on planks

There were all kinds of food and drink available as we strolled along the roads

Mandelblütenfest Chicken

This is an interesting building. It seems like a place for pilgrims to stay.

Castle at Frankenstein through the train car window.

Wheelchair or Rolser access?

The Cutest Chapel

Timothy Price38 Comments

Tristan Pointed out this really cute chapel…

…looking over Landstuhl from the Schlossruine Nanstein Castle

Landstuhl

Atlas thinks the chapel is cool, also!

Knight in the pavers

Fountain with a Camino de Santiago symbol

The oldest houses in Landstuhl are from around the 16th century.

Atlas wants to hire the maid on the van.

On to Ehemalige Festung Homburg

Homburg

With castle ruins comes more tunnels and stairs

A scratching of the 250-million-year-old ichthyosaur remains they found in the limestone in 1968.

The sign says it’s dangerous. I had to check it out. When I stepped on the floor and started to sink in the much, I decide the sign was not kidding.

Another danger sign

Where I would have come out if I have ventured past the muck

Atlas eared me that I was a wimp for not going through the dangerous tunnel.

I came across a wheelbarrow on a landing looking for the restroom at an Asian restaurant. I got confused. It could have been from jet lag, the Dragon Fruit drink, or the pole dancing. It’s hard to say.

Atlas giving me an ear up for getting lost trying to find the restroom at an Asian restaurant.