Ballarat: A Place of Amazing SItes!

          One of the many places one needs to visit when in Victoria is Ballarat. " Ballarat is a city located on the Yarrowee River and lower western plains of the Great Dividing Range in the state of Victoria, Australia, approximately 105 kilometres west-north-west of the state capital, Melbourne. It is the third most populous urban area in the state, with a population of 90,940. It is the state's most populated inland settlement, and the fifth most populated inland settlement in Australia. 

          The  City of Ballarat local government area encompasses both the Greater Ballarat urban area and outlying towns with an area of 740 square kilometres and has an urban area 0f 93,501. It was named by Scottish squatter Archibald Yuille who established the first settlement - his sheep run called Ballaarat in 1837." source- Wikipedia- the free encyclopedia

Some of the interesting places to look into in Ballarat are the following:

1. Ballarat birdworld- this famous place is situated near the South part of the Sovereign Hill and been considered to be such an exciting place. It runs a one kilometre walk on timber pathways through bushland and some native trees.  Within the place are interesting matters such as waterfalls, rainforest, parrots, cockatoos etc. 

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2. The Gold Museum- they said this is a wonderful place before moving further to Soveiriegn Hill across the road. One of ita interestig places is the gift shop where one can purchase gold nuggets and coins. And when it comes to exhibit, one will stay in awe and he will discover that this place offers is the oub and theatre culture of the Ballarat Goldfields. 

3. The Eureka Centre-this is situated in the corner between Eureka and Rodier Streets. This Centre is termed as a gallery-style centre, demonstrating the Eureka Stockade in a very interesting presentation.   The entrance fee here is free with a Eureka Pass and you can even spend an hour venturing the place's in and out. 

          Aside from these wonderful places, there are still others worthy to mention but they would be left to your curiosities to explore them. Seek and you shall relish the charm of Ballarat. 

                                     

Being Far From Loved Ones

          All over the world, there are so many people who work and live away from home. And we all know that it is not easy to do that. Some serve their countries through being members of their armed forces and at times, they are assigned on faraway places.  There are also those who are participating as members of missionary groups and usually they go from one place to the other. 

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           Meanwhile, another group of migrants are those who are looking for opportunities to earn more. Sacrificing everything even to the point of being far away from their loved ones- and they are willing to do that so as to make true to their dreams as well as for their families.  Anxiety, pain, discomfort and stress are just some of the most common problems of these people. 

          Hence, it is a constant relief when parties far from each other spend time to communicate with one another and by so doing, it eases the pain and anxiety as a result of the separation. After all, there is no greater love than to lay down one's sacrifices and life for those loved ones. 

                                                

        

Great Ocean Road- What A Wonderful Place

          Just a week ago, me and my friends had a good time visiting one of the famous tourist destinations here in Melbourne, Australia. What I would like to share with you today is the ever popular Great Ocean Road. 

          And so as to give you a short background of this pre-eminent place, " Great Ocean Road is an Australian National Heritage listed 243 kilometres stretch of road along the south-eastern coast of Australia between the Victorian cities of Torquay and Allansford. Built by returned soldiers between 1919 and 1932 and dedicated to soldiers killed during World War I, the road is the world's largest war memorial. Winding through varying terrain along the coast and providing access to several  prominent landmarks, including the Twelve Apostles limestone stack formations, the road is an important tourist attraction in the region." - Source- The Wikipedia- the free encyclopedia

          We departed Saturday, February 21, 2015 from Melbourne and we started trekking the road at 5 in the morning. After an hour and a half travelling, we reached our first destination which was the famous Triplet Waterfalls, Everyone of us in the group was mesmerised by the awesome and splendid display of nature on its best. The ever gigantic trees and the rest of the natural habitat of the place enabled us to appreciate further the wonders of creation. 

          Then we proceeded our trip and finally reached our destination, Apollo Bay and spent the rest of our trip there. Indeed, we experienced a great time savouring the richness of the place. The next day, we had an awesome time appreciating the beauty of the equally popular Twelve Apostles along the Great Ocean Road. 

          Indeed, if ever one has the chance to visit Victoria then don't forget to include in your trip a visit to the splendid Great Ocean Road.

                                 

The Joy of Travel

         Traveling has been a pastime I have ever since my younger days. Upon discovering new places, I come to terms with my understanding of certain practices and expectations. Of course, there are accompanying sacrifices such as finances, time, people, and many more. Yet the joy and satisfaction offered by those opportunties are much treasured and to some extent, they go beyond any material return. 

          Much to my delight, travels allow me to deepen my understanding of certain places' cultures and pactices. Being born as human beings, we are aware that accompanying biases and limited judgments are felt by us even after the experience of traveling a certain place.

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          On the other hand, it is but natural to us to have preconditioned items on our minds. We are at times hesitant to venture into other places due to their ill advised recommendations and assessment. However, if we will only allow ourselves to look deeper into a place's intrinsic wealth, we therefore would feel deeply amazed and overwhelmed to realize that certain new horizons can be divulged to us. 

          Thus, let us all open ourselves to the experience of travelling since this would enable us to widen our horizon, enrich our culture and open our hearts to the beauty and wonder of other places in this beautiful world we live in.

                                                    

A Reflection on Our Environment

          Nowadays some governments are encouraging industrial factories and businesses to move out of large cities. Yet it could also be seen that they are beneficial for all employees and others while planning to move them will also bring perhaps both positive and negative effects on the constituents. 

          Generally, industrial businesses located on nearby areas which already been developed and progressive have enjoyed the fruits of such industries. Moving them into other places will possibly help in boosting their economy specifically if these are part of the rural areas. Moreover this will result to creation of new opportunities for the community. Tax collection will also be augmented and this is crucial most notably in the implementation of local projects. 

imagecredit: http://pixabay.com/en/cambridge-architecture-monument-449209/

          On the other hand, transferring these resources means new buildings to be constructed, drainage to be made and other pivotal aspects leading to the development and success in industries.  However the offshoot also would be that on the process of establishing the new industries, trees need to be cut and this would not be good.  Aside from that, noises and pollution will start to mingle with the community. As such, these could stand as the negative possible outcome for these developments .

           At the end, what is beneficial is when the positive aspects of such developments will outweigh all the negative outcomes.

Contributing Writer: Myra Flor Jugan


                                                

Adventures in Russia

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          For somebody who loves to venture into new places of attractions, one wonderful site to explore is Russia.  Also known as Russian Federation, "it is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi- presidential republic. From northwest to southeast, Russia shares land borders with Norway, Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, and Poland (both with Kaliningrad Oblast), Belarus, Ukraine, Georgia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, China, Mongolia, and North Korea. It shares maritime borders with Japan by the sea of Okhotsk and the US state of Alaska across the Bering Strait." - Source- Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

          Among the number of gorgeous places that Russia can offer to anybody, some of them can be the following:

1. Trans- Siberian Highway- it is considered as part of the 

longest railway system in the world. This route is famous to world wide travellers and in fact, some would like to do it on bike. However when you plan to travel on this route, one strong consideration is the weather especially on this part of Russia, When winter season comes in, the temperature here would go down to zero degree. 

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2. Mount Elbrus Mountain- considered as Russia's highest mountain, a very interesting place to conquer with especially if you are a first time visitor of the place. "It is part of the Seven Summits- the highest mountains on each of the seven continents. It is also the easiest to climb right after Mount Kosciuszko in Australia and Kilimanjoro in Africa. " - Source- http://climbing.about.com/od/thesevensummits/a/Mount-Elbrus-Russias-Highest-Mountain.htm

3. St. Sophia Cathedral, Novgorod- "it is considered as the first Slavic church in which local divergences from Byzantine pattern were made so evident. With its austere walls, anrrow windows, the church is redolent of Romanesque architecture of Western Europe, rather than the Greek churches at that time. " - source- Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

          There are other interesting places to visit on this wonderful country, Russia and I will share with you some additional ones in my next blog post. So if you want to explore new breathtaking places, why not pay a visit to any of these cool areas above. 

                                     

Explore Philip Island

          Victoria, Australia has so many amazing things and places to offer to all. Among these places, one such wonderful and cool area to see is Philip Island. Every now and then, people all over Australia and outside of it come and go to this familair and popular tourist destination.

" Philip Island is an Australian island about 140 km (87mi) south-southeast of Melbourne, Victoria. Named after Arthur Philip, the first governor of New South Wale, Philip Island forms a natural breakwater for the shallow waters of Western Port. It has 97 km (60 mi) of coastline and is part of the Bass Coast Shire"- Source: Wikipedia- the free encyclopedia

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          On the other hand, anybody could also venture into different activities while exploring the well known destination. One of the remarkable entertainments in the island is the viewing of the penguins parade. Countless people have enjoyed the sights of these little penguins as they come home from the ocean. All the visitors of the island love to watch them as they parade from their sea adventure. Aside from them, Koalas also abound in the island and they earn the love as well of the visitors and local alike. 

          With regard to other activities that anybody could take part with or be just a plainly onlooker are the following: the annual motorsports on the island where local and international riders are vying the top spot much to the delight of the crowd, beaches, coasts and whale watching, etc.. Among the family adventures that everyone enjoys especially the children is the annual Island Summer Carnival. 

"A magical night of fun and excitement for the whole family to enjoy. 
Traditional Carnival food of Fairy Floss & Toffee Apples are just the start to the carnival experience."  Source: http://www.visitphillipisland.com/listing/island-summer-carnival/

          Thus, everyone looks forward to participate on this colourful event each year. So, what are you waiting for! Go and visit Philip Island now and enjoy the best that it can offer.