Dubai and Beyond...

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7 hours and 4 films and some delicious food later we were flying over the barren expanse of sand that reminded me of flying into sharm el sheikh. I don't remember seeing the airport approaching on up and before I knew it that old familiar feeling of cranial pressure imbalance informed me of our decent. The landing was fairly smooth and it was nice to just go through passport control and into another boarding lounge without having to worry about my big luggage. Looking around I didn't really feel the need to visit Dubai in the future, it didn't seem like it had much to offer. The airport was nice though, clean and the staff were friendly, the floors were polished marble and it smelt fresh, even the toilets. Makes you wonder why England can't manage but hey, back to the fun stuff. I found the gate I was leaving from despite it saying we were flying to Auckland and set up on the floor as there were only a few seats. I proceded to fail to take a photo of myself and then had a nap until it was time to board. The flight was spent in the same way with the added luxury of a USB point for me to charge my phone. As we took off I looked out of the window and saw the city... Maybe I judged the place a little hastely.

It was after the fourth film I decided to close my eyes for a while as I was starting to feel groggy again. I woke up to the smell of pizza (our late night snack meal). Looking around I noticed everyone had empty boxes in front of them and I hadn't had any... So that's what those "Wake me up for food signs" were for. Luckily they had miraculously realised they had some left over and came around for a second pass incase anyone wanted more. I snatched one, ate and went to sleep. The cunning fox that I am I managed to alter my body clock and sleep the last 7 hours of the flight to put me in the right time frame. No Jet Lag for me! Watching the sunrise from the plane was pretty special and i was glad i had woken up in time to see it.
Off the plane and through arrivals to collect my luggage. Pack in tow I marched to where I was supposed to meet Tucks. Bearing in mind that I had only seen photos of him on Facebook I racked my brains to remember what he looked like. there were a couple of people that could of passed for him but they regarded me with a rather blank expression so I didn't speak. Looking at my phone to call the number he had given me, no service... Great. I walked up to the pay phone but this country bumpkin from cornwall couldn't figure out how to work the blasted thing!
After 2 more passes of the people waiting to collect family and friends I saw a vaguely familiar face walking in. I shook Mark's hand and he led me to the carpark and his waiting Landy and explained the military manuever that he and Emma had arranged to get me to the house. We proceeded to the train station via Matty's body shop to say hello and have a look at some of the vehicles before remembering that Emma was meeting me at the station the other end and that I had a train to catch.

Being that the nearest functioning train station to where I live is at least 30 miles away it's no wonder I was stood staring at the shiny metal box with words such as HALF FARE, CONCESSION and ZONE 1+2 written on the front with art deco drawing of a tree next to it with place names instead of fruit. Luckily there was a lad behind me who explained how to use it, he was about 14.
I found my way to the right platform and en route passed a manned kiosk that would of been useful to purchase my ticket without looking like a tool... Live and learn.
Once back at the house Emma made me a cup of coffee and showed me where the shower was, I wasn't feeling too fresh after a day and a half of travelling. Finding it difficult to read the screen on my phone I decided a nap for an hour or so was in order. Emma asked if i wanted a wake up call but i insisted that I had beaten Jet Lag with my cunning plan. 7 hours I woke up.
The evening contunued, we had a meal and a couple of beers to grease to the cogs of social interaction (I had only met Rob once before and had met Emma, the kids and Mark for the first time that day). I began to feel tired and once again thought I had beaten jet lag and my body clock was set to the right time. At 4 o clock in the morning I was reminded that i wasnt.

Over the next few days I explored the surrounding area on foot, walking out past Yellingbo and Woori Yallock. Forget another country, it's more like a different world. The high clouds, rolling hills and expansive landscapes leant themselves to the pages of Jurrasic Park. There's wildlife chirping and ribitting away from roadside billabongs, the bushes warble, whistle and make noises that haven't even been captured by onomatopoeia. On the roads the cars snake their way through the twisting roads of the Yarra Valleys, trucks rumble along and logging trucks, pulling their double trailers, thunder past dragging a mountain of air behind them. In amongst it all are assorted groups of bikes, from hogs to full faring racers all riding together and enjoying to sunshine. The one thing they all have in common is a certain expression on their faces simply saying "why the hell is that idiot walking?!"
One evening everybody got together and we went to the Home Hotel at Launching Place for a steak. Everyone's was a tad over done (medium instead of medium rare etc) but it was still tasty, almost as tasty as the girl behind the bar that captured the attention of a couple of the males at the table.
Another night I was taken up to The Dandenong Ranges and to the Sky High lookout to see the view of Melbourne and the surrounding area. The View was impressive and impossible to capture on my limited iPhone camera but I tried none the less. As we waited for the sun to set we decided against a drink, $7 for a stubby, the same that we have at home for around $1.50 each (you can take the bloke out of Cornwall...). Instead we found a giant chair and took some photos of me and Alfie (Rob and Emma's son). There was a Cookobourough pirched on top joining in the photos until we heard screaming and realised it had swooped down and stole chips from some girls sat at one of the tables.

Our trip to Marysville really hit home. Beforehand I had read one of the books about Black Saturday. It was the accounts of the day a ferrosious bush fire swept through the area, ruining the homes and lives of people and wildlife over acres land. We stood at a lookout peering out at the vast wasteland left by the fire. Even now, 3 years later, it looked like the remains of a land plagued by beaomoth, the chared trees stood as soldiers that had failed in attempts to slay the beast.
Marysville itself was being rebuilt quickly, a testimony to mankinds ability to pull together in times of hardship. On the way home we made a detour via Healsville and a picnic area known for the wild birds that had learnt people were a food source rather than a threat. White cockatoos and multicoloured parrots filled the trees and unused tables, gobbling up bread and scraps left by people or put down especially for them. Acting like you had food in your hand you'd get a friendly visitor landing on you to have a closer look before flying off in disgust, realising their shortcomings.

Having been shown Healsville and the sanctury that afternoon I ventured there the next day with the intention of seeing one of a very secretive species known as a duck billed platipus. With the body of a beaver and face of a duck and being one of 2 mammals that lay eggs I really wanted the chance see them in the flesh. It was great to see them swimming around in the special noctournal enclosures that had been made for them. We were informed that though not endangered it was next to impossible to breed them in the captivity and the sanctury had been the most successful in this, succeeding 7 times in 65 years.
Other attractions were the kangaroos, you could walk in and around their enclosure (sticking to the path) to really get up close with them. The Dingos were brilliant, a cat's mentality in a dogs body, now threatened with the increase of ferrel dogs in the wild. I ended the day with the Spirits of the Sky show, an exhibition of Owls, White and Yellow Taled Black Cookatoos, Falcons and Eagles. The keepers had obviously spent a lot off time with the birds and the result was fantastic. Well worth a visit if you're ever in the area sampling the vinyards.

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