Melbourne (Aug 23- Sep 13, 2009 total time in Australia)

Sun August 23, 2009:

• As noted earlier, Melbourne was our point of entry/exit to Australia, and our base for 3 weeks.  After spending Sunday with friends, we were off to Cairns (CNS) early next morning.  
• Visiting Cairns and Sydney during weekdays, we were back in Melbourne on Sat Aug 29.  After spending a whole week in Melbourne, we were off to Tasmania from Sep 7-11 and back for another day in Melbourne.  We returned to the US on Sep 13.

Thu August 29:

• We stayed with my friend Nitin in a suburb of Melbourne 10 miles east. Since we had arranged our schedule to arrive/depart on weekends, he came to pick us up and drop off at MEL airport about 25 miles north of the city.  All other times, we used Melbourne's public transportation or airport connection as appropriate.
• With him and his social friends, we were able to celebrate Ganapati festival, and other socializing on weekends.
• Nitin took a few days off during this week to show us around.  The rest of the time we were on our own.    

Sun August 30: 

• Today was set aside for sightseeing Melbourne - mainly Albert Park Lake.

Mon August 31:

• About 75 miles south is Churchill Island.   You have to drive on a dirt road and cross a bridge from Phillip Island to get to Churchill Island.  Nice place for a picnic.
• On the Philip Island, there is Koala Reserve.  Eucalyptus tree grove with plentiful of Koalas - most asleep, of course, but close enough to get nice pictures,  We saw wallabies around as well.  No kangaroos here. 
• It was late in the afternoon.  We had tickets for the Penguin Parade at dusk, so we had time.
• We drove to the far (west/south) end of Phillip Island to view of Seal Rocks.  There are hundreds of seals on those rocks, but you can't see them with naked eyes from the visitor center - you need powerful binoculars (or an underwater camera!)  This was a great idea.- Underwater camera gives you four minutes of viewing, and you may purchase any pictures you take.  This is the first time I had seen so many seals in one place.  The closest prior experience was at Pier 39 in San Francisco,  (Or middle school field trip to Año Nuevo State Park in San Mateo County to see elephant seals during their mating season.)
• Around dusk, we settled on the bleachers at Summerland Bay beach, waiting for little penguins to arrive,  The Little penguin is the smallest species of penguin. It grows to an average of 13" in height and 17" in length.  They are mostly found on the coastlines of southern Australia/Tasmania and New Zealand.  When it gets dark, they begin to return from the ocean - just a few in the beginning and then a whole lot of them.  They waddle up the beach, pass by and under the bleachers and disappear in their nests behind.  That was an experience.  The parade lasts about an hour.

Tue September 1:

• Not too far further west from the Phillip Island we visited yesterday, is Cape Schank on the Mornington Peninsula.  On the way, Arthurs Seat State Park is a nice spot to view Port Phillip Bay.  Rising a thousand feet above the Peninsula, Arthurs Seat is the most familiar of all Port Phillip Bay landscape features.  Gondolas weren't operating, but you could drive to the top.  There are lookout points in all directions.
• Continuing on, Cape Schanck, named after an English Navy Captain, a contemporary of Matthew Flinders, is another quiet hiking spot.  Lighthouses always make great pictures.  The one here helped navigate ships in and out of Bass Strait.  Due to GPS and other navigational aids, lighthouses have been out of business.  You can walk up to the water, but the beach is rocky.  Surf was high and the water was bouncing off the rocky terrain with force.  The skies were cloudy though.
• We HAD to visit the London Bridge in Sorrento, 20 miles northwest - almost to the end of the peninsula.  It is the hollowed out sea stack that can be viewed from a lookout at the end of London Bridge.  During low tide, you could walk up to/under the London Bridge itself.

Wed September 2: 

• Today was absolutely clear, sunny day.  We visited St Patrick's Cathedral, Parliament House, Royal Exhibition Building (we found out that there were daily tours at 2 PM.  We were too early for that.), and CBD.  Yarra river has many pedestrian bridges to cross from one side to the other.  Near the Royal Botanic Gardens are Queen Victoria Memorial, King Edward VII Monument with a giant flower clock in front - all close by.  Finally from the Eureka Tower (Tallest in the Southern Hemisphere), we had a view of the entire city including Port Phillip Bay, Cricket stadium and Olympic venues. 

Thu September 3:

• We took one day Great Ocean Road and 12 Apostles tour from 7 am - 9 PM.  It took us 4 hours to get there.
• First stop - Great Ocean Road sign.  There are other Great Roads in other parts of Australia.  This road reminded me of California's Highway 1 - which runs much closer to the ocean than this one.  Regardless, the scenery was very pleasing.
• The Great Ocean Road officially begins at Torquay, a famous surf town of gorgeous, sandy beaches.  There is a memorial for WWII Veterans near the road sign.
• Driving along the coastal landscape, we stopped at Apollo Bay for lunch before continuing on to the Twelve Apostles—a grouping of massive limestone pillars that rise up out of the ocean.  Only 9 remain, but newer ones are being created by pounding ocean waves.  Clouds and sun were creating ever changing scenery from the same landscape.
• Then there was London Bridge, this time on the Great Ocean Road.  One wonders the fascination of Australians with London Bridge. 

Sat September 5:

• Yet another one day tour - to the Grampians National Park.  Each way drive was about 3 hours with plenty to see.
• Large sheep ranches were along side of this two lane road - for miles.  Passing by Ballarat, 1850s Gold Rush town, and Moyston, the birthplace of Australian Rules Football, we reached Grampions -- considered a mini version of the Grand Canyons in the US.  Two arms of Grampions with a valley in between surely looks like it.
• At the first stop (Halls Gap?), there were wild kangaroos all around in a eucalyptus forest.  As we took pictures, they hopped away.
• Next was McKenzie waterfall - this cascading waterfall had plenty of water.
• Then there was Jaws of death - a giant wrench, if you wish.
• After a brief rain shower, we even saw a rainbow over the valley.
• Returning to Melbourne, we were dropped off at Flinders Street Station, main terminus of Melbourne's train system.  From there, we took tram back.  

Sat September 12:

• Last chance for shopping in Melbourne.  We also HAD TO see the Victoria Market - a major landmark in Melbourne, and the largest open air market in the Southern Hemisphere.  We reached there fairly early, so it wasn't crowded.  We didn't have anything specific in mind.  A souvenir boomerang and wonderful flowers carved out of a soap were plenty for us. 

Sun September 13: 

• Our noon flight from MEL with a two hour layover in AKL will return me to SFO around 12:45 PM the same day. 
• We were lucky to have clear warm weather in both Cairns and Sydney.  Back in Melbourne, we heard, that it rained pretty hard, but cleared just in time when we returned.  Of course,  I took full credit for making the (good) weather happen wherever I went!  The weather was more cloudy and cold in Tasmania (except on September 10 which was mostly clear and sunny), but not enough to interrupt any of our plans. 
• All in all, great experience.