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Sydney to Melbourne
Entry 51 of 75 | show all | print this entry |
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Day 6 and 7
The day started off with a picnic at Bonnells Bay near Morisette with a few old college friends before heading down to Sydney to visit the man, Chris Okill. Chris is a travel buddy whom we met in Panama. Kelly, Chris and I ran a muck in Bocas del Toro and decided to have a little reunion. We relived some old Bocas tales and some new tales had since our last encounters six months earlier. Chris raved about his near death experience at the Mexican Pipeline, and Kelly explained her near kidnapping in Guatemala. Near kidnapping because of her ever handy pepper spray. I just sat there and rubbed my head till Chris deployed the clippers on it to give me a fresh buzz. We had a night out in Sydney and met some of Chris' people. The next two days K and I ran around Sydney checking out the beaches of Manly and Bondi. We swung by a few more spots to say G'day and goodbye to few of our other friends like Blake Schill and Rachel Poon.
Day 8 Leaving Sydney in the rear view of the 300 and then returning to gather my forgotten goods from the Okills, we made it down to the New South Wales South Coast area. Murrimarang National Park was the location for the tent. We pitched the tent and started up my first Australian camp fire. I have been here for almost two months and had yet to actually have a camp fire. Its everything I thought it was going to be and more (smoke, flames, coughing, shooty hands, AND tuna sandwiches). The night was spent listening to the possoms screaming around the tent. One of them decided to climb across the log with hot embers still glowing by the dying fire. The thing was screaching for almost half an hour. The morning came with sunny skies and calm breezes. K and I took a walk along the rock shelf reefs by Depot Beach after I went for a refreshing dip in the clear cool waters of the Tasman Sea. The coast has a massive forest coming down to the sandy beaches and headlands that make up the National Park. Kelly thought the trees looked like giant brocollini while I thought they looked like ... trees. A troop of kangaroos posed with us. Camp was broken and the 300 was loaded up. It was one of those freedom mornings. Life on the road is good.
Day 9 The sun light was shattered into a deep red and orange as it penetrated the smoke from the fire ripping through the bush. It was several hours before sunset yet the sunlight was being refracted to its most spectacular wavelengths. The sun set and the smokey skys turned into rain clouds. The rainy clouds turned into cold southerly winds that were downing branches and trees. Camping for the evening was substitued for hosteling. We posted up in The Lakes Entrance to hunker down for the storm. Kelly managed to lock the keys in the car while we were moving in and I made sure she felt horrible about it for the evening. Nothing like a night out in the bush to make you really appreciate a bed. The rain and wind smashed at the hostel and all I could do was thank the Lord for buildings. That night in the tent would have been an adventure indeed.
Day 10 We drove into Melbourne at about 4 in the arvo (Australian for afternoon). The city navigation was done with ease as Kelly chirped out the directions and I guided the 300 through the downtown of Melbourne to a cheap hostel on the northern side of the city called McMahons. This hostel was a stye. Stinky rooms, a dirty kitchen, the keyboards on the computers were black from years of dirty backpacker fingers typing out emails, and a staff that just loved the sauce a little too much. This led us to move onto greener pastures the next day. While moving hostels we discovered the craziest driving move known to man (Besides the Dukes of Hazard jumping river move). Its called the hook turn. Imagine driving on the left hand side of the road. Imagine a tram system going down the middle of every major street in a big downtown city. Now let's say you want to turn right. One would automatically move into the center lane and turn when traffic clears. Well with the trams running down the center of streets you can't do this. So how do you turn right you ask. The hook turn comes into action. You must pull into the farthest left lane at an intersection, wait until the light turns from green to red and then cut across all lanes of traffic to complete right hand turn. It sounds easy but when your car often just dies and people are jay walking all around you and you hate driving in cities you just can't imagine cutting across traffic with a red light in your face it gets stressful. I have yet to complete this manouver succefully. God help us all.
Day 11, 12, 13 Melbourne is the most cultured city in Australia. Sydney may have the Opera House, but Melbourne has tons of streets jammed with cafes, lounges, a plethora of international cuisines that just screams I am a cultured city with no limits of culture. What does this mean to me? Usually not a whole lot. If I am new to a town I will wander around. Find a spot to watch people and then try to go to an event or game or concert. That is enough for me to check the new city off of my list of citties I have "done". Kelly, however, is much more systematic about "doing" a city. She grabs a map of the city to be discovered and plans a logical and efficient route that ensures all the sights in the new city will be "done". So with Kelly being the guide with the map we marched the streets of Melbourne discovering the sweet night scene at Federation Square after a tastey Vietnamese Pho dinner. We headed off to the Botanical Gardens the next day. We laid down on the grass to admire a beautiful pond full of waterfowl. I positioned myself carefully, Kelly was a bit reckless and squashed duck and black swan poo all over her clothes. We then found ourselves at the Shrine of Remembrance which overlooks the city. We wandered on towards Southgate which was down the long slope that leads to the Yarra River that runs through Melbourne. Its a great people watching spot with the walk along the river and dozens of cafes and pubs. We powered up on delicious beverages and fine cuisine.
What else did Kelly map out for us? Yes of course, the National Gallery of Victory was mapped out and "done" by Kelly and I. It is a good size museum with a variety of art ranging from modern contemporary to fashion to ancient sculptures to photography to anything else with culture. I actually stood and stared at a Picasso etching for two and a half minutes. I felt very classy. I felt as if I was "doing" Melbourne well. After many cultured hours at the NGV we went to St. Kilda. 'Tis another street jammed with cafes and culture. We sat at a cafe and ate potato wedges and steamed mussels. You see when in Melbourne you can't just eat fries. One must eat wedges and mussels steamed in a white wine cream sauce. After our cultured meal we jumped on a tram (without paying....I am only so classy.) and headed home to the hostel (still only so classy). Melbourne is about to be in the rearview mirror of the 300. I will be glad to leave, not because Melbourne sucked choad, but because Kelly and I "did" Melbourne well. I am a more cultured man from this experience.
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