Left the International Motel in a shuttle bus at 0545, after a good night's sleep. My flight left for Toronto on time at 0645, arriving at 0800 - my seatmate was a guy from Montreal, on business to Toronto.
An hour later I was in the air again to Los Angeles . My seatmate this time was a guy from LA, who spent most of his time sleeping. Upon landing, we must have taxied around the whole airport terminal before coming to rest.
Another hour airport break, and I was on my way again to Tokyo's Narita airport on a Singapore Airlines flight. All seats were equipped with seatback video screens , on which there were a choice of 15 or 20 movies, as well as several video games. My seatmate was a woman on her way back home to Bombay - she loves living there.
I arrived at Tokyo almost 12 hours later. So far, my elapsed time of approximately 21 hours since I left Dorval, had been by daylight. I got off the plane and roamed around the small area of the airport available to me - not too impressive. An hour later, I was headed to Singapore (on the same plane).
Singapore - Cloudy, 25 C. Perth - Sunny, 22 C.
Another 7 1/2 hours later, I arrived in Singapore. My bag had been checked through to Perth, so there was no waiting for baggage. It was now almost 1 am, and I was anxious to get some sleep. As I waited outside the customs area for my shuttle bus to the Changi Meridien , I was able to watch the other passengers picking up their bags and clearing Customs, etc. It took only 35 minutes from the time the plane arrived until all passengers had collected their belongings and gone through Customs.
About 6 of us boarded a van (air conditioned, thank goodness), for the hotel, which claims to be the closest hotel to the airport. Geographically, it is, but it took 30 minutes to get there. Bed a little after 2 am.
After about 4 hours sleep, I caught the 7 am shuttle to the airport, to connect with my 5-hour flight to Perth. I sat next to an Italian, who had lived in Perth for 41 years.
We arrived on time (1430), and I was escorted by private car (included in the tour package) to my hotel. After catching a quick nap and some dinner, I took a train to Shenton Park (10 minutes from downtown), and walked for about 20 minutes to Drabble House - a community centre in an old mansion - reminded me of Stewart Hall in Pointe Claire - where I played some chess for a couple of hours. Walked back to the train and was in bed by 11.
Perth - Cloudy, 15 C (am); Sunny, 22 C (pm)
Found a nearby McDonald's and had breakfast around 0800. After reading the paper, I walked to the bus terminal (near the train station), and took a bus to Scarborough - a 30-minute ride through a mixture of residential, commercial, and industrial districts.
Scarborough is a residential area located to the northwest of downtown. It is on the coast (Indian Ocean). I got off the bus at the end of the line where there was a good view of the ocean. I walked down the hill to the beach, which is actually a small part of about 10 miles of unbroken beach coastline. Not too many people there, because of the coolness of the weather.
I walked about 2 or 3 miles to the south (along the sand) to City Beach, where I had a bite to eat. I passed a "dog beach" with lots of people and their dogs in the water. The sun had made the air and sand much warmer. I then walked the mile or so to Swanbourne station, from where I had a 10 minute ride to downtown, arriving at 1545. Walked back to my hotel and had a nap. Dinner at Pizza Hut - all the pizza, pasta, salad, and dessert you can eat for $6.95. Walk and bed.
Perth - Sunny, 20-25 C
After breakfast, I walked to King's Park, seeing the war memorial and many statues at the top of the hill, upon which the park is located. Back to downtown, where there was a large outdoor motorcycle show - lots of bikers around. Lunch, and back to the hotel where I joined my tour of the Southwest at 2 pm.
We had a quick city tour, featuring lots of black swans. Buffet dinner at the hotel at 1830. I walked up to Northbridge (the city's resturant and "alternative" district), where there was a large parade taking place - turns out it was the local gays and lesbians. Bed around 2200.
Perth - Sunny, 22 C Margaret River - Sunny, 22 C
After a good buffet breakfast with our group at the hotel, we (27 of us) boarded the bus for the start of our tour of southwest Western Australia. About 15 people were from the Melbourne or Sydney areas; a couple were from Hong Kong, others from England and the US. The bus held 46 passengers, so everyone had a decent seat.
We left at 8 am, stopping for a lunch break at Mandurah - a small town the west coast about 100 miles south of Perth. Then south through Bunbury and Busselton (lots of surfers), before reaching our motel in Margaret River. Very windy, but comfortable. A good buffet dinner, and I phoned home before bed.
Margaret River - Sunny, 20 C Albany - Few clunds, 20 C
After a good buffet breakfast we departed at 8 am, heading south along the coast. After a brief stop at Augusta, we stopped at the Cape Leeuwen lighthouse, near the southwest corner of Australia. I climbed up to the top - very windy (as it was all along the west and south coasts during this trip).
Lunch stop was at Pemberton, and then a stop at the "Valley of the Giants". This was a forest of very tall karri trees, which grow very straight. Since it was on a hillside, a walkway had been built off the hillside, right among the tops of the trees.
Our overnight stop was at Albany (pop. 20,000), where we stayed at the Esplanade Hotel, right on the beach. The water was pretty rough for anyone, except the surfers. Dinner, walk along the beach (in the dark), and bed. Note that Western Australia does not switch to daylight saving time, so that the sun would set shortly after 6 anywhere we were.
Albany - Sunny, 20 C
After a 7 am breakfast we departed at 8 am, starting with a 1-hour tour of Albany. The weather is very temperate all year round; temperature is rarely out of the 10-20 C range. We then spent a couple of hours at Whale World - the site of a former whaling station.
Back to Albany for lunch, where the rest of the day was free. I walked along the shore path to the downtown area (about 50 minutes), and joined a few members of our group who took the bus back to the hotel, arriving around 4 pm. A short nap, dinner, and bed.
Albany - Cloudy, 18 C Esperance - Light rain, 18 C
An 8 am departure from Albany on a rather boring drive to our lunch stop at Ravensthorpe in a light rain. Lots of vegetation, a few farms, but nothing else for 3 hours.
We arrived at Esperance around 4 pm, and had a tour of the area with its many sandy beaches. As usual it was very windy, and lots of surfers in the water.
Upon arriving at our motel, I noticed a van with advertising about an entertainer who performed at elementary schools and kid's parties. He was staying at the motel that night, and after dinner he got his guitar and entertained us for 2 hours. Probably the best night of the whole trip! Bed about 11.
Esperance - Cloudy, 18 C Kalgoorlie - Sunny, 26 C
We finally left the coast as we headed north (and inland) for the mining area of Kalgoorlie, arriving at 12:30. This is the largest city (26,000) between Perth and Adelaide - about 1500 miles apart. After lunch, I walked around the central area. Like most Australian towns, there were several two-storey hotels - each with a bar prominently displayed. With few exceptions, all Australian bars must be in hotels - thus the proliferation of hotels with maybe 5 or 10 rooms on one floor above the bar.
We then headed for the gold mine - one of the world's largest. It is a huge open pit - many smaller shafts were basically combined into one. Trucks were continually going in and out of the pit with 100-ton loads of 2-gram-per-ton ore. We had a tour of one of the former shafts, going about 100 feet underground.
As we left the mine area, our bus was stopped by the police. There had just been a bank robbery in Kalgoorlie, and they were looking for suspects. This type of incident was so rare, that it made the news for the next week in Perth until they found the suspects.
We paid a brief visit to Kalgoorlie's "casino" where they played only one game called "two-up". Two coins are flipped, and bets are placed as to whether they will be both heads or both tails, or how many times in a row one or the other of those will happen. If the flip is one head and one tail, the coins are flipped again, and the sequence of both heads or tails ends. All Australian casinos have this game.
The unique feature about this "casino" is that it was outdoors, and technically, is illegal, but tolerated.
Back to the hotel, dinner, and bed.
Kalgoorlie - Cloudy, 20 C Hyden - Sunny, 28 C
Today was the day we started heading west back towards Perth. We left at 8 am and stopped at nearby Coolgardie, which had a very good museum, showing the history of the area. Then lunch at Southern Cross. All the streets in this town (pop. 300) are named after stellar constellations. The main street is Orion Blvd. Like Kalgoorlie, Coolgardie, and other towns in the area, the main street is "wide enough to turn a camel train around in" - i.e. about the equivalent of 6 lanes wide. It's strange seeing such wide streets in such small towns.
We continued on to Hyden and Wave Rock, which I had seen before in 1990. It is a large smooth rock formation that looks like a wave, as it rises from the ground, about half a mile long.
We stayed that night at a motel in Hyden, where I played some chess against another one of our group from South Africa. I won very easily. Dinner and bed.
Hyden - Sunny, 22 C Perth - Sunny, 28 C
This was the last day of the tour for me, although about half the group was heading father north for a few days. We arrived at the town of York about 11 am, and had almost 2 hours to roam around. Lots of historic buildings, and a good museum. I walked into an old Anglican church, where the organist was practicing.
At 1 pm we left, and had a short tour of the nearby Houghton winery. We arrived in Perth about 5, and after dinner, some of us went to the Casino (I lost $7; one of our group made a couple of hundred $ in the hour we were there).
Perth - Sunny, 23 - 34 C
At breakfast, we made our farewells as our group broke up. The others went on a cruise down the Swan River to Fremantle. I took a train for the 10-minute ride to Swanbourne and walked to the beach (15 mins. away). I continued down the beach and nearby streets, eventually reaching Fremantle - several miles away. Very hot, but not humid.
To show the prosperity of Perth, today's paper had 107 pages of classified ads.
Today was the start of the Fremantle Festival, and a big parade was scheduled for 3 pm. To kill some time and get out of the heat, I visited an Internet cafe where I sent some email. The parade was very colourful, with lots of specators. I headed for the train as soon as it ended to beat the crowds, getting back to my hotel by 5 pm.
After a short nap, I had dinner and walked around the Northbridge area, calling it a night about 10 pm.
Perth - Sunny, 28 C
Since my breakfast was included as part of my previous tour, I met a few of our group who were about to head north towards Monkey Mia. They left at 8 am.
Since today was Remembrance Day, I walked up the hill to King's Park to see if anything was happening at the Cenotaph there. Various uniformed personnel were rehearsing for the 11 am event. I had some time to kill before I had to check out of the hotel and get to the train, so I found a shady tree and watched the show.
Cannon boomed out shots at 11 am and wreaths were laid, without anyone saying a word - no speeches, or any indication of what groups were there. I left at 11:30 and walked back to the hotel. I checked out and took a 15-minute taxi ride to the (interstate) train station, arriving an hour before the scheduled departure. No sign of the train - was told it would arrive 15 minutes before departure. I talked to an American woman who was to be in the same car as me.
The train arrived - 20 cars long, with two cars on the rear carrying vehicles. My car had 18 single rooms - all with toilets, as well as a shower and another toilet at the end of the car. There was also the porter's room. All rooms were full. A couple from Melbourne were returning home by train, since the husband had just had a lung operation, and wasn't allowed to fly for 6 months. There were no double rooms available, so they had 2 singles.
We left at 1:50 - 20 minutes late. The cars following (and in front of) ours were double rooms; then the restaurant car; then a bar/lounge car. Assorted sleeping, sit-up, and dining cars were in front of us. Since we were in first class, we received first-class treatment (and food).
After a couple of stops in small towns, dinner was served. I was at the first (6 pm) sitting, so service was fast. Always a choice of 2 appetizers, main courses, and desserts (all meals were included in my fare). Next sitting was 7:15 pm, so a few of us adjourned to the lounge car (no dome cars).
We were scheduled to arrive in Kalgoorlie at about 10:30 pm, and there was a 30-minute city tour for anyone interested. I had already visited it, so I went to bed (the porter had made it up) about 10 pm. It was decided to advance the time by 1 hour (out of the 2 1/2 hours difference between Western Australia's standard time and South Australia's daylight time).
Outdoors - Sunny, 30 - 42 C
After a fairly decent sleep (fairly bumpy since I was over the wheels), I had breakfast at 7 am. I found out that there was a group of 48 people touring all over Australia - mostly from Europe. I met a Swiss woman, and helped her translate some of her brochures into French.
We were in the middle of a 300+ mile strech of straight track - very flat country with vegetation under 6 inches high as far as you could see.
About 10 am we stopped in the largest settlement we would see in about 24 hours - this was Cook (pop. 70). Most of us got off and walked around in the 42 C heat. A souvenir store and snackbar were open.
At 11 we left, and a noon lunch. Lots of reading and talking all afternoon - the scenery never changed all day. 6 pm dinner, and we moved ahead the last 1 1/2 hours to get onto South Australia time (Cook was just inside the SA border). Bed about 10.
Adelaide - am: Cloudy - 25 C; pm: Sunny - 15 C
I slept well, and got up about 5:30 am. We arrived in Adelaide a little after 6 am (on time) where there was a 90 minute stop. This was the end of the line for a lot of us, while others continued on to Sydney or Melbourne.
I walked the 10 minutes to my motel, but couldn't check in until 9. I made the first of many 1.5 mile walks into town to kill time. Big Breakfast at McGrease, and read the local paper - only 10 pages of classified ads. Lots of stores for rent - much of the central area looked quite depressing.
Central Adelaide is supposed to be exactly one mile square. My motel was at the southwest corner; most of the shopping district was near the northeast corner. No streets run diagonally - all E-W or N-S - so I was able to take a different route each time.
Walked back to the motel, checked in, and back halfway to downtown. The temperature had dropped a lot, so I went back to the motel for warmer clothes. Walked back to Rundle Mall (the main shopping area), the Botanical Gardens, and had some Chinese food.
After dinner, I smelt smoke outside and heard sirens. I walked a few blocks and found a large building with flames coming out of it. I watched for about 30 minutes, and then went to the chess club where I played a few games. Back to the motel about 11 pm.
Adelaide - am: Cloudy - 15 C; pm: Cloudy - 18 C
Another cool day, and another Big Breakfast with a newspaper. I called a chess friend (Joseph Tanti) and he arranged to pick me up at 9 am the next day.
I took the 9:30 am tram to Glenelg - formerly an exclusive seaside resort about 7 miles west of Adelaide - but now just another suburb, but with a resort atmosphere to it. The trams were all built about 1930, but they are in good condition and well used.
I walked around for a couple of hours - occasionally in a light rain. Lots of "old" (1890's) buildings and cottages from the resort days. Still a couple of grand hotels. The water seemed to be too cold even for the surfers.
Back to Adelaide about 1 pm. I visited the Adelaide Museum and Art Gallery (both free) and then, after viewing the aftermath of the fire (4-story historical abandoned building gutted, but walls still standing) I had dinner and played chess for an hour. Back to the motel and bed by 10.
Adelaide - am: Cloudy - 15 C; pm: Sunny - 19 C
After breakfast, I met Joseph at the motel, and he took me for a drive out into the countryside, and around the city for 4 hours. A very spread-out city - mile after mile of red tile roofs. We went through the town of Handorf, which was settled by Germans 100 years ago, and followed the Torrens River gorge (which flows through Adelaide). We had lunch near one of the schools where he teaches chess. Back to my motel after passing by a few million-dollar houses.
After a nap, I went back downtown for dinner. On my way back, just after dark, across the street from my motel was a floodlit field. I decided to investigate, and found several teams of teenage girls playing "netball" on several courts - quite similar to basketball. I watched for about half an hour, and then to bed.
Adelaide - Cloudy - 20 C Daydream Island - Sunny - 28 C
An early start - up at 5:45 am. I had called for a 6:45 am shuttle bus, but, when it hadn't shown up by 7, I called a taxi and was at the airport within 20 minutes. My flight to Sydney left on time at 8:30 am, taking about 2 hours. My original 11:30 am flight from Sydney had been cancelled - no one notified me - but I was able to get a 13:10 flight to Hamilton Island.
A full 737 arrived on this small island 2 1/2 hours later. Hamilton Island is about 10 miles across at its widest point and is a large resort with several large hotels. It is the busiest of the dozen or so Whitsunday Islands (Capt. Cook discovered them on Whitsunday, 17??).
I was directed to a catamaran which took me on a 20-minute ride to Daydream Island - fairly rough water. Daydream was developed on the 1930's - about 3/4 of a mile long, and half as wide. Arrived about 4 pm. Joined our tour group for dinner at 7 pm. My room (in the "Rainforest Wing") had a view of nothing but - rainforest. Lots of bird noises - parrots etc. A typical "honeymoon" resort - reminded me in ways of Cradle Mountain Lodge in Tasmania.
48 people in our group - a full bus. After dinner, there was a show put on by a so-called "cultural group" - not too bad. Bed about 11 pm.
Daydream Island - Sunny - 28 C
A free day on the island, so had a leisurely breakfast outside at 7:30 am, trying to avoid the parrots which were eating all the scraps. I walked around the island via the "Rainforest Trail", which led over the island's "mountain" (about 100 feet high), to a small beach and a large pool. I spent most of the day in this area, talking and reading, and occasionally enjoying the water.
By the road, it was about a 10-minute walk to the resort, and we had dinner about 6:30 pm. Tonight's show was a Tom Jones look-alike - OK I guess. Bed about 10:30 pm.
Daydream Island - Sunny - 28 C
After a 7:30 breakfast, we boarded a boat for a cruise around the various islands. Our first stop was South Molle island - less than a mile from Daydream - where we picked up more passengers. Then another few miles to Whitsunday Island - the largest of the group - maybe 20 miles long. We were supposed to stop at Whitehaven Beach, but the water was too rough to land. Whitsunday Island is uninhabited, but has miles of sandy beaches open to anyone who wants to sail to them.
We were able to stop at a smaller beach at Chance Bay, on the same island, where we stayed for 2 hours. Lots of sun and flies, as well as the occasional lizard.
At 12:45, we departed for Hamilton Island, where we had a one-hour bus tour. Very luxourious hotels and condos - great views. Lunch was on board the boat.
We left at 2:45 pm, making our way back to Daydream about an hour later. Sleep, and dinner. After dinner, there were "horse races", with humans as the horses. Two dice were rolled - one representing the number of the horse, and one the number of spaces to advance on a "racetrack". Betting was allowed, and I won $7 on number 4. Bed shortly after.
Daydream Island - Sunny - 25 C Rockhampton - Sunny - 27 C
After a 7:30 breakfast, we boarded our boat for the mainland, departing at 9:30. About 15 minutes later, we arrived at Shute Harbour, where our bus was waiting.
About 11 we arrived at Mackay (pop. 30,000) where we had about 90 minutes for lunch. It was a long afternoon (250 miles) until we reached Rockhampton (pop. 60,000). Arriving at 4 pm, I walked around for a couple of hours until dinner.
Our meal was an Aboriginal meal, featuring kangaroo stew and crocodile steak. I had some of the stew - like beef, bit no fat. A show, mostly featuring digeridoos (hollow wooden tubes which are blown to produce a monotonous tone) and dancers. Not bad. Bed by 11.
Rockhampton - Cloudy - 23 C Fraser Island - Cloudy - 23 C
After breakfast, we left Rockhampton at 8:30 am. We stopped at a big sign which mentioned that we were crossing the Tropic of Capricorn, just at the outskirts of Rockhampton. We bypassed Gladstone, and arrived at the port of Hervey Bay (after lunch) at 2 pm.
We took a boat for the 30-minute ride to Fraser Island. It is the world's largest sand island - about 60 miles long by 10 wide. Vegetation covers most of it. There are no paved roads, except between the dock and the resort. All other roads can only be driven on by a 4-wheel drive vehicle.
The resort sprawls over a large area, and has about 300 rooms. My room overlooked a forest, with lots of bird life. Lots of walking trails, so I had a good walk before dinner at 7 pm. An interesting slide show was shown after dinner. Bed about 10:30.
Fraser Island - Cloudy/sunny - 22-26 C
After breakfast, we left on a bus tour of the island - very bumpy. The roads were full of potholes, since they were a hard sand surface. We stopped for a while next to a fresh-water lake (absolutely unpolluted water), about a mile long. Lots of friendly dingoes around - yellowish-coloured members of the dog family - very big ears - about the size of an average dog.
We then went on a half-hour walk through the fairly dense vegetation, and the threatening skies cleared up. Back to the resort by 1 pm for an excellent lunch. The afternon was free, so I walked around and relaxed.
After dinner, we went on a nature walk (in the dark), and were able to see lots of bats, as well as various lizards and turtles. Bed by 11.
Fraser Island - Cloudy - 22 C Gold Coast/Surfer's Paradise - Cloudy - 20 C
A late breakfast at 8 am, and then a boat back to the coast at 9:30. We were delayed, and didn't arrive at Hervey Bay until 10:30. About half an hour later, our driver received a phone call. Turns out that some bags had been loaded onto our bus (at the dock) which weren't ours. They were found, and left at a store in a small town we passed by.
We then went non-stop to Nambour, arriving there at 1:55 pm. This was the site of the "Big Pineapple" and a large pineapple plantation which we toured on a small train. Storm clouds were building up as we left about an hour and a half later.
Next stop about 4:30 pm was central Brisbane where we dropped off about 10 passengers. Then a slow rush-hour drive for the 40-mile trip to the Gold Coast and Surfer's Paradise. We arrived at our hotel shortly after 6, and had dinner.
I talked to one of the British couples in our group - they were retired - and the woman said she did volunteer work at the local Methodist church near London. I asked "what part of London?" and she replied "a small suburb called Pinner". Of course, that was the church where my parents got married in on June 2, 1945. There were also about a dozen people from Holland in our group.
After dinner, I made the 25-minute walk to the centre of town, trying to ignore the frequent, ominous lightning flashes over the ocean. The city (pop. 100,000) is on a long sandy beach, with a boardwalk along it. Downtown was where the crowds gathered for "schoolies week" - graduating high-school students (the school year ends in November or December) tend to gather here at this time of year.
Lots of stores were open - even at almost 10 pm. Bonfires, and even a large-screen movie were on the beach. Then fireworks. The beach and boardwalk are lined with high-rises - sort of like Miami Beach. I went back to the hotel, and bed by 11.
Gold Coast/Surfer's Paradise - Sunny - 23 C Port Macquarie - Heavy rain - 17 C
An early breakfast at 6:30 am - an hour time change as we crossed the border into New South Wales. A few more people left our group - only 27 of us left. About 11 we stopped at the small town of Ballina for a short while, where I made a phone call home. Cost less than a dollar a minute.
As we continued south to our lunch stop in Coffs Harbour, the sky quickly clouded over and the rains came down hard. Luckily, most of the central area of Coffs Harbour had some sort of roofing over the sidewalks, or was totally indoors, so that we didn't get too wet.
We left at 2:45 pm, in the pouring rain, for our overnight stop at Port Macquarie - about 200 miles north of Sydney. We arrived at 5 pm - still raining. Very rough water on the beach across the street. While watching the 6 pm news, I heard that Coffs Harbour had had over 4 inches of rain. Dinner and bed - not much else to do with the rain.
Port Macquarie - Rain - 15 C Sydney - Sunny - 22 C
I woke up about 1 am, and couldn't get to sleep right away (was it the rain being blown against the windows?), so I turned on the radio - not much choice of stations. Who should I hear but Melanie King (a Montreal radio talk-show host who moved to Australia about 6 months previously with her family) doing an all-night talk show! I listened to her for a while before falling asleep.
Breakfast at 6:45 - still raining fairly hard. Bought a local paper with a front-page photo showing the main street of Coffs Harbour under about 2 feet of water. They had had over 8 inches of rain!
We stopped at the Kingfisher Wildlife Park for about an hour - an excellent setup, but hard to enjoy in the rain. The animals didn't seem to mind. As soon as we left, they put up a "Closed for the day due to flooding" sign.
About 10 am, the skies cleared, and we didn't see another cloud the rest of the day. We stopped for lunch in Karuah - not much more than a main street and two churches. Interesting cemeteries.
We arrived in Sydney about 4 pm, and dropped everyone off at their respective hotels or meeting points - I was the last one. Traffic was chaotic all over downtown due to a rock concert ("Crowded House") that evening outside the Opera House. I checked into my hotel - near King's Cross - and walked the couple of miles to Darling Harbour where I had dinner. Visited the temporary quarters or the new Casino, and walked back to the Opera House. The concert was still on, and there were about 100,000 people watching it. Too crowded, so I went back to my hotel. Bed about 10 pm.
Sydney - am - Sunny - 18 C pm - Sunny - 28 C
Walked over to McDonald's for breakfast and a free newspaper around 7:30 am. I then walked through the Botanical Gardens to Circular Quay to check on day tours. Then, down the street to Singapore Airlines to confirm Wednesday's flight.
I joined an "Olympic Site Tour" at 12:20 pm. It started with a boat ride eastward to "The Heads" (entrance to Sydney Harbour), and then westward to the 2000 Olympics site - several miles west of the downtown area. We then had a 2-hour bus tour of the site - almost complete except for the stadium and the village. We were able to get off and look inside venues such as the pool, boxing area, and field hockey stadium. Boat back to Darling Harbour, arriving at 5 pm. Well worth the $30!
Visited an Olympic exhibit at Darling Harbour, and had dinner. Took the train back to King's Cross and my hotel. After a short nap, walked along Oxford St. towards Central Station, from which I took a train back to King's Cross. Bed about 10.
Sydney - am - Sunny - 26 C pm - Sunny - 33 C
Walked over to McDonald's for breakfast and a free newspaper (as usual) about 7:30 am. Walked along William St. to downtown to see about bus schedules to Palm Beach (20 miles north of Sydney). I felt it was going to be too hot in a non-air conditioned bus for 2 hours each way, so instead I took the 10:30 am ferry for the 30-minute crossing to Manly. Walked around the beach for a while, but it was getting very hot. Took the 1:30 pm ferry back to Sydney, and walked(!) back to my hotel in the heat. Slept for a while with the air conditioning on.
About 3:30, I took a train to Central Station, and walked around the stores until closing (5:30). Then to Darling Harbour and dinner. The temperature had dropped quite a bit, so I walked back to the Opera House, and then a train to King's Cross. Bed about 10 pm, after a walk around the King's Cross area.
Sydney - Sunny - 24 C Singapore - Cloudy - 30 C
Left the hotel on the 7 am shuttle bus to the airport. My flight wasn't scheduled to leave until 9:30, so there was plenty of time to roam around and relax. Due to "mechanical problems", we didn't leave until 11 for the 6 1/2 hour flight to Singapore.
We made up some of the time, and arrived at 4 pm. Customs and baggage were quick, and I took a shuttle bus to (near) my hotel. It was a 10-minute uphill walk to my hotel - not comfortable in the heat and humidity.
Good air conditioning in the hotel, but very poor controls for the TV (5 local channels - 2 English, and one channel alternating between BBC and CNN). After a nap, I walked along Orchard Road, and had a good Thai meal for $2.95(!). Christmas lights everywhere - along and over the road, on the fronts of buildings, etc. Orchard Road is 8 to 10 lanes wide, and the sidewalks are almost as wide, yet they were jammed full of people. Signs are in English, with the occasional bit of Chinese and/or Japanese added. Everyone dealing with the public speaks English, and at least one other language (there are 4 official languages - English, Mandarin, Malay, and Tamil). Bed about 10 pm.
Singapore am - Sunny - 22 C pm - Rain - 30 C
Walked down to Orchard Road for breakfast about 8 am. Then the mile or so down Orchard Road to Raffles Hotel - dates from the late 1800's and was renovated recently at a cost of $180 million. Rooms start at $550 per night. I found the tourist information bureau and picked up some brochures. I then walked around the stores in Raffles City, Marina Square, and Suntec City. They each contain about 200 stores.
I took the MRT (metro) back to my hotel about 12:30 pm. Fares vary with distance - $0.60 to $1.60. I bought a $10 ticket for $12 - the extra $2 allows you to travel without "overdrawing" your ticket - you put it in a turnstile when you get on and when you get off.
I caught up on some sleep, and took the train to Raffles Place (not Raffles City - about a mile away), in an older part of town. Storm clouds were gathering as I walked along the waterfront towards Marina Square. A good Malaysian meal about 4:30, and I could see the rain pouring down and the lightning flashing. Very humid outside.
Within half an hour the rain had stopped and I walked around, trying to see if I could get to Suntec without going outside. Yes - it was possible by going through two hotels and crossing the street twice two floors up.
Took the train back to Orchard Road and walked around. About a dozen huge shopping complexes - one was 6 floors high with over 100 stores on each level. Ice cream at McDonald's and bed about 9:30.
Singapore am - Sunny - 24 C pm - Rain - 32 C
Left the hotel about 7:30 am, and heard lots of people down the hill from the hotel. There was a Hindu temple being consecrated, and it seemed like every Indian in town was gathered there to celebrate.
Breakfast on Orchard Road at 8 am - another hot, humid day. Very uncomfortable walking for more than an hour or so. I took the train, and a bus (my ticket was good on the bus too) arriving at the Zoo about 9:30 am. Lots of schoolkids, but the heat wasn't too bad. Good show featuring humans, gorillas, and large snakes.
Left at 1:30 on an air-conditioned bus, back to the MRT. I rode the circular route in the other direction this time, noting the dozens of construction cranes visible at each stop - almost all 15-20 storey apartment buildings. I got off at Jurong East, and walked the short distance to the Science Centre - hoping that the threatening rain would fall and cool things off while I was inside.
Stayed there until 5:30 pm, after seeing an Imax-like film, and a thorough visit of the Centre. The rain was sprinkling lightly, but the worst was over. Train back into town, and another Oriental meal at Marina Square - always seems I'm the only white eating.
Walked back to the hotel - still lots of people at the Hindu temple - bed about 9:30 pm.
Singapore am - Cloudy- 25 C pm - Cloudy- 30 C
After an 8:30 breakfast, I walked to the Singapore Airlines office in the Mandarin Hotel on Orchard Road to confirm my flights to Vancouver. After a little more walking around, I took the 10 am bus to Sentosa - an island off the south coast of Singapore. About a 20-minute ride across the causway - a ferry and a cablecar also cross from the mainland to the island.
Very light rain began to fall - very comfortable. I rode part-way around the island on the monorail (full trip takes about 45 minutes), and got off near the Merlion - a large image half-mermaid; half-lion - at the highest point on the island. No one could go to the top, due to the rain (surface was slippery). We were able to get as high as the "eyes" - normally you can stand on the top of the "head".
I walked towards one of the beaches, where a large volleyball tournament was taking place - still a light rain. I then toured the "History of Singapore" museum - well worth the visit - with lots of documentation on the Japanese occupation of Singapore during WW II.
At 3:30 pm, I took the bus back to the city, and got some sleep at my hotel. At 5:30, the rain had stopped, so I walked to Marina Square through the business district. A good Indian meal of rice, curry vegetables, and chicken curry for $3. Walked along Orchard Road for a while; bed about 10 pm.
Singapore am - Cloudy- 25 C pm - Cloudy- 30 C
Today was the Singapore Marathon. Even though I walked down to Orchard Road for breakfast at 8:30, it looked as though the race was all but over - just a few stragglers. Must have started around 5 am to beat the heat!
Walked to the area called "Little India" - hardly any non-Indians visible. I went through a large market - fresh meat, fish, fruit and vegetables everywhere. Spotlessly clean; no live animals.
After about 90 minutes exploring the area, it was time to search for some air conditioning. I spent an hour in the Postal Museum, and then back to my hotel, and a nap.
At 4 pm, I walked to Orchard Road, and had another good Oriental meal, as a thunderstorm developed. I walked around more stores - I found one which specialized in golf equipment - one set of clubs cost $32,000! Of course, the woods were extra - about $600 each. I took the train back to City Hall, and walked around until the rain started again. Back to the hotel and bed at 9:30 pm.
Singapore - Cloudy- 25 C Vancouver - Cloudy- 0 C
My last day in Singapore - I was up at 5 am, planning to take a taxi at 6 (taxi fares are complex; $1 extra if you call for one; $2 if you enter the downtown area during rush hours; $3 from the airport; 50% surcharge between midnight and 6 am). I found there was a shuttle bus leaving at 6:20 (my flight was at 8:10), so I waited - and waited. It finally arrived at 6:40, and after a couple of other hotel stops, we arrived at the airport about 7:15.
The flight left on time - quite a few empty seats - in another 747 with screens on the seat backs. The movies were different from my last trip. 6 hours later we landed in Seoul (South Korea). The airport building looked like a typical 3rd-world country facility - just a small snack bar and a duty-free shop.
An hour later we were off again for the 8.5 hour flight to Vancouver. Uneventful, and I got a bit of sleep. Arrived at 8:30 am in a light snowstorm and called the Maclarens. It took them 90 minutes for a normal 20 minute trip - accidents and traffic jams in 2 inches of snow. Got a couple of hours of sleep and had a good dinner, joined by Philip and his fiancee.
Vancouver - Cloudy- 0 C Montreal - Cloudy- 5 C
After a huge Maclaren breakfast, we drove around suburban Richmond, noting the huge Chinese-built houses. Airport by 11; flight left at 12:30; arrived on time at Dorval at 8:30 pm. Bus to Dorval train station, and 9:35 train home; arriving about 9:45.