Hi again!
For our first day in Melbourne we thought it would be a good idea to leave the city and go on an organised tour to Philipp Island, about 2 hours south. We travelled in a minibus and our driver/guide seemed grumpy at first, but he turned out to be a very nice, funny and sarcastic guy. :) On our way to the island, we stopped at Maru Wildlife Center to feed Kangaroos, Wallabies and Koalas. Christine got up close with these huge marsupilans and got their sliver (salive) all over her hand as she fed them some kind of grassy mixture.
After those fury encounters, we finally made our way to Philipp Island where we headed straight for a surfer beach...since we forgot to take our boards, we just walked along the sea, watching the magnificent and impressive waves crash on the sand. :)
We stopped at the south-western tip of the island to get some tea and biscuits, while taking extreme good care not to have our cookies eaten by the thousands of seagulls which were breeding on the cliffs. We managed to take a walk on the cliffs without being bombed by the birds...which, considering how many there were, was quite a miracle :)
For our first day in Melbourne we thought it would be a good idea to leave the city and go on an organised tour to Philipp Island, about 2 hours south. We travelled in a minibus and our driver/guide seemed grumpy at first, but he turned out to be a very nice, funny and sarcastic guy. :) On our way to the island, we stopped at Maru Wildlife Center to feed Kangaroos, Wallabies and Koalas. Christine got up close with these huge marsupilans and got their sliver (salive) all over her hand as she fed them some kind of grassy mixture.
After those fury encounters, we finally made our way to Philipp Island where we headed straight for a surfer beach...since we forgot to take our boards, we just walked along the sea, watching the magnificent and impressive waves crash on the sand. :)
We stopped at the south-western tip of the island to get some tea and biscuits, while taking extreme good care not to have our cookies eaten by the thousands of seagulls which were breeding on the cliffs. We managed to take a walk on the cliffs without being bombed by the birds...which, considering how many there were, was quite a miracle :)
Later that night, after having had some pizza and having had some interesting conversations with a German girl from Cologne, a bird-watching Canadian girl, two Swiss girls from the Valais and a Malaysian family, we drove to the penguin center to watch the (apparently) famous penguin parade. After waiting for an hour on the freezing benches overlooking the beach (since we were wearing shorts), we were about to witness an amazing spectacle. All of a sudden, little penguins came out of the waves in groups of about 10, crossed the beach wabbling and walked up the dunes in order to return their sleeping holes. Unfortunately but understandably it was prohibited to take photos (although, as always, some people did) and we can't show you what it was like...but the pictures wouldn't have been able to give back this pure excitment and amazment we experienced that night... :)
The second day was spent in good company with Christine's friend
Anneliese. She was kind enough to pick us up and we drove to Healesville, about 1 hour drive east of Melbourne where we had lunch and went to the Wildlife Park, where, yet again, we got to see Koalas, Kangaroos, Echidnas, Wombats...by the way, Wombats aren't fat, they're just muscular. Apparently they can crush a dog or a dingo with a huge flat bone they got on their backside. So, they are not as "friendly" as one might think :) After the visit, we headed back to Melbourne by train. Thanks for the great day, Anneliese.
The following day, we did some shopping...yes, we. Even Pat bought something. :) In the
evening, we met up with Ann and Joe to have dinner at a dumpling place in Melbourne's Chinatown. Christine was a bit weary about it at first, given some previous bad experience with Chinese food, but it turned out to be delicious. We had a great time talking, joking, catching up, eating and having desert at a famous chocolate place and bar called Cookies. Never the less, Pat did have a bit too much wine (he hadn't drunk any for at least a month) and his liver would thank him the next day :) Anyway, it was a great night. Thanks again, guys!
On the saturday, we got up early to meet Christine's friend professor Dan at Flinders Street Station. After a yummy cappuccino, we had a look at Aboriginal as well as Impressionnist and
Romantic art at the ACM, the 'most mathematical building of all'. For lunch, Dan took us to the Sofitel Hotel downtown, to the 35th floor...WOW...what a view and what an amazing buffet. While looking over the whole city, we devoured all kinds of delicacies and Dan told us about horse racing (they're crazy about that in Melbourne) and his experiences in the North West of Australia. He gave us some good tips about what to do and what to avoid, such as getting out of the car at a low bridge over a river and get eaten by crocs. And we don't mean the shoes...Thanks :)
On sunday, we had brunch at a nice cafe close to the youth hostel and Christine suggested to walk to Brunetti's, a fancy and famous Italian (who would have guessed with a name like that :)) pasticceria for some afternoon tea. Even when one travels, one does not like to change one's habits. And so, Christine, in her sweet and kind clumsiness (maladresse), knocked over a glass of water on a posh lady's (eng chic Madame) tray as she turned around to ask Pat what he wanted to eat. She apologised very sweetly, but all she got back was a snobby, disgusted look...oh well... :) Poor Christine felt really bad for the rest of the day because she upset the lady... :) In the evening, we met up again with Ann and Joe, and one of Ann's friends and had dinner in Brunswick, a suburb of Melbourne. The food, and company, were very good.
On the Monday, we went to sell Manfred. It was a relief getting rid of it. Schrottkar! :) We got less money back than we anticipated, since another additional charge for a one-way drop off was added to the price. After a bit of stress we got our cheque and walked to the city.
Since everything had sorted itself out, we needed a new car. Having sold Manfred, we went to rent our Cicco, a Hyundai Getz...hmmm...not the sort of car made for long journeys given its size and 1.4 liter engine...but, at least it worked and it got us safely to our next destination. We were happy to be able to go ahead with our trip as planned. Thanks :)
So we left Melbourne, south-west bound for the Great Ocean Road and our next stop, Apollo Bay...
The second day was spent in good company with Christine's friend
Anneliese. She was kind enough to pick us up and we drove to Healesville, about 1 hour drive east of Melbourne where we had lunch and went to the Wildlife Park, where, yet again, we got to see Koalas, Kangaroos, Echidnas, Wombats...by the way, Wombats aren't fat, they're just muscular. Apparently they can crush a dog or a dingo with a huge flat bone they got on their backside. So, they are not as "friendly" as one might think :) After the visit, we headed back to Melbourne by train. Thanks for the great day, Anneliese.
The following day, we did some shopping...yes, we. Even Pat bought something. :) In the
evening, we met up with Ann and Joe to have dinner at a dumpling place in Melbourne's Chinatown. Christine was a bit weary about it at first, given some previous bad experience with Chinese food, but it turned out to be delicious. We had a great time talking, joking, catching up, eating and having desert at a famous chocolate place and bar called Cookies. Never the less, Pat did have a bit too much wine (he hadn't drunk any for at least a month) and his liver would thank him the next day :) Anyway, it was a great night. Thanks again, guys!On the saturday, we got up early to meet Christine's friend professor Dan at Flinders Street Station. After a yummy cappuccino, we had a look at Aboriginal as well as Impressionnist and
Romantic art at the ACM, the 'most mathematical building of all'. For lunch, Dan took us to the Sofitel Hotel downtown, to the 35th floor...WOW...what a view and what an amazing buffet. While looking over the whole city, we devoured all kinds of delicacies and Dan told us about horse racing (they're crazy about that in Melbourne) and his experiences in the North West of Australia. He gave us some good tips about what to do and what to avoid, such as getting out of the car at a low bridge over a river and get eaten by crocs. And we don't mean the shoes...Thanks :)
On sunday, we had brunch at a nice cafe close to the youth hostel and Christine suggested to walk to Brunetti's, a fancy and famous Italian (who would have guessed with a name like that :)) pasticceria for some afternoon tea. Even when one travels, one does not like to change one's habits. And so, Christine, in her sweet and kind clumsiness (maladresse), knocked over a glass of water on a posh lady's (eng chic Madame) tray as she turned around to ask Pat what he wanted to eat. She apologised very sweetly, but all she got back was a snobby, disgusted look...oh well... :) Poor Christine felt really bad for the rest of the day because she upset the lady... :) In the evening, we met up again with Ann and Joe, and one of Ann's friends and had dinner in Brunswick, a suburb of Melbourne. The food, and company, were very good.
On the Monday, we went to sell Manfred. It was a relief getting rid of it. Schrottkar! :) We got less money back than we anticipated, since another additional charge for a one-way drop off was added to the price. After a bit of stress we got our cheque and walked to the city.
Since everything had sorted itself out, we needed a new car. Having sold Manfred, we went to rent our Cicco, a Hyundai Getz...hmmm...not the sort of car made for long journeys given its size and 1.4 liter engine...but, at least it worked and it got us safely to our next destination. We were happy to be able to go ahead with our trip as planned. Thanks :)
So we left Melbourne, south-west bound for the Great Ocean Road and our next stop, Apollo Bay...
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