The Continental Phillip Island Cowes

G'day from Philip Island on the southern coast of Victoria, Australia! Now that we are settled and have some things sorted out, we are finally taking some time to explore the region and see the coast and Australian wildlife. Being still gun-shy of our jalopy break-down on the highway, we decided to rent a car for the weekend and make the 90 min drive southeast of Melbourne to the Bass Strait and Philip Island, home to the Little Penguins. The ...

... obsessed with nuns, gave us the strength to find a camping site although it was way past sunset. Found. Homemade Bolognese. Jan 29 Last day. Pack everything. Stopped at Mentone in the southern suburbs of Melbs. Really nice quiet beach. After seeing rougher ocean shores for more than a week, it feels like a swimming pool. Really good burger at the shack just after the yacht club in the suburb next to mentone and before ...

Before I start I'd like to make reference to the title of this entry and assure people that the word 'known' refers not to the biblical meaning, but simply those that I have either met, or simply seen. Despite my Welsh heritage that, well that aint my bag, certainly not on weekdays anyway. This last couple of weeks I've been rushing round trying to get as much as Melbourne and Victoria seen as i leave tomorrow. I'll write more about my plans in a bit, and then hopefully the next entry ...

... and get a free drink. I felt very special. Then went on to find a campsite, set up camp and get some lunch down a the beach in Cowes. After lunch went out to this place call "The Nobbies" which was a fancy new building on some cliffs with walks around the cliffs and the main attraction is the seals on a rock about 1.5km away. You can't really see them except thru a telescope, which they gladly charge you to use. The ...

Lara en ik hadden ons beiden aangemeld om met een tour mee te gaan naar Phillip Island en aan het eind van de ochtend werden we hiervoor opgepikt. De eerste stop was een wijngaard, met een kleine proeverij. Vrij droge wijnen, maar erg zoete (en lekkere!) sherry en port. We vervolgden onze trip naar het Maru Koala Park, waar ik eindelijk een paar van de echte australische dieren te zien kreeg, die volgens iedereen overal in Oz te vinden zijn, maar die ik maar nergens in het ...

... with American Indians- every tourist spot here recognizes the original tribe and Aboriginal names of each region. After caving proceeded to the coast again for the start of the intriguing Ninety Mile Beach at the town of Lakes Entrance. Had to drive around the lakes and back out to this beach, which is very pretty, with very sparse settlement and is really 90 miles long (why its not called the '150 Kilometer Beach I don ...

I got myself a travel companion. She's a friend and colleague of Lee's, a pukka pizza-maker at Minnie's Bistro up the road, name's Sarah. We got talking one night and it appeared that my leaving Melbourne sparked a bit of interest. She happens to want a change from the norm and so we spent a night batting a few scenarios back and forth which eventually resulted in a bit of a gameplan. The upshot is that she's going to join me on my quest to cross the Nullarbor ...

Hello je suis arrive a Philipp Island.. petite isle pas plus grande que l ile de Paques.. c est un peu mort.. c est deja la morte saison.. je me plaignais de la haute saison depuis mon arrivee en Nouvelle Zelande, ainsi qu a Perth, Torquay.. mais la ca saute du coq a l ane.. je suis le seul guest de l auberge en dortoir.. sinon une famille d australien et des indous.. j ai donc fait un tour de l ile aujourd hui.. visite du sanctuaire a ...

... and the competition was delayed for the day (and eventually moved out to Johanna beach a couple hours west on the Great Ocean Road). But we spent the day on the beach and had a good visit. We said goodbye to Joe, Carolyn, and Julien and that night met a couple British girls and spent the night quietly near the beach. Day 5: The 5 of us went out to Johanna beach to watch the surfing competition. This was great. So incredible to see the world's ...

... by bike. It is a long way. Sure people will say it, but it really is true. Quite often you will be miles from anyone with no help for hours. Be careful if you are considering driving near dusk or dawn. Thats when the kangaroos come out and they can ruin a car, let alone a motorcycle. You won't have to worry too much about fuel for the bike. Every 200kms or so there will be a roadhouse where you can top up, buy food and drink. And if you ...