Sydney - Powerhouse Museum

A part of Sydney for over 125 years, the Powerhouse Museum has housed science and technology exhibits at the present site since 1988.

With over 400,000 artifacts - many acquired from the original owners - the museum offers one of the world's outstanding collections. It also offers ongoing and ever-changing displays that educate and entertain - from the history of TV to the most up-to-date results from astronomy.

The site is as inspirational as the objects housed there. Built in a renovated 19th century power station, the museum offers hands-on exhibits of the sort found in any science museum. Fascinating experiments with soap bubbles, electricity and magnetism and the usual gamut. But it goes well beyond these.

There are displays of the history of musical instruments not far from the latest videos of interstellar nebulae. It even houses the first steam locomotive to operate in new South Wales (the region of which Sydney is the capital).

The Locomotive No. 1 exhibit recreates a journey from Sydney to Parramatta in 1863. With audio and video it helps show visitors what train travel was like during that period. One of the rare period trains still in existence, it has been part of the collection for more than 120 years.

Nearby is the Strasbourg Clock, built in 1887, a working model of the astronomical clock in Strasbourg's Notre Dame cathedral. That's the cathedral in Strasbourg, not the more famous one of the same name in Paris.

Since most of the artifacts are in storage at any given time, repeat visitors are likely to find something new on every trip.

The computer collection is ever changing as new models join old in the museum's exhibits. Visitors can sit in a life-size space shuttle cockpit and try out the chocolate tasting machine.

There's even an exhibit on the history of cinema, the highlight of which is a 1930s Art Deco-style theater. The seats are from the Manly Odeon, built in 1932.

The 'Inspired!' section offers dozens of objects that show the history of design.

Here, hand-made items and the machine-tooled sit side by side. The revival of the crafts movement shows many objects, such as glass bowls, inspired by the rebellion against industrialization. Others show the gleaming objects of Art Deco or Scandinavian modernism that embraces and celebrates it.

Everything from kettles and burners of 1878 to 21st century factory made watches are to be found on display. One item of note is an early 1960s armless chair designed by the famous architect Frank Gehry, which looks much like a piece of melted taffy, folded onto itself.

Going beyond the variety to be found in most science museums, it's almost a Natural History museum.

There's a section of the mast of Lord Nelson's ship, the HMS Victory, used at the Battle of Trafalgar. There's also a wheel from Bluebird, the car used to break the world land speed record in the 1960s.

These, along with half the other items in the collection are to be housed in a new building at Castle Hill. The original, modern site of the museum is at 500 Harris Street.

Be sure to visit both and enjoy everything inventive Australians have produced for 200 years or more.

Sydney Aquarium

Located on the eastern side of Darling Harbor, the Sydney Aquarium displays more than 650 species in a unique setting. Even discounting the extraordinary views outside, the more than 6,000 individuals aquatic creatures are housed in unusual style. Many are visible through the walls of large glass tunnels and some of the tunnels even have glass floors.

Few aquariums make it possible for visitors to actually go inside the tank. But at Sydney Aquarium you can stroll along and watch sharks actually swim under your feet. If that isn't scary enough, wait until 2008 when the crocodile exhibit is finished. Some Saltwater Crocodiles, which grow up to 7m/23ft are already part of the collection.

Opened in 1988, the facility is one of the largest in the world. Most seaside aquariums offer displays of local species, but Sydney is unique because of its proximity to the Great Barrier Reef, as well as the many river systems it feeds.

Visitors can see some of the 180 shark species native to the local waters, about 10 of which are dangerous. Great Whites, for example, are common in those waters. They do poorly in captivity, though, and visitors will see one there only by chance. You are likely, though, to see a Tiger Shark or a Lemon Shark. Some housed here are over 3m(10ft) long and weigh up to 300kg(660lbs).

Moray eels, with long, razor-sharp teeth, are on display. Normally placid, they can be fierce when provoked. Even the playful Platypus can be deadly to small animals. The male has a spur on the inside of each rear leg that contains a toxin that can kill.

One of the most elegant swimmers, the Stingray Dasyatis Brevicandata is the largest in the world. Reaching a length over 4.3m (14ft), the stingray has a 30cm (12in) barbed tail that contains venom. Even the fish can be deadly here. The Butterfly Cod have spines that can injure or kill a fully grown human.

Whether visiting the Southern Rivers section (housing the Platypus), or the Norther Rivers (where the Saltwater Crocodiles live), or the Northern Ocean/Great Barrier Reef, visitors will find something awe inspiring.

For a less threatening view of the underwater animal kingdom wander to the Southern Ocean section. Remember, Australia, though the size of a continent, is an island and surrounded on all sides by water. Here the creatures are more cuddly and cute, including the penguins and seals.

The Sydney Harbor area is part of the Southern Ocean section so visitors can get a view of the creatures that swim freely under the great Harbor Bridge and around the Sydney Opera House. The seals run the gamut of Australian and New Zealand Fur Seals to the sub-Antarctic variety. The penguin exhibit features, among others, a type called Fairy Penguins, so-named because of their small size.

It's even possible to sign up for VIP tours that offer feeding the animals at opportune times. Near the end of the tour is a room in which the tank is darkened behind and lighted ahead. Classical music plays as you watch the creatures dance to their own mysterious music.

New York - Fifth Avenue

The center of Manhattan in a dozen ways, Fifth Avenue bisects the city from below 23rd Street to the north end of Central Park and beyond.

Home to some of the most expensive real estate on earth (over $600 per square foot in some cases), the street featured in dozens of films deserves its acclaim. Whether south to the Flatiron Building at 23rd Street (the first cast iron 'skyscraper') or up to midtown to north of 88th, there's more to see and do here alone than in all of most cities.

Take a tour of the New York Public Library at 42nd street and say 'Hello' to the stone lions outside, Patience and Fortitude. Enjoy the park in the rear, where outdoor markets are held. Walk through the hallowed halls inside and take in one of the world's great libraries.

Wander up to midtown to the 'city within the city': Rockefeller Center. A dozen high rise buildings, a skating rink and dozens of shops and restaurants compete for attention.

Only a few blocks up from this 52nd Street marvel is 57th where the visitor can take in Tiffany's. Upstairs is where they keep the really good stuff. Bergdorf Goodman's is right next door if you simply must have one of the world's most expensive raincoats. Cartier's is not far away.

And don't forget to take a photo by the huge red '9' at 9 West 57th, in front of the spectacular curved glass building there. Former headquarters of Avon, from the cafeteria on the 33rd floor you can see all the way up Central Park and downtown to the former World Trade Center site.

Nearby, at 59th Street, is the world renowned Plaza Hotel across the street from the bottom of Central Park. Have a drink in the bar and imagine Cary Grant - who used to have a suite at the hotel - walking through and sitting down.

Sit on the steps and look at the fountain and the white stone tower of GM Plaza. Stop in at FAO Schwarz, the world's most interesting toy store.

Board one of the horse-drawn carts and take a trip up 5th Avenue alongside or through the park. Or, if you're in a hurry, hail a cab and zoom up to 82nd Street and the Metropolitan Museum. Here's a treasure trove of 6,000 years of art in a 19th century setting inside and out.

After your tour, sit outside on the steps and have a hot dog while you people watch. Through these Greek columned doors pass thousands from all over the world, often in fascinating native dress.

And for poetry lovers, just up and across the street is the Goethe Institute, dedicated to the 19th century dramatist and poet. Here you can rest and see films, hear small concerts and lectures, and enjoy the ambiance.

Just up the street is the famous Frank Lloyd Wright-designed Guggenheim. A work of modern art itself, the spiral layer-cake building houses late 20th century works along the walls of a spectacular atrium.

On your way back down, catch The Frick Collection at 70th Street. One of the world's great small museums. A medium-sized mansion, but every room is itself a work of art and the collection rivals that of any in New York or Paris.

Enjoy the street that was famous long before Fred Astaire sang and danced on it. When you're done, you'll be dancing too.

Madrid - Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza

The name may be a challenge for English speakers, but Madrid's newest art museum is very easy to love for individuals of any nationality. Drawn from the possessions collected over generations of a wealthy family, the contents form one of the greatest gatherings of paintings in the world.

The museum got its beginning when the Spanish government offered to purchase that collection in 1993 for $350 million and converted the late 18th century Villahermosa Palace into the present site to house it. The family, overflowing with paintings in a Swiss villa near Lugano, Switzerland, took the offer and the Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza was the result. The museum renovation added another $45 million to the total price.

Though the price may seem high, in the eyes (and calculators) of most art experts the total is worth somewhere between $1 billion and $3 billion. Given that the collection consists of over 700 of some of the best paintings in the world that, as they say, is a steal.

Among the works are paintings by Canaletto and Caravaggio, El Greco and Goya, Rembrandt and Hals, Velázquez, Dürer, Watteau and dozens of other masters. There are works that range in style from Picasso to Sargent, Kirchner to Kandinsky. American artists are well represented including Homer and Hopper, and several moderns.

As recently as 2004 the collection acquired new exhibition space by expanding into the former Palace of Goyeneche on nearby Marqués de Cubas street. In the new space there are sculptures by Rodin, examples of German Impressionism, as well as works ranging from 17th century Italian and Flemish to 19th century American landscapes.

One of Holbein's many Portrait of Henry VIII samples is in the museum along with Gilbert Stuart's portrait of George Washington's cook. Pissarro's Saint-Honore Street in the Afternoon is not far from Renoir's Woman With A Parasol. Picasso's Harlequin With a Mirror is near Dali's Dream Caused By The Flight of a Bee. There are lesser known examples of Wyeth and O'Keefe down the hall from German Expressionists.

Though there are paintings from the 13th to the 20th centuries, the works are well laid out in spacious surroundings. They follow a chronological order and visitors will find it easy to zero in on the period that most interests them.

The formerly private collection was considered second only to that of the British monarchy which is only nominally private, since it 'belongs' to the British people. It came to the museum largely by the efforts of Baron Thyssen's wife Carmen Cervera. Another 100 works from the collection are housed in Barcelona.

The results of her efforts, the Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza in Madrid, with its sleek marble floors and salmon colored walls is a show place of extraordinary beauty. With 86,000 square feet of exhibition space in the new addition alone, art lovers will want to alot ample time to see the collection and its stunning homes.

Hong Kong - Po Lin Monastery

Sited atop Lantau Island on the Ngong Ping plateau, lies one of the most frequently visited sights in Hong Kong - the Po Lin Monastery.

There's enough to see and do in and around the monastery to consume a vacation day or more, so plan ahead.

The trip there is an adventure in itself. Take the MTR (the excellent Hong Kong subway system) to Tung Chung. Outside at the bus terminal, board the No. 23. The ride can take an hour or longer and winding your way up the mountainside provides a pair of delights. Riders get to see some of the superb countryside and seaside near Hong Kong and at the same time experience the harrowing joy of a typical Chinese rollercoaster bus ride.

Founded in 1924 as a sanctuary for Buddhist monks, the Po Lin Monastery offers superb sights both inside and out. The view from the top looking out over the sea and mountainside is breathtaking.

You'll be free to look around at the exterior, which provides a superior example of the architecture and art of the period and style. The monastery is festooned with small statues and inscriptions. The surrounding grounds make it easy to imagine the tranquility that motivated the monks to make it their home.

You can experience a small taste of that lifestyle for yourself by purchasing a meal ticket and enjoying the vegetarian lunch prepared by the monks in the dining hall.

Inside the temple, it isn't necessary to remove your shoes, nor to wear long pants as required by Buddhist temples elsewhere. Simply acquire an incense stick and offer three bows to the ancestors who watch over the monks and their sacred building. Place your incense sticks in the holder and then enjoy the many colorful and intricate carvings and decorations.

Visitors can even stay overnight and see the rising sun the next morning. The view of the light spilling onto Fong Wong Shan Mountain, twice the height of Victoria Peak, has inspired the monks for decades in their peaceful retreat.

From the temple gate, look out toward the top of Muyushan Mountain. You'll be able to clearly make out a large copper statue of the seated Sakyamuni, reaching 26 meters (85 feet) high. Sakyamuni was the sage of the Sakyas, a Buddhist-Lamaist (Tibet) god and the historical Buddha.

Here known as Tian Tan or The Big Buddha, the statue was constructed over a steel frame and completed in 1993 after a 10-year construction effort. It sits atop the plateau, reached by climbing 268 steps.

Stand at the base and take in the setting first. Around the pedestal is a three-story exhibition hall containing a large bell. Rung 108 times per day, it is said to relieve the 108 vexations. As you listen to the chimes, you can take in the many finely carved Buddhist figures.

Then walk up and glance around to take in the view the Buddha has, from an island twice the size of Hong Kong itself. You'll begin to feel, perhaps, as the monks do about Lantau Island and the Po Lin Monastery.

Madrid - Museo del Prado

One of the most visited tourist spots in Madrid, the Prado Museum is home to over 7,000 paintings. Though the emphasis is heavily on the three most famous Spanish masters - Goya, Velázquez and El Greco - there are major and minor masterpieces from dozens of other artists.

Surrounded by beautiful botanical gardens, visitors have the opportunity to spend hours enjoying this early 19th century site and its contents. The museum was completed in 1819 and the bulk of the early collection was drawn from paintings gathered by Spanish nobility.

It's expected that the recent disagreements over the new wing under construction will be resolved soon and it will completed not long after. If that happens, art lovers will be able to add to the list of works worth seeing those long held in storage. Zurbarán, Pereda and many more in the vault will considerably expand the works on display.

But those available now make the Prado well worth a day-long stroll. Apart from the aforementioned Spanish masters, there are numerous works by the Flemish, Dutch, German, French, and Italians. Many of these were acquired by conquest from the time that Spain was one of the leading powers of Europe.

But however they were collected, the works themselves remain timeless examples of what artists in any era can achieve.

Walk through the 'Goya entrance', on the ground floor at the start of your journey and pause to enjoy the masterpiece of Fra Angelico, La Anunciación a la Virgen María. Not far away are some other excellent Italian works - by Botticelli, Mantegna, del Sarto and Corregio. Don't miss Titian's Venus.

Carry on to see a number of works by Bosch, possibly the world's first surrealist. There's the Garden of Earthly Delights, the Seven Deadly Sins, and others. Centuries ahead of his time, these 16th century paintings are the product of what can at least be called a 'vivid imagination'.

On the second floor are several 17th century Flemish, including works by Rubens and van Dyck. Rubens' Garden of Love and Three Graces are on display. Nearby are some works by the famed mid-17th century Seville painter Murillo. His three Immaculate Conceptions are among the highlights of the collection.

But unquestionably the star attractions are the major Spanish masters, particularly Goya and El Greco. It is these works that draw the most traffic.

El Greco, though born in Crete (hence the name), lived much of his life in Toledo, Spain. There he produced his John the Baptist, The Adoration of the Shepherds, The Resurrection and others in his distinctive style.

Works of Goya, too, are numerous and display the full range of styles he used over the years. Those painted later in life form some of his most striking. Saturn Devouring One of His Sons is perhaps the most representative of this period. Of course, Goya's clothed Maja and Naked Maja both continue to draw visitors year after year.

The Museo del Prado is proudly offered as one of Madrid's most highly sought out tourist destinations. When you visit that magnificent city, be sure to see for yourself why that is so.

Madrid - Basilica de San Francisco El Grande

The church of San Francisco is one of Madrid's most important buildings and offers a fascinating tour. With a dome larger than that of St. Paul's Cathedral it is an architectural marvel. Filled with paintings and sculpture, it is also an art lover's treat.

Located in an older part of Madrid, the church has an imposing edifice in three sections with neo-classical facades. Inside, visitors can see the imposing 108 foot (33m) dome and the barrel vaulted ceiling. Covered in a dazzling array of frescoes and with extraordinary stained-glass windows, the basilica is one of the most beautiful cathedrals in Europe.

Completed in 1760 under the auspices of Carlos III, the basilica was erected on the site of a Franciscan convent, purportedly founded in 1217 by St. Francis of Assisi. There are seven main doors elaborately carved out of walnut, leading to several chapels filled with art treasures.

Three of them are adjacent to the circular interior, one of which - the San Bernardino de Siena - holds a Goya painting depicting the saint. To the right of that Goya is another painting, a self-portrait of the artist himself.

Though the church was built in the mid-18th century, many of the contents are considerably older like for example, the Gothic choir stalls from Segovia, dating from the 16th century.

Within the chapels are dozens of paintings and sculptures by major and minor masters. Besides Goya, the church houses paintings by Zurbarán, Cano and Maella as well as marble sculptures by Bellver and Benlliure.

The church, though, is not merely an art museum, but a functioning cathedral. Visitors are shown through by a guide and are requested to maintain a respectful silence.

Located in the Plaza de San Francisco el Grande, there is a nearby Metro stop at La Latina or Puerta del Toledo and several buses have stops at or near the church.