Alice Springs

After we left Melbourne we flew to the outback for a visit to Alice Springs, a remote town in the middle of the Northern Territory.

Our first visit was to the Royal Flying Doctor Service.  Because the outback is so incredibly vast, sheep stations can be hundreds of kilometers from the nearest doctor.  This service was established by the Reverend John Flynn in 1928 to provide emergency and primary health care services to rural areas of Australia.  Nurses and doctors were dispatched by plane to areas all over rural Australia and the service is still used today.

We also visited the School of the Air which is how children in these rural areas get their schooling.  It began with lessons broadcast over the wireless radio with students sending their work to the teachers through the Royal Flying Doctor Service but now it relies heavily on the internet.  Prince Charles and Princess Diana visited the School of the Air and their pictures and signatures are framed on the wall.

Our final stop was to the Alice Springs Telegraph Station.  This was a repeater station on the Overland Telegraph Line which linked Adelaide to Darwin and Great Britain.  This site was chosen because of a waterhole on the normally dry Todd River.  It was, erroneously, thought to be a permanent spring and was named after the wife of the Postmaster General of South Australia.  This telegraph station opened Alice Springs for European settlement.  I thought it was very interesting.

Melbourne

Melbourne is a city of contrasts.  The capital of the state of Victoria is a modern, cosmopolitan city known for finance, entertainment, fashion, tourism, and sport.  It has one of the best transportation systems I've ever encountered in a major city with an extensive tram system, which is free in the city centre.  It also boasts some of the most innovative architecture around.  But Melbourne is also a stately, old city with lovely Victorian buildings built from the proceeds of the gold rush during the 1850s.  Melbourne was my first stop on my Australian adventure and I loved wandering the streets discovering both the old and new.

Burke Street is a pedestrian area in the city centre with beautiful covered arcades which have been converted into high end retail shops and cafes.

 

Skyscrapers along the Yarra River.

The ultra-modern Federation Square.

The innovative architecture of one of the many museums to line Federation Square.

The Victorian Arts Centre.  It is designed to look like the tutu worn by a ballet dancer.

Near these modern buildings you will find the bustling Flinders Street Station, a beautiful example of Victorian architecture.  Many locals would use the clock as a meeting point before the advent of cell phones. 

St. Patrick's Cathedral.

Inside St. Patrick's Cathedral.

The Shrine of Remembrance was originally built to commemorate the ANZAC soldiers who died during the Great War but it now commemorates those who have died in all military conflicts.

The entrance to the Shrine of Remembrance (view from the the balcony) which is meant to look like the trenches used in World War I.

Different views of the Shrine.  There were many exhibits inside and, of course, my favorite was dedicated to the battle of Gallipoli.

This tomb was designed so that on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day during the eleventh month (when World War I officially ended) the sun would shine directly on it.  This was simulated for us using a light.  I found it to be very moving.

Floral Clock in the Royal Botanic Garden.  I love floral clocks!  My favorite ones are in Niagara Falls and and Geneva.

Victoria Parliament Building.  I loved the lamp posts!

The Old Treasury Building.  The gold discovered during the gold rush of the 1850s was stored in vaults in this building.

The Windsor Hotel.  Many celebrities have stayed here.

The Royal Exhibition Building, an iconic image of Melbourne.

St. Paul's Cathedral.

Inside beautiful St. Paul's Cathedral.

Town Hall.

I loved all of the floral displays outside the Town Hall.

I had two days to wander around Melbourne and for most of that time it was cold and rainy but I still thoroughly enjoyed getting to know the city.  The people were so friendly (I was called "darling" about 812 times) and I loved that it was incredibly easy to get around by riding the trams.  By the second day I was giving people directions!  Good on you, Melbourne!

The Music Man at Sundance

One of my favorite summer traditions is to watch a performance by the UVU Theatre Department at the Sundance Mountain Resort.  It is so great to be up in the mountains where it is a little bit cooler than down in the valley (although last night was really cold) and smell the scent of pine trees while watching a classic musical.  This year they performed The Music Man and I thoroughly enjoyed it (except for the fact that I was so cold).  I love all of the old classic musicals because I remember watching them at my Grandma's house and watching The Music Man definitely brought back some great memories.  The story of a traveling salesman who comes to swindle the residents of River City but discovers love instead is so sweet and this production was fabulous!  I really loved the scenic design.  All of the set pieces were made of wood with a whitewash finish and they made all of the colorful costumes really pop against them.  It was a great effect.  The choreography was stunning and I especially loved the innovative staging of "Rock Island" and both "Marian the Librarian"  and "Seventy-Six Trombones" were show-stoppers!  I also really liked all of the choreography during the scene changes.  My favorite character in this show is always Eulalie MacKecknie Shinn and Elizabeth Hansen was an absolute hoot!  I couldn't stop laughing during her Grecian Urn performance.  Scott MacDonald was just as funny as the befuddled Mayor Shinn ("Not one poop out of you, Madame.") and I also loved Laurie Harrop-Purser as Mrs. Paroo, especially when she was eavesdropping on Marian and Harold through the window!  Greg Hansen was incredibly charismatic as Harold Hill and I loved his rousing renditions of "Ya Got Trouble" and "Seventy-Six Trombones."  Rachel Woodward Hansen played Marian with a sweet mixture of toughness and vulnerability and her voice was beautiful in the songs  "Goodnight My Someone," "My White Knight," and "Till There Was You."  The two of them had great chemistry, especially in "Marian the Librarian," and then I discovered that they are a real life couple!  Other than the fact that I was so cold, it was a lot of fun to see this show.  Unfortunately, last night was closing night but I heard a rumor that they will be performing Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat next summer!