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Published: January 17th 2011
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After 3 months in Sydney, we left only 4 days to take in Victoria! Oh well, that's the way it happens with travelling sometimes. We arrive in Melbourne to our now traditional welcome of rainy weather! I guess we can think ourselves lucky looking at the current situation up in Queensland.
It's genuinely scary looking at the flood water and thinking about what would've happened if we had been in our campervan when it happened. We have also noticed a pattern of natural disasters striking after we leave places (there was an earthquake in Christchurch only a month after we left!). Queensland is an amazing place and I hope they get the necessary aid to rebuild and move on after this.
Anway, back to the Melbourne drizzle. We booked into our hostel in South Yarra and I'm hit by how strange it is to be back in backpacker land. The hostel has all the familiar trimmings - slightly musty odour, windows that don't open, lurkers and staff that give you the rehersed welcome speech about the facilities, likes you're a teenager who's never left home. I particularly like the fact that EVERY hostel kitchen has a 'witty' sign above
the sink that says 'Please wash up - your mum doesn't live here!' (doesn't she?!).
Despite my rant, the hostel is actually quite nice and we fall back into the swing of things. We spend the evening and the next day taking in Melbourne and it's 'cafe culture'. From the minute we walk out of the huge Flinders Street station, I'm really impressed. The architecture is striking and there's definitely a 'vibe' around the city. Every corner has some kind of sculpture or statue and the European influence is very clear. It's has a Parisian feel to it, without the snooty attitude.
We visit a few cool bars, one of which is down a horrible looking alleyway. When you finally find the door, the bar itself is decked out like a science lab, with test tubes and bunsen burners everywhere! There's even hospital beds in the toilets! They work hard at being cool in Melbourne. There's also a bar called Berlin's that's decorated in 2 styles, half is decadent (west berlin) and the other side is run down, with camoflague netting and bunk beds (East) - how cool! (and random)
The other highlight of our flying visit
is a trip on the Great Ocean Road, from Geelong to Port Cambell. We hire a car to do this (a tiny little Hyundui) and we make a few stops on the way to check out the great views, lighthouses etc. The only downside is that a certain part of the road has been shut today because of rock falls, so we have to take a detour, which adds an extra hour on the journey and removes the best bit!
Oh well, at least we get to the '12 Apostles', which is one of the most stunning views I've ever seen. The sun is out as well which makes a big difference. The only thing they don't tell you about in the guidebooks is the flies!! They're everywhere...in the town of Port Cambell they've virtually taken over! Despite this, the views of sunset from our hostel are great so we can't complain too much.
We head back to Melbourne the next day, arriving to more down pours. Apparently it's been flooding in Victoria overnight and there's more towns in danger in Queensland! It's too heavy to go outside and do the tourist thing, so we're a bit stuck
in the hostel...but at about 2pm on our last day...it stops...and the sun come out! A miracle! However we've got 3 hours before we fly, so we make a dash to St Kilda Beach on the tram.
We manage to see all the highlights of St Kilda in less than an hour, before trundling back to the hostel on the tram. We dash to the airport and make our flight to Adelaide by the skin of our teeth.
Danielle meets us at the airport and gives a quick tour of Adelaide. The view of the sun setting into the sea is amazing and the sky hold the burnt red colour for a long afterwards, giving us an amazing final sunset in Australia. It's a shame we can't stay longer in Adelaide as it seems like a really nice place...the temperature on the morning we leave is about 40 degrees!
I feel a bit sad when we board the plane to Singapore. We've been in Australia for 4 months and it's crammed full of memories. I'll miss the ozzie way of life, the experiences, the sights, the wildlife, all the friends we've made and all that wine!
So for the last time...Bonza, strewth, good on ya mate!
Ali and Clio x
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justine
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hope u can help?
Hey there, seems like u guys had a blast in australia!i'll be gg over with my bf at the end of feb and would like to ask about ur trip to Great Ocean Road.How much did u hire a car for?and how long did it take for the whole trip form geelong to port campbell and back? would really appreciate your help! btw, if you're still in sg, let me know if i can be of any help! many thanks, justine