The Great Ocean Road

We're back home now but there's time for some thoughts about the Great Ocean Road before the memories start to fade. There's not a lot to say that hasn't been said already, but travelling the road is an experience of two distinct halves, either side of the Cape Otway Lightstation national park. 

On the east side there are miles and miles of golden beaches and rolling waves, making towns like Torquay and Anglesea the surf capitals of Australia. The road from Torquay to Apollo Bay was built after the First World War as a tribute to the soldiers who didn't return. Most of the work was done by those servicemen who did come home as it was thought that this would help them recuperate and rehabilitate into civilian life. They hacked their way into the steep cliffs with methods considered primitive even at the time, leaving a road that snakes along the shoreline offering a series of spectacular views.

The dominant feature of the west side of the road from Cape Otway to Port Campbell is the way the limestone and sandstone cliffs have been eroded to create stunning rock formations such as the Twelve Apostles and Loch Ard Gorge which are beautiful to behold.

These rock formations are constantly changing, and many are hidden just below the surface, making life difficult for sailors and lending the name of the Shipwreck Coast to the area.

The Cape Otway Lightstation was built to improve matters in 1848 although nowadays it's been replaced by a beacon and the keeper's cottage has been converted into a holiday apartment. As a final night treat we stayed there and with the park closed at the end of the day, we had it to ourselves apart from the caretaker and one other family, to enjoy views of the lighthouse and sunset, the moon and stars above and crashing waves below. A blissful end to an amazing holiday.

Four days with Rod Laver

When we booked this holiday we probably expected to see Novak Djokovic play Andy Murray in the men's tennis final, and hoped to see Andy lift the trophy for the first time. 

That dream died a long time ago, but it was replaced by a reality no one would have dreamed of. Roger Federer v Rafa Nadal in the men's final, Serena against Venus Williams in the women's: a throwback to Wimbledon finals weekend of 2008. In fact the last time Serena and Venus played in the Australian final was 2003. 

Our first taste of the tennis was a men's doubles semi, the Bryan brothers against Carreno Busta and Garcia-Lopez. They coped with Australia Day gun salutes outside and flypasts above as well as a few spots of rain and completed the match under the roof, the Bryans reaching their 10th final in Australia.

Then the women's semis; the next big thing Coco Vanderweghe fought hard and avoided any tantrums for two hours but Venus battled through and expressed her joy in a form of modern dance. Serena had less trouble against another oldie Mirjana Lucic-Baroni to set up the first unexpected final of the weekend. 

Roger Federer missed the second half of last year through injury and had slipped to 17th in the seedings, and we weren't the only ones to say he couldn't win another grand slam, but a series of hard fought victories against Thomas Berdych, Kei Nishikori and Stan Wawrinka saw him reach the final before we settled down to watch the second semi final. 

To set up the dream match, Rafa Nadal needed to beat Gregor Dimitrov. Like Roger, Rafa had struggled with a series of injuries and his best days seemed behind him, while Dimitrov had been the star of the tournament, apparently fulfilling his potential at last. The intensity was breathtaking but Nadal would not be beaten, although it was nearly one in the morning when he finally won the fifth set. 

I've often thought that finals between the Williams tend to be a bit of a let down and although this was closer than many, once Serena had conquered the nerves and errors which held her back in the first set, there was only going to be one winner. 

There were many who thought that after the effort of reaching the final, Roger and Rafa would also find it difficult to live up to the hype. It is true that both men looked tired and this allowed dominance to switch from one to the other in the first four sets. But in the fifth both raised their level and played at their best. Rafa got the early break and held off Roger's first counter attack, but Roger fought back to win five games in a row and became the oldest player to win a Grand Slam title since Ken Rosewall in 1972.

Away from the tennis, Melbourne was the exciting cosmopolitan city we expected: modern skyscrapers mixed with Victorian civic buildings, a large Chinatown and strong Italian and Greek influences alongside the British and native Australian cultures, good food and excellent public transport including free trams in the city centre. St Kilda with its nice beach and trashy entertainment was only a few minutes away but really this weekend was all about the Rod Laver arena. 

Walhalla

Walhalla was a mining boom town in the Victorian gold rush. Between 1862 and 1914 over seventy tons of gold passed through the vaults of the town's banks. 

Built in a steep gorge along the creek where the gold was first found, Walhalla was home to more than 3500 people at its peak, but as gold yields fell, people moved out and the town now has only 20 permanent residents.

Many of the town's buildings were dismantled and moved elsewhere, but those that remain have been restored and many more have been rebuilt in the original style. 

We stayed in an extraordinary bed and breakfast, built in the last ten years but faithful to the period down to the fixtures and fittings.

We travelled on the train which wasn't completed until 1910 by which time the gold was starting to run out.

We also went to the cemetery, clinging to the steep hill. 

Finally we climbed for half an hour to visit the cricket pitch at the top of the gorge. Although the Melbourne cricket club played here in the town's golden era, it wasn't much of a sight now, though we did enjoy the sense of achievement just getting there.

A wild and windy day on Wilson's promontory

We've seen plenty of bank holidays like this in West Bay: winds you can hardly stand up in, heavy showers and a proper British picnic in the car. Welcome to Wilson's Promontory. 

The weather in Victoria is nothing like New South Wales. Daytime temperatures in Sydney were 30 degrees, made comfortable by a sea breeze, and although it was scorching hot when we arrived in Melbourne, the temperature fell 15 degrees by dinner time. Since then the climate has been positively British, temperatures in the mid twenties but a bracing wind and plenty of rain. 

We spent Wednesday on the Mornington peninsula, full of golden beaches, rugged coastlines and great views from Arthur's seat, named after the one in Edinburgh. 

On Thursday we visited Phillips island, where the main town Cowes is lovelier than the one on the Isle of Wight. We also visited a koala reserve before driving along a spectacular coast towards Fish Creek.

At first sight, Fish Creek is a typical general store and petrol station stop. But it has a lovely Art Deco hotel and a small cafe opposite; we've eaten in both and both were really busy and the food was delicious. We also had a nice local Cabernet Sauvignon, though we've not had time to visit any of the vineyards. 

And so to Wilsons Promontory, a large national park at the southernmost tip of mainland Australia. For the first time since Christmas Eve we had to wear jumpers as well as long trousers, but between the showers we saw some of the best beaches so far, and a wildlife walk where we got close to a large group of kangaroos. And today's featured cute furry animal was a wombat!

72 hours in Sydney

If my friend Paul's business interests ever go pear-shaped, a life as a tour guide beckons. From the moment he picked us up to the moment he dropped us back at the airport, he had more than enough ideas to fill the day and drove hours to make sure  we saw the best places. 

This was our second visit following a brief stop after the Hunter Valley. On New Year's Eve we walked the length of Manly Beach to get a fabulous breakfast at a beach front cafe. 

Last Saturday Paul and his wife Lorraine took us from the airport to Botany Bay, Cronulla beach, then up to Bondi for dinner, then further along the southern beaches towards the city centre where we stopped for an ice cream.

On Sunday we took the Manly ferry back to the centre to visit a friend of Moira's family for a BBQ, then to the botanic gardens and an open air cinema with Paul and Lorraine. What a place to see a movie! After a delicious dinner overlooking the harbour, the screen rose out of the water, with the opera house and bridge in the background. It didn't matter what the film was but Manchester by the Sea didn't let us down.

On Monday we took a ferry from Palm Beach, of tv soap Home and Away fame, to Ettalong village on the central coast. And on Tuesday we visited Balmoral on the way to collapsing on the the flight to Melbourne. It goes to prove again that the best way to discover a city is for a local to show you their favourite spots, not just rely on the guide books. 

Glorious Whitsunday Islands...

Like the Great Barrier Reef itself, the 74 islands making up the Whitsundays were discovered and named for the western world by Captain Cook. After running into some dead ends he found a safe passage through the islands shortly after celebrating Whit. 

We stayed in Airlie Beach, which has a reputation as a backpackers resort where young people find all sorts of interesting ways of entertaining themselves. But the young people we saw were pretty well behaved and we were staying a bit of of town, well away from the club all nighters.  

There are also a string of marinas along the shore, home to some pretty fancy yachts, and where there are marinas, there are nice bars and restaurants, so there was no need to go hungry or thirsty. All in all very much like Portland except for thirty degree temperatures and ninety per cent humidity.

A number of operators offer Whitsunday cruises and we chose Whitehaven Xpress. Leaving one of the aforementioned marinas, we rounded the point and headed south, captain Shane picking his way between the rocks and the islands. We passed Hamilton island, which seems to have been sacrificed to the tourism trade in a deal to preserve the other islands. Hamilton has luxury resorts, a golf course and even an international airport while most other islands have at little more development than a camping ground and a bush toilet. 

First stop was the seven kilometres of Whitehaven beach, famous for its soft white sand. The colour comes from its high silica content which has other interesting properties. No matter how hot the sun, the sand remains cool and comfortable to walk on barefoot. It is also the material used by jewellers to polish rings, and a quick rub with the sand made our wedding rings sparkle almost like new.

This corner of paradise has one drawback. The invisible Irukandji  jellyfish has a sting which can kill in minutes, so we weren't allowed in the water without a fetching black head to toe stinger suit. Once we'd struggled into these we had a nice cooling swim in the sea while the crew prepared a BBQ for lunch.

Eating lunch in the shade we were joined by a number of lace monitor lizards, of which the biggest was nearly four feet long from tongue to tail, harmless but just looking for an easy feed.

We got back on the boat and headed up to Hook inlet, where we were given a guided walk to a ridge overlooking the shore with great views of the sand, the sea and some of the other islands. 

Then further north to a tranquil little bay off Hook island, sheltered from the wind, no waves or current, perfect for snorkelling. And for me to enjoy it, it has to be perfect. But unlike my swim off the dive boat, I was completely at ease and enjoyed every minute of it, seeing all kinds of colourful, albeit nameless to me, fish. 

The final thrill of the day was seeing a flash of a marine animal leaping out of the water on our way back to port. I thought it was a dolphin but our experienced guide said it was a dugong so I'm happy to take his word for it. 

Townsville

We didn't have any plans to stop in Townsville, it's just a big city between Mission Beach and Ayr, where Moira was booked in for her dive on the Yongala. But Moira's brother worked in Townsville some years ago so she thought some pictures would show how it has changed. 

The city is overlooked by a 260 metre high hill and you can reach the top by following a steep 2 kilometre road (work out the gradient for yourself). At the top you are rewarded with magnificent 360 degree views over the city, down the coast, out to the sea and back inland to the hills and woodland. 

It's a very popular pastime and every few yards there were people walking alone or in groups of twos or threes, some brave hearts running and one or two kamikaze cyclists. There were a few cars as well. We were in one of them.