While on the road to Bondi Beach, my visual expectations are mostly based on the combination of the movies the Point Break and the Perfect Mothers, which both include many Australian beach scenes along with some surfing action. The movie Tree of Life by Terrence Malick also makes it into this combination as soon as I lay my eyes on Bondi Beach. The beach hosts thousands of people who look like in a dream sequence due to the reflection of the sun. Even though I am not a beach buff, Bondi makes...

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I have always had a great desire to visit the Great Ocean Road. I am however a little worried today. The Great Ocean Road, which starts in about an hour from Melbourne is the Worlds largest war memorial built by the survivors of the World War I in honor of the Australian soldiers who lost their lives during the war. As you may know, the main battleground for he Australian soldiers in the World War I was Galipoli in Turkey. I hope that I am not drawn into unpleasant discussions during our...

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The White Rabbit Gallery, which is entirely devoted to modern Chinese art, includes works from the private collection of one of the richest women of Australia – Judith Neilson. The name White Rabbit raises my curiosity. The kind gallery worker explains that Neilson wanted to make a reference to the famous white rabbit of the Alice in Wonderland, which triggers the whole story. She also notes that the first Chinese artwork bought by Neilson is a white rabbit. The White Rabbit Gallery in...

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I, as a person living in the only big city in the World spread to two continents and divided by a Bosphorus, have the bad habit of belittling the amazement showed in the cities with harbors. I take it hard to believe that each city by water should be necessary beautiful. I keep the same wrong attitude for the Darling Harbor during my trip to Sydney. It takes me just five seconds to change my opinion when our plane reaches Sydney air zone. The Darling Harbor is an amazing place with its famous...

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Art Gallery of New South Wales, which is about an hour of walk from my hotel in Newtown is a precious art space with the richness of its permanent and temporary exhibitions, two different eating areas including a fine dining restaurant and for me more importantly, with its Yiribana Gallery completely devoted to the aboriginal art.During my May 2017 visit to the gallery, which does not charge an entrance fee except for certain special exhibits, hosts two temporary exhibits – “Adman: Warhol...

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It takes me a one look at Melbourne to fall in love – the mid-sized (in World standards) Australian city, which is usually sided by Sydney despite its continuous efforts to steal the scene with its coffee culture and street art. Right during the first hours of my visit – Melbourne gives me the feeling of being a fine mixture of Vancouer and San Francisco with its beautiful nature, street art and the hills.My first stop is Hosier Lane, an area famous with its street art. The trendy Melbourne...

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Tekapo, which is home to one of the most famous views of the South Island of New Zealand is a tiny little town. It however attracts a lot of attention thanks to the photogenic the Good Shepard Church and the lupine flowers blooming in November. Our bus departing from Christchurch, a city, which has been unfortunately home to many earthquakes, arrives in Tekapo in about 4 hours. Even though we have a dark weather since the beginning of the trip and the forecast shows rain for the entire day,...

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The only bad part about nature trips is your dependence on the weather conditions. Luckily, the weather treats me very nicely during this trip to New Zealand – Mt. Cook greets me with weather even nice than what was available this past summer. I am able to immerse myself in the beautiful views of Mt. Cook for two days in a row thanks to the weather conditions; Mt. Cook is quite known to disguise itself from the visitors due to poor weather conditions. Mt. Cook National Park is home to many...

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It is often said that what Sydney Opera House means for Australia, the same applies to Milford Sound (which is in fact a fjord) and New Zealand. The most famous landmark of the country. I am familiar with the fjords thanks to numerous visits to Norway. I am therefore more excited about the Milford Road starting at Te Anau and ending at the Milford Sound. This 120 km road takes my breath away right at the start. A line of fog also accompanies us during the entire trip and looks as a belt on...

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I get confused when my bus departing from Queenstown arrives at Wanaka. The weather is sunny but quite cold. I check my phone and yes – it is 5 degrees Celcius. Then what is the matter with those kids standing on the float located right in the middle of the lake and making preparations to jump in the water? This odd scene (given the weather conditions) attracts many viewers - the boys are quite popular now. I wait for about ten minutes for the boys to jump in the water taken the beautiful...

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