It’s almost criminal that I’m an Australian who adores travelling but went twenty-six years without ever going to one of Australia’s biggest tourist attractions: The Great Barrier Reef. Luckily, I got the opportunity to visit it for the first time just three weeks ago.

Now, I’m sure you’ve heard that the Great Barrier Reef is not in great shape ever since 2016 when severe bleaching occurred because of record ocean temperatures. According to The Guardian, a whopping ninety-one per cent of the Great Barrier Reef has been affected by coral bleaching this year.

If mass bleaching like this continues, the coral won’t be able to recover and will most likely die. However, there is a silver lining.

When I went to visit the Great Barrier Reef, thanks to GoPro, I was introduced to a fantastic Cairns-based charity, Citizens of the Great Barrier Reef (shortened to Citizens), which is determined to save the Great Barrier Reef. Andy Ridley, the CEO of Citizens, told me that he got involved with Citizens because when he heard of the mass bleaching that occurred in 2016, he couldn’t bear the thought of the Great Barrier Reef being dead.

“The bleaching that happened in 2016, I wasn’t in Australia at the time, I was in Amsterdam and that story went ‘round the world, and I love this place and some friends of mine were working on a project, this project… And I came to Australia to get it going.

The story that went around the world in 2016 was that the [Great Barrier] Reef had died. That was what was appearing on social [media] and in the press in Amsterdam. [I thought] surely that can’t be true. It wasn’t but [the bleaching] was pretty bad.”

Andy Ridley, CEO of Citizens

Andy then revealed that Citizens have launched an important conservation initiative, The Great Reef Census. This census aims to collect sufficient data that can help scientists advance conservation outcomes for the Great Barrier Reef.

This is achieved by Citizens going out into various areas of the reef and taking multiple images of the coral using GoPros and then analysing the images. And this is where you can actually help the Great Barrier Reef yourself; as anyone can sign up to become a ‘Citizen’.

Andy says, “If you’re a competent swimmer and you’re anywhere near the [Great Barrier] Reef, and you can get on a boat, you can go out and take images for us of the Great Barrier Reef… The big challenge is [we’re] asking everyday citizens to get in the water and take images, so [they’ll] need a robust, easy to use, easy to upload [device] and so, GoPros are perfect for that.”

Plus, I highly recommend going to the Great Barrier as – despite all the damage from bleaching – it’s breathtaking. And abundant in sealife; I saw colourful fish, translucent squids, a baby shark (do do, do do do do) and a graceful turtle.

However, I do acknowledge that not everyone can get to the Great Barrier Reef easily but if you’re still wanting to help it from dying, you can – as Citizens also need people to help analyse the images.

“If you’re somewhere on the other side of the planet and you’ve got a laptop, and you’ve got a bit of time, you can help us analyse images that have come back from the reef.”

Andy Ridley, CEO of Citizens

It’s nice to know that not all hope is lost for the Great Barrier Reef as after seeing it with my own eyes, I can truly understand why it’s one of the seven wonders of the world, and it’d be a damn shame for it to die.

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The post I Visited The Great Barrier Reef Before It Dies – And You Should Too appeared first on DMARGE Australia.

Bundaberg Rum, better known as ‘Bundy’, is an Australian icon. Famous for its smooth taste and incongruous polar bear mascot, it’s long been affectionately known as ‘sugarcane champagne’ by proud Queenslanders. Bundaberg’s latest project, however, has made that nickname into reality.

The 134-year-old distillery has teamed up with Uber Eats to produce a limited edition, highly exclusive bottling named Maison de Bundy Blanc de Cane: real-life sugarcane champagne, crafted from Bundy’s famous ginger beer and tasty white Queensland cane spirit.

As you may have guessed, it pays homage to France’s most famous champagne houses, playing off the appellations, pomp and circumstance of fine bubbly with a minimalist black label boasting a familiar polar figure (Monsieur Bundy R. Bear, naturellement). It might be a bit of fun but frankly, it probably tastes better than a lot of champers…

The unique 640ml glass bottling is limited to a run of just 1,000 and will be available for free for Uber Eats customers to enjoy at select locations in Queensland, New South Wales and Victoria on Friday June 10th and Saturday June 11th.

Of course, you’ve long been able to order a bottle of Bundy UP using Uber Eats on Australia’s east coast – alcohol delivery is one of Uber Eats’ most underrated features, don’t you know – but this limited edition Maison de Bundy is something a bit special.

“What better way to celebrate being able to get a tipple through Uber Eats along the east coast of the country than by partnering with a storied Australian brand like Bundy,” Uber Eats ANZ General Manager of Retail Lucas Groeneveld shares.

“We know Bundy is affectionately dubbed ‘sugarcane champagne’ throughout Queensland – and further afield too – so we’re overjoyed to have been able to collaborate with Bundy to create this exclusive item. While the name is tongue in cheek the product is world-class in every way.”

If you want to try this rare, potable piece of Australiana, head to Sydney’s The Civic Hotel, Melbourne’s The Sporting Globe and Brisbane’s Leonards and Dawn. Punters aged 18 and up can flash their Uber Eats app to bar staff at these fine venues from 5pm on Friday to toast the weekend ahead, with Maison de Bundy available until sold out.

Those who can’t make it will be able to unlock 30% off selected Bundy products on Uber Eats from Thursday 9th June until Monday 13th. Not a bad consolation prize.

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The post Bundaberg Rum & Uber Eats Create A ‘Cane Champagne’ Even The French Would Like appeared first on DMARGE Australia.

American rapper, actor and tastemaker Kid Cudi has co-created an animated series for Netflix and the first look dropped earlier today.

Kid Cudi’s upcoming series, called Entergalactic, will follow two young artists on a journey to discover love in New York City and will showcase music from Cudi’s album. Cudi (whose real name is Scott Mescudi) will also provide the voice for Entergalactic’s main character, Jabari.

Netflix shared the first look – which you can watch below – at Entergalactic earlier today and not only does it look awesome, but the clip also revealed that the series has a seriously stellar cast.

Jessica Williams, Timothée Chalamet, Ty Dolla $ign, Laura Harrier, Vanessa Hudgens, Christopher Abbott, 070 Shake, Jaden Smith, Keith David, Teyana Taylor, Arturo Castro and Macaulay Culkin will all voice Entergalactic characters alongside Cudi.

Cudi co-created Entergalactic with four-time Emmy-nominee Kenya Barris, best known for creating the Emmy-winning show Black-ish.

While Entergalactic does not yet have an official release date, we do know it will hit Netflix “this fall” – which means the series will be released before the end of this year (fall in the US is from the end of September to the end of December).

After Netflix released the first look, Cudi took to Twitter and called Entergalactic his “greatest achievement”.

“I have been waiting 3 long years for you all to see what I’ve been working on all this time. My greatest achievement. This project will move you, it will take your heart places and make you fall in love again. I am so proud of every single person who helped bring my vision to life.”

Kid Cudi

Here’s hoping Entergalactic is released sooner – September – rather than later in December, as we really can’t wait to watch this series.

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The post First Look At Kid Cudi’s Netflix Series Reveals A-List Cast appeared first on DMARGE Australia.

BMW has just unveiled its new prototype race car for the 2023 endurance car racing season, the M Hybrid V8 – and we reckon it might be the best-looking race car the German brand has ever made. High praise, we know.

Produced in collaboration with Dallara, the BMW M Hybrid V8 is designed to compete in the new GTP class of the IMSA series – which boasts prestigious classics like the 24 Hours of Daytona and the 12 Hours of Sebring – but it’s also eligible to compete in the World Endurance Championship, which boasts the most famous sports car race of them all, the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

As the name implies, it’s powered by a V8 petrol engine with an accompanying hybrid system. The powertrain is allowed to output a total of 500kW, although that may change based on how regulators want to balance performance between competitors, CarExpert speculates.

But we almost don’t care about its performance. We just reckon it looks sick. We love the way its design incorporates BMW’s signature kidney grille into a lithe, low-slung prototype sports car design.

Its livery, which incorporates elements of racing camo and liveries raced by BMW throughout its long history of motorsports in North America, also looks amazing.

BMW hasn’t been active in prototype sports car racing for a while. The last big victory for a BMW prototype came back in 1999, when the BMW V12 LMR won Le Mans.

As Car and Driver reports, the battle in endurance racing is heating up, with BMW just the latest major manufacturer to throw their weight behind the motorsport. Other brands getting involved include Acura, Cadillac, Ferrari and Porsche – the latter of which is also making moves to enter Formula 1.

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The post BMW’s New Race Car Might Be The Prettiest Thing They’ve Ever Made appeared first on DMARGE Australia.

Ewan McGregor reprised his role from the Star Wars prequels for the mini-series Obi-Wan Kenobi – which obviously delighted many fans. But the actor almost said ‘no’ to playing the titular character…

Fans and critics are both loving the mini-series Obi-Wan Kenobi which debuted on Disney+ just three weeks ago. Many actors from the Star Wars prequel trilogy came back to reprise their roles including Golden Globe and Emmy-winning actor Ewan McGregor.

McGregor played Obi-Wan Kenobi in Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace, Episode II – Attack of the Clones and Episode III – Revenge of the Sith, and is now playing Obi-Wan again – but the actor seriously considered turning down the role.

The Scotsman revealed in an interview with Total Film magazine that he was hesitant to play Obi-Wan Kenobi again for the mini-series because when filming the prequel Star Wars films, McGregor found the high use of green screens difficult.

“I found it very hard to make those films. It was lots of green screen and blue screen. By the time we did Episode III, it was almost all entirely green screen.”

Ewan McGregor

McGregor also admitted he was tentative about starring in Obi-Wan Kenobi because Episodes I-III were highly criticised.

“And also, at the time, they weren’t received very well. Every time they were released, they were being hammered. And that didn’t feel very good.”

Ewan McGregor

However, the Scottish actor went on to say he eventually decided to play Obi-Wan Kenobi once more because he simply wanted to – a similar thing he experienced when he was deciding whether to do the Trainspotting sequel.

“I started thinking, ‘I want to do [T2 Trainspotting]. Why wouldn’t you?’ and the same thing happened with Obi-Wan…”

Ewan McGregor

Thank goodness McGregor decided to come back for Obi-Wan Kenobi as most would agree the best thing about the series so far is his performance.

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The post Ewan McGregor Almost Said No To Obi-Wan Kenobi Series appeared first on DMARGE Australia.

Red Bull driver Sergio ‘Checo’ Pérez has found himself in hot water after videos and photos circulated of him online enjoying himself a little bit too much after winning the Formula 1 Monaco Grand Prix.

The 32-year-old Mexican’s win in Monaco last weekend marked his third-ever Grand Prix win, as well as his first win of the 2022 season. Monaco is a difficult and highly prized race for F1 drivers, so it was a real coup for Pérez, who seems to finally be moving out of the shadow of his teammate and reigning World Champion, Max Verstappen.

Pérez also inked a two-year contract extension with Red Bull during the Monaco race weekend, so Checo had plenty to celebrate… But all that success might have gone to his head, with the fiesty driver now having to face some difficult questions.

Social media photos and videos have emerged of Pérez partying in Monte Carlo after his win where he’s spotted getting rather up close and personal with two women who aren’t his wife… Others have shown him looking rather worse for wear after a long night – we think more than a few shots of tequila were had.

In response, Checo posted a long public apology on Instagram to his wife, Mexican socialite Carola Martínez. Translated from Spanish, the post read:

“I have seen the videos that have been circulating about me and I take responsibility for it. It was a bad party that I didn’t know how to control at the height of the person that I am, but it was just that, a very bad party.”

“People close to me know my values and the type of person that I am. For those who ask me, we are more united than ever, me and my wife.”

Sergio Pérez

“And for those who just want to hurt us, I wish you the best. Thank you all for your love and I apologise to all the people who love me because those videos don’t represent me not at all. We will not talk about this topic anymore, which only makes us forget the great moment we are living as a family. Thank you.”

Hmm…

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A post shared by Oracle Red Bull Racing (@redbullracing)

It’s an awkward moment that’s detracted somewhat from Pérez’s impressive win. He’s now emerged as a serious 2022 title contender alongside Verstappen and Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc – an exciting prospect for fans, and somewhat of a problem for Red Bull (but ultimately a good problem to have).

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“For me, this has been an incredible week, winning the Monaco Grand Prix is a dream for any driver and then to follow that with announcing I will continue with the team until 2024 just makes me extremely happy,” Pérez told media after the win.

“I am so proud to be a member of this team and I feel completely at home here now. We are working very well together and my relationship with Max, on and off the track, is definitely helping drive us forward even more.”

“We have built tremendous momentum as a team and this season is showing that, I am excited to see where that can take us all in the future.”

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The post Formula 1 Driver Sergio Pérez In Hot Water After ‘Naughty’ Monaco Party appeared first on DMARGE Australia.

Despite Bali only opening its borders to international travel in March this year, thousands of tourists have already packed their bags and flown on over to the land of cold Bintangs, floating breakfasts and cheap massages.

In fact, according to Bali Discovery, international arrivals into Bali in March 2022 were around 40,000, a “203.94% increase compared to March 2021”.

This number is still way below the figures observed pre-COVID, but what is clear is that Bali tourism is returning. If you’ve got a Bali holiday booked, or plan to book one in the near future, check out these rules to follow once you land on the island.

And while there may now be calls for Australians to be banned from Bali (for the next few months, at least) the reality is our Instagram feeds are now becoming inundated with #islandlife content.

But for all the paddy fields, beach clubs and ‘Grammable breakfasts, there is a side to Bali that you don’t get to see through a filtered lens on social media, and it’s one I recently experienced when I visited the island for the first time in May.

Like anyone who plans anything these days, I jumped onto Instagram to look up a range of bars, restaurants and clubs that my group had mentioned going to, to get an idea of what to expect. And, it must be said, I liked what I saw and I finally understood the appeal of Bali to Australians.

Up until the time I moved to Australia from England in 2018, the furthest I’d ever been for a holiday was the east coast of America and, considering the culture is basically the same (more or less), I never really saw it as much of a ‘foreign’ holiday. To me, then, Bali was the first time I’d ever visited a foreign country; one with an entirely different culture to anything I’m used to.

And, while I did indeed get to see the ‘social media’ side of Bali, I also noticed plenty of other things that I wasn’t quite prepared for.

This is what I believe Instagram doesn’t show you about Bali…

The roads are ridiculous.

Coming from a country that has a Highway Code, I immediately felt a combination of terror and bemusement as soon as I got in my cab at the Ngurah Rai International Airport airport and headed to my villa in Canggu – unfortunately, I didn’t get to say in the ridiculous AirBnb perched on a cliff edge.

I was aware Bali isn’t a big place, and so expected there to be a fair number of scooters compared to cars. What I didn’t expect was how reckless scooter riders were. If there was tarmac and some space, they were going for it.

But it works for them. I never witnessed any crashes of any kind. Compare this to Australia or the UK, countries that have rules for the road and clearly marked lines to keep us in separate lanes, yet we still have crashes on a daily basis, and you instantly have to wonder if there is a method to Bali’s madness.

Riders have no fear.

Continuing with the road theme, but this time, focusing on the scooter riders themselves. The majority of bikes that zoomed past me had just a single rider. Some had two people on, which I saw no issue with at all. After all, scooters do provide ample seating for two.

What I didn’t expect to see were scooters with three or, in some cases, four people on. I quickly became desensitised to it, although I couldn’t not be startled at the sight of a pregnant mother on her bike with three children, and it was only the mother who had a helmet on. Clearly, she had faith in both her own riding skill and that of everyone else on the road.

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The beaches aren’t that pretty.

This may be common knowledge to some of you, but for myself visiting Bali for the first time, I had some expectations as to the quality of the beaches. I’d always been led to believe Bali is a tropical island paradise (and in many senses, it is) but during my 10-day trip I only had the chance to see two beaches: Canggu and Keramas, and both, in my opinion, were shit.

The sand was either dark or quite literally black – hardly Instagram-worthy in my opinion – and so it wasn’t exactly welcoming to lay a towel down. Then there is the crazy amount of rubbish and debris washed up on the sand. I think I’d heard stories relating to Bali’s cleanliness (or lack thereof) but to see if with my own eyes was rather startling.

Of course, it also speaks volumes of the genuine issues relating to climate change, and how polluted our oceans really are.

The Isle of Dogs.

I quickly lost count of the number of stray dogs I saw wondering the streets, and that’s just in the small area of Canggu close to my villa. They were everywhere and, for the most part, stayed out of our way. As The Bali Bible says, “‘Bali dog’ is the politically correct term for the stray dogs of Bali, and they often get a pretty bad rap – That they are sexually promiscuous rabies carriers who take to the streets at night to brawl.”

But why so many? The Bali Bible continues: “born into poverty, dog owners often can’t afford sterilisation, resulting in the rapidly growing Bali Dog population which means more and more dogs are taking to the streets, often getting caught up with the wrong pack.”

As with the sheer number of daredevil scooter riders, I quickly became desensitised to the number of dogs patrolling the streets. They may have let out the odd bark when I walked past them at night – they’re just making sure I understand I’m the tourist – but other than that, they actually seemed quite tame, and I wish there was something I could’ve done to get them a more rewarding life.

Bali Belly is real.

Admittedly, I wouldn’t expect to see photo evidence of the effects of Bali belly littering my Instagram feed. But considering the number of super-tanned bodies with bright white smiles that appear when you search ‘Bali’ on the photo-sharing platform, I was under the impression that these people couldn’t have possibly experienced anything so tortuous.

And, truth be told, they may not have done. However, considering at least 50% of my group of 15 had to sit out at some stage during the holiday because of tummy troubles, I can’t possibly believe that the influencers selling you the ultimate lifestyle haven’t also had to get acquainted with their villa toilet.

I can’t be sure exactly how I contracted Bali Belly. I was told to avoid drinking the tap water and have ice in my drinks, and I’m adamant I stuck to these rules (I may have had ice in a drink on my first day, but I can’t remember). What could have been my downfall was simply rinsing my toothbrush under the tap before brushing my teeth.

Regardless, it got me. The only way I can describe it is by comparing it to the scene in Bridesmaids when Maya Rudolph’s character attempts to cross the street in her wedding dress. That was me, just swap out the wedding dressing for some swimmers.

The locals are incredible.

Yep, it’s not all doom and gloom.

If you’ve been to Bali before then you immediately know what I’m talking about, but for myself, I’d seen no evidence on Instagram to suggest how lovely the locals were. Staff in the various cafes, bars and restaurants I went to always had a smile on their face and were more than happy to cater to every whim. There were even a couple of occasions where staff offered to give us scooter rides back to our villas.

It also has to be said just how good their English is. It’s always nice for native English speakers to at least try and learn a couple of phrases: hello, thank you and please, for example, but the chances of any of us becoming fluent in another language just to serve the purposes of a holiday are very slim. So, for the Balinese to become fluent in English to help serve us tourists better, I found to be very admirable.

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The post Bali’s ‘Other Side’ Instagram Doesn’t Want You To See appeared first on DMARGE Australia.

If you ever need a versatile jacket, adaptable in many different climates, a chore jacket or worker coat is the ultimate choice. These military-inspired coats are perfect for layering in the winter or can be the ideal lightweight jacket in the warmer months. It’s suitable for almost every occasion, as men from all walks of life are rocking these coats. From construction workers to CEOs, it’s the perfect work jacket, capable of elevating your style.

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The post 20 Best Chore Jackets Casual Work Vibes [2022] appeared first on DMARGE Australia.

Chris Evans has shared on Instagram that he hit Ryan Gosling in the face with a gun while filming The Gray Man…

It’s not long now until the highly-anticipated action movie The Gray Man is released. The film stars Ryan Gosling and Chris Evans – who seem to have a serious bromance based on The Gray Man’s trailer – as well as Ana de Armas, Dhanush and Billy Bob Thorton.

Netflix released an exclusive clip from The Gray Man earlier today that shows Gosling’s character fighting off a group of armed enemies and then coming face to face with Evans’ character. You can watch the clip below:

The scene proves that The Gray Man is going to be action-packed as well as humorous; every exchange between Gosling and Evans is wonderfully witty – Gosling’s quip “what size shoe are you?” is hilarious. Ultimately, this is no surprise as the Russo Brothers (Anthony & Joe) directed and Joe co-wrote The Gray Man.

For those unfamiliar with the Russo Brothers, they excel at films where action is the focal point but humour is also abundant. The Russo Brothers also directed the Marvel Cinematic Universe films Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Captain America: Civil War, Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame AKA the second-highest grossing movie of all time (Avatar overtook it last year).

Taking to Instagram, The Russo Brothers shared Netflix’s exclusive The Gray Man clip which was then reshared by Evans with a fun behind-the-scenes fact. According to Evans, on his first day of filming for The Gray Man, he hit Gosling in the face.

“My first day of filming. I accidentally hit Ryan in the face with the gun.”

Chris Evans

If anything, it would’ve saved the make-up team from applying a fake bruise on Gosling as his character is all bruised and bloody in the exclusive The Gray Man clip… So, for their sake, thanks Chris Evans.

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