Singapore To Fremantle, 33 Nights

When the early colonists began building Adelaide they built with stone, constructing a solid, dignified city that is civilised and calm in a way that no other Australian state capital can match. The solidity goes further than architecture, for Adelaide was once regarded as a city of wowsers and was renowned chiefly for its disproportionately large number
of churches. But there is no denying that the city has a superb setting-the centre is surrounded by green parkland, and the metropolitan area is bound by the hills of the Mt Lofty Ranges and the waters of Gulf St Vincent.

Accommodations
Ranging from camping grounds to up-market hotels but whatever your budget make sure you book well ahead if you intend to be in town during the Adelaide Arts Festival. Most hostels are in the south-eastern corner of the city centre; Hindley St in the city has mid-range options, North Terrace has the top-end hotels. Adelaide is famous for its focus on food and wine and has more restaurants per head of population than any other city in Australia. Its huge variety of cuisines and wide range of local wines make dining a culinary adventure. Rundle St, Hindley St and North Terrace are the main food centres.

Environment
The streets of Adelaide’s central business district follow a grid pattern which makes it very easy for visitors to find their way around. Victoria Square sits in the centre of the grid. The River Torrens separates the city centre from North Adelaide, and a green belt of parkland surrounds both areas. Adelaide has a Mediterranean climate with maximum temperatures averaging 28 degrees centigrade between November and March. In winter, temperatures can fall below 10 degrees.

Attractions
The South Australian Museum, which has a huge whale skeleton in the front window, is one of Adelaide’s landmarks. The museum has a good collection of Aboriginal artifacts, including an Aboriginal Dreamtime exhibition. Looking uncannily like a squared-off version of the Sydney Opera House, the Festival Centre is the home of the Adelaide Festival. Inside, there is a variety of performance spaces and galleries, and there are free rock concerts in the outside amphitheatre on Sundays
during summer. One of the most pleasant aspects of the Festival Centre is its riverside setting; people picnic on the grass out the front and paddleboats can be hired nearby. Tandanya is an Aboriginal cultural institute containing galleries, arts and crafts workshops, performance spaces, a cafe and a gift shop. On Friday nights there are performances of plays and traditional music in the cafe. The East End Market is the place to head for alternative clothes and jewelry. The Orange Lane Market is Adelaide’s answer to Petticoat Lane, with Indian fabrics, second-hand clothes, tarot readings, antiques and even massages on offer. Glenelg is one of the most popular of the beaches which stretch in a long chain south of Adelaide. It is also one of the oldest parts of Adelaide, so there are a number of places of historic interest. A vintage tram runs from Victoria Square in the city centre to Glenelg Beach, taking about 30 minutes.

Welcome to Brisbane, the capital of the Sunshine State and Australia’s third largest city. Brisbane is a booming city with over one million people and is the major international gateway to South East Queensland. Brisbane also provides access to the holiday destinations of the Gold Coast to the South and the Sunshine Coast to the North. Brisbane is Australia’s third largest city and the state capital of Queensland. Not so long ago, the rest of Australia considered it little more than an
overgrown country town, but it has shirked off this unwelcome reputation to become one of the country’s most progressive centres.

Beautiful Climate
The Sub-tropical climate promotes an easy going relaxed lifestyle with hot summers and warm clear winter sun.

Explore Brisbane
Brisbane offers a whole range of activities for the visitor. The South Bank Parklands has 16 hectares of fun and excitement: Tropical rainforests, beaches, wildlife habitats, restaurants, specialty shops , shows and even an English style pub. The Queensland Art Gallery, the Queensland Museum and the Maritime Museum are justifiably famous. Customs House provides a look back in Queensland’s history, as does Newstead House complete with period furnishings.
With its Sub-tropical ambience, Brisbane has many gardens and parks. See the Koalas at the Alma Park Zoo, the Australian Woolshed also has sheep shearing demonstrations and don’t miss the Lone Pine sanctuary, the famous City Gardens and Mt Coot-tha Gardens.

The way to Hué. Such is Da Nang’s current lot: gateway to the historic city of Hué. Da Nang, founded in the 2nd century, was visited by Marco Polo (1285) and by Napoleon II (1856).

Hué served as Vietnam’s capital from 1802 to 1945 under 13 different emperors of the Nguyen Dynasty, whose splendid tombs are one of the city’s major attractions.

Da Nang is mostly a historical community, setting of much of the Viet Nam War, and lies on the mid-western coast of Viet Nam. It has a tropical climate, and the terrain has a low, flat delta.

Thanks to its central location between them, the working port of Chan May is the gateway to both these historic cities.

Darwin, capital of the Northern Territory, N Australia, on an inlet of the Timor Sea. It is the chief port and administrative center for the sparsely settled tropical north coast. Called Palmerston until 1911, it was renamed for Charles Darwin, who discovered its site in 1839. It has been largely rebuilt since a devastating typhoon in 1974. Kakadu National Park is nearby.

Fremantle is just south of Perth and offers a relaxing and enjoyable stay away from (but still close to) the glimmering skyscrapers of the Perth cityscape. The city was founded in 1829 by Charles Fremantle, and developed quickly due to the later Gold Boom in Western Australia. Some fine buildings were built, as was an artificial harbour, giving access to the Swan River. Fremantle has also gained a nickname of Freo, which it is often called.

You can find out about the history of Fremantle and the surrounding area at the Fremantle History Museum, and the WA Maritime Museum. More maritime history can be found in the harbour, where you may be lucky enough to see a replica of the Dyfken which voyaged to Australia in 1606. The Historic Boats Museum also has a selection of boats which you can wander around.

No wonder they built a city here! The harbor. The cliffs. The duty-free shops (well, those came later). Referred to as the beautiful city in the World by many, Hong Kong has a lure all its own. Once you visit, you will want to return.

There is nothing like Hong Kong and the bustle of commerce, of enterprise, of fortunes being made. And there’s nothing like her duty-free shops and colorful markets to explore both on land and afloat in Victoria Harbour.

An intriguing blend of old China and the modern world, this venerable British Crown colony reverted to Chinese sovereignty on June 30, 1997. Lying at the southern area of Mainland China and the China Sea, it serves as a major sea port and access point to southern China. It is has ferry and plane service to Maccau and the many outlying islands,
many that offer excellent vacation opportunities.

This island is Australia’s third largest, only a short flight or ferry trip from the mainland. The abundance of native flora and fauna are unthreatened due to its remoteness. Sea lions basking in the sun and penguins promenading are a spectacle to see. Pirates were the first to arrive before the settlers. The wrecks of 40 ships remain.

Melbourne, (mèl´bern) city (1991 est. pop. 3,153,500), capital of Victoria, SE Australia, on Port Phillip Bay, at the mouth of the Yarra R. Australia’s second largest city, it is a commercial and industrial center with such manufactures as ships, automobiles, farm machinery, textiles, and electrical equipment. The city was settled in 1835 and named (1837) for the British prime minister, Lord Melbourne. It was the seat of the Australian federal government (1901-27). The population,
once primarily British, has changed since World War II with immigration from E and S Europe. Melbourne was the site of the 1956 Olympic games. The Melbourne Cup Race is run annually.

Sydney, capital of New South Wales, is Australia’s largest city, chief port, and main cultural and industrial center. Manufactures include ships, refined oil, chemicals, textiles, and automobiles. Sydney Harbour and Port Botany are the main ports. Founded as a penal colony in 1788, Sydney is Australia’s oldest settlement. Its population surged during the Australian gold rushes of the 1850s. Sydney replaced Melbourne as the nation’s largest population center after World War II. Landmarks include the Sydney Harbour Bridge (1932); the Gladesville Bridge (1964); the modernistic Sydney Opera House complex (1973); and the Centrepoint Tower (1981), Australia’s tallest building. The city has several universities and museums, including the National Gallery of Art and the Australia Museum.