...and now, by popular demand...

...more pictures of Australia!!

More scenery shots of the Blue Mountains:








A random shot of some of the lab folk at dinner. Here we're at a grill-your-own-steak joint. The casual, relaxed atmosphere made me very aware I was no longer in Britain!  :) The lab guys even brought along wives and children - definitely a sign of people with balanced lives... so unlike Cambridge...

And classic Sydney:

 
The Opera House by night.


The Opera House by day.


The Opera House and the Harbour Bridge. (Can you tell I was enthralled by the Opera House?)


Flags atop the Harbour Bridge: the New South Wales flag at left, and the Australian flag at right, complete with the Union Jack and the Southern Cross. (BTW, it was fun going stargazing in Australia... not only did I see the Southern Cross, I spotted Orion, who was upside-down!)



Dining with Carrie and Kimberly at the Pancakes On the Rocks, a funky, studenty hangout downtown. They do serve every kind of pancake imaginable! It was such fun to see Carrie again, and it was great to get to know Kimberly too, who lives in Sydney and gave us an insider's perspective.
 


The oasis of peace that is the Chinese Garden in the middle of the hustle and bustle of the city.


Another oasis of peace in Sydney.

And I went to Singapore too- on a brief stopover en route, I enjoyed an evening
with Priscilla and Albert, who showed me all around their fair
city-state, sparkling clean and beautiful, and gorgeously tropical:
stepping out of the plane felt like stepping into a sauna! We feasted
on tasty Chinese and Malay food at a place appropriately named
'Gluttony Bay', where I drank from a coconut. :) Beyond the adventure
of being in a new place, it was refreshing to be with this dear couple.
They are encouragers by their very lives. (Just the fact that they
speak to me is something, considering how mean I was to Priscilla when
we were kids! :)


Here I am with Priscilla, in front of the fountain. Behind us is a building known as 'the Durian', named after the spiky fruit its shape resembles. Next time I'll have to try one of these famed smelly fruits - they're rumoured to be delicious!




Priscilla and Albert in front of a playing field in town.


 I liked this government building - reminds me of a certain 'spaceship' church in Racine!