The Great Ocean Road

My updates are sort of scattered at this point but after Melbourne we headed out for the Great Ocean Road. The Great Ocean Road is a stretch of coastal highway that runs from the famous surf town of Torquay to Port Campbell on the south coast of Australia.

As we headed south we stopped in Geelong for a day of jet boating and a helicopter ride over Corio Bay. Both activities were super fun and I really enjoyed my first time in a helicopter.

Then we headed to Torquay where the famous Bells Beach surfing spot is located. This beach is engrained in surf history and hosts the longest running surf competition in the world. Unfortunately the day we were there the surf didn’t live up to its massive standards and we missed the big Rip Curl Pro surf competition by about a week- but it was still a cool place to visit. One surfer declared it, “God’s gift to surfers.” And we had a blast acting out the final scene from Point Break (although that was technically filmed in Oregon).

The Great Ocean Road definitely lived up to its name. The winding road twists and turns around the costal cliffs offering stunning views of the turquoise ocean and large swells. We got to check out the Cape Otway Lighthouse, the oldest operating light station in mainland Australia, and had fun dealing with the extreme heights on the Otway Fly skywalk- the biggest and longest suspended walk in the world. Plus the best part was seeing koalas in eucalyptus trees!!! They have to be one of the cutest animals I have ever seen and all I wanted to do was cuddle one. Although I was informed they aren’t the friendliest animals and would probably rip my eyes out if I went up to one… Yikes! We found three sleeping peacefully in a tree as nocturnal animals do during the day but we managed to shake the tree to wake them up. TYPICAL AMERICANS!!! Oh well it was much more fun when they were awake and the little, fluffy, Yoda looking creatures put on a great show climbing around and eating leaves.

Finally we got to Port Campbell and the highlight of the Great Ocean Road- The Twelve Apostles. The 12 Apostles are these freestanding rock formations that stand about 45 meters high. There are actually only 6 apostles left because the sea and erosion have caused half of them to crumble. I also really liked a place called the London Arch, which was formerly known as the London Bridge, but it too fell back in the 90’s and stranded 2 tourists and their car. I thought man that must have sucked but not as bad as if they had been driving out to the lookout point when it came down. They wouldn’t have had a chance!

Melbourne and Mullets

We spent several days in Melbourne before and after the Great Ocean Road. I really liked this city, it’s completely different than Sydney and that mainly has to do with the culture. Where Sydney came off as a clean, starched shirt, uptight sort of place Melbourne is more gritty, more funky and definitely more alternative.

The young people here have really embraced the whole 80’s style thing. I lost count of the number of leggings and Flock of Seagulls haircuts I saw. It seems every girl owns a pair of leather, flat-soled Pat Benatar style boots in an array of colors and for the men mullets rule in this city.

We spent many nights in shock and sometimes wide-eyed horror at the variety of amazing mullets we saw. Anywhere from skullets (shaved on the top and long in the back) to full blown feathered do’s that would have made Jon Bon Jovi proud 20 years ago.

My favorite part of Melbourne was a section called St. Kilda on the outskirts of the city. Lot’s of fun thrift shops, less 80’s more retro and I figured it would be the perfect place to pierce my little nose. It hurt like hell and despite my mother’s adverse reaction over the phone and a reminder that God didn’t make me that way I think I’ll keep it. She doesn’t usually throw out the God card too often so it made the whole situation all the more hilarious.

Stay Left

I made my first attempt at driving on the left side of the road the other day and despite some eye rolling from the crew and a nervous Steve (or two) I thought it went pretty well.

It wasn’t really all that hard and after almost sideswiping a sign and knocking a few things over in the van, as I got use to the steering, it was basically smooth sailing from there.

As the only female on the trip that volunteered to take on some of the driving burden during this early leg of the trip I expected some nervous glances and maybe even some criticism but what the guys don’t know is that I am sort of a driving fanatic.

Ever since I could remember I loved to drive. When I was a kid I use to tag along with my dad when he went golfing just to drive the cart and would sit on his lap and steer our big family van home after school. Once, I even “borrowed” my mom’s old Buick, when I was about 12-years-old, for a joy ride around the block. My seventeenth birthday (the legal driving age in NJ) couldn’t come fast enough for me or my parents.

Anyway, back to my maiden-driving voyage… So for several days, from Sydney to Melbourne, we had been driving through these really nice, wide, open country roads which helped build up my confidence but it turns out the day I decided to try my hand behind the wheel the Great Ocean Road became a great winding road. I had to tackle one of the toughest parts of the drive with hairpin turns and steep cliffs around every turn.

Other than Shoppman crying out “whoa, whoa, whoa” (when I almost hit the sign) there were no other comments about my day as campervan driver and only time will tell if I get handed the keys again.

South Coast Drive

We’ve been on the road for a few days now headed south to Melbourne with two camper vans and it’s been great. Getting out of hot, busy Sydney was a much-needed breath of fresh air for us all. The two Toyota Hiace camper vans we rented from Britz are actually quite nice and I’ve been feeling a little spoiled because “roughing it” has come with a refrigerator, microwave and running water thus far.

Our route has been along the scenic Princes Highway which, for the most part, hugs the coast. About an hour outside of Sydney, shortly after the town of Wollongong, the land opens up dramatically into lush rolling farmland with horses and cattle grazing through the kind of green that appears to be glowing. Every once and a while we caught a glimpse of the inviting coast to the east and the horizon to the west is filled with flat-topped mountains thick with dark rainforests.

We spent the first night camped at a small, secluded beach called Merry Beach by the town of Kioala and were greeted at dusk by wild kangaroos littering the campsite. It was so incredible seeing kangaroos, more prevalent than squirrels back home, feasting on the grass and being able to get within 3 feet from the strange but beautiful animals. I went wild photographing them especially a mama with a little Joey cramped into her pouch.

This first campsite we found was perfect. Besides my first wonderful encounter with kangaroos we were only about 200 yards away from the ocean on a gorgeous beach. Plus, first thing in the morning Elena and I took a great run along a dirt trail that headed up to the surrounding cliffs and on to other tiny beaches with astounding views. And when we thought our morning couldn’t get any better these friendly rainbow lorikeets- big, colorful, parrot-like birds- came right up to us and we were able to feed them from our hands.

The following nights we hopped along down the coast staying at Mallacoota inlet, Tyres Lake beach and Wilsons Promontory National Park. They were all pretty cool campsites especially the last one where we all tried body boarding on a nice surf break but none of them could compare, in my opinion, to our first night.

It was just such a special place. It wasn’t listed in any of our guidebooks, no one recommended it. It was just this tiny spot on one of our maps that turned out to be such a wonderful place, a gift, our first little reward of having automobiles and being able to get off the beaten path.

Sydney- people, sites and giant bats

Stepping off the plane at Sydney International airport I was struck by three things. One the suffocating humidity, two total exhaustion from 15 hours in airplanes and three utter disbelief that I actually pulled this off. Six weeks ago I stumbled across The World By Road website and made a bold decision to drop all aspects of my life- my job, my car, my friends- and join this expedition.

Three days later I am certain I made the right decision.

Sydney is a wonderful city. I have spent the last three days meandered through a sea of tall, leggy, fair-haired and friendly people. It’s a very clean city full of young professionals in starched shirts and ties hurrying off to work and shows very little signs of poverty in the city center.

Overall it’s a very modern looking city with many tall, sleek buildings but it will occasionally surprise you as you turn a corner and are confronted by a beautiful old stone cathedral or a breath taking view of one of the many surrounding harbors.

Visiting the famous Opera House was definitely one of the highlights of my sightseeing. It is truly amazing and no matter what angle I photographed it from, and I tried many, I don’t feel like I could capture how stunning this piece of architecture is.

However, I think my favorite experience thus far was losing myself in the lush rainforest trails of the city’s Botanical Gardens. We stumbled upon hundreds of Red Flying-Fox bats hanging from the trees- dripping from the highest branches like giant ebony raindrops. The large wild fruit bats were pretty active for the middle of the day and were creating this wonderful, deafening screech that will be hard to forget.

The only down side so far is that three days of gray skies has this sun-worshiper and photographer a little frustrated and desperate for some golden light and long, deep shadows.

Regardless of what the weather will be I can’t begin to explain the sense of excitement and optimism I feel about this expedition. I have joined this incredible, dynamic group full of people who have so much to offer and learn from. It’s so wonderful sharing in the responsibilities of the trip. Instead of little ol’ me by myself, scratching my head by trying to decipher the train schedule there is this wonderful team I’ve become a part of who share my love and respect for other cultures.

It’s going to be one hell of a ride.