Life is a Journey not a Destination

Another great day. After an easy morning - which was good as I was able to spend a bit of time reorganising our clothes and food ready for 6 single night stays coming up - we headed to Flagstaff Hill around 10am.

Once we had bought our tickets we watched a short movie with diary extracts from one passangers trip across the seas from London to Australia. Then it was time for the girls to go to school - a 1870s school to be exact. They had to dress and act correctly and had a lesson in the classroom. They loved it and it was fun watching all the kids do exactly as they were told. At the end of the class they even had their hands and boots inspected - too funny.

From here we explored the shipping village. The girls had activity book and had to find clues and collect stamps from various buildings. We stopped around 12.30pm for lunch in tea rooms. I had a very delicious homemade veggie soup. Nice and warming on this cold day. We finished our explorations and left around 2.30pm.

We stopped on the way back to the cabin to get some grocery items and fill up with petrol. We enjoyed an afternoon snack of cheese, crackers and apples with Mum & Dad. Kevin hooked up a special ariel so I’ve got a decent internet connections so I uploaded some photos (if you look back at the last few days you’ll see I’ve included some more photos.

Later tonight we head back to Flagstaff Hill to see the Shipwrecked show, then tomorrow it’s on to Kingston (I think).

Managed to sleep in till around 6.30am. By 8am we were all up, packed, ready and had eaten breakfast. Today I decided to go on the bike with kevin as we rode along the Great Ocean Road. We set off around 8.30am. Lovely riding and after we managed to get the coms working we were able to talk to each other. I only lasted on the bike till Apollo Bay though, as I was absolutely freezing. We stopped at a cafe and had a cup of tea and a yummy brownie while waiting for Mum & Dad to catch up with the van. I really wanted to go with Kevin but it was cold and very windy (so it would be easier for Kevin to ride without me on board).

Now in the car I slowly warmed up and we arrived at Otway Fly. We had some lunch - Kevin and I shared a delicious Falafel salad.

Then it was time to do the tree top walk. It was lovely walking through the rainforest, then through the tree tops and up the viewing tower.

Walking back up through the rainforest floor was quite a workout - I enjoyed it though. We had a little break and the girls made fake snow.

Then it was time to hit the road, stopping to see the Twelve Apostles. It was SOOOOO cold and windy here, but luckily we managed to avoid the rain. The view was stunning but we didn’t stay long.

From here we drove on to Warnanbool where we are staying the next two nights. This is our nicest apartment so far and after unloading the car in the drizzle we settled in for the night.

Woke up around 5.30am and went to the loungeroom to read and enjoy a cup of tea. Around 7am everyone (except Christy) was awake so I started packing up all our belongings. We left the van park just after 9am (Kevin left about 8.30am) and set off for Torquay. We passed through very pretty countryside arriving in Torquay around 11.30am. We went through the Surf Museum which was quite interesting. The girls enjoyed seeing the old style surf boards and watching some video of the big wave surfers.

We next headed to Bells Beach – probably the most famous big surf beach in Australia. We missed the big surf last week so there were only a few surfers out but it was still great to see the place. We went for a bit of a walk here right beside the Great Ocean Road. Can’t wait to see more of it tomorrow.

From here we headed to Anglesea and our place for the night. The girls went off to play at the park right away.

After having some lunch and getting the van set up and our stuff unloaded, we drove into the town and did a bit of shopping. I got myself a very nice shawl and Amy got a nice vest. We also picked up a few groceries and got to put a local golden retriever.

Back at the park I put some washing on and we had some afternoon tea. We then went for a swim in the indoor pool. We had fun throwing the ball around but it was pretty cold when we got out.

After collecting the washing we headed back to our cabin and settled in for the night. I tried to update my blog but couldn’t get an internet connection so I just typed this up and will post it later. So tonight I will have to knit and read (instead of catching up with my favourite blogs).

Tomorrow : Driving along the Great Ocean Road to Warnanbool.

Managed a bit of a sleep in this morning till 6.30am. Had an easy morning and left just before 10am for Sovereign Hill. This is a 1850s real life museum set at one of Australia’s biggest gold fields. We had a great day and found all the staff (dressed in period costumes) to be very helpful and full of information about the gold rush days.

The girls enjoyed panning for gold and going for a ride on the horse and cart.

It was very cold day and it was nice to stop inside for lunch and warm up.

The snow on main street was fun and later the girls enjoyed the snow slide and playing in the man-made snow. Mind you it seemed cold enough to be really snowing.

We left around 3.30pm and headed back to the cabin to warm up. Later tonight we head back to see the Blood on the Southern Cross show.

LATER : The show was really great. It was very cold but we were expecting that.

Had a wonderful day. I got up around 6.30am and read for a bit. Kevin headed off on his bike to Melbourne for a ride and buy himself a warm jacket (it’s very cold here). The girls played at the park and I joined them to do some exercises.

At around 11.30am my friend Adrienne came to pick me up. I’ve know Adi for around 9 years I think it must be. We met online and then have met in real life a number of times when I’ve come down to Melbourne. I haven’t seen her in 4 years so it was wonderful to catch up in real life. The years just slipped away and it was just like we had chatted the other week. After a tour around Ballarat, we stopped for coffee/hot chocolate and chatted, then went to the Fine Art Gallery. Neither of us were that impressed but we did like a “few” pieces. We then had a lovely lunch at a cute little Italian cafe. I had a very delicious pasta with cheese & brocolli sauce. Finally we had a wander around a local shopping center but being late on a Sunday afternoon a lot of the shops were closed, then a cup of tea back at our cabin. We were together for 5.5 hours and chatted and laughed the entire time. I so wish I lived closer to Adi so we could spend more time together. We just get on so well. Oh, well, at least I’ll get to see her again when I come to Melbourne next Feb.

The girls, Kevin, Nan & Pop went to Kryall Castle. They all seemed to have a good time.

Amy and I were up bright and early at 3.30am (yes, that was 3.30am). She crawled into bed with me and played her DS while I read. Around 4am I got up and made her some banana on toast and I had a tea and a couple of anzac cookies. Christy woke up about 6am (just I was thinking I might get a bit more sleep). They watched a bit of TV and we had some breakfast and got packed up. About 7.45 we ventured over to see Nan & Pop. They were just getting up and organised so the girls and I went for a walk around the van park and the girls had a play at the park. It’s very cold!!!

We hit the road just before 9am. We passed by lots of lovely countryside today and were amazed at the large number of lambs.

Around 11.45 we stopped for some lunch and continued driving on to Ballarat where we arrived about 3pm. Kevin had already arrived and checked into the cabin.

The park here is really nice. The girls were excited to see a good size play park and jumping pillow. After Mum & Dad got their van sorted (they are just across the road from our cabin), they joined us for some afternoon tea. The girls went off to do some organised craft for a bit.

It’s just after 6pm now and we’ve settled in for the night as it’s very cold outside. I’m pretty sure it’s going to be an early night after our very start this morning.

We’re on our way!!!! (all those you know the song from Brother Bear can sing along).

Kevin set off at 8am with not quite the same fan-fare as Ewan McGregor :-).

We left around 9am after a bit of excitement with Nan getting stuck between the gate and caravan. Luckily she was okay, though a bit sore.

Today was just lots of driving. I drank tea (no surprise there) and knitted. The girls played their DSs and completed some activity sheets I had printed out for them. We stopped around 12pm for lunch in the van.

We later stopped near Gundagai to see the dog on the tuckerbox. And once more for petrol.

We arrived in Wodonga around 4.30pm. Our cabin is basic but fine for the night. Shortly we’re going over to have tea with Nan & Pop, then I imagine we’ll have an early night.

Tomorrow : Driving to Ballarat

1. ayres rock, 2. ayres rock, 3. Uluru, 4. Mid Morning Shadows, Uluru

The countdown is one. In just 24 hours we hit the road. The girls and I are travelling with my parents in their 4 wheel driving, Kevin is riding his motorbike. He will join us most nights. My parents will be staying in their caravan and we’ll be staying in a combination of cabins and units. We’ll be flying back from Alice Springs and Kevin and my parents will make their own way home via Queensland. I’ll be taking my laptop so you can expect lots of blog updates while we’re away. You can also follow Kevin’s motorbike journey on his blog.

I’m fairly organised. Just need to pack our clothes and get all the animals organised (we’ve got a friend coming to look after them all).

Day 1 - Wodonga

Day 2 - 3 Ballarat

Sovereign Hill & Blood on the Southern Cross show

Day 5 - Anglesea

Day 6 -7 - Warrnambool

Flagstaff Hill and Shipwrecked show

Day 8 - Let the driving begin Kingston

Day 9 - Mount Barker

Day 10 - Port Augusta

Day 11 - Coober Pedy

Day 12 - Erldunda

Day 13 - 15 Yulara (Ayers Rock)

Day 16 - 17 Kings Canyon

Day 18 - Erldunda

Day 19- 24 - Alice Springs

The girls and I fly home, Kevin and my parents continue on returning home in a few weeks.

I’m a bit too busy this week to think of much to post except what I’m doing on a daily basis - which is a really a bit too boring to put into words- basically organising and packing for our trip. Instead I thought I’d share some more flikr photos that make me happy. 1. Applecross Hills from Ardarroch in Summer, 2. Durris-Pastures, 3. Butterflies, 4. White and blue, 5. Seascape - Paradis pour tous, 6. mr. bullock, 7. The Rock, 8. Pendragons realm, 9. P5192709.JPG, 10. Harewood Flowers, 11. IL CAMMINO (e non ci penso più), 12. in the swamp, 13. Ditte enjoys the sunset, 14. Doon Castle & Loch, 15. Findhorn Beach Sunset, 16. Ballachullish sunset, 17. Tree of Awe, 18. The Blackmount ,Rannoch Moor, Stormy Skies., 19. Untitled, 20. Gorge Wildflower, 21. IMG_4727NN, 22. And then there were seven, 23. Isle of Wee Cumbrae, 24. She rises above the rest, 25. IMG_4822NN

Another short week as we leave for our 3 week Ayers Rock trip on Friday morning. Meals will be very simple as I have a lot to get done this week and I’m on Canteen at school on Thursday.

MONDAY : Leftover Pasta with Mushroom Sauce (from Saturday night)

TUESDAY : Vegetarian Rice Pilaf (freezing some for trip)

WEDNESDAY : Bean patties in homemade (if have time) tortillas

THURSDAY : Cheese & Veg Ravioli with Organic Tomato sauce

For more great menu ideas visit the organising junkie and I’ll be back with more menus in about 4 weeks.