Day 40
Today is another travel day. Pat was up early and went for a walk along the Esplanade and enjoyed a “flat white” (similar to a cappuccino, but only espresso and steamed milk, no milk foam) from a local coffee shop along the beach.
Pat forgot to include in the last post that Lizard Island Resort is owned by Delaware North Companies, which is based in Buffalo, NY. They operate a number of hospitality assets, including the concession stands at many professional sports venues. Apparently, Delaware North has owned Lizard Island Resort since 2009, when it was acquired along with several other Australian properties.
The flight to Melbourne was uneventful, and after checking into our hotel, we took a walk through Fitzroy Gardens. Although it was Sunday, there were multiple wedding parties taking pictures, and even one wedding being celebrated as we walked by. The park was well maintained and included several vintage buildings. One of the buildings was the home of Captain James Cook’s parents, which was moved from England to Melbourne in 1934. It now is a museum with examples of furnishings from the 18th century. Unfortunately, we arrived just before closing at 4 pm and were unable to walk through.
We also saw a Model Victorian village that was presented to the City of Melbourne by the citizens of Lambeth, England in appreciation of the gifts of food during food shortages following World War ll. That was really lovely. We also found fountains and St. Patrick’s Catholic Church.
Tonight for dinner we met Ali and Joh, who used to be neighbors with Cheryl’s neice, Alexia, in Arlington, Virginia. Ali and Joh lived across the street from Alexia while Joh was on an ex-pat assignment for the Australian Air Force. They were one of the best resources that we used in planning our trip and were very accommodating and helpful in answering all our questions. They just relocated back to Melbourne in January.
They picked us up at our hotel, and we drove about 20 minutes away to the Neighborhood Wine restaurant. After perusing the menu, which changes everyday, we decided to go with a “prix fixe” chef’s tasting menu to share among the table. We selected our own wines, ending up drinking a 2022 Stefani Estate ‘Boccolo’ Sangiovese from the Yarra Valley just outside Melbourne toward the east and a 2024 Bannockburn ‘1314’ Shiraz from Geelong (“juh-long”) southwest of Melbourne. Both were very enjoyable and quite modestly priced (at least in USD).
The meal was interesting and excellent overall. We began with an entree of carrot hummus, za’atar popped sorghum on rye crackers, a second entree of warm sourdough bread, and finally a house made ricotta, Jerusalem artichoke, hazelnuts, and crispy saltbush. Our “mains” for the evening were Cape Grim sirloin with bearnaise sauce, fries with aioli, and salad of organic leaves, hemp seed dressing & soft herbs. We had a very unusual dessert of creme diplomat, local figs, and macadamia pralines that surprised all of us with how delicious it was. We didn’t have a chance to take photos of any of the courses, so you’ll just have to trust us that it was delicious!
We had a very nice conversation with Ali and Joh, learning all about them getting re-settled in Australia after being away for over 4 years. They have 3 school-aged children who are getting reacclimated to Australia. For resettlement back to Australia, they selected Melbourne to be close to grandparents on both sides. They were also very interested in where we had been, what we had done and what we liked and didn’t like. Ali felt invested since she helped us with planning locations. It was truly a lovely evening!
Day 41
We checked out of our hotel and left our two larger suitcases with the bellman to be picked up when we return to Melbourne in a couple of days.
We had a rental car reserved at a Hertz location in the city. They screwed up our reservation, so we ended up switching to Avis, which was 15 minutes away on foot. It was actually a little more dramatic than that, but we’ll spare you the details. If this is our biggest travel issue in 80 days, we did pretty good!
Anyway, we headed to Phillip Island, about 90 minutes away, with the primary purpose of seeing the Little Penguin Parade after sundown this evening. We stopped for lunch at an RSL branch (Returned and Services League of Australia), which is essentially a fraternal society similar to AmVets or VFW in the US. They have a restaurant, a bar, and some gaming / sports betting. Net proceeds go to support active and retired military. The food was fine – Pat wanted to try it to see what it was like.
We then stopped at a Koala preserve that is run by the Victoria Parks authority. The highlight of the park is the elevated platforms that you can stroll to get “eye level” with the koalas (just “koala” not “koala bear”). Their diet of eucalyptus leaves is actually toxic to them, so they spend most of their time when not eating conserving their energy for digestion by sleeping (20 out of 24 hours per day). They are quite adept at sleeping in trees, which was interesting to see. We were lucky enough to see one of the female koalas awaken and proceed to be reasonably active crawling along a simulated tree limb path and eat quite a bit.
After checking into our B&B, the Glen Isla House, we went to an early dinner in the little town. In addition to the penguins and other wildlife, Phillip Island is known for motorcycle racing – the kind you’ll see early morning on a weekend on ESPN, where the drivers are decked out in leather and they whip their road bikes around twists and turns, their knees just inches above the ground as they balance their high-powered machines. Our restaurant had several previously used “uniforms” hanging in the restaurant for decoration.
Now it was time for the Phillip Island Penguin March. We signed up for a small group tour, and there would be just 10 of us. After meeting our guide, Scott, he shared a number of interesting facts about the area and the animals on Phillip Island.
The first was about the Short-tailed Shearwater, a bird which migrates from Phillip Island 16,000 km to the waters off the Aleutian Islands near Alaska.
Next, he talked about the Eastern barred bandicoot, a small nocturnal marsupial, which was once widespread across southwest Victoria and Tasmania. The bandicoot was thought to be extinct until a small group of 40 were found. Of those 40, only 13 could reproduce. They were taken into captivity, and after reproducing to a couple hundred, they were reintroduced on Phillip Island, which was free of the predators (fox, feral cats, and dogs) that almost brought them to extinction. They are now numbered in the thousands on the island.
Finally, we saw the Little Penguin. Aptly named because of the 18 penguin species around the world, Little Penguins are the smallest. They are the size of a bowling pin and weigh less than 2 pounds. Their feathers on their backs and beaks are actually slate blue to dark indigo blue, whereas their bellies are white. This coloration provides camouflage, as predators looking up from below see a white belly against the water’s surface, and predators looking down see the blue back, making them almost invisible from either vantage point. Penguins can stay out in the ocean several days, taking 4 minute power naps, so they need this protection while sleeping.
After our discussion, we got on all of our gear, including binoculars, a “torch” (flashlight) with orange lens cover to protect the penguin’s eyes, headphones, safety vest, & seatback for sitting on the beach and headed out for our private viewing. As we traversed through the grasslands, Scott pointed out the penguins’ burrows. The park provides some homes for the penguins, which they love since they are “lazy”; however, most have to dig their own burrows, which may take 2 or more weeks to complete.
We walked a little over a mile to the beach. Along the way, we saw lots of wallabies and Cape Barren geese. These geese mate for life. We saw multiple pairs during our time at Phillip Island, and tragically we did see singles.
As we headed for the beach, Scott told us that the penguins are starting molting season (we saw feathers in the grass). A Little Penguin has over 10,000 feathers that interlock like a zipper. The feathers create a watertight seal such that water doesn’t touch their skin. When they lose their feathers, they would freeze in the icy ocean waters, so they have to stay in their burrows for approximately 30 days until their new feathers grow. This is a very dangerous time for them, because they can starve to death if they haven’t hunted enough fish prior to the start of molting. As Foghorn Leghorn would say, “Fortunately, I say fortunately, I keep my ‘feathus’ numbered …”
The Little Penguins leave their burrows a few hours before daylight and return to their homes after dark, when most birds of prey, like eagles and hawks, are inactive. They will usually wait for a group to cross the beach because they appear bigger in a group and may deter predators. It’s really a “safety” in numbers strategy. If a predator attack occurs and you’re alone, you have a 100% chance of being taken. But if you’re in a group of 5 to 10 penguins, it’s only a 10% to 20% chance that you’re the one that gets snatched. Pat loves how the Little Penguins can do math, understanding probability and expected outcome!
We were not allowed to use our phones after dark because the light would confuse them or hurt their eyes. However, we were really lucky & Pat spotted a penguin before sundown that we were able to take a photograph! Because it was still too light, the penguin headed back out to wait for a group to cross the beach.
After the sun went down, we sat for about a half an hour before we started to hear the “huk huk” of the penguins calling to their friends. In front of one of their established paths (they always go the same way to their burrows) was a pile of sand brought up by the tide. Scott was very interested to see how they would negotiate the obstacle. The penguins grouped down by the water, then bent low and scampered quickly across the beach. When the first group of 3-4 penguins arrived at the sand pile, some went around and then others were able to find a way to successfully climb over it. However, in another group, there were some penguins that went back to the water’s edge to regroup and wait for reinforcements. Scott counted 43 penguins that crossed in front of us. They have been counting since the 1960’s to monitor the colony’s population. There are multiple beaches with multiple paths for the penguins to take, so we only saw a small percentage of the penguins cross. On our way back from the beach, we saw multiple penguins either walking to their burrows (adults) or others just loitering near their burrows (chicks and molting penguins out of their hot burrows where they have been hiding in all day). We also saw an Eastern barred bandicoot, 2 possums, and several wallabies. The experience was truly amazing witnessing nature at work.
Here is a representative picture of what we saw on the beach.
Day 42
In the morning, we were severed a lovely breakfast by the B&B owners. Then we headed out to explore the island a little bit more. Along the way, we saw the beach we were on and went down to see it in daylight. There were lots of little penguin footprints in the sand.
Our next stop was the Nobbies, which is an incredibly important site for Australia’s largest colony of Fur Seals. These cobblestone rocks that jut out of the water are a dramatic strip of land attached to the Phillip Island coastline. We walked along a boardwalk and witnessed amazing ocean views with crashing waves, providing a performance more entertaining than TV.
We decided to head back for Melbourne, stopping for a quick lunch at a local place along the way. Pat expertly maneuvered the car through Melbourne traffic, and we arrived safely at our hotel for the evening. We checked into the Grand Hyatt, in the Parliament Square area, not far from our first hotel in Melbourne. This was our nicest hotel and room by far on the trip to date in terms of “fixtures and finishes”.
After a brief respite, we headed out to the Melbourne Skydeck to see how it compared to the one in Sydney. Although this skydeck was taller and there were many interesting things to view below, we both agreed that we had a better experience in Sydney at Club 83 (better food and drink, plus comfortable chairs to enjoy the view).
For dinner, we stopped at a fun spot along the river called the Floating Capri along the Yarra River. It was a “hopping” place with lots of interesting people-watching.
Day 43
Today, we started our Great Ocean Road adventure. The GOR is a roughly 200 mile route along the southern coast with amazing ocean views and lots of little beach towns, similar to the Pacific Coast Highway along California’s coast.
After a mid-morning start, we stopped in Geelong for lunch. It was a nice town with a beach, park, marina, and even a Ferris Wheel. We had a very good lunch sitting outside at a restaurant on the Esplanade. We took a page from our friends Manon and Steve and split an appetizer (mushroom arancini – delicious) and a chicken BLT sandwich with chips. It was a good call, as the chicken sandwich was HUGE and perfect for sharing.
Next, we headed for Torquay, another beach town where we stopped to get some fresh air and take some pictures.
We finally made it to one of the Great Ocean Road signs, so we had to commemorate it with a photo.
Still traveling westward, we decided to stop in Lorne Beach and were thinking gelato or ice cream. We saw a donut shop that advertised milkshakes (or as Cheryl would later call it “less than a milkshake”). Luckily, we both went with regular and not large, as the drinks were essentially flavored milk, not ice cream milkshakes that we were expecting. Pat said we should have gone with “extra thick” for a dollar more. Oh, well.
After about six hours on the road, we finally reached our destination of Apollo Bay, where we checked into our accommodation, Captain’s at the Bay. The room was good-sized and we had a small balcony but not much of a view. Although we only had a minimum amount of clothing with us after leaving our two larger bags back in Melbourne, we decided to wash our clothes at the guest laundry on-site to replenish.
We had a nice dinner in the little town at the Graze restaurant. Cheryl had the duck fillet and Pat enjoyed his Blue Eye fish fillet with paella rice.
Day 44
In the morning, we enjoyed “brekky” in the little town, then left in pursuit of a beautiful waterfall. As we began to drive inland, we turned onto a road that looked like the width of a driveway. It was surrounded with very tall trees and crazy winding roads! Surprisingly it was a considered a two lane road and we were advised to beware of log hauling trucks! Although it was crazy twisty roads, it was also very beautiful in the forest with the tall trees. Thirty minutes later, Cheryl was relieved when we finally found the end. We eventually saw a couple of the log haulers, and we couldn’t image them on that twisty road.
We could see the top of the Hopetoun waterfall from the entrance of the path, but to view it in all of its glory, we needed to hike down 200 steps through glades of tree ferns to the base of the falls. The waterfall plummets 30 yards into the Aire River in the Great Otway National Park. The beauty of the waterfall and tranquility of the area made it worth the crazy drive and hike to the bottom. While we were there, we chatted with a couple from Brazil, who captured us in a picture without our arm being extended.
There was another waterfall we wanted to see, but “Chatty Cathy” Pat spent too much time talking to our new Brazilian friends, so we had to skip it. Our ultimate goal today was to see the 12 Apostles rock formations and the Loch Ard Gorge, still an hour away. Oh, and then we needed to make the 2.5+ hour drive back to Melbourne to return our car by 4pm.
As a result, our time at the 12 Apostles and Loch Ard Gorge was a bit of “photo and dash”, although we did traverse the steps at Gibson Steps to get onto the beach and take some pictures of the beginning of the 12 Apostles area. Both of these areas were quite stunning, with 150 ft tall limestone pillars that were once connected to the mainland cliffs. We regretted not getting an earlier start, as we would have enjoyed spending another hour walking the trails to see different vantage points.
We ran back to the car and made our mad dash to Melbourne. Pat did an excellent job negotiating the rush hour traffic and busy downtown streets. We arrived at 3:52 with 8 minutes to spare. All legs of Pat’s driving on the wrong side of the road were completed without incident. However, we’ll have to see if we got a ticket when we get home since Australia is notorious for their speed cameras.
For our last night in Melbourne (and in Australia), we went to Quando Quando Cucina and Bar in one of the famous “laneways” in the city (this one was “Little Collins Street”). These are essentially alleys off a main street that are often restricted or no vehicle traffic, with restaurants, bars, and some retail. We shared a “primo” (or first course) pasta dish and a “secondo” (or second course) protein. The primo was a lamb ragu over pappardelle pasta that was absolutely delicious (especially the ragu). Our secondo was a mid-rare Bistecca (ribeye) al Ferri, which was cooked perfectly with great flavor, and chimichurri on the side. With an early morning for our flight to New Zealand, Cheryl went with the current vintage of San Pellegrino (I think it was November), while Pat had a single glass of Sangiovese.
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