Melbourne,
Victoria: Melbourne is a wonderful city.
Many say Sydney is better, but I never went there
so I cannot compare. Melbourne is an attractive,
vibrant and very cosmopolitan place full of interesting
people from all walks of life. In Melbourne you
have the greatest choice of foods from any country
in the world. You will see people of all colours
and creeds. There is also so much to see. Flinder
Street station, Victoria Market, Royal Melbourne
Zoo, Museums, the Old Melbourne Gaol are among many
places to go. You can either walk through the city's
streets sampling the shops, bars and cafes, or you
can walk, cycle or skate your way along the beautiful
Yarra River. Or, if your legs get tired, you can
take the local bus or train. But my personal favourite
are the trams. These are not modern trams, but big
and extremely heavy old types. Characterised by
their green and yellow colours it's the image I
now often associate with the city. Also, like the
rest of the public transport, it's extremely good,
and will get you pretty much anywhere in the city
and its suburbs.
Among
the places to go in the suburbs, I recommend St
Kilda. Spend a day there wandering around and
sampling it's vast array of tea and cake shops.
As
I stayed with relatives in Melbourne I'm afraid
I cannot recommend a good hostel. But here is a
good link for all hostels in Australia: HostelAustralia.com
South
of Melbourne My favourite places are
Sorrento, Phillip Island and the Great Ocean Road.
Sorrento,
a lovely little seaside village lying at the very
tip of the Mornington Peninsula surrounding Port
Phillip Bay. I stayed in Bells Hostel, run
by a friendly couple keen on walking. The Phone
number is: (059) 84 4323. For more views
and information on Sorrento visit this site: Virtualsorrento
Phillip
Island, This sits at the western entrance to
Phillip Bay. The main attraction here are the Fairy
Penguins. Every evening at Summerland Beach
, these tiny penguins, after spending their day
out at sea collecting food for their families, parade
across the beach to their nests in masses. It's
a truly great and comical sight to see. Visit this
site for more information: Australian
Explorer Another attraction on the island is
the wildlife park where you can feed the kangaroos,
wallabies, wombats and emus. Watch out for the emus
though, when I held out my hand its beek nearly
put a hole in it.
The
Great Ocean Road, is a must for anyone visiting
this area. It stretches for over 300 km from Torquay
to Warrnambool. The road hugs the coastline and
provides some of the most spectacular coastal scenery.
Here you will come across spectacular beaches, surfing
beaches, dive centres and even places to hang-glide.
My favourite place to stay along here is a little
town called Lorne. The Great Ocean Road
Backpackers (052) 89 1809, is a comfortable,
clean place set aside Erskine River. From here you
can hike through the forest to Erskine Falls. The
hostel is set at the edge of this forest. Parrots
and Cockatoos come in from this forest all day and
you can feed them. Also, at night, you can feed
the possums that come in.
North
of Melbourne: The Murray River is
a great area to visit. Stretching some 2500 kms
there are plenty of areas to visit. My personal
favourite (well, the only place I went) is Albury.
I stayed at the Murray River Lodge (060) 41 1822.
The staff are friendly and will help you get
involved in adventure activities. When I was there
they took a group of us for a hike in the Snowy
Mountains.
Alice
Springs: If you're venturing into the outback
then Alice Springs is the perfect base. It has lots
of accommodation and is the perfect place from which
to book tours. I recommend Elkes
Backpackers. It's clean and comfortable
and even has a swimming pool. You can also book
a tour to Ayres Rock from there. I went with Sahara
Tours and it was a good mixed group of all ages.
All accommodation and food was provided. I highly
recommend it. For more information on Alice Springs
and all the things there are to do around there
visit this website: Alice
Springs the Gateway to Central Australia
Northern
Queensland: Cairns is the best base from
which to explore the north. I stayed in Castaways
Hostel, and highly recommend it. The owner
is a larger than life character who has the amazing
ability to smoke an entire cigarette without it
ever actually leaving his mouth. It has a swimming
pool and is far enough out of town to have some
peace and quiet, yet close enough to walk into town
for some not so peace and quiet. When I was there
they used to throw a free barbecue once a week.
Dont know if they still do. Pubs to check out are
Gilhooly's on the pier, and Samuels.
For more information on Cairns visit this site:
Cairns
online Cairns is also the best place to
find work.
Magnetic
Island, is also a must. From Townsville you
can book a five day all inclusive deal with the
hostel of your choice. I stayed in Centaur
House, and didnt want to leave. I remember
swinging in a hammick on the last day and having
to be dragged from it so I wouldnt miss my boat
back. Click
here for a list of other accommodation.
For more info on the area, click
here.
Northern
Territories: The place to go here is Katherine
Gorge. I hired a canoe and spent two days camping
in the gorge. For a list of websites click
here.
Western
Australia: Broome is a stunningly
beautiful place to visit. For more info visit this
website: Ebroome
Sites
to see nearby are:
Bungle
Bungles
Kununurra
Ningaloo
Reef, is not as big as the Great Barrier Reef,
but is as beautiful and more appealing in that it
is less touristy. I stayed in Exmouth in a nice
campground by the sea. Check
out this site for more info.
Pinnacles
desert, another must see. Go early in the morning
though, as you will miss the flood of tourists.
This is a sight that must be experienced on your
own. Visit
this site for more info. When I went I got
taken there as part of the Greyhound Bus service,
and stayed in a caravan on a nearby campsite. The
beaches around here are stunningly white and deserted.
Finally,
Perth is nice, but I preferred Freemantle,
further south.
