A Virtual Tour of Australia
travel across the "land down under" from the comfort of your very own Jardan Marlo modular sofa
It is time once again to sit back and relax as the power of the internet connects you to the information super-highway and sends you across the equator down to the southern hemisphere —all without leaving the comfort of the hanging hammock chair you just installed in your fully finished basement. This week we are going to Australia, the land of koalas and freaky little spiders and Cashies, and boy do i have a beautiful virtual vacation planned for you.
Usually when I am pulling together a handful of tapes for these types of posts, the way I like to curate them is to find a few pieces of media with a general overview of an area, and then sprinkle in a few tapes that dive in a little deeper on a certain aspect of a place, but that wasn’t possible this time. I’ve been holding on to these tapes for a good while now hoping to find something like that, but it seems the beautiful (and terrifying) land of Australia is a little too exotic for the denizens of East Tennessee.
That’s not to say what I have for y’all this week isn’t interesting, far from it in fact. We’re starting off with a souvenir tape straight from the land down under, likely picked up in a tourist trap in New South Wales, and after that is a double feature from two of the most prolific commercial travel documentary producers of the 80s and 90s, Fodor and Rand McNally.
Let’s get right into the tapes!
Australia: The Movie
1984 | Runtime: 50 Minutes
I couldn’t find much information about this one. There appears to be an Ebay listing for a slightly revised version of this tape from 1986, and while title sticker on the tape is slightly different, I doubt any of the footage has changed. This is the kind of tape available in a souvenir shop aimed at tourists from outside the country to remember the trip by and to show friends and family at home. It’s packed with interesting footage, a lot of which seems to be from the late 70s.
Fodor's Australia
1992 | Runtime: 90 Minutes
Amazing Australia
The Land Down Under beckons, offering a dazzling profusion of sights, sounds, cultures and creatures. Shop along Sydney's Darling Harbour and meet Peter Doyle for lunch at his famous restaurant. Take in the nightlife of Melbourne, tour the vineyards around Adelaide, and meet an opal miner in Coober Peedy. Catch a glimpse into the ancient, mystical world of the native Aborigines and their sacred Ayers Rock. Explore the dramatic contrasts of nature in the depths of the Daintree Rain Forest, the beauty of the Great Barrier Reef, and the arid expanse of the vast Outback.
Travel Planner
A special video segment designed to make you feel at home on any trip. Uncover cultural insights, logistical information and timely tips. Lodging from the economical to the luxurious... best modes of transportation to get across town or across the Outback... when tipping is appreciated, and when it's an insult... where to find bargains on woolens or opals... sources for aboriginal artwork and artifacts... and more.
Australia: Rand McNally Video Trip
1988 | Runtime 50 Minutes
Explore the land "Down Under" home of Koala bears, kangeroos, and crocodiles.
Your first stop on this vast continent is Sydney, home of the world-renowned Opera House and exciting nightlife. A tour of the art museums reveals an extensive collection of Arborigine art. For sportsmen, we'll stop at Manly Beach where surfing got its start, watch "footie" the very physical Australian Rules football, and learn how to throw a boomerang.
Next, you'll visit the very British Melbourne with its "golden mile" and landmark Victorian Arts Center.
Up the Western coast to Perth, host of the America's Cup Race and over to the Great Barrier Reef, with its 1,000 miles of marine life and breathtaking coral formations.
A great deal of Australia is primitive and you'll explore the rarely seen Outback with its crystal clear waterfalls, rugged bushland, and magnificent canyons.
Well, that’s it for this week! I hope you enjoyed the tapes! If you’re looking for more, please check out my page on Archive.org for the full list of digitized media. If you have any questions, feel free to send me a message right here or drop a comment below. If you haven’t already, please check out the one of my ocean-themed posts below, or all of my other previous posts here. Thanks so much for checking out this week’s edition of Diptych!
See you soon!
—Forrest
Baked Alaska #2
Travel video tapes were the very thing that inspired me to start digitizing, and it’s no secret that the thrift stores are full of them. Despite many of these tapes being published by well-known and still operational production houses and having pretty large budgets for their time, very few of them have made it to streaming services (and even fewer have been given a DVD release).
A European Vacation #3
This week I have for y’all a quick 7.5 hour trip across many of the most popular places in Western Europe, so I hope you brought a snack and some good walking shoes. First off, we will wind our way down the Rhine River, stopping in Germany and Switzerland, then over to France for a long stay in the capital, next we will hop on a train to Italy for awhile, then return to Switzerland to explore some more, finally it’s off to Ireland and Scotland for the remainder of the trip.
Hawai'i: an Island Paradise
Well before I was born, my parents took my older brother along with my mom’s mom and dad and my mom’s mom’s mom to Hawai’i for a vacation just a month after the new year in 1989. I’ve seen tons of photos from everyone’s cameras on that trip, but only in 2021 was I able to finally watch the tape from the full sized VHS camcorder my dad rented for the trip.
Fodor always has the best music. So chill