Melbourne

Melbourne rests on the bay of Port Phillip, along the Yarra River, and is the Capital of the Australian state of Victoria. The second largest city in Australia, Melbourne boasts as the cultural hub, with many museums, music venues and new-age architecture. Melbourne is also the sports capital, hosting many international sporting events including the Australian open for tennis.


View Larger Map

Arriving Thursday night and spending most of Friday sightseeing, I didn't get enough time to experience Melbourne. I hope to fly back there from Sydney to spend a full weekend soaking up the culture.

We didn't do much on Friday besides walk around the center of the city (CBD), or central business district. Wish I knew more about what I photographed, but here's Melbourne from my long Friday promenade:

Trams are the main form of public transportation in Melbourne. There cool to look at but not the most comfortable to ride in.

After our short, but sweet, visit to Melbourne, we headed off on Friday afternoon for the Great Ocean Road, the highlight of our trip down the coast. We were about to see so many great things!

Pebbly Beach/ Orbost/ Phillip Island

In the dark of Tuesday night we found our destination - Pebbly Beach, near Batemans Bay in the Murramarang National Park. Pebbly Beach is known for the friendly kangaroos that hop about its beaches so, even though it was dark when we arrived, we had to walk about.


View Larger Map

Kangaroos in the dark

 The next day we woke to the sounds of light rain on the hood of the van and a ticket from a park ranger for illegally sleeping in the park without a permit. That aside, we headed for the beach to see if the rumours of friendly Pebbly Beach Kangaroos were true... and, yes, they were:

The Kangaroos were everywhere. They were all friendly and barely noticed us as we approached. They even let us get close enough to touch them!!

The light, misty morning rain fell on both the Kangaroos, and us, making me feel even more like I was in the wild Australia. Below is a video of Pebbly Beach and the Kangaroos:

 The rest of Wednesday we drove and drove. The rain was relentless and wouldn't stop; so we didn't stop moving. We entered the state of Victoria, leaving New South Wales and stopped for the night in a picnic area next to the beach near the town of Orbost. 

In the early morning on Thursday we walked down to check out the beach. Surfers rode the waves as the run rose behind them; it was a truly beautiful sight. 

 Leaving Orbost early, we drove down Victoria in a hurry trying to make it to Phillips Island, renowned for its Penguin population, before spending the night in the city of Melbourne. 

View Larger Map

Following the signs for the Penguin march we drove down the island till we reached the visitors center. Turns out it costs 25$ a person to enter the prime locations for penguin watching!! We decided to check out some of the coastal walks instead. We ended up seeing a penguin under the board walk, for free!!!

The penguins found on Phillip Island, and in Australia/New Zealand, are called "little penguins." They are the smallest penguin species, and the only in Australia.

We hit the beach on Phillip Island after our walk, and, once again, we were the only people on the beach!