Index
Days 1/2: Flying
Day 3: Great Ocean Road
Day 4: Great Ocean Road
Day 5: Yarra Valley
Day 6: Melbourne
Day 7: Sydney
Day 8: Sydney
Day 9: Sydney
Day 10: Sydney
Day 11: Return
Australia
While we debated staying an extra day in Melbourne to explore more, we eventually had to make a decision-- so decided on three nights in Melbourne and four nights in Sydney, which meant packing up from the lovely Le Meridien Melbourne and heading off to Sydney today.
Spent some time enjoying Virgin Australia's rather large lounge at the domestic terminal in Melbourne, then the customary flgiht delays, then a relatively smooth flight to Sydney. Popped on the super-efficient train from SYD to the Sydney Harbour Marriott Hotel at Circular Quay, then enjoyed the much more elaborate birthday gift for Diana than the Le Meridien did. While the Marriott is getting pretty dated, the location is top-notch, at least for tourists like us, and we definitely took full advantage.
For some reason Sydney immediately vibed with us, and we cancelled some fancy dinner plans in favor of more local vibes, with Lee's Dumplings at the edge of Chinatown being very enjoyable. Xiao long bao, potstickers, highballs, noodle soup, then some shopping stops after dinner, and of course, being right in Circular Quay, time for photos in front of the Sydney Harbour Bridge and Sydney Opera House.