“Don’t worry about the world coming to an end today. It is already tomorrow in Australia.”
~ Charles M. Schulz

I returned from the Australian Outback (see my commentary Stories of Uluru) to Sydney last Sunday and now have had a chance to spend five days in and around the city.

Today was a beautiful Autumn day (winter starts in June) – a perfect day to spend at the Sydney Opera House for TED X Sydney. My favorite talk was surgeon Munjed Al Muderis.

Despite the fall in commodity prices in the natural resource industries that feed Asia, the economy here is quite strong. What is most noticeable is how happy everyone is.

One of the reasons I wanted to head out of the States was continual reports from clients and subscribers in Europe and Asia on how much more free and happy people felt relative to America. I wanted to see for myself.

Australia’s land mass is almost as large as America and China (although less arable land). With a population of 25 million, there is a lot more room to spread your wings. Of that total population, approximately 4 million live in the Sydney area. The property market is quite strong, as is immigration. It is easy to see why – the city is both beautiful and bustling. It feels like San Francisco with a tropical flair and a more cosmopolitan population.

One of our Australian subscribers refers to Australia as the “Island Fortress.” Australia’s location may make for long supply lines; however, it also makes for a sense of security “down under.”

I fly to New Zealand tomorrow – first to Auckland, then on to Wellington with a day trip to Nelson on the South Island.