Worlds Village

Many travelers hope to visit Australia one day. But with so much territory to explore, how do you narrow down your itinerary? Check out the recommendations below to make the most of your time Down Under.

1) Take to the waves in Surfer’s Paradise. The name says it all! If you’re a surfer, you simply can’t miss the beaches at Surfer’s Paradise on the Gold Coast. Ride the perfect waves, catch some rays on the sand, or take a surfing lesson from some of the world’s best teachers.

2) Eat your way through Tropical Fruit World. Housing the world’s largest variety of tropical fruit, this New South Wales plantation is a food lover’s dream. You can taste new fruits and fruit products, go on an orchard discovery walk, explore the grounds through a train safari, and so much more.

3) Sip some vino. Australian wine? The very thought would have raised eyebrows in the not-too-distant past, but Australian wines are well respected today. And luckily for wine aficionados, there are plenty of vineyards to explore. Some of the best include the Saltram Wine Estate in South Australia, Stringybark Winery in Western Australia, and Yering Farm Wines in Victoria.

4) Get up close and personal with a kangaroo. The Australia Walkabout Wildlife Park in Calga, New South Wales is a prime destination for those interested in native Australian animals, plants, and culture. Here you can choose from guided tours geared toward your interests-seeing kangaroos and koalas, discovering Aboriginal culture, or learning how to survive in the bush. Or you can go it alone to discover your own favorite things.

5) Hop a rollercoaster at Dreamworld. Kind of like the Australian equivalent of Disney World, Dreamworld (in Queensland) is Australia’s most popular amusement park and offers thrills for all ages. Whether you live for wild rollercoasters or your kids are dying for a Wiggles fix, Dreamworld can keep you all occupied for several days.

6) Tour the Sydney Opera House. Even if you’re not an opera buff, a visit to this quintessential Australian landmark is a must-do one afternoon. Tour guides will give you an insider’s peek and the surprisingly moving story behind its creation, and you can even grab some lunch and a beer while you’re there.

7) Immerse yourself in a rainforest village. In northern Queensland is the mountain retreat of Kuranda, where visitors can observe wildlife, learn about indigenous culture and art from Aboriginal residents, or go on a forest walk.

8) Dive the Great Barrier Reef. There are skilled companies all over Queensland ready to take you on the dive of your life. One of the top scuba destinations anywhere in the world, dive enthusiasts must make the time to explore this undersea phenomenon.

9) Hit the trail. Horse lovers can explore Tamborine Mountain in the Gold Coast hinterland on horseback. These trail rides are geared toward both first-timers and experts and take visitors through an ancient rainforest and towering gums.

10) Climb to new heights in a hot air balloon. One of the best ways to explore the scenic coasts and interior landscapes of Australia is from above. Hot air balloon rides are common in Queensland, and you can choose what kind of trip appeals to you: nature, romance, luxury, adventure, and more.

Australia’s native history is thought to date back 50 000, when the now Aboriginal people first embarked on the country from the East. Today, despite its vast size, Australia is relatively sparsely populated, which gives it the prime opportunity to showcase its natural beauty without being overcrowded or overdeveloped. This country also benefits from the best of a few worlds – temperate weather, stunning beaches, cosmopolitan metropoles, an array of fascinating wildlife and friendly people.

The Outback is one of the natural wonders that sets Australia apart. Vast expanses of red desert are speckled with novel vegetation and waterholes that resemble oases. The red-hot sun sets against the backdrop of amber dunes in one spectacular instant. The Outback boasts cultural and historical significance as it is crammed with ancient Aboriginal artefacts and not a few rural pubs.

Australian beaches offer a totally different, albeit equally impressive, experience of this continent. With 50 000 kilometres of pristine coastline, it is no wonder that Australia has long been the ideal destination for families and surfers alike. In addition, because of the large expanses of beach-line available, they are not overcrowded. So, whether you are visiting New South Whales, Victoria, Tasmania or Queensland, the beaches are sure to lure you to their white shores day after hot summer’s day.

The Colonial Tramcar Restaurant Tour of Melbourne is one of the most popular tourist attractions in this city. This tramcar will transport you through Melbourne to South Melbourne, St Kilda, Prahran and Malvern, all while dining on fine cuisine and enjoying a private look at the world through one-way glass. Luxury and elegance compliment the 4-course lunch, early 3-course dinner or late 5-course dinner. Air-conditioning, tasteful music and silver service is all part of this exclusive package.

The Blue Mountains Deluxe Small Group Eco Tour from Sydney is an 11-hour tour for a small group visiting Sydney. The Blue Mountains are a World Heritage Region, home to rainforests, sandstone cliff faces and sweeping landscapes. The Blue Mountains National Park is the ultimate destination of this excursion. After an early start, you will enjoy breakfast with Koala bears at the Featherdale Wildlife Park, followed by lunch at the Imperial Hotel. The local plant- and animal life continues to amaze explorers, as do the spectacular views of the surrounding area. To finish off a day full of exciting Australian sights and sounds, sip on an ice-cold glass of champagne as wild kangaroos look on curiously.

Because of the array of sights and activities available to visitors in Australia, tourists are guaranteed of a busy schedule. Whether you visit the iconic Sydney harbour, Melbourne’s acclaimed shopping Meccas, Adelaide’s colonial architecture, or the Gold Coast’s 70 kilometres of exquisite beaches, you will be sure to return home with memories and photographs to last a lifetime.

The credit crunch does not mean you can save while touring any country and give up on luxuries you’re used to. Enjoy the friendly people and great service the world still has to offer!

Mankind has always been attracted to beauty.  We can still look with admiration at great, early Egyptian art and at the unsurpassed sculpture and architecture of classical Greece.

At no time through the long passage of history has humanity not been expressed through art.  In every corner of the world, in every society, known as civilized or uncivilized, art, as an expression of that society, has flowered.

In Australia, anthropologists discovered, beneath a shaded rock shelf, a long gallery of aboriginal art, with depictions of the hunt, men and women and native animals.  The question was how old was this undiscovered art gallery?

All was revealed when one scientist noticed a now, stone like wasp’s nest covering a section of art work.  The once sandy, but now rock hard wasp nest was gently removed in total darkness, so as not to let light enter the covered section.

A tiny sample of the hidden area was removed and sent for carbon dating – the answer came back, the gallery was 60,000 years old!  Men and women had decorated their environment.

Art, in it’s vast range of expressions, has always appeared at the apex of human achievement.

It raises humanity, it does not destroy, it uplifts humanity, it does not darken, its music nourishes the soul of humanity, it does not deplete, it unites mankind, it does not separate.

Art, in every form, flourishes today, more than at any other time in history. In the past, art was exclusive; today it is inclusive and is available to anyone who decides to be involved.

One of arts greatest gifts is its ability to constantly give, its resources are infinite, it holds in trust, thousands of years of the greatest artistic talent and freely offers it to all without reserve.

Just like music, with its cornerstones, like J.S Bach, who, we are told by musicologists, is the founding father of all Western music, even the most contemporary owes is origins to Bach.

Bach’s great music still gives and gives, even when the recipient never realizes that he is the recipient of the gift. The history of art, in all its forms does exactly the same thing, great pictures not only inspire an artist, but they continue to teach and instruct with lessons in composition, perspective and balance.

Every century has had and will continue to have, its “style of the day” and art, like every thing else, is voguish, with its periods of fashion, e.g., rococo, classic, neo classic, cubist, impressionist and revivalist, all available and always ready to give.    

These periods are usually seen as the birth of new ideas and as with the birth of a child, the infant, or new idea, grows and develops, until it, in turn, is overtaken by a fresh, new idea.

Art, therefore. Is a living, breathing form, constantly reborn in all its many facets

If we can imagine “art” as an allegorical figure, a curator of the world’s storehouse of music, pictures, literature, sculpture etc, we would need many more than one life time to see all she had to show us!

We may not always understand the art of our day, but it is well worth remembering that many of the great names, now revered as masters, were not accepted as such in their day, but were criticized, rejected and certainly unaccepted as artists in their day. Its worth recalling, by example, that the great Dutch painter, Van Gough, sold exactly one picture, in his lifetime!

Art constantly sets new challenges for all our five senses so let us follow our allegorical guide and welcome what she has to show us.

An artistic style, once formed, never dies, but is always present to be revisited at any time.  An example would be the French Rococo development of the Chinoiserie style with its fusion of European and Chinese style of drawing, or, how the 18th century Europeans imagined all things ‘Oriental’.

The popularity of Chinoiserie may have peaked around the middle of the eighteenth century, but its value as an arresting, artistic and interior decorative style has never waned, being constantly revisited, but, with all its formal elements preserved. 

One of the outstanding French painters of Chinoiserie was  François Boucher (1703-1770)  Boucher was perhaps the most celebrated decorative artist of the 18th century, with most of his work reflecting the lush Rococo style.                                     

The Antique & Vintage Table Lamp Co has commissioned lamps to be painted from a leading French porcelain painter.  The first of these beautiful lamps is a little accent lamp with an overall height of … superbly painted with “The Music Lesson”.

This style of painting, now over 250 years old, is faithfully reproduced in all its subtle detail, with its formal 18th century

elements preserved.  Here is a perfect example of art as practical, whilst remaining true to its traditional origins.

The company is currently accepting commission orders for these lamps.  There is no element of mass production, with each lamp being a unique work of art.  Please enquire.