Interesting to read all these great opinions... guess I should throw in my 2 cents.
Like Commodore, I currently live in Japan - Tokyo to be precise. As was mentioned, Japan can be expensive to travel around - but it's not as bad as everyone seems to think. If you're living out of hotels and taxis, your money will disappear quickly. But spend some time here and you learn when the half price pizza days are...
A quick synopsis of places I've been to -
Vietnam was very interesting. When I went a few years back, it hadn't been totally touristized (is that a word?). I was able to walk the streets without everyone and their stray dog yelling at me, trying to sell me something. I would definitely recommend going now before this happens. It's still relatively cheap. Make sure you visit the Viet Cong tunnels (forgot the name) just outside of Ho Chi Minh. Creepy to crawl through one.
I did Singapore in a day, and don't feel like I missed too much. The Night Zoo was definitely worth it. Lots of shopping and modernization, but that doesn't impress me much.
I really enjoyed Malaysia. I spent about 10 days there with my sister. Kuala Lumpur has a beautiful new airport, and while I was there, it was really undergoing a facelift in an effort to turn it into a major tourist destination. The Petronas Towers (until recently the tallest buildings in the world) were damn cool. We also spent time in a jungle camp - be sure to do the night jungle walk. And we went to Penang, an island near the Thai border. Not overly impressed. But overall, I enjoyed Malaysia. On an aside, you can do Singapore easily from Malaysia - flights, trains, cars.
I spent 7 days in Bangkok, and that taught me one thing - 7 days in Bangkok is far too much time. 3 or 4 days will do it. If you're a jungle person, head north to Chang Mai or Chang Rai. If you're an island person, head south. And watch out for the tuk-tuk scams - they can spot a newby from a mile away!
The Phillipines just scared me. Sadly, unlike Commodore, I didn't get to do any diving there, but like Commodore, I don't recommend Manila. There were armed guards at the shopping malls searching bags - and this was pre 9/11. Creepy.
I don't know if you're going into mainland China, but if you do, be sure to check out Xian, known for the Terracotta Warrior Army. Fascinating stuff. And of course the Great Wall. Simply the coolest thing I've ever done - better than the pyramids. And you can visit different sections of the Great Wall - stay away from the touristy section (called Badaling I think) where the wall has been rebuilt, complete with handrails. We went to a section that started with 'S' and it was far less touristy. But very cool. By the way, we took the tour from Beijing. Negotiate a driver for the day - you can keep your own schedule that way.
I enjoyed Korea, but to me, Seoul was another big Asian city. Good food though.
As for Australia, I spent 3 months there backpacking around - started in Sydney, worked my way up to Cairns, flew into Alice Springs to climb Ayers Rock, took a train to Melbourne and headed back up to Sydney. But you have a great, detailed post about Australia already, so I'll just say that the coolest things I did were - spending a day on Bondi Beach, diving the Great Barrier Reef (do a live-aboard - 10 dives in 3 days. Unbelievable diving.), relaxing in Brisbane (go see Steve Irwin's Zoo - my sister really dug that), climbing Ayers Rock, driving the Great Ocean Road (out of Melbourne). Oh yeah - it's touristy, but climbing the Sydney Harbour Bridge is a very cool experience. Great views of the Opera House and Sydney Harbour.
I just spent two weeks over Christmas in New Zealand, and it's an amazing country. If you happen to get that far, rent a car - it's the only way to see the countryside at your leisure. And pretty reasonable as well.
Anyhow, you're definitely in for a trip of a lifetime! Be open-minded and flexible, and you'll make memories to last a lifetime!
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