After a day at sea, we arrived at Hamilton Island. It is the major centre of the Whitsunday Islands, a popular recreation area on the east coast of Australia. There are many beaches and marinas in the Whitsundays. The Whitsundays are at the south end of the Great Barrier Reef. We took the tender into the marina and wandered around the town. Took a shuttle bus that toured the island -- 40 minutes in total. The cruise ship ran a tour of the Great Barrier Reef...

Today we are in Brisbane, the first stop on our cruise around Australia. We took the City Cat Ferry from the ship to central Brisbane, about one hour. Downtown Brisbane is quite modern, like most western cities. However, just across the river is the South Bank Park, the recreational and cultural centre of Brisbane. In addition to its convention centre, performing ars centre, state museum, art gallery and state library, it contains a man-made beach (essentiall...