Voice of Real Australia is a regular newsletter from Australian Community Media, which has journalists in every state and territory. Sign up here to get it by email, or here to forward it to a friend. Today's newsletter is written by NSW Central West regional journalist Nadine Morton.
There are a lot of things that put our regional towns on the national and international stage and, most of the time, it's for something we as citizens are proud to celebrate.
In the NSW Central West town of Bathurst, home of the Bathurst 1000, Race Week festivities have started - banners adorn the city's heritage light poles along the main streets and, of course, Mount Panorama is buzzing.
Drivers, teams and transporters arrived in the city on Tuesday, while the truly dedicated race fans started arriving last Saturday.
If you're still packing to come along and see the Great Race, here's what you need to know and if your esky is yet to be filled racegoers have been warned that if they bring in more than the allowable alcohol limit it will be confiscated.
For Netflix lovers, Lithgow has just been put on a national stage thanks to family movie My Pet Dinosaur.
The movie was filmed in and around Lithgow with a lot of local scenes easily identifiable and the director comparing the city's main street to "being in a town in America's Midwest".
Public art murals are growing in popularity and they are often the reason why people visit regional towns.
You may not know but Katherine in the Northern Territory now has 20 murals and counting, with the latest one by 17-year-old Katherine High School student Chloe Forscutt featuring stunning pops of colour.
For some towns like Coffin Bay in South Australia, oyster farmers Angel Seafood are putting their town on the map thanks to their delectable seafood.
While for places close to the coast, it's the surf that brings people, not only from across Australia but internationally, to the Big Wave Invitational competition.
The pumping conditions at Yallingup's Mainbreak in Western Australia tested anyone who dared to enter.
So while school holidays might be done and dusted for some people, and just winding up for others, how about looking ahead to the summer break and planning a trip away to a country area near you?
Some of our regional towns are struggling through a harsh drought that's not only impacting farmers but their surrounding towns.
The lack of rain has forced some regional businesses to close down while others are struggling to make ends meet and the flow on impact of that is disastrous for many small communities.
What a great, big, interesting country we live in - why not get out and explore it. See you on the road.
Nadine Morton
NSW Central West regional journalist