Melbourne, one of the two largest cities in Australia, is very multicultural in nature, with thousands of peoples from scores of nations. With its many ethnic restaurants (30% of the population was born overseas) and user-friendly trams, the city has been voted internationally as the "most livable city in the world".
Melbourne, with a population more than 3.4million, is also a busy financial centre, renowned for its parks, gardens and historic buildings. It is a major sporting, commercial and cultural centre of Australia.
The Melbourne City centre itself is very picturesque, being built on the Yarra River, and located on Port Phillip Bay, The climate in July will be somewhat unpredictable, with maximum temperatures averaging about 14°C; rain is always possible, but equally so are cool, crisp and sunny days. It is a fascinating location for international visitors to include in a visit to Australia while being part of the international community of adult mathematics education.
For details about Melbourne and for a wide range of travel information visit the official Tourism Victoria website:
http://www.visitvictoria.com/
Although July is winter in Australia, it is a great time to travel to the tropical North of Australia and to the Red Centre. Whether you have a few days or a few weeks, it would make your time in Australia memorable if you could spend a little time outside the cities in the places that make Australia unique.
With flights from Singapore to Darwin, for example, participants may like to consider entering Australia at Darwin then joining a coach tour of Kakadu National Park, or the Kimberley and Broome. Alternatively after arriving at Darwin participants may travel by air or by the new railway to Alice Springs in Central Australia where they can join a tour or drive to the great rock, Uluru and Kata Tjuta. Alice Springs itself is linked by air to the major cities in Australia, including Melbourne and Darwin.
Other options are to arrive via Perth, Cairns, Brisbane or Sydney and visit areas of interest nearby. Flying from any of these centres to Melbourne is easy, and cheap travel is often available. Links to tourism sites in the 8 states and territories can be found on the first website below.
General information sites:
http://abcasiapacific.com/ask/default_to.htm
http://webcenter.travel.aol.com/travel/lonely_planet/australia_and_south_pacific/australia/attractions.html
Internal Australian Airline sites:
http://www.jetstar.com.au/
http://www.qantas.com.au/regions/dyn/home/qualifier-region-au
http://www.virginblue.com.au/