When you arrive in Sydney, whether it’s by air, sea, rail, or road, you are coming into a place of ancient history.

Evidence of human occupation from sites in the Sydney area has been dated to around 45,000 years ago. Sydney, and its surrounds, was home for several clans of Aboriginal people (known today as ‘First Nations’).

The arrival of European colonists, in 1788, brought disruption and change. For some, this was the start of a totally new life. For others, it was the beginning of the end to the lifestyle they had developed, over many thousands of years.

Today, many of the scars from the era of colonisation still remain unhealed. That said, there is an increasing acceptance within the Australian community of the need to address historical, and ongoing, injustices inflicted upon First Nations peoples.

Sydney is Australia’s largest city, with a population of around 5¼ million. Sydney is also the most culturally diverse city in Australia. Over 40% of Sydney’s current population were born outside of Australia, and only 33% of Sydneysiders had both parents born in Australia.

Ballarat ( ^** originally known as ‘Ballaarat’ ) lies 1½ hours west of Melbourne, by either road or rail.

In the 1850s, Ballaarat became world-famous for two related reasons – the discovery of GOLD, and the Rebellion at the Eureka Stockade.

For generations, this was the Country of the First Nations Boro gundidj clan, of the Wadawurrung people, part of the Kulin Nation. The grassy flats of the Yarrowee River would certainly have been amongst their hunting grounds.

Shortly after European settlement began in Melbourne, in 1835, places like these grassy flats brought the arrival of the first colonial ‘squatters’, in 1838. The squatters, or pastoral pioneers, soon selected prime tracts of land, known as ‘runs’, for grazing their livestock.

By 1851, squatters had occupied vast areas around Ballaarat, while First Nations societies were displaced from their Country. In late August of that year, gold was discovered at Poverty (now Golden) Point, on Ballaarat’s Canadian Creek.

Within six months, there were 10,000 miners on the diggings at Ballaarat. By late 1854, when Ballaarat had a population of 24.600 men, 4,000 women, and 4,400 children, relations between the miners and Victorian authorities were deteriorating.

At a ‘monster meeting’ at Bakery Hill on 29 November 1854, over 10,000 miners witnessed the unfurling of the Eureka Flag. The following day, miners begin building a stockade. On 3 December, Government forces launch a dawn attack on the stockade.

The battle, during which around 35 people are killed, was brief. But the fallout was spectacular. Ballaarat’s place in Australian history will never be ignored. Meanwhile, gold mining would continue into the 20th century.

** Ballaarat = “balla” + “arat” – the local Wadawurrung words for “resting place”.

When I first visited Singapore, it was still emerging from its ‘third world’ origins. But, the upwards trajectory was already established, and it’s journey into the ‘first world’ had certainly begun.

Even before gaining independence in 1965, Singapore had embarked on its journey towards becoming a ‘garden city’. Its first tree-planting campaign was launched in 1963.

This ‘greening’ was intended to provide better living conditions for the people, primarily by reducing the effect of heat radiation from concrete buildings. Greening would also help with conserving water and encouraging reduction in street pollution.

After several years of absence, when I returned in the mid-90s, the sky-scrappers were increasing, especially in the financial district. Elsewhere, the transformation into a ’garden city’ was very obvious, with well-established trees, parks, and gardens evident almost everywhere I went.

The ‘City in a Garden’ vision came in 1998. Soon, trees and gardens were appearing on the tops and sides of buildings. The ‘green lungs’ of the city were expanding, with green corridors linking parks, gardens, and nature reserves.

At the same time, land and water reclamation projects, such as Marina Bay, were even changing the shape of the island. This also rehabilitated the once highly-polluted Singapore River, converting it into a freshwater reservoir.

I well remember watching as Gardens by the Bay arose, like a phoenix, out of the reclaimed land. Today it is a model of Singaporean vision, ingenuity and industry to create a new landmark which is a sustainable fusion of nature, architecture, art, and technology.

For travelers who love to walk, Singapore offers a network of trails and pathways that allow people to walk, jog, and bike around and across the island. Many of these combine nature with heritage, making for memorable experiences.

I usually decide on where my next adventure will be around a year beforehand. This gives me plenty of time for research, to determine where and when to go, and also how to travel.

For the moment, my options remain open. While off-shore does beckon (BIG time!), I might focus on my own backyard for a bit.

Once I make the call, I will update Destination NXT.