February 23, 2009
When we left Alice Springs a few days ago, we were used to seeing vast stretches of empty, rust-coloured landscape. A couple of hours later our airliner set us down into a bustling city of several million people. At the airport to greet us was Terry, one of the three Aussies who rode with Doug on the cross-Canada cycle tour. Through roaring freeways and confusing back streets he drove us back to his house where we made the delightful acquaintance of Kathleen and their two boxers, Harvey and Lonnie.
Their home has been our base ever since. Well, it’s perhaps more a place to pause as Terry and Kathleen have taken us to see wonderful sights in and around Melbourne (quick lesson on the pronunciation of place names: Australians call it “Melbin”).
On our first full day we did a walking tour of the downtown, taking in such things as the striking Flinders Street railway station, the trendy Southbank area, and the impressive reading room of the public library. We took the free tram that circles the downtown, hopping on and off as we saw something of interest. One of the most curious was the cow in the tree, a sculpture near the waterfront in the city’s Docklands area. Don’t ask.
For the next few days we visited the gorgeous beaches and little towns along and near the Great Ocean Road west of the city. Many of the towns in the area are swollen with vacation homes, some quite precariously perched on the bluffs high above the rolling surf. Built in the Depression as a make-work project for soldiers returning from WWI service, the Great Ocean Road offers absolutely stunning coastlines and vistas. Small wonder it is among the premier tourist attractions in the country.
We popped into a local winery, Scotchman’s Hill, for a tasting of their products, trying to look knowledgeable about what we were doing. After that, we went to another winery for lunch, the blue waters in the bay below us, and the skyline of Melbourne off in the distance.
We pulled off a kind of coup on the trip when Pat spotted a koala in a tree beside the twisty road we were trav
elling. Terry doubled back and we got out to take pictures, only to discover about five or six more koalas in the tall eucalyptus trees. Terry and Kathleen were impressed, because this was their first ever sighting of koalas in the wild. Other creatures like kangaroos and wombats have eluded us, so we’ll fill that gap with a trip to the Melbourne zoo.
Tony, another crazy Aussie from Tour du Canada, and his partner Virginia joined us for a delightful Sunday cycle around the city on municipal recreational paths. Terry an
d Kathleen cut a fine figure on their Bike Friday tandem. The trip of course included lunch and people watching by the Yarra River. Whenever the ladies made shopping forays into shops and markets, the men kept watch over the bicycles and tried their best to look like fearless hunter-gatherers.
We have to say something about the serious bush fires that you have probably read about. Yesterday was a national day of mourning for the over 200 people killed in outlying towns. Because of the dry brush and eucalyptus trees and the isolation of some of the outlying towns, many people were trapped and could not get out in time. Sad.
When we left Alice Springs a few days ago, we were used to seeing vast stretches of empty, rust-coloured landscape. A couple of hours later our airliner set us down into a bustling city of several million people. At the airport to greet us was Terry, one of the three Aussies who rode with Doug on the cross-Canada cycle tour. Through roaring freeways and confusing back streets he drove us back to his house where we made the delightful acquaintance of Kathleen and their two boxers, Harvey and Lonnie.
Their home has been our base ever since. Well, it’s perhaps more a place to pause as Terry and Kathleen have taken us to see wonderful sights in and around Melbourne (quick lesson on the pronunciation of place names: Australians call it “Melbin”).
On our first full day we did a walking tour of the downtown, taking in such things as the striking Flinders Street railway station, the trendy Southbank area, and the impressive reading room of the public library. We took the free tram that circles the downtown, hopping on and off as we saw something of interest. One of the most curious was the cow in the tree, a sculpture near the waterfront in the city’s Docklands area. Don’t ask.
For the next few days we visited the gorgeous beaches and little towns along and near the Great Ocean Road west of the city. Many of the towns in the area are swollen with vacation homes, some quite precariously perched on the bluffs high above the rolling surf. Built in the Depression as a make-work project for soldiers returning from WWI service, the Great Ocean Road offers absolutely stunning coastlines and vistas. Small wonder it is among the premier tourist attractions in the country.
We popped into a local winery, Scotchman’s Hill, for a tasting of their products, trying to look knowledgeable about what we were doing. After that, we went to another winery for lunch, the blue waters in the bay below us, and the skyline of Melbourne off in the distance.
We pulled off a kind of coup on the trip when Pat spotted a koala in a tree beside the twisty road we were trav
elling. Terry doubled back and we got out to take pictures, only to discover about five or six more koalas in the tall eucalyptus trees. Terry and Kathleen were impressed, because this was their first ever sighting of koalas in the wild. Other creatures like kangaroos and wombats have eluded us, so we’ll fill that gap with a trip to the Melbourne zoo.Tony, another crazy Aussie from Tour du Canada, and his partner Virginia joined us for a delightful Sunday cycle around the city on municipal recreational paths. Terry an
d Kathleen cut a fine figure on their Bike Friday tandem. The trip of course included lunch and people watching by the Yarra River. Whenever the ladies made shopping forays into shops and markets, the men kept watch over the bicycles and tried their best to look like fearless hunter-gatherers.We have to say something about the serious bush fires that you have probably read about. Yesterday was a national day of mourning for the over 200 people killed in outlying towns. Because of the dry brush and eucalyptus trees and the isolation of some of the outlying towns, many people were trapped and could not get out in time. Sad.
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