Cockatoos, Kangaroos, and Casinos too!

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After the hub-bub and hurly-burl of Argentina and New Zealand, we were wiped out when we arrived in Melbourne, Australia. We were more than happy to be welcomed into the friendly arms of Eva's relatives: her Great-Uncle (NiangJiu GongGong), Aunt Julie (YueYue Niang Niang), and Aunt Ying (YingYing NiangNiang). We were met at the airport by Aunt Ying on the afternoon of March 18th, and taken to Aunt Julie and Great-Uncle's house in Box Hill, a suburb just outside the city. The table was already set with a spread of home-cooked (Chinese) food, such as we had not enjoyed since leaving Eva's parents. Somebody had told them I liked beer (an oddity in this family), and there was a can of Victoria Bitter they bought just for me. I admit that I felt a little aprehensive at first about meeting Eva's extended family and tried to be a little formal, but I was put at ease by their kindness and soon felt at home. Some days I didn't even comb my hair!

We spent the first day stretching out and relaxing via blogging, doing our taxes, and visiting the Chinese Consulate to try to get our visas for China (and received only an application - they wouldn't even let us in without a ticket to leave China). Come to think of it, it wasn't TOO relaxing. On Saturday, we caught the tram into Melbourne. Seeing as the few Melbourne residents we met on our trip raved about their city, we were pretty keen on visiting, even though we were feeling a bit world-weary... having traveled the world. We spent the afternoon in the visitor's center at Federation Square and the really cool Australian Centre for the Moving Image (i.e. history of films & movies) nearby. The best bits in this humble reviewer's opinion were the old video games and the really local stuff that only Australians would have ever see - like Aussie hick comedy shows, reporter Chris Masters' investigation of corruption in the NSW police force, and movies about famed Aussie highwayman Ned Kelley who decked his gang out in homemade armour. Next, we hopped on the visitor's Circle City Tram that makes a loop to all the interesting (touristy) sites in Melbourne city, while a recorded Melbourner voice talks the city up. It was a nice tour, but I noticed many of the people on the tram were residents who were probably sick of hearing that voice. Although new to us, Eva was tired and actually feel asleep. We were back in the city again on Sunday, and took the tourist tram to the sprawling, everything-you-could-ever-want Queen Victoria Market. Now I can't really judge prices in Australia, but they seemed pretty good, and the food items were fresh. We bought some fruit to bring back to Aunt Julie, and shared an aptly named "meat sandwich." It was tasty, but I'm not sure exactly what was in it - croc or koala perhaps. We finished out the market with the deep-fried offerings at the American Donut Van. Just like they make 'em back in the good old U.S.! ...Or Canada.

Now donuts were hardly a good reason for going all the way to Australia. A huge draw for us were the critters. One of the really neat things about Australia is that all the weird animals you learn about in grade school - the marsupials, monotremes, psittacines, etc. - are really pretty accessible. You can hardly walk down the sidewalk without seeing a deadly snake! Our first notable animal sighting was on Monday, March 22nd, of an animal we would not normally associate with Australia. That afternoon, we drove the two hours from Box Hill to Philip Island Nature Park for one of the strangest shows in the world: the end-of-workday commute of Little Penguins from the sea to their burrow homes in the sand dunes. This daily event was aptly named the "Penguin Parade." After a quick visit to the nearby Nobbies, a picturesque area with offshore rocks known for its seal colonies, we showed up at dusk to the Penguin Parade area and walked across the dunes to a large bleacher incongruously facing the open sea. There were seats for over a thousand, and we were joined by several hundred other onlookers. It got dark and cold and still no word on when the show would start. We all looked like 'suckers', having paid to see nothing, when finally a retreating wave revealed a dozen Little Penguins, all standing uncertainly on the beach.

We hadn't seen them come in; their blue-black backs were invisible in the sea. But on that stretch of beach between the ocean and the dunes, they were never more visible (especially under the soft penguin-viewing lights - no other lights or any photography was allowed). They didn't know that their beach was protected now and they were skittish about crossing, even though they've done this nearly every day! Soon, other groups of Little Penguins emerged from the sea, but huddled together on its edge. Every now and then, a group would "go for it" and commit themselves to a sprinted-waddle across the beach at top penguin speed. However, they were easily spooked, and would often turn around and dive back into the water. Some of the groups languished in pointless cowardice for 40 minutes or more! Eventually, after a half dozen tries or more, all the penguin groups made it on the long, scary tramp across the beach.

The Little Penguins were still coming out the water when we left the bandstand by the beach to follow the boardwalks across the sand dunes. The dunes were filled with the chirps and cries of the Little Penguins and their teenage chicks. On the walk back, we saw dozens of the adult penguins walking back home or just hanging out around the side of the boardwalks. I'm not sure what they were worried about on the beach, but they didn't seem to mind humans standing just over them. We weren't allowed to take any pictures due to the flashes disturbing the penguins, but there were definitely people sneaking a picture here and there - especially on their cell phones since it was not as obvious. Eva was good about not taking her camera out, as she had previously managed to get a decent picture of a Little Blue Penguin chick under a boardwalk at the nearby Nobbies prior to dusk and the start of the Penguin Parade.

Aunt Julie had the next day off, so she took us and Great-Uncle to Mt. Dandedong, where there was a gorgeous view from the summit over the greater Melbourne area. We wandered through a pretty garden at the summit and Eva spotted her first Laughing Kookaburra by the picnic area. Our "Aussie Animal Safari" continued when Aunt Julie took us to the Grant Picnic Area in the Dandedong National Park to feed wild parrots. Australia is home to many native parrot species, with several species including the large white Sulfur-crested Cockatoos, the pink-and-grey Galah (Rose-breasted) Cockatoos, and the smaller red Crimson Rosellas visiting that particular picnic area that day. Visitors were welcome to purchase seed packets from the gift shop to feed them. The parrots were so accustomed to seeing the white seed packets that a moment's inattention resulted in a stolen seed packet in the beak of a cockatoo flying away. We lost two seed packets that way.

Who needs to have parrots as pets when you can feed a flock of them in the wild! The cockatoos and rosellas were definitely not shy about perching and climbing on our hand, arms, shoulders, head, etc. trying to get their share of sunflower seeds. Since they use both their beaks and feet/claws to climb, it was a good thing we were wearing jackets! The large Sulfur-crested Cockatoos, who dominated the area, were also quite heavy when you've got several climbing up your arm. After our last bit of seeds in the packet got snatched away, we all went on a short walk on a trail nearby to search for the more elusive Superb Lyrebird, for which the trail was named. Alas, no Lyrebird was spotted, but lots of ferns instead.

It wasn't until the next day, Wednesday March 24th, that we saw our first marsupial and the most iconic of Australian fauna - the kangaroo. I suppose for locals, looking at a kangaroo is like looking at a squirrel - you were done with them by the age of 3. Still, for a tourist, they were a must-see. That afternoon, Aunt Julie took us and Great-Uncle to the Cardinia Reservoir Park to see wild kangaroos. After Eva and I had a nice walk around the reservoir (they picked us up at the end of the trail), we showed up at the picnic area around 4:30 in the afternoon and had a snack. I was disappointed that there were no 'roos around, and was wondering if they would show up at all. As the sun set and dusk approached, they started coming out of the woods and into the open fields. Soon, the greenery around the picnic area was covered with dozens of smallish brown kangaroos (small from far away - they were probably near-human size). We got close enough to these Eastern Grey Kangaroos to see their funny feet and their strange hop/crawl locomotion. After watching and stalking them for a good half-hour or so, it got dark so we headed home.

On Thursday, March 25th, we sought respite from the animals back in downtown Melbourne. Following a tip from former Melbrourne resident Bree, we enjoyed some beer and sausages at the Riverland Bar at Federation Wharf on the North Banks of the Yarra river. This part of Melbourne was beautifully developed, and we spent the sunny afternoon wandering along the river. We crossed a pedestrian bridge to the south side of the river, and eventually found ourselves at the Crown Casino. We tried our luck at the penny and two-penny slots. Eva lost a little, but I actually won $70! Eva was happy that we left with some money, although a little disappointed that she lost out to me. She thought I had some method for playing slots, and found it hard to believe it was simply luck.

As in gambling, so in comedy - you take your chances. The Melbourne Comedy Festival was happening at this time, and we decided to end the day with one of their offerings. We went to one show - a short skit act with two young twenty-somethings, sometimes joined by a third. It took place in a small room above a bar, and the only other audience members (less than a dozen people) were twenty-something females - obviously friends of theirs. They were the type of guys who make friends with lots of girls that will never ever kiss them (I was one such guy). Their material was highly Pythonesque - lots of existentialism, and jarring dissonance between ridiculousness and high-brow cultural reference. I thought it was interesting; it may have been funny if their timing was a bit better, or maybe if Monty Python had never existed and their stuff was truly original. Their friends all laughed, but we cringed throughout the whole thing. The lowlight came when - either because they had noticed us not laughing, or because they didn't notice us not laughing, or simply because we were in the front row - they picked on us (us being Eva) and included us (Eva) in their skit. We tried really really hard to go along with it and look entertained, but we were relieved when the whole thing was over. We took the $30 for the comedy show from the $70 won at the casino and figured that luck had settled $40 on us for the day.

We spent the next day hanging out underfoot at Aunt Julie's and watching old movies. We also made our final trip to the Chinese Consulate to pick up our passports with the newly-issued visas for entry into China. We had dropped off our passports and visa applications previously (Monday morning) after purchasing an outbound ticket from Hong Kong to Bangkok (Airasia.com rocks!). Since Eva had family in China, we had no problems getting our single-entry visa approved once we were actually allowed into the consulate.

On the morning of Saturday, March 27th, we enjoyed another one of Bree's picks - the historic Abbotsford Convent. Once an actual convent located in farm country, this building complex is now a well- maintained 'play area' to spend disposable income, including a seasonal farmer's market, several restaurants, and art galleries. We bought some breakfast at the convent bakery, and got some fruit and ice cream at the farmer's market to bring back to the family. We intended to take it easy that night and found a theatre not too far away showing Avatar in 3D (since we had only seen the middle half of the movie in Spanish on a bus in Argentina, we still had no clue what was really going on in the movie). As we were driving following only the GPS, we kept getting closer into the heart of Melbourne. We reached downtown when we realized, by golly, the GPS was taking us right back to the Crown complex where we had gambled 2 days earlier!

Now I had done quite a bit of challenging driving over the past year - including Manhattan during rush hour, highways in the Dominican Republic, and lots of left-side driving in New Zealand and Australia - but that downtown drive through Melborne nightlife stood out as my least favorite experience. I was tired and really worried about making a wrong turn - especially with all the traffic cameras everywhere and the point system for drivers (we didn't want Aunt Julie to be deducted points just because we drove badly using her car). Cars, buses, and trams - how anyone can drive in downtown Melbourne is beyond me - especially since they all drive ON THE WRONG SIDE! We also learned the hard way what a hook turn was after being stuck behind an unmoving car at a busy intersection while watching the light turn yellow; we thought that the driver was crazy to try and make a RIGHT turn from the LEFT lane! Plus, we still had to park the car! After circling the city blocks a few times while dodging pedestrians, we found decent parking without any incident, but unfortunately arrived too late for the movie. We were both upset at driving all that way through traffic for nothing. Rather than just leaving angry, we went back to the casino. The lights, the beeping, and the well-dressed people soothed us. We threw a few more pennies into the slot machines, this time with no return. Luckily they were only penny slots. We lost a little money, but still felt better when we finally headed home.

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Photos

Little Blue Penguin chick
hiding under the boardwalk at the Nobbies.

On top of Mt. Danedong
with Aunt Julie

On the Giant's Chair
with my great-Uncle and Aunt Julie

Really friendly!
Crimson Rosella & Sulfur-crested Cockatoo