I need to get back to our last holiday and take my mind off of the bushfires. That may be hard because one of our lunch stops on the way home from Adelaide - Waranambool - has apparently been affected. Everywhere you turn in this state, it seems they are still battling the flames and the fall out from Australia's worst peacetime disaster. The Royal Commisions are being established, arsonists are on the run, and people are becoming very angry...
Anyway, back to Adelaide. In the morning, mom and dad walked over to our very unique streetside hotel room on Franklin. Through some sort of miraculous feat of packing and people we managed to get all six of us and our bags, into the van and in relative comfort. We were destined for Robe, South Australia a mere 4 hours away and our route would take us back through Tailem Bend and then south down the coast. Climbing our way back out of Adelaide the van was full of chatter as the kids got caught up with Nana and Grampa. It was great to have mom and dad right there in the seats beside us and the sense of familiarity felt like home...which is not great when you're trying to drive on the other side of the road!
We stopped in a place called Meningie for coffee, scones and a stretch of the legs. Meningie is on the shores of a huge inland saltwater lake called Lake Albert. Shallow and murky it didn't look like a place you would want to swim but we walked a bit on the broad beach and marvelled at the view. After some great food but rather dour service, we were back in the van and heading south again speeding by endless scrub and flatlands with very little in the way to discern this hundred kms from the last. Lunch time found us in Kingston, a fairly remote seaside town nestled right on the Southern Ocean, and we all enjoyed a decent lunch beside what may have been the biggest lobster statue in the world - or at least the southern hemisphere! With all passengers seated in new positions we pushed on for Robe, rolling into the Robetown Motor Inn around 2:30. Interestingly, Robe was the jumping off point for a mass Chinese immigration during the Victorian goldrush as boats from China would land at Robe, in the state of South Australia, so that the workers would not have to pay a tax the state of Victoria demanded.
Feeling again a bit squeamish at the accommodations, or maybe it was the guy hacking butts outside our room 24/7, I was only too glad when we piled back into the van shortly after checking in and headed for Long beach to check out the boogie boarding and beach cricket potential. Happily, both were quite good though the water was churned up and felt a bit like we were swimming in spinach soup. Nonetheless, Colin caught some major waves and then retired to the cricket pitch to bowl some wicked yorkers to Nana and Grandpa. Great fun for all and despite a wonky back, Nana played wicket keeper with great aplomb. Grampa also managed to find a bit of his old school boy pace and form. Memorable stuff, indeed. Back at the motel, the kids had a dip in the pool while the adults threw a few steaks on the barbie. After a great dinner we were off to check out the local lighthouse and obelisk, catching a one-of-a-kind sunset.
With little time to explore the cafes and shops of Robe we were on the road early and before I could even get a decent cup of coffee! After stopping in Millicent for gas and cash I was still without a java by the time we rolled back through Mt. Gambier. Our first McD's wrong-sided drive thru experience in Oz quickly produced the necessary liquid gold and with my caffeine craving finally slaked we started working our way out of town and off to Waranambool - the scene of that pretty awesome park a few days earlier. Being Sunday, the park was a zoo (hardee-har), but the boys still managed to find their way onto the flying foxes for one more fling.
A very large part of the reason for this tour was to drive the Great Ocean Road with mom and dad and soon after lunch, we began to see the impressive coastline in all its glory. With the requisite stops at Martyrs Bay, the Grotto, London Bridge and the 12 Apostles, perfect weather gave our digital cameras a workout as we soaked up the unforgettable beauty. With a pit stop in Port Campbell for supplies and still buzzing with wonder at the views and the increasingly windy road we started the final leg to our Apollo Bay rental house.
Linton had found us a gorgeous place online located a few kilometres outside of Apollo Bay, set well up in the hills, and with a fantastic view looking back toward the ocean. It was a roomy but cosy spot to hang our sunhats for a day or two and came complete with an enormous projection screen, surround sound, stunning views, and a friendly pair of parrots. Though we were here for the scenery, as far as the kids were concerned, Transformers never looked or sounded so good! After a great pasta dinner and bottle of wine a la Grampa Peter, we were all in our happy place and looking forward to exploring the Apollo Bay area in the morning. As it was not perfect beach weather, we spent the next day walking in town, shopping for a few souvies, and then trekking out to the Cape Otway lighthouse where a climb to the top and a couple of roadside koalas were the highlight. Dinner was a lovely family meal at Chris's Restaurant, an area institution that hangs out high in the hills just outside Apollo Bay. Thanks, Dad!
With Melbourne now clearly in our sights, we packed up in the morning intent on making it to Lorne for another day of beach basking. Again the weather in Lorne cooperated and we lazed about the sand giving Nana and Grampa a good taste of what we had enjoyed so much just a few days prior. One more trip back to our favourite ice cream store for a taste of another kind (I think Alex had bubblegum with marshmallows and gummi bears) and then we were off winding our way back through Torquay and Geelong and finally back into Melbourne - excited and eager to share our adopted home with "the 'rents". Our third big Aussie adventure was over and our minds and mini-van were packed with the memories.
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