Highlights of my Australian trips - part 1
From the Top End to the southernmost point of Tasmania, we live in one of the most diverse countries on earth, so whatever you want from a holiday, you can get from staying in Australia.
Amazing scenery? Got it. Remarkable wildlife viewing and experiences? Got it. Exploring an ancient culture? Got it.
Here are a few highlights from my own travels around and across this vast land of ours. Part one….
South Australia – we are so lucky to have so much right at our doorstep. The ‘City of Churches’ offers an astounding array of culinary highlights from the famous Central Markets to the many fine dining restaurants. Drive an hour in any direction from the CBD and you could be in The Barossa Valley, the Adelaide Hills or the Fleurieu Peninsula. If you are a wine lover, you can’t go wrong with a visit to any of these regions, but beer and spirits drinkers are not forgotten, with a vibrant young brewing and distilling culture growing bigger by the day. Farm to plate is how most cafes and restaurants operate here now, which means that all your meals during your visits here will be locally sourced and fresh as fresh. I recently discovered the treasure that is Port Lincoln, the best place to base yourself to explore the lower Eyre Peninsular. Astounding coastal scenery borders national parks where emu’s, kangaroos and koalas are plentiful and meals are full of the freshest, best quality seafood of all kinds, not to mention the local wines. For the true adventure seekers there is the option to cruise out to the Neptune Islands and dive with the great white sharks – something you can’t do anywhere else in Australia.
Melbourne – the city of lattes and black skivvies. I love the vibe of the city, from the Queen Victoria Markets to the Carlton cafes and the urbane hipsters in Fitzroy, not to mention the arcades in the city and the street art in the laneways. There is always something going on at the theatres and museums, or you can just grab a coffee and sit to people watch around Fed Square. If you are even mildly interested in following any sport, then Melbourne has you covered as the ‘Sporting capital of Australia’. The famed MCG comes alive with cricket in summer and footy in winter, there is a Grand Slam tennis tournament, a Grand Prix and any number of other sporting competitions to keep you busy in between. Families don’t have to venture too far from the city to find activities that will keep all the family members happy. One of my favourites is the Puffing Billy railway journey through the Dandenong ranges, a ride on a traditional old steam locomotive stopping at several old-style villages, such as Emerald, along the way. Or you can head down to Phillip Island to see their colony of Little Penguins parade past you on their way home to roost at the end of a long day feeding out at sea. So cute!
Sydney – a bit more showy-offy than Melbourne, but why wouldn’t they be with everything that Sydney has to offer? Meander the colonial streets and laneways around ‘The Rocks’ and it is impossible to turn a corner without bumping into an internationally renowned Australian icon. The Sydney harbour has the opera house and bridge, which you can climb and get a certificate to prove your achievement, with beaches like Bondi and Manly being only a stone’s throw away. A short ferry ride will get you to Taronga Zoo, where the animals live with a view that people would pay millions of dollars for. Not too far out of town you can visit the Olympic Park en-route to Katoomba, a picturesque village in the Blue Mountains, where the air is filled with the scent of eucalyptus and you can ride on the scenic cableway suspended 270 metres above the native forest and then jump aboard the world’s steepest railway to the valley floor to walk amongst the trees and wildlife. More often than not, Sydney is the gateway into Australia for overseas tourists starting their holidays in our country and I cannot think of a better bang to go off with!