Some good info here from an Aussie operator on the work required to give a true idea of why the costs can be so high... however $34k sounds over the top. I would like to see the Cessna schedule for the hours required to be spent for an annual inspection and divide that into the total.
http://www.avtrac.com.au/catalina/ca...som_amd_00.pdf
There seems to be a distinct difference between the approach to annual inspections here in Australia versus the USA. In the USA the Annual Inspection is exactly that... an inspection. Over here it seems to be the time of year when the LAME decides to do all the work that he's been wanting to do on your aircraft all year but couldn't force you to pay for.