Hong Kong. Much of it was closed for the Chinese New Year.

These pictures have been roughly sorted as: a) in and around the harbour, b) in and around the city, c) the Blue Mountains, d) animals, e) the Chinese Gardens, and f) other places, including Bondi Beach.

These pictures have been roughly sorted as: a) general views of the area (i.e. some touristy stuff), b) general socialising, c) a fishing trip, d) a wine-tasting horse-trail, e) some preparations for the wedding. The ‘x’ files are a few shots of our ‘suite’ on the ‘5 star’ Moonah Links resort. Although the coffee table was cleaned the day after we wrote in the dust, as far as we know, the cobwebs are still there.

The ceremony was held at Ashcombe Maze on the Mornington Peninsula, and then the reception was held at the Moonah Links golf course, also on the peninsula.

These pictures have also been sorted: a) Ayer’s Rock (Uluru), as seen from our bedroom, b) other views of Uluru from the desert, c) the ‘Sounds Of Silence’ dinner, d) Kata Tjuta, the other big rock which, from some angles, looks like Homer Simpson lying down, and e) a few shots from the resort, which, in reality, was little more than a transit camp for people like us to fly in, look at the rock(s), and fly out again. There’s nothing else there.

A few days in and around Perth: a) views of the desert, coming in to land, b) Perth city, c) a wine cruise up the Swan River, d) Fremantle, e) York and Wave Rock.

The last leg of our tour. These pictures are of a) our impressive hotel, b) the city, c) Raffles Hotel (expensive drinks), d) the Botanic Gardens, which include e) the Orchid Gardens.

It was always our intention for this stopover to just chill-out for a few days. This we accomplished successfully, without venturing outside our hotel, except to go on the beach, until it was time to be taken back to the airport.

Mount Martha, Mornington: The first surprise was that Mark & Adele had only just had a pool installed in their garden - just right for a daily dip before the sun went down. As on our last visit, we took some time to explore the Mornington Peninsular - it’s pretty towns & beaches, and some, but not much, wildlife.

Melbourne: Mark drove us in, as he had to do some work in the city, giving us a chance to wander around - with a little help from the local trams.

During our second week, we undertook a coastal drive along the Great Ocean Road, which we got to via the Sorrento - Queens Ciff Ferry, We also drove through parts of the Otway National Park. Along the way, we saw dolphins, koalas, & cockatoos, and we made overnight stops in Lorne and Port Campbell.

Other Outings in the Melbourne area: First a trip to Phillip Island, primarily to see the Penguin Parade (which, unfortunately, nobody was allowed to photograph). But there was some stunning coastal scenery. Next, we went up into the Dandenong ranges overlooking Melbourne, with a lunch stop in the delightful village of Olinda.

I came home after three weeks, whilst Ann stayed with Mark and Adele for a further five. These are her pictures. We are already planning next year’s visit.