Newcastle, in New South Wales, has some of the most picturesque coastal vistas in Australia. The city was built on the coal export industry and is still a major exporter of coal. Along the shore, locals have built ocean baths–man-made pools that collect sea water during high tide. As we travel south, the weather cools, and we had a beautiful, sunny 80-degree day today with lower humidity and a nice ocean breeze.

Just as advertised, Newcastle has stunningly beautiful coastal scenes. It was hard to select only a few to include here.

At the top of the cliff/hill in the picture below, you can see Fort Scratchley. The fort was built to protect the city from the Russians, but the only shot fired from it was in June 1942, against a Japanese submarine during World War II.

You can see two ocean pools in this photo. These pools fill with ocean water at high tide. It’s low tide in my photo, so the rectangular outlines of the pool borders are visible.

One of the biggest attractions in Newcastle is the Memorial Walk. Engraved on the figures of the wall are 3,859 family names of the 10,947 known Hunter Valley (where Newcastle lies) men and women who enlisted in the Australian armed forces to serve during the Great War–now known as World War I.

The Walk follows the edge of an oceanside cliff, above the city of Newcastle. There are four sets of soldiers’ silhouettes, engraved with names in alphabetical order from one set to the next.

Here’s an overview of Newcastle, as seen from the Memorial Walk.

The first picture below shows the Memorial Walk from the street level. The others were taken on the Walk. You can see some of the soldiers’ silhouettes on the left end of the Walk in the first picture.

Ted and I will be returning to Newcastle at the end of our cruise. That’s where our Australian friends live, and we will be staying with them for a few days before coming home.