The 'lost city' found in Sydney, NSW

A top-secret art grotto and unique abandoned space has been reborn in Sydney. The Paddington Reservoir, now located on Oxford Street, consists of two 1,023 square metre chambers built in 1866 and 1878 respectively. It was decommissioned in 1899, and became a garage. In 1993, the roof caved-in, leaving the site derelict but for feral cats and a shadowy graffiti movement who, under the cover of night, filled the walls of the 1023-square-metre site with stunning frescoes and murals. With almost A$10 million (approx �4,950,000) worth of restoration work complete, the new Paddington Reservoir Gardens opened on 29 March. The park is now home to a stunning Romanesque sunken garden with a lake of contemplation at its centre and a hanging garden canopy around the perimeter and an eastern chamber left empty but for the wall art. This blank canvas �cultural precinct� will host markets, art and film festivals and retail. www.onlysydney.com.au

New Hotel Soho indulges in Adelaide, South Australia Clarion Hotel Soho is a new boutique hotel located in central Adelaide with just six rooms per floor of which there are five. Opened in late 2008, the hotel boasts a roof top pool and a mouth watering seven-course degustation menu at the in-house restaurant, Decant. Produced only with locally sourced produce, the ever-changing menu features Kangaroo Island haloumi, Spencer Gulf prawns and Boston Bay mussels. The wine list features wines from nearby Adelaide Hills, Barossa Valley and Limestone Coast. Designed by award-winning Australian architects Loucas Zahos, every whim has been anticipated. Balcony suites from A$310 (approx �150) per night and studios from A$225 (approx �110). www.clarionhotelsoho.com.au

The Slow Coach � a horse-drawn restaurant, Victoria For the first time since the end of the early 1900s, luxurious horse-drawn touring is back in fashion in the region of Healesville, just under an hour east of Melbourne. The horse-drawn restaurant travels at a pace that allows guests to take in the sights and sounds of the area as the Slow Coach passes many original old buildings during the meander through Windsor, one of Australia�s very first settlement towns. Seating up to eight people, the carriage has been luxuriously restored while modern Australian cuisine is served. www.slowcoach.com.au

Mundaring Truffle Festival, WA Western Australia grows more French black truffle than the rest of Australia put together and the Mundaring Truffle Festival, to be held this year on 8 - 9 August, is an ideal opportunity to taste and learn about the fabled fungi from some of WA�s and Australia�s top chefs and food producers. The festival will be headlined by two Truffle Master Classes, which offer a rare opportunity to learn from two of Australia's most acclaimed chefs, Peter Gilmour of Quay restaurant in Sydney, as well as passionate truffle aficionado Alain Fabregues, owner-chef of The Loose Box restaurant in Mundaring. www.mundaringtrufflefestival.com

�Windermere� Station Stay, Queensland �Windermere� is the most recent addition to Queensland�s station-stays. Located just outside of Winton nearby to the world famous Lark Quarry and Bladensburg National Park, the 30,000 acre working cattle station is easily accessible to Lark Quarry Dinosaur Trackways and is adjacent to the National Park. Guest accommodation is in 10 bedrooms in the shearer�s quarters and there are also sites for camping and caravans. Guests can explore the nearby Western River, which is home to a large variety of birdlife and a great spot to fish for yellow belly. "Windermere" offers a true blue Aussie station stay; there are plenty of animals to feed and a Stockman�s Museum has been set up in the original quarters. www.windermerestation.com.au

Internationally Acclaimed Chefs Savour Tasmania Tetsuya Wakuda will team with three other highly regarded international chefs during Savour Tasmania (27-31 May). Local and visiting epicures will feast through a series of four dinners. Emmanuel Stroobant of Saint Pierre in Singapore will cook at the acclaimed Henry Jones Art Hotel (A$160 per person - approx �80) on 27 May. Tetsuya�s Taste of Tasmania dinner (A$185 per person - approx �90) will be held at the Meadowbank Estate on 28 May. Two British-based chefs, Shane Osborn (the first Australian to win a Michelin star and head chef at Pied a Terre, London) and Marcus Eaves (head chef at London�s L�Autre Pied, a sister of Pied � Terre) will unleash their combined skills at Marque IV on 29 May (A$160 per person - approx �80). On Saturday 30 May the four chefs will combine their skills at the Henry Jones during the Field to Feast. Savour Tasmania will include Home Cook Master Classes, as well as a Red Wine Weekend. www.savourtasmania.com.au

Brits vote Melbourne Cricket Ground in Seven Sporting Wonders of the World, Victoria Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) has been voted among the Seven Sporting Wonders of the world in a poll of British sports fans. Placed seventh in the survey by Barclays Spaces for Sports, the 150-year-old 100,000-seat stadium has been the scene of many high-profile international sporting events, including the 1956 Olympic Games (the first ever Olympics to be held in Australia), the 2006 Commonwealth Games and the 1992 World Cup Final in cricket. Australia�s largest stadium, �The G� (as it is known by the locals) is also home to the brand new, state-of-the-art National Sports Museum, and has hosted concerts by legendary artists such as the Rolling Stones and Madonna. www.mcg.org.au

Darwin makes a splash with new wave lagoon, Northern Territory Darwin is now the new place to catch a wave as a new A$17million (approx �8,370,500) wave lagoon opened on 2 May. Producing 10 different wave pattern ratings, with heights of up to 1.6m, the pool is part of a redevelopment of Darwin�s vibrant waterfront and offers safe swimming for all the family. The wave lagoon will open daily and admission is A$8 (approx �4) for Adults and A$5 (approx �2.50) for children. Boogie boards or water tubes are also available. www.waterfront.nt.gov.au

For more information about Australia visit www.australia.com

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