I was in Melbourne during the Australian Open tennis tournament. I attended the tournament twice during my stay and have put some of my best tennis pictures on my Australian Open page.
Among the sights I saw in Melbourne were the Royal Botanic Gardens, the Queen Victoria Gardens, and the Yarra River. One day I took a tram to St. Kilda Beach and got this shot of the Melbourne skyline from the St. Kilda Pier. I saw an excellent production of "The Secret Garden" at the Victorian Arts Center.
While in Melbourne I was visiting my friend John who has been working there for the past few months. John and I drove down Great Ocean Road to the Twelve Apostles one day. There were many beautiful scenic stops along the way. We also went up to Yarra Valley to do some winetasting on another day. Australian wines are very good and I brought several bottles home with me. Melbourne also has many excellent restaurants and I enjoyed many of them in such areas as Fitzroy, Lygon Street, and Chinatown.
I took a bus tour to Phillip Island where many tourists gather each evening at dusk to watch the "Penguin Parade". This is where dozens of tiny "fairy penguins" come out of the water and waddle up the beach to their nests in the hills. Unfortunately no flash photography is allowed there so I have no pictures of the penguins. However, the tour did make some stops along the way where I did get pictures of other Australian critters like koalas, kangaroos and wombats.
I didn't have as much time in Sydney as I needed but I did try to hit some of the major sights. I toured the Sydney Opera House, saw the Harbour Bridge, visited the Rocks, Darling Harbour, Kings Cross, and Hyde Park. I also spent one day visiting some of the lovely beach areas around Sydney including Bondi Beach and Coogee Beach.
For more information on Australia you can check the Lonely Planet site.
