Week 15, 16, 17 - Australia - Great Ocean Road and on to Adelaide

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Another week, another late blog.

I hope everyone is well. I'm sorry it's late again but we have been real busy in the last few weeks.

So what have the van gang been up to since the last mammoth blog? Well, we started the great ocean road in Torquay as you saw from the previous blog. We spent a few days there just relaxing by the beach and recharging our batteries after being in Melbourne. Torquay is famous for Bells beach, which holds surf competitions and discount retail outlets. As you would imagine you get to know each other very well whilst living in a van 24/7 so we have now worked out that Martin loves hats and Fox Racing. So when we came across a “fox racing” discount shop with a $5 hat box that was it. We had a number of daily visits to the hat box “just in case” they put any new ones in, well Martin bought a number of hats from the box over the few days we stayed in Torquay and the hat craze also rubbed of on Kate and I, and we ended up buying a couple, so we now have a van full of hats. We also enjoyed a bit of a shopping spree in the Abercrombie shop, Martin and I bought some jeans (always useful in the hot weather) and Kate bought the whole shop (I think we need to get another bag when we sell Harry) pretty much as the prices were unbelievable. After that we went back to Harry for a fashion show……..

So after a few days relaxing in Torquay we decided to hit the Great Ocean Road as we are hoping to get to Port Cambell for Martins 30th Birthday. En-route to Port Cambell we checked out a lighthouse which featured in the once popular children’s TV programme “round the twist” & the early 1990’s film Mad Max. I also must mention that the weather has not improved a great deal since I last posted the blog, we have been cold, not because it’s freezing, but because we did not bring clothes for anything less than 30 degrees. Martin has been in the same white hooded jumper since joining us, Kate has not been out of her Pink jumper and blue rain jacket and I have been non stop in my chequered shirt. Any way, the lighthouse was pretty good but not really being ones to hang around we headed on to a little place call Lorne for a few hours.

The drive between all these locations were pretty great, mostly along the coast but sometimes inland, the roads were quite windy and often saw Harry chugging up hills nearly coming to a stop, however on the down hills he goes like a run away train. When getting to a small town name Apollo Bay, Harry was again going like a runaway train, he was running great, a little too great some might say. Well to be totally honest we were all singing along to one of Martins songs on his Ipod as we entered Apollo bay, I looked behind me and saw the blue lights of an Australian police car, the next few seconds went a little like this.
“Shit, it’s the police”
“Matt, put your seat belt on, and you Martin”
“shit, I haven’t got any flip flops on”
“quick get some on”
“Oh god, he wants me to pull in and I’ve just missed a big lay by. Right, here’s another lay by, I’ll get out and see what he wants”.

Hello there officer, everything ok?
Have you been drinking?
Nope, only raspberry squash, ha ha.
Would you please blow into the tube until I tell you to stop? (2nd time in Australia I have now had to do this!)
OK, no problamo.
OK, so do you know why I pulled you over?
Well, I’m not to sure, the old van doesn’t go very fast so I don’t know.
You were doing 82kph in a 60 zone.
Really, was I, are you sure? Harry, that’s what we call him, really only gets to 80ish on a motorway.

The officer goes back to his car to complete some paper work so I take this opportunity to go back to the van to talk tactics with Kate and Martin who have been eagerly listening into the whole conversation. Martin thought it would be best to ask him for proof of this alleged offence, so when the officer came back to the van I questioned him.

I’m quite surprised we were doing that kind of speed, do you have anything to back this up?
Yes, come and see my speed gun.

So we went over to his car, and yes there it was 82kpm flashing on the speed gun. So, I thanked him for his time, took the $234 fine and said goodbye.

Anyhow, we drove the whole of the great Ocean Road in about 3 to 4 days, stopping at all of the towns en-route. We stopped at Lorne, Kennett Bay, Apollo bay, Johanna and Port Cambell. We got to Port Cambell a couple of days before Martin’s 30th birthday. We spent our time milling around the shops, in the water and chilling around the van. In the evenings we slept on the banks of a little river where there were plenty of local Ozzies camping out. On the eve of Martins birthday we decided to pack up and head towards a “big” town as we didn‘t want Martin to have a quiet birthday so we headed to a picturesque camp spot on the outskirts of Warnambool. We bedded down for the night ready for the big day.

In the morning Kate and I knew that Martin would pop to the toilet 1st thing so when he did we jumped up and like crazy people started to frantically blow up balloons and throw streamers around the van (before this Kate and I had to secretly plot how to make the day special for Martin and how to buy him gifts without him knowing about them, this was quite difficult to do when the three of us spend almost every waking (and sleeping) moment together but we had managed it during separated shopping sprees in Torquay!). On Martins return he slid open the doors we both shouted “Happy Birthday” and popped some party poppers all over him. I think Martin was pretty surprised and enjoyed it all. Next up Martin began to open all his cards from his family and the couple of gifts we bought him, which incidentally were a fly squat and a Fox Racing vest.

After all the excitement we hit the road to get to Warnambool but not before stopping at some of the most amazing sites we have seen in Australia, the 12 Apostles (see pics) and many other rock formations (see pics) were along this section of the great ocean road. We had a great birthday lunch (steak sandwiches) at a little place we found along the way. By late afternoon we made it to Warnambool and headed to the local information centre to find a camp site (well it was Martin’s birthday). We got advised to go to a local show ground where you could camp for a mere $10 a night for all three of us, so we went and discovered a whole new camping world. It was a interesting venue for Martin’s birthday, but it had hot showers, power for the van and it was close to the only pub in town. We all had a afternoon rest and got ready for the big birthday night out. Martin got dressed up into his birthday suit and we all hit Warnambool, to start with we had a drink in the only pub in town, the Warnambool Hotel and played a few games of pool and then we went to eat at a Chinese buffet restaurant which was not necessarily the best dinning experience we had ever had but it certainly filled up some hungry travellers. After the food we headed back to the only bar in town and had a few more drinks before heading back to the camp spot for the night.

The next morning we headed towards the SA border which was a fair few KM away. We camped at Pinnaster Picnic area for the night which was in fact only a few KM from the border. Before crossing the border we needed to make sure the we had no fruit, vegetables or meat products in the van so we threw a few things in the purpose built bins before going through the border gates. We approached with confidence expecting to be asked questions or to have Harry searched only to find that it was Sunday and on Sundays the border crossing is not manned, so we flew straight through without stopping.

Well here we are in SA, our 5th state visited so far in Oz, it’s known for it’s hot weather and natural beauty so we were all looking forward to seeing some sun. We headed to a small town and parked the van in our free spot for the night. Martin was getting itchy feet and wanted to check out the area so we all had a walk along a main road and came across a local yocal town with a pub, so not wanting to be rude we thought we should check it out and have a drink. We went crazy in there, I had a diet coke and Martin went for a full fat coke, Kate thought she would try a Bundaberg Rum and coke (on draught) as we had been to the “Bundy” rum factory earlier in our trip. We all had a go on some “Pokies”, for those of you unfamiliar with the term pokie, it is basically the term for fruit machine or one armed bandit. They seem to be awfully popular over here, the pub had a kind of gaming room with quite a number of pokie machines in there, so we thought we would try our luck but it seemed that any luck we had rubbed off on a guy behind us, he was winning a fortune. Anyway after two half pint cokes and one Bundy rum and coke (Kate spilt 2/3rds of it on a table) we headed back to Harry for the night.

Next stop Adelaide (at last civilisation) , we headed straight for the beach to chill out for a while and have dinner, but before dinner Martin was keen to have a stroll on the beach, well in fact Martins idea of a stroll is more of a beach hike (Martin is into his fitness), so we walked 4km on Brighton beach in soft sand (not pebbles over here) to check out things out and them had our dinner. Our first night in Adelaide was spent in Brighton rugby club car park, not the most exclusive address in the phone book but certainly the cheapest so we bedded down ready for a early rise.

The next morning we headed over to the beach again for brekkie and then into Adelaide city centre. The centre of Adelaide is basically 1 square mile that is surrounded by park land (thanks of the info Phil). We parked up and had an explore of the city and checkout the shops as Martin was looking for a new hoodie as his white one has turned more and more grey over the past few weeks with all the wear! We shopped till we dropped…….well we shopped until the time was up on the car and then headed over meet Phil, Phil Divito. Phil is a family friend of Kate’s, he has spent time in Malvern playing cricket and staying at Kate’s Mum and Dads house. We met up with him and had a bit of lunch in his local area which was about 10 minutes out of the city. We went to Bongourno’s on Norwood Parade and had a really good lunch, Martin had two pizzas but only actually ordered one so he was certainly pleased with lunch. Phil being very kind offered for all 3 of us to stay with him and his house mate Si, so we considered it for about 1 millisecond and agreed to stay, mainly because the invite also included a week of Phil Divito’s tours but also it gave us all a break from living in the camper which was much needed and appreciated.

The first night a Phil’s we actually had plans to meet up with Chris a chap we met whilst in Vietnam that also lives in Adelaide, we all went out for drinks but Chris was a little late due to finding someone dead in their car, I’m sure it was the truth for being late as it was somewhat an elaborate excuse otherwise. We had a good time with Chris and then retired back to the comfort of Phil and Si’s house. After our first night in a bed in nearly 3 months we had a well deserved rest. Phil took us up to the Adelaide hills (know locally, or just to Phil, as the Allywood Hills) to see a view over the whole city and get a perspective to where everything was situated in the city. It was a hot day so we had the luxury of good air con in Phil’s 4x4 (Chelsea tractor driver!) on the way up to the hills. It was a great view over the whole of the city and out to sea, giving us a great understanding of the city layout. I forget now, but Phil also gave us loads and loads of facts and pieces of knowledge about Adelaide and the surrounding areas so it was actually like a tour bus.

Next stop we headed to the famous Adelaide oval cricket ground where Phil previously worked. We sat in the members area and saw a famous grounds man (Andy, I suspect you know the name). That evening we headed back to the ranch and enjoyed a great dinner and “monged” in the lounge watching films and chatting which was just perfect for us van people. The next day Phil decided to take us all on a “beach Crawl”, you heard it, not a pub crawl but a beach crawl and this was a first for all. We headed to a number of beaches around the Adelaide area taking in the scenery and going in the water, finishing the day with a kebab and a large ice cream on the seafront in Glenlg. Over the next couple of days we stayed mainly around the house relaxing and enjoying Phil and Simon’s hospitality, at times one would be forgiven for thinking it was an internet café in the lounge with all 5 of us online checking emails, Skype and face booking.

When Saturday came along we were all in for a big treat as again luck had it that we were in town on the right weekend for a car show, and Phil loves his muscle cars so he really wanted to go to Murray Bridge to see the show. Now it wasn’t like any show, it was a burn out and drag race show. We all saddled up for the 70km journey to Murray Bridge, with Phil and Simon in the front and the three of us in the rear. We got to Murray Bridge to find no sign posts for the show anywhere (very Australian to have bad sign post, sorry Phil), so we drove around for a little while until we heard the sound of squealing rubber and saw smoke coming from an area of the town. Well Phil like a child in a candy shop was so excited we drove right on over and entered for our days entertainment.

Phil was telling us about the numerous different Ozziy cars on show and which ones he had seen before at other events, in fact Phil seemed to be face book friends with a lot of the people showing their cars. We saw loads of burn outs, drag races and drifting cars and much more. It was a hot day track side so by late afternoon we all decided to head back to Adelaide before we got burnt to a crisp. We got back to Adelaide and thought it would be nice to watch the Cricket at the Adelaide oval, so we headed to the stadium but unfortunately it was a sell out so we didn’t mange to get in, well actually the truth is, Phil got in by asking 100’s of people for a ticket and scoring 1 and the rest of us went into town to grab dinner. Simon and the three of us were starving so we trawled the streets trying to find a place that catered for big appetites. We found a place and all had a feast, well almost all, Martin unfortunately had an “unlucky” pick and choose a meal more suitable for a child so after we finished we had to find a Kebab shop to satisfy his appetite. We then went to a club/bar where Simons brother-in-law plays on a Saturday night, we had a few drinks there before Phil came over to pick us up after he came out the cricket and we all headed home for some more drinking .

In the morning we headed into the city centre to watch the tour down under, now again some of you may not know that the tour down under is a cycling event based in SA, something like the Tour de France but the Ozzie version. All the big names in the cycling world were riding so it was worth a watch, especially as it was the final stage of the race was based in the city and looped round a number of times. We saw Lance Armstrong fly past along with and all the other riders and then watched the awards ceremony in the park. Afterwards we all strolled along the riverside in the centre of Adelaide and then made our way to the Botanical Gardens to meet up with Simon’s Sister and Niece.

Phil and Si organised an Australia day BBQ at the house on Tuesday and invited a number of their friends around to celebrate. Phil’s house mate Simon is somewhat of a chef and home brew specialist. So he began to prepare Pork and Beef ribs in his home made rib smoking machine. These things were good and took some preparing, Simon put layer after layer of marinade on the ribs every few hours and smoked them all to perfection. We had a pre taste and they were just out of this world. Martin and Kate prepared a plum crumble with plums fresh for Phil and Simon’s garden and I prepared myself for a Australia day feast. On Australia day we drank lots, ate more and had a great first Australia day, so a big thanks for Phil and Simon for really making it a special one for us (see pics).

After Australia day we thought that we had imposed on the guys for long enough so we headed to a campsite to book in for a few days. We found a great site near the centre of the city so it allowed us all to travel into town by foot and not worry about parking up Harry. Hey Kate is taking over now……………………………

So we spent the next five days between town and Harry. Shopping, going to internet cafés to look for jobs (Matt and I) and Martin was planning the next stage of his trip which is flying to the East Coast to see his friends near Surfer Paradise. During these few days we met up with Phil and Si and a few of their friends for “Nachos Night” the best Nachos outside Mexico (according to our tour guide - and yes Phil we were impressed with them and all very full for 24 hours after!). Phil took us on another great day trip to Victor Harbour (about a 1.5 hour journey from Adelaide) this was stunning. We walked around Granite Island, lapping up the sunshine and enjoying the gorgeous blue sea that was dead calm one side and really rough with wild waves on the other side.

We went to Adelaide’s famous Central Market at night, had some drinks another night in Adelaide and enjoyed a last meal the three of us at a Korean BBQ House where you can eat as much as you like, and you cook all of your own food at your own table. This was great, the boys especially loved it as it was majority meat and fish, I enjoyed trying something new Ox Tongue (tried it once, probably wont go there again!). So today we have said goodbye to our travel companion Martin who has been with us and Harry for the last month which has flown by. Good Luck Martin with the rest of your travels we hope you enjoy every moment of it.

So then the three became two again…to be continued next week.

Matt and Kate

p.s. A few other things that have happened that you may or may not want to know but we forgot to add them above and are going to tell you anyway;

Kate has done some of the driving lately and managed to run over the first snake we have seen here!
We have seen lots of Red back spiders (all in Phil’s back garden) Kate killed the first with a brick, Si killed lots of others with a lighter and deodorant (home made blow-torch)!

Miles Travelled to date in Oz 9000km (ish)

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Photos

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chinesse

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yum yum

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a guy with really nobbley knees!!

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Martin in Kate's coat!

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Squid for dinner.....beach in Torquay

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3 monkeys

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Handstand time!!!! kind of!

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HA HA

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Round the twist lighthouse

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the start..

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Van Gang

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Free camp somewhere on the GOR

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Wheelie collecting the rubbish! hope you like Tom Scott!

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HAPPY BIRTHDAY MARTIN

Comments

[Ian Hunt]

Coming to join you!
Can't sit here reading you fantastic blog any more... we arrive in Sydney 12/March! From there to Melbourne. If you're ever back that way I hope we can meet up. Got to go to Maiodstone now - it's just not the same!

[Tom Scott]

Challenge completed!
Guys thats awesome! again my eyes really sting after reading the epic tail! perhaps you guys should put all your blogs together and make a book!! Im loving the wheelie rubbish truck......no im not going to make any obvious jokes regarding what it was and who it was named after! ha ha So happy you are having an awesome time....good news Jess is moving out 4th march so if you have any free time in ur massive adventure there is a spare room in dubai with your names on it!! Take care, Tom Scott