Surfari - Food and Travel

Surfari

surfari

There must be weirder reasons than a bad case of teeth-grinding, for planning an around the country surfing expedition, family in tow, but it is hard to imagine.

As he hit his mid-forties, surfing writer Tim Baker was hit by a nasty attack of mid-life crisis, and started to panic. Well, that's what the teeth grinding seemed to indicate. The only thing to do, it seemed was to plan, and then embark upon, a 'boy's own adventure' of a year away from his desk, following his dream of doing nothing much more than surfing Australia's coastline.

Of course as a family man he needed to take his long-suffering wife, Kirst, and young children Vivi and Alex with him. Luckily, they seemed well up for it too.

This is a fun account of how they did it, where they went, and what they found when they did. It's a tale of wanderlust and rediscovering your youth, and a search for the perfect wave while doing 'the Big Lap' of Australia.

And was his teeth-grinding cured by the trip? You need to read the book, but Tim does admit that 'driving around Australia with your family as a cure for teeth-grinding is about as effective as wearing hessian underpants to relieve chafing'!

Despite this, he also admits there were many other compensations for the bad roads, poor signage and sometimes flat sea conditions. Most importantly it was the time they had as a family to participate in what he calls 'the wonder and magic of our shared adventure'.

This is definitely one book for every family - surfers or not - that has ever dreamed of dropping it all, dropping out and driving around this great country.

- Sally Hammond

Surfari, by Tim Baker, published by Random House, October 2011, paperback, rrp $34.95, ISBN 978 1 86471 212 4

Add comment

Www.Foodandtravel.Com.Au - Australia

Best Food Travel Website 2021

foodandtravel.com.au has been awarded

Best Antipodean Culinary Travel Expert, 2019

by the prestigious UK-based magazine...

Ready for a taste treat?

Embark on an unforgettable culinary adventure through the vibrant tapestry of Malaysia.

Led by the charismatic Malaysian ex-pat Chef Wanitha Tanasingam, this intimate journey promises to tantalize your taste buds and ignite your senses, sending you home with memories to last a lifetime.

Find out more....

The flipside of travel...

How not all of it is joyous.