Blogs from Dandenong, Victoria, Australia, Oceania

Our last day in Dandenong and we are off for a trip on the Puffing Billy steam train. We thought being a Monday the train would be quite kid free, how wrong we were, we arrived on the platform to find hordes of kids sitting on the window rails of the train (picture to follow). The train took about an hour to get to Lakeside and it was freezing. On arrival at Lakeside went straight to the café for a plate of hot chips and a cup of coffee. On the journey back saw another bird not seen before, a Kookaburra sitting on a washing line. After our train ride we went on to Grants Layby to feed the birds, cockatoos and parrots everywhere (another picture to follow). Then off back to the apartment to pack ... read more

Noosa/Tewantin was a welcome break from watching the water tanks, checking the batteries and emptying the cassette. It came with the added bonus of Marg’s sister and brother in-law Alan having just arrived back from the gulf where they had been fishing – very successfully. We did our best to empty their freezer of the freshly caught barramundi, ‘finger mark’ trout, and of course the gigantic mud crabs, and Geoff even got to the point of asking when he was going to see meat again. The hospitality was great and the fish ...well, something you don’t get in Melbourne very often. Oh, I forgot to mention the prawns! Unfortunately, all good things must come to an end, and we were back on the road again heading south, as SWMBO was missing the girls and the central ... read more

Well all good things have to come to an end, and so it is with this trip. We have been asked which was the best place we went to, and that has been a really hard question to answer. The fact of the matter is that Geoff would say that this was one of the best trips over all that we have done. At the end I will put in all the figures (so those that do not find that interesting can skip it). Suffice to say here that we have been pleased with the trip on a number of fronts; we are still talking to each other, the caravan performed well, the car performed well (mostly), and we visited places and stayed in places that we have not done before. We left you in Lightening ... read more

OK, most of you know we are home now and I am sorry that we have not had a chance to finalise the journey in print. The fact of the matter is that we arrived home on the 1stOct and it took nearly the whole week to empty the van, do the washing, wash the van, empty the Pajero, wash the Pajero and not forgetting tackling the jungle that had grown where our garden used to be. Then there was half a day to take the van to the chassis manufacturer for inspection after the broken suspension arm, and another day to take the van to storage – bloody good thing I am not working! Back to concluding the trip. We had a great time in Noosa/Tewantin with Pam and Allan and it was great that ... read more

We have waited a long time for this and are very excited. It is our time and we are going to do some travelling. My Hubbie, Ian and myself are set to go to Vietnam with Debbie, Geoff, Keryn and Andrew. We have been planning this holiday for about a year. Have made a packing list and have got the suit cases our and started putting things in them. I like to be organised. I will probably make the rest of my travelling companions cross with my “Book of Lists”. I have list of what to do in the Towns we are staying, lists of where to get prescription glasses made, addresses of cooking classes. You name it I have a list for it. We have booked our accommodation, our air flights in Vietnam and a ... read more