Northern Sumatra is a province of the island Sumatra in Indonesia and is located just below the province of Ache. Its capital city; Medan is home to some 13 million Indonesians. Geographically Sumatra is very diverse from flat planes to large volcanoes some still active as well large portions jungle. As such, the landscape can change in an instant and as such provides the perfect place for the avid adventurer and especially photographers looking to capture the unique beauty of not only the countryside but the wildlife and of course the people. Travelling through Sumatra is relatively easy with basically sealed roads everywhere. It is also relatively cheap compared to many other destinations and quite reasonable to hire a driver and guide which is highly recommended. An issue that may concern some potential travellers to parts of Indonesia such as Sumatra is the language barrier but the reality is that the majority of Indonesians are quite capable of conversing in English and this coupled with their willingness to welcome people from other parts of the world makes it very easy and enjoyable place to visit. The other topic to highlight is the food which can only be classified as fantastic. It is very cheap and of very high quality as the produce is all grown locally and for coffee lovers it can only be considered as a mecca. Coffee is basically grown everywhere, it almost grows on the side of the road and as such forms a significant part of the Sumatrans culture to sit and chat over coffee.

Bass Straight to many is an inhospitable place that is a body of water between the Mainland of Australia (state of Victoria) and the island of Tasmania.  Situated at a 40 deg South it is some 500kms wide and 350kms long and while this to many is considered as a large body of water it has an average depth of only 65m. Aboriginal Tasmanians came to Tasmania approximately 40,000 years ago across a land bridge called the Bassin Plain during the last glacial period. Sea levels rose to form Bass Strait approximately 8000 years ago leaving them isolated from the rest of Australia. Aboriginal people lived on Flinders Island until around 4000 years ago. Capt James Cook in the Ship Endeavour came across the straight in April 1770 and it was later named after George Bass, after he and Mathew Flinders passed through it while circumnavigating Van Diememn's Land, now named Tasmania.