MIldura, mini sauna

Mildura

Time spent 19th March - 26th March

7 1/2 Hours from Melbourne, got off the coach and it was very very hot! Honestly I didn't really do much there, there's not a lot to do. Its a working place, fruit picking and, well that's about it. its been a bad season so there's not much about, but here's a few snaps of what I found while wandering around




(Marco, this ones for you =)

Tis a Strange place, temperature wise. Mildura has a tendency to be about 24-25 degree's at midday, going up to 27-28 at about 3-4 pm and then by the time it gets to 8-9 pm it's 30 degrees! Its a really strange place, but every now and then there's something picturesque. I in now way shape or from took pictures of the fountain just to make sure I wasn't hallucinating heatwave style. . . .







Running through Mildura is the river Murray, Aussies largest river, its 2,375 kilometres (1,476 miles) in length. The Murray rises in the Australian and meanders across Australia's inland plains, forming the border between New South Wales and Victoria




Next to the river I found this little park, full of Lillies and ducks and tree's with long traipsing leaves and such like. Its defiantly one of the best things about travelling, going somewhere I've never been and stumbling across something unexpected.





And finally, there's no real significance to the final pictures, its just the sun, coming through the window of the hostel, towards the end of the day, and i thought it was worth a shot or two



Thanks for watching

Louise

The Great Ocean Road

Ok, we have USB!

I'm in Adelaide now, but more on that when I've caught you up on all the other stuff.

So The Great Ocean Road took me from Melbourne along (ironically enough) The Great Ocean Road, which ends at a very scenic landmark called the 12 Apostles. The road was built to provide work for returning soldiers and dedicated as a Memorial to those killed in WW1




And, as it was a day trip we stopped off to see some sights along the way, one of the first was a caravan park which is home to some local wildlife. . .






The easiest way to find a Koala . . . . look for a group of people with cameras, if they are surrounding a tree, then that's a good place to start. Also listen carefully for excited squeals (of tourists, not Koala's)


Some beachy ones along the way, twas a bit misty



Along the way we stopped off to see, what our guide called 'a little pocket of rainforest and i quite liked it so am stealing it. He also told us stories about the jumping spiders, which apparently we didn't need to be scared off due to the snakes that would eat them, but then he did warn us about the crocs would have eaten the snakes that ate the spiders. . . and then laughed and sent us into the forest. The one thing they do have mind you, is carnivorous snails. (No, really!)

Its really hard to show just how tall the tree's are!!




About 10 mins away from our end destination, 12 Apostles is Loch Ard Gorge which is named after the ship Loch Ard which shipwrecked on Muttonbird Island on 1st June 1878 near the on of its three-month journey from England to Melbourne. Of the the fifty-one passengers and crew, only two survived: Tom Pearce, a ship's apprentice, and Eva Carmichael, an Irishwoman immigrating with her family. The Fact that the weather was not bright an sunny did nothing to diminish the beauty and only added to the atmosphere of the story.




The 12 Apostles The Twelve Apostles were originally named the 'Sow and Piglets'. Located near Loch Ard Gorge, the Sow was Muttonbird Island, with the piglets being the smaller surrounding rocks. Apparently the 12 piglets weren't enticing quite as enticing to the tourists. Don't know why though, I'd be intrigued to go see the 12 piglets, however Apostles does sound slight more dramatic. They are quite astonishing, large structures of rock just off the coast, amazing from both high and low views






Well that was a Ramble and a half, but thanks for listening

More soon

Louise

Parakeets and Possums

So there I was, sitting under some tree's enjoying my books, shade and a breeze, when a large solid item fell from the sky. I saw it out of the corner of my eye, and initially though it was someone throwing their shoe. On closer examination i discovered it was in fact a large chunk of wood that had come out from the tree! As you can see its pretty big.

However as I was simultaneously ending and looking in great confusion at the tree that seemed to be throwing huge chunks of wood I then saw. . .



Sorry the pics aren't that great, the trees are pretty high and my zoom didn't zooooom that much, but you can see the small exotic birds with the pretty colours, which I sat and watched for aaaages.

However, while I was doing this, I heard some passers by asking each other the 'oooo, what do you think it is'. So, I sat up from my coloured bird trance to find a very small baby possum at the bottom of another tree

Possums are more highly though of in Oz than in NZ. I think they're protected here, however in NZ i think the general rule is that your allowed to swerve in the middle of the road to hit them, and if anyone gets in your way they will get in trouble. Possums are not so good for the native birds in NZ. They are really bizarre looking creatures as well, but as with most baby elements this one is fairly cute, with added novelty value.

I'll be heading North in a few days, job seeking in a place called Mildura, which has lots of working hostels, so we think we may be on to something. on the map it looks fairly close however it is a good 8 hour combined train and bus journey. Before I go I'll be doing the Great Ocean Road tour, which I'm excited about as I'm expecting lots and lots of scenery, will keep you posted.

As for St Kilda, it has been good, a bit tourist like but a good first stop, beaches, penguins, kamikaze palm tree's, allowing me to adjust to what I consider to be fairly extreme heat, while at the same time reminding me that I do need to wander on




I'm sure St Patrick's day will be interesting if nothing else due to the sheer number of Irish, the fact that the Aussies seem to like it, and I'm in a hostel with about 200 people who aren't opposed to the odd pint every now and then. . .

Neighbours Night. . .

For those of you bored with the scenic pics, this may well amuse you (although it will probably amuse you either way). Ever heard of a small Aussie soap called. . . erm. . .right, yeah Neighbours. Well here in Melbourne, every Monday night at an English style pub, they hold whats been named 'Neighbours Night'. This involves some of the cast attending, answering questions, lots of cheesy competitions, photo's and general randomness. It came free with my starter pack. I wasn't really sure what to expect, being that I don't watch Neighbours. However, towards the end of the evening, the Actor who plays Dr Karl Kennedy came on, after wandering around giving very cheesy photo's, he. . . began. . .to. . .Sing! Including, but not limited to The Killers (how did it end up like this), Maroon 5 and Kings of Leon. On stage, with a band, and very enthusiastic he was too (as was Paul Robinson, who came on before). It. Was Hilarious! And if these photo's don't make you giggle, even in a cringy way, I don't know what will





Thanks for watching

Louise

Some more Sunsets

Well, as some of you may know, turns out I'm a bit of a sunset geek, so the other day, when I saw a few clouds in the sky I had a feeling it may be worth wandering down to the beach and taking a few photo's. I did have to take shelter from the sun behind a car while I was waiting, which turned out to be a purplish ford type car (that's Matt if your watching=P) Turns out it was worth doing as this was the result. . .