Melbourne, Australia

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Monday, 1/27 was a full-day/evening in Melbourne.

     Capital of the Australian state of Victoria, Melbourne has been called the world's most livable city.  It enjoys a scenic setting on the large bay of Port Phillip. Soon after Victoria declared it a city in 1847, the rush to find gold in its rivers and streams made it one of the world's largest and wealthiest cities.  Today, it is celebrated as the country's cultural capital of the arts and exudes a rich and lively British flair, from its narrow shopping lanes in the city center to the fanciful Victorian buildings along Collins Street.  A literal slice of England can be found in Fitzroy Gardens, 64 acres of beautifully designed topiary and blooms."

 




 
 
 
 
 
 
 
The Yarra River runs through Melbourne.  The city has a number of beautiful parks - including Fitzray Gardens.....with its many trees and flowers, plus "The Fairies Tree" -a  whimsical menagerie of creatures carved into a 300-year-old Red Gum tree trunk, by Ola Cohn sculptor and author of children’s books, and a miniature Tudor Village.  There are many churches including St. Patrick's Cathedral, an ornate train station, a large/impressive Shrine of Remembrance, and several distinct "neighborhoods", including the Italian district with its ornate buildings and homes.  Melbourne has a very large Sports Complex with multiple arenas for various venues, including the Rod Laver Arena which was currently hosting the 2020 Australian Tennis Open.

 
 
 
At sunset we headed out for a sunset excursion to view Kangaroos and Koalas in the wild.
With tour guide, Dan, we traveled to the Serendip Sanctuary, hoping to see kangaroos, and we were certainly fortunate.  We saw about 40 kangaroos, and were able to get close (about 35yards away) from a group of about 20 kangaroos - without disturbing them.  (I used a camera with a strong zoom, so the kangaroos look even closer.)

 
 
After we found the kangaroos, with Dan and two koala researchers in the You Yangs National Park,   the tour group went looking for koalas.  We located "Pat" and "Zach" in their natural habitat.
(Again, I used a camera with a very strong zoom which enabled these up-close pictures of the koalas high up in eucalyptus trees.)
What an amazing evening!

Comments

  1. TerriJanuary 29, 2020 at 11:58 AM

    I loved The Fairy Tree.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Mitzie & JohnFebruary 1, 2020 at 12:18 PM

    We love Melbourne! The last time John worked there, we stayed in the Italian district....on Lygon Str....we went to a different Italian restaurant every night!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Janet E.February 1, 2020 at 1:45 PM

      We thought Melbourne was lovely....with all the parks and green spaces. We would have enjoyed spending more time there. Beyond the iconic Sydney Opera House and Harbour Bridge, which are beautiful, we found the city of Melbourne even prettier....which surprised us. You and John were lucky to have been there for an extended period of time...are you ready to head back to Melbourne?

      Delete

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