The huge model railway diorama in the shop window of Hobyco featured a few times in my 2010 and 2011 PADs, but not in the last couple of years I think. That's because I no longer normally go via the QVB on my way home.

Still it's good camera fodder although shooting that close through a shop window can compromise your optics somewhat as appears to have happened here. I probably need to get there just after they've cleaned the windows and there are no tiny little hand smears running across them.

The real Ghan is a tourist train which runs between Adelaide and Darwin. An 8 day package deal (only 2 days of which are on the train itself, and most of which are spent in Darwin of all places) will set you back 3 grand per person.

The model locomotive will set you back only $295 (with the sleeper cars being about $80 each), but there are fewer photo ops along the route, I suspect.

Last Year