Melbourne: to catch the live Taylor Swift concert (my siblings are her biggest fans)
Adelaide: to visit the neighbourhood where my sister is staying. She is studying in UNISA.
Being the 2nd most populated city in Australia after Sydney, I find Melbourne to be a clean, organized, and well connected city. We joined a bus tour that took us around the major attractions of the city, with the bus driver slash tour guide giving us a short intro and trivia of each attractions. For families with children and elderly, this is an efficient and fuss-free way to cover many grounds in a short span of time, minus all the walking. Of course, the bus did pull over at each stop for tourists to snap some pictures.
St Paul's Cathedral, known for its distinctive gothic architecture
Fritzoy's Garden, breathtaking garden landscape and floras, perfect place to relax
Queen Victoria's market. Bustling with activities, stalls brimming with fresh produce, clothes and souvenirs, this is a place not to be missed!
The streets are decked with Christmas decorations in the blazing hot summer, very unconventional to the cold and snow we associate Christmas with, but nevertheless, still a refreshing experience. Here's Bourke Street, also dubbed by us as the 'our nearest main shopping street' because both sides of the streets are lined with shop outlets.
Bourke Street
Of course, the highlight of the trip (for my siblings) is none other than Taylor's Swift Red Tour concert in Etihad's stadium. I'm not into Taylor Swift, but her concert is really impressive. Her style, body language, the way she speaks, the way she relates to her song, perfectly done. There is no one dull moment on stage. It makes me realize she is not there on top among the stardom just by having a good voice, but with plenty of sophistication and style too.
Swifties Siblings
The day before we depart to Adelaide, we joined a tour a Philip Island, an island southeast of Melbourne that is accessible by land after a bridge was built connecting it to the mainland, kinda like our Penang Bridge. We visited a vineyard, chocolate factory and koala park, and a beautiful coastline named Seal Rock inhabited by, as the name suggested, seals. At night, it's time for the Penguin Parade where hordes of penguins from the ocean march their way across the beach to build their nests, lay eggs and take care of their young. The adorable way the penguins "waddle" across the beach and to see the young fluffy baby penguins is worth the chilly night.
Panny's chocolate factory. Many interactive carnival-like games that you can play for free. Your winnings will be chocolate ball tokens that you can redeem for real chocolate balls! Yummy!
Koala bears, or simply 'koala', because despite the name, koala bears are not a species of bears
Walkways to see seals resting on the rocks at Seal Rocks
In Adelaide, we visited the Cleland Wildlife Park, which boast a wide variety of rare-to-see animals such as dingoes, wombats, wallabies and even reptiles and large birds. What's notable about this park is that all the animals are free-roaming so visitors can go up close to the animals, with no unsightly cages or enclosures. Unfortunately, these rare-to-see animals are literally rare-to-see during our visit because many are seeking refuge from the summer heat by hiding in the shades. Nevertheless, there are still plenty enough to see.
Wallabies, it's easy to confuse them with kangaroos
The final big trip is to Kangaroo island on a cruise ship. There are not many wildlife on this island, but it more than make up for it with its beautiful coastlines, blue ocean, and sandy beaches. The sunset is also amazing!
It has been one week of fun and relaxation. Australia is the perfect haven for nature lovers, and I do hope to explore it again someday. For now, back to home sweet home. The weather here is still the best after all!
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