I had my first proper moment of feeling homesick and just wanting to go home the other day. Not bad going to take three months to get there I suppose and it can't be fun and games all the time. I'd headed over to Amelia's from a day out in the city centre with Paul, getting rained on and walking round doing some more exploring. When I arrived I realised she'd sent me a text to say she'd gone to the gym but would be back soon. So I sat on the doorstep all damp and cold, just wanting to be inside somewhere that I could call home. Fighting back the doors I pulled myself together and stopped feeling sorry for myself until she arrived back.
A night in to myself cooking some dinner and vegging out in front of the tv soon sorted me out. The next couple of days were spent being fairly chilled out. I did a spot of work, doing some reading for Amelia's fledgling business, haven't lost my touch it seems. Then it was a case of catching up on emails, booking some accommodation for my trip up the coast and pottering around Brunswick Street or popping into town for a browse around the shops.
In the evenings we went to Amelia's parents for dinner and absorbed ourselves in a programme about refugees and boat people. There have been a lot of programmes about this issue on while I've been here. You may have heard of one that took six people with various strong views about refugees and put them in situations similar to those arriving in the country, waiting for assylum seeker status in other countries and even took them back to where it all begins in Iraq and Sudan (I think). Very interesting stuff and a real talking point here.
We had a proper Saturday night out with Amelia's friends at a Vietnamese restaurant and then a nice bar across the road. There was a lot of dancing, both good and bad and it was great fun. Sat next to a guy at dinner who was from Ecuador so he's given me his email address to get in touch nearer the time and hopefully his friends back home might take me out for a drink or two when I'm there.
On Sunday I picked up a right old banger (it was the cheapest rental I could find) to take me down the Great Ocean Road. It wasn't a good sign that I struggled to figure out how to start it! You had to put it into first gear before starting the engine, most strange. I then had a complete panic at the garage filling up with petrol when I thought I couldn't get back in the car - the key wouldn't work in the lock - until I realised I had failed to lock the passenger door. Phew! You get what you pay for I guess. When I returned it the guy helpfully told me that it was going to the scrap heap soon, better late than never. Though I can't really complain as it did get me there and back without any further hassle. I just had to put up with the wind whistling through the windows constantly. And it was pretty damn windy.
I drove all the way down the coast to Apollo Bay for two nights at a fantastic hostel. All very eco-friendly it had a great lounge area with a woodburner. After a tasty meal at the local bistro I went and joined a few of the residents in the lounge and got chatting to some nice guys who worked there and a cute French guy who gave me lots of tips on Peru. The next night they invited me out to the bingo at the local bowls club. I should have won the first round but in my tired state I missed one number when it was too late.
The day was spent driving further down the coast to see the 12 Apostles and taking in Port Campbell. The weather was pretty fierce the whole time I was down there, I've never seen the sea so ferocious and angry. But it made for a very atmospheric scene, the waves battering the rocks, demonstrating how all these formations were created in the first place. I thought I was going to get blown away at the top of Cape Otway lighthouse, the power of the wind was so strong.
The next morning it was an early start to drive all the way back up towards Melbourne and head to Phillip Island for a spot of penguin watching. On the way I drove through Lorne, a very nice looking town, stopped at Bells Beach and Torquay to see what the surfing life is all about. The surfer dudes looked like a colony of black seals out at sea on their boards waiting for the perfect wave. There were plenty to choose from in those conditions but I wouldn't have fancied it myself. Well not as a complete beginner like me anyway.
I then headed to Queenscliff to make a short cut on the ferry across to Sorrento and for the novelty factor of taking the car across the water. After five or so hours of driving I arrived at a very different hostel on the island. Very open despite the weather and much more old-fashioned than the others I've stayed in. But I met a nice girl, Jenny, from Bolton who was on a trip to find out if she wanted to live over here. We got chatting and ended up sharing a room, heading off for a nice walk on Woolamai Beach the following morning and having lunch in San Remo before going our separate ways.
But first the penguin parade. Ohhh they were so cute and just how I expected, though much much smaller. This particular kind are the smallest and looked like they'd struggle to get across the beach, up the rocks and through the undergrowth to find their homes. I'm glad I paid a bit extra for a more exclusive experience as the numbers coming in were pretty low and I got a much better viewpoint from the front and further up the beach where they tended to stop and rest for a while.
A couple of hours' drive the next day and I was back at the airport dropping off the car and waiting for my flight back to Brisbane. It's been good to see the sun and experience warmer climes again. More of that further up the coast hopefully. It's another early start tomorrow to get the Greyhound bus up to Hervey Bay.
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