Melbourne, Australia

A day in Melbourne Australia

We arrive in Australia - a beautiful, sunny day. The first stop on our tour is the Shrine of Remembrance - a memorial to Australian and New Zealanders killed in World War I. Jean is particularly moved by the statue of a young man and his donkey, killed as they transported the wounded and dead away from the front lines. Often referred to as ANZAC - Australian and New Zealand Army Corps - the population of the two British Colonies were not large enough to support a single Corps on their own.




Our second stop is the tallest apartment building in the world - 92 stories tall. We are whisked to the 88th floor - called the Eureka Skydeck 88. We have a 360 degree view of the city. The ride to the top takes only 40 seconds. We can see the Queen Elizabeth in the harbor, and the Shrine of Remembrance we have just visited.

Captain Cook's Cottage

Tutor Village

Fairy tree detail

From the Eureka Center, we go to Fitzroy Gardens. Located within the extensive gardens is Cook’s cottage. The cottage, which actually belonged to Captain Cook’s parents, was dismantled stone by stone in the United Kingdom and rebuilt in Melbourne to honor the man who “discovered” Australia. Captain Cook never lived there - but he may have visited his parents when they lived there. The cottage seems small - but that is because part of the house was demolished in England to allow a highway to pass through. That was before they decided to make it a memorial and move it out of the country. Also in the gardens are a Victorian conservatory, a miniature Tutor village, and a fairy tree (with carvings of elves and fairies).



In another two days we will be in Sydney.