We had a one night stopover in Sydney on our way to our final destination, Bali. We arrived at night to see the Opera House celebrating St Patrick’s Day (not mentioning the rugby). On Sunday we chose to have lunch inside due to the weather……37 degrees (centigrade)………

Best not discuss the performance or the result but the experience was amazing. Much has changed since Sarah’s last visit.

Melbourne is our last stop in Australia before we fly to New Zealand. It is a multicultural city with the largest market in the Southern Hemisphere.

While much has changed in the last 40 plus years (vineyards replacing bush land, boutique hotels, upmarket second homes and all that goes with that), the beaches have remained the same. The recently opened Point Leo Estate restaurant and sculpture park has been financed by a local (shopping centre) billionaire.

Sarah and David spent almost three years at Crib Point Primary School in the 70s. When we were on the Mornington Peninsula we visited the school and were shown around by the headmistress. (In the school photo Sarah is third from the left in the front row and David far right of second row.)

Some of us have a soft spot for koalas. We saw two just off the Great Ocean Road Road (by the suitably named cafe). We have also seen plenty of signs asking us to take extra care concerning wildlife….

World famous views (lots of tourists) – Bay of Isles, Bay of Martyrs, London Bridge in Peterborough (!) (which has fallen down) and The Twelve Apostles (there are only seven).

The Adelaide end of the Great Ocean Road is less touristy but still beautiful, from salt lakes to beaches and the town voted “The worlds most liveable city”. We also stopped at Mount Gambia by the aptly named “blue lake”.

Before starting the Great Ocean Road drive to Melbourne, a short detour to the Barossa Valley was well worth the extra miles. We stayed in a beautiful hotel on a vineyard (The Louise) and had lunch at Maggie Beer’s Pheasant Farm (Maggie is the Australian Mary Berry, judging the Australian versions of Bake Off and Masterchef). It seems that Sarah and David showed an early interest in South Australian vineyards.

The Adelaide Festival Centre was built in 1973 and opened three months before the Sydney Opera House. First visited by the Shillingfords in 1975.