Day 2 on the Great Ocean Road

Tuesday, October 2nd, 2012

Day two of our road trip was a success! Today was Becca's driving day, so we hopped in the car and headed over to Otway Fly Treetop Walk. The drive there was quite an adventure in itself. The road we took was through the trees and windy and narrow..... And kinda scary! But Becca drove like a pro and got us to the Treetop Walk safe and sound.

We were thinking of going zip-lining, but at $115 a person, we decided against it. We were still able to go on the treetop walk and it was really fun! At the highest point, at the top of the observation tower, we were 47 metres in the air. That's over 150 feet! There were a few times that I was feeling a bit shaky on my feet, but I had a really good time. We were there for almost 2 hours, taking our time as we walked and took pictures.

Looking down from the top of the Observation Tower

Our second stop was at the Great Ocean Road Wildlife Centre. It's a little place just off the Great Ocean Road, and they have a few different animals for people to see and feed and pet. It wasn't very busy, but it was very muddy. We still made our way

Becca and I named her Tamara

through and saw lots of animals. They have guinea pigs, chickens, emus, kangaroos,
red deer, wallabies, dingo puppies, deer, donkeys, ponies, peacocks, and lots of different kinds of birds flying around. I loved that we got to feed and pet some animals. The BEST part was that we were able to go into the kangaroo pen and pet and feed the kangaroos!!! It was sooooo amazing to be right up there with the kangaroos, having them hang onto my hand with their front paws and eat out of my palm. Seriously, it was fantastic. Such an awesome experience. We also were able to go into the wallaby pen and feed them, and feed the deer, emus, ponies, and donkeys. Although we were walking through yucky, wet mud, it was a fun time.

As we headed to our destination for the night, Port Campbell, we were passing right by the 12 Apostles, so we stopped to see them. It was really nice because the sun was just going down. We weren't really able to take many good pictures, especially pictures of us, because of the setting sun, so we'll go back tomorrow when we pass by on our way home.

We made it to Port Campbell for the night, but we had a really hard time finding a room! We tried 4 hotels that had no vacancy or rooms that were too small, before finding a nice place to stay. Tomorrow we'll see a few more tourist attractions, before driving home.

Favourites of the day:
Juanita - Seeing the 12 Apostles.
Becca - Watching Juanita and I "freak out" at the top of the observation tower and on the cantilever
Me - Feeding and petting the kangaroo and having her hold onto my hand while I fed her.

Let the Road Trip Begin!

Monday, October 1st, 2012

First things first, we were woken up at 7:45 this morning by our apartment fire alarm going off..... Again. This is the third time within the last 2 weeks or so. I think this morning was due to something the construction workers did to set it off. They let us in shortly after we got outside. No fire trucks this time.

We were soon on the road in our little white car. Thankfully there were no surprises on the way out of the city. When we got to the Great Ocean Road, we just began stopping at a bunch of different lookouts. It's amazing just to stop and stare at the water because it's soooo blue!

Our first moment of excitement came at the first lookout, when we saw a seal! It was so cute to see it just hanging out in the water, rolling around and throwing its flippers in the air. Sometimes it would just stop and lay on its back on the surface of the water. Adorable!

After a few stops, we just drove on the winding roads around the coast. Some of it was kinda scary to drive on, but it was a beautiful drive! We made it to Apollo Bay, our destination for the day, around mid-afternoon so we stopped at the information kiosk to see what we could do or see near town. Since we'd been sitting in the car all day, we found a walking trail and drove out to it. It was a walk in the rainforest! Who would've thought that we'd go on a walk through the rainforest in Australia?! It was so neat, the trees were HUGE!

Afterwards we drove out to Cape Otway in hopes of finding another lookout where we could keep our eyes out for whales. On the way there, we were driving along another windy trail, and then Becca said: "What's that over there?" She'd seen kangaroos! So I stopped the car and we took a couple pictures of them in the distance. Once we started driving again, we came upon a car stopped on the side of the road, and there were people looking up into the trees. And then Juanita said the magic word: KOALAS. They were all over the trees! We counted around 10 koalas from that one stopping point. Then we got back in the car and drove another 30 seconds, and we stopped again and saw another 15 in another spot! There were two that were fighting, one of which had a baby hanging off of it! As we continued driving, there were tons of other spots where people had stopped to take pictures of koalas, and we could even just see them from the road as we drove. I tried calculating it best as I could, and I'm positive we saw at least 50 koalas today. WILD koalas. It was really hard to count them all, there were so many! It was so amazing, I never imagined we'd see so many of them in the wild, if any at all!

How many koalas can you find? (Click picture to see it larger)

That really was our big exciting adventure of the day. We didn't find a lookout so we couldn't do any whale watching. But after the excitement of the koalas, I think we were pretty happy. We just headed back to Apollo Bay and found a place to rest our heads for the night, and somewhere with a bite to eat.

After such an exciting day, we're all pretty tired, and so we spent the night playing cards and relaxing in our motel room. Tomorrow we'll be going to a wildlife park and on a treetop walk! Hopefully it'll be just as exciting as today was!

Juanita's highlight: baby koala!

Favourites of the day:
Juanita - On our way back to Apollo Bay, we saw a little baby koala in a tree right next to the road. It was adorable, and Juanita said this was her favourite part of the day.
Rebecca - She said that the road trip as a whole was her favourite part.
Me - I loved the seal that was rolling around in the water at the first lookout we went to.

What Happens When We Have Holidays

Monday was our first official day of holidays, in my opinion. It was our first day of planned holiday fun-times, at least.

We started the holiday by sleeping in a on Monday, of course. No need to get up at 6am! By the time we pulled ourselves out of bed, we started on adventure #1: The National Gallery of Victoria (NGV), and the Napoleon Bonaparte exhibit.

We toured around the exhibit for a couple hours and then walked back to downtown for lunch. There's this meat pie place here called Pie Face, and they're EVERYWHERE.

See?? That's 9 in the Central Business District! And I don't even know if Google Maps got them all. So we decided to try it for lunch, and they were really good! They're all baked fresh in-store daily, and they have lot of different kinds, like steak and peppercorn, mince beef, and thai chicken curry. (I tried a steak injected with cheese, and Becca had the steak and peppercorn). Yum!

After our yummy lunch, we headed back over to the NGV to see the other exhibits. The gallery is free, except for the special exhibits, like the Napoleon one right now. We spent another couple hours wandering around the galleries. We mostly saw European art from the 14th century to the mid-20th century. There's also an Asian art gallery (can't remember which centuries), but it's currently closed. So we'll have to go back another time to see it, I suppose.

This was my favourite room in the gallery, in (bad quality) panoramic view. Both sides of the hall were full of paintings displayed this way. It was reminiscent of the way paintings were once hung (can't remember the time period, though).

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Hello, Tuesday! Tuesday was Zoo day. The best part about it, was that it is only one train stop away, so it literally takes us no more than 10 minutes to get there.

We chose a really good day to go to the Zoo. It was sunny, but not too warm, so we were able to see almost all the animals, since they weren't hiding in the shade. I think one of the best things we saw all day was the lions roaring. We were looking at the animals in the cage across from the lions, and all of a sudden we heard this booming noise coming from behind us. I honestly didn't know what it was at first, until I peeked around a bush and saw these two male lions throwing their heads back and roaring! It was amazing! Becca got a video, so we'll have to check later how that worked out. I got this amazing picture:

A couple weeks ago, when Sarah was here, I mentioned the Mali elephants that were stationed around town in celebration of the Zoo being 150 years old, and how Becca was on a mission to find and photograph them all. Well, we were sad to see one day that the elephants were gone from town because we hadn't had a chance to find them. However, they Mali elephants had just been moved to the Zoo for the next month before being auctioned off. So we were able to get pictures of ALL of the 50 elephants.

Becca's squee-ing inside as she takes pictures of all the elephants.

We had a really good day, saw lots of animals and went home tired. I promise I will put up pictures on Facebook soon, but here's a few from the day to tide you over.

Sarah's Visit: Part 2

Welcome to Saturday!

We had planned to go on a road trip down to Phillip Island this day. Sarah also wanted to visit a couple National Parks while we were down that way. Unfortunately, one was pretty far away so we didn't get to it, but the other was closer and we were able to fit it into our schedule.

We were out of the house before 9am to head down to the QVM again to get pictures of some Mali elephants we'd missed the day before. Then we walked down to East Coast Rentals to pick up the car we'd hired for the day (hire = rent). There were a few people ahead of us, so we had to wait a while before actually getting our car and heading out.

And then I had my first experience driving from the right side of the car, and on the left side of the road. By the way, I'M A PRO. It wasn't that hard. I think, because we've been in the city for a month and a half already, I'm pretty used to the change. The part that I had some issues with was just staying within the lines. I tended to crowd the left-hand side because I was in a new vantage point. But other than that, I felt really comfortable, never forgot to stay on the left side, and never forgot to get in on the right. Like I said, I'm a pro.

Then we were on the road. Google Maps came through for us, and the directions I'd printed got us out of the city and all the way down to Mornington Peninsula National Park, one of the places Sarah wanted to visit. We walked around the paths and down to the water's edge. The boardwalk down to the water consisted of over 200 steps! TWO HUNDRED! And we walked all the way down, around the rocks at the bottom for a while, and then all the way back up! And that was just the beginning of the day.

We followed our Google Maps directions around Western Port, stopping briefly for lunch, all the way to Phillip Island! Oh hello beautiful island, how I missed you. Our first stop was to the Koala Conservation Centre, and you will never guess what we saw there. A BABY KOALA. It was so cute! It was just hanging onto Momma, and they were both grabbing a snack from the tree. Adorable. We saw quite a few koalas, some wallabies again, but this time we also saw a Kookaburra! They're big birds.

Next we were off to The Nobbies and Seal Rock. (This was when Becca practiced her Australian driving.) I was super excited to see seals! Unfortunately, Seal Rock is far enough away that you can't see much, even though it is Australia's largest colony of fur seals. We paid to use one of those coin binocular/telescope things, and were actually able to see a few seals on the rocks. If it was sunnier out, I think they would've been easier to see.

The Nobbies and Seal Rock in the background

Last stop was to the penguins! Thankfully, it was much warmer this time that it was when we first went. Although, of course this time we were much more prepared. This time we had layers of clothing: shirts, sweaters, jackets, and we had a blanket, too! The penguins were as cute as ever. There was a lot of beach for them to waddle across, unlike our first time when they had to emerge almost right on the rocks. The downside was that there was a congregation of seagulls scattered all over the beach, so it was heart-pounding and nerve-racking to watch these little rafts of penguins (around a foot tall), huddle together and make their way from the water to the safety of the rocks and their burrows. The worst was the first two brave souls that didn't have the safety of the raft while making their way across the beach. I thought Becca was going to cry or run out on the beach and chase the seagulls away! On our way out, we noticed at the information booth that you could buy return tickets for only $6, almost 1/4 of the regular price. So we got 3, and maybe we'll go again when Juanita is here.

Lastly, came the drive home. I'm a genius and forgot to print directions home (back to our apartment), so we stopped for dinner/a snack at McDonald's, and I utilized their free wifi to chart a route home. Sarah slept the whole way, and I drove. Becca stayed awake with me and we sang to stay awake. It was fun to get to our parking spot. I forgot to take a picture, but I'll have to do that at some point because it's awesome. We literally have the absolute last spot in the garage. You can't go anywhere else but to our parking spot. The best part was having to drive in circles for 7 floors until we finally got there. (Oh yes, the first 7 floors are all parking.) By the time we got up the apartment, it was at least 11pm, and we basically fell into bed.

Morning came too soon, since we had to get up and drive Sarah to the airport for 8am. And my goodness, who knew there would be traffic going into the airport at 8am on a Sunday? WHO KNEW?? Afterwards, we almost got lost driving around looking for a gas station, and then returned the car. We did some fresh foods shopping at the Queen Victoria Market, and then went home and just veg-ed for the whole day. We needed to catch up on our rest, and boy did we ever.

Sarah's Visit: Part 1

Sarah has now come and gone, and I don't even know how to recap everything that we did. We had an exhausting couple of days, but we also had so much fun.

She flew in on Wednesday, and neither Becca nor I were working, so we took a shuttle bus down to the airport to pick her up. She was surprised and happy to see us, I think! After taking the bus back to downtown Melbourne, we just hopped on the train back home. By the time we had dinner it was too late, and we were too tired, to go out and do anything. So we hung out and chatted for a bit before heading to bed. Becca and I had to work on Thursday, so we still had to be in bed at a decent time, and Sarah was tired from travelling.

Thursday wasn't too exciting. Becca and I worked at the same school, and we ended up staying really late (like an extra hour) because I had to do some marking for the class I was in. Sarah had a good day touring around the city on her own, and although she went for a nap when we got home, she made us dinner.

Friday was our first big day. We didn't get any work, so we took the opportunity to show Sarah around and do some touristy things. While Sarah was out on Thursday, she took a picture of the decorated Mali elephant statue outside the Queen Victoria Market. We made it our goal for the day to photograph as many as we could find (there are 50 throughout Melbourne in celebration of the Zoo's 150th year). We started at the QVM and basically walked all around downtown. We visited the hostel where Becca and I stayed then walked over to the State Library of Victoria, although it was closed. We headed down to Federation Square, then walked along the Yarra River to the Melbourne Aquarium, and spent some time in there. And we did this all before lunchtime!

Even though it wasn't the nicest or warmest day, our afternoon was full of beaches. We started further south at Brighton Beach, where Becca and I visited last weekend. It was a lot less busy, considering it was during the day and not as nice out. But we walked in the sand in our bare feet, collected some shells, and took lots of pictures in front of the beach huts. Next, we hopped back on the train and then on the tram and made our way down to St. Kilda Beach. We got some beverages and walked out on the pier. And you will never guess what we found out there......

FAIRY PENGUINS!

You can bet your blue bonnet that Becca just about had a conniption fit. We could hear them in the bushes along the rocks and Becca and I just stopped. We were like dogs listening to a high pitched sound, both standing there with our heads cocked. Then our eyes widened then she said: "I KNOW THAT SOUND." There were already people taking some pictures, so we hopped right in. It was so exciting to see them when we weren't expecting it. And to have the opportunity to take pictures was amazing! Especially since we can't take pictures of them at Phillip Island.

Needless to say, it was an extra special way to end a very long, but fun, day of touring Melbourne.

Smile for the Camera ^_^

I'm sorry for not posting anything recently, but since we've been settled into our place and started working, nothing exciting seems to be happening. Basically what's happened in the last week is:

- I worked 2 and a half days;
- We found the nearest grocery store and went twice;
- I built two bookshelves;
- We finished season 1 of Angel; and
- I got my first paycheck.

Okay, that last one is pretty exciting! Yay for getting paid!

Since nothing much has happened, I've been trying to think of what to write to you all at home. Then I realized I hadn't put any pictures up, yet! And so here are a few pictures of what we've seen so far. Most pictures were taken during our road trip down the coast.

Fair warning, there are quite a few pictures, so remember that they may take a little while to load. Just click "Read More" to see them. Enjoy!

Apartment Searching and Phillip Island

Phew! Yesterday was a busy, busy day.

Here in Australia, if you want to rent an apartment you have to go inspect the apartment with the agent first, and then fill out your application and submit it to the rental agency. Well, Saturdays are big days to have open inspections. We had planned in advance to visit 8 apartments, and timed out the day so we could get to them all. We ended up seeing over 10 apartments, because some agents were showing various apartments within the building, and other agencies we hadn’t known of beforehand were there. We literally traveled around and looked at apartments from 9 am until 1pm. Once we’d seen everything, we had to figure out which ones we liked best (from checking our notes and rating them on a scale of 5), and narrow it down. Which was hard.

After we’d finished our apartment adventures, we headed on down to Phillip Island. If you don’t know about Phillip Island, I have a few words for you: koalas and fairy penguins. Oh yes. KOALAS AND PENGUINS. If we’d had a full day, we could’ve also seen the seals. Next time!

We stopped first at the Koala Conservation. We got to walk on boardwalks in the trees to get closer to the koalas! They tend to stay really high up in the eucalyptus trees, so getting even a dozen feet off the ground got us closer. And they were fluffy! Hard to believe that they’re actually vicious animals, but I’d rather not test the theory. There’s actually rangers that hang around in case the koalas get too close to people, so that they can protect the people from koalas! We also saw a lot of wallabies on the ground, just eating the greenery. They were really cute, too. They basically look like small kangaroos.

We had to head over to the Penguin Parade fairly early. The penguins don’t usually show up until around 6pm this time of year, but we got there before 5 because it’s such a big attraction. Even as early as we were, there were still people who were there, choosing their seats. We were sitting and waiting from at least 5pm. And it was COLD. After sitting there for so long, with the wind, and the ocean spray, we were all chilled to the bone.

But when the penguins finally came around 6:15, it was all so worth it. There wasn’t much beach for them to waddle along, since the tide was high, but we still saw well enough. They just swam up on the surface of the water, to the rocky edge, and then hopped their way to the grass! The ranger said their burrows can be as far as 1km from the water! That's why they tell you to check under your car for penguins before leaving. But I don’t think we realized they would be as cute as they were. I know I didn’t think they could be as small as they were! Becca and I couldn’t stop laughing! I think we were just so awed and excited that it just came out as laughter. It was so much fun!

By the time we got back to the car, we were all people-sicles, and crazy tired. But, oh my goodness, was it ever worth it. The penguins were amazing. I highly recommend anyone going to Australia to go see some fairy penguins, whether on Phillip Island or elsewhere. It’s an amazing experience. I know we’ll be going again. Hopefully we’ll be more prepared for the weather next time, but I think next time we’ll be going in the summer!

Kangaroos and Dolphins and Whales, oh my!

This is another post that I wrote on my iPhone for later publishing. I wrote about our first day in Australia, and what an exciting day it was.

Sunday, August 5, 2012

Today was a lot of fun. I love road trips. I’m sad that I’m not doing it with my family, but Becca’s family is a close second. This morning we were all up really early. Probably because we’re still a bit jet lagged... Or because Bec and I went to bed at 8pm. It just meant we got a pretty good start to the day. Before leaving Bateman’s Bay, we caught a flea market in town. It was cute, so we just wandered a bit and bought some sourdough bread for the road.

We didn’t have many big stops, until we got to the town of Eden. It was a place full of wildlife! On the way into town, we saw a whole pack (herd? Tribe? Gathering??) of kangaroos hanging out on a golf course. A golf course! And they were just lying around, having naps and the like. It was so weird, but so awesome. We also met a great couple from Adelaide at a lookout, who showed us some whales they were watching! We couldn’t see the whales very well because they were far away, but every now and then we could see them

come out of the water a bit, or see its fin. It was neat. And then we saw dolphins!!!!! It was my first time seeing dolphins so I was really excited. They were passing by the outcropping of rocks where the lookout was. There was to have been at least 10 or 15 dolphins, including a little baby! It was awesome.

Our next crazy adventure came while we were looking for a gas station. Following the signs brought us down this suicide track of a road. I was actually fearing for my life going down this road. It ended at a nice little town by the water with, of course, a gas station. But then we had to go back up the same road to get back to the highway. It wasn’t as bad on the way out, and we saw a kangaroo on the road. People really weren’t kidding when they said kangaroos are like our deer around here.

It got dark shortly after that adventure, so there wasn’t much else to see (although most of what we were seeing was trees anyway, and lots of them). When the trees did disperse, we got an amazing view of the stars. I don’t think I’ve ever see so many stars. It was so beautiful. But then the stars went away and the rain started, so we found a place for dinner, and then a place to stay in Lakes Entrance, Victoria.

I’m really nervous for tomorrow... You know, getting to the city where we’re going to be living for who know how long. I think right now it feels like a vacation, a fun road trip, and that tomorrow things will start to sink in a bit more. We’ll see. I think tomorrow will be as fun a day as today. So although it’s only 9:30, it’s time to bed. (At least it’s later than last night!) Goodnight!