There are so many wonderful places in Australia to visit, it's impossible to name them all. When Felicia's sister, JoMary, and cousin, Marilyn, arrived from Illinois and Wisconsin in late January, we spent time in Sydney, visiting Chinatown, Chinese Gardens, Royal Botanic Gardens, Darling Harbour, and Manly Beach. We also spent a long weekend in Melbourne driving the Great Ocean Road from Torquay, the surfing capital of the world, to the Twelve Apostles, which is a series of rock formations that jut out of the ocean along the coast. That was the trip where Felicia sideswiped the rental car against a guardrail (good thing we took the extra insurance). It was tricky to get comfortable driving on the left side of the road. Alysia loved it all (she's a lefty).

The night before JoMary left, Alysia and Felicia joined her at the Sydney opera house to see Lucia Di Lammermoor. The opera house is really as fabulous as you hear it is. It's a "must-do" in Sydney.