We arrived in New Zealand a week ago and we're having a blast here! But... we were having so much fun in Melbourne that I just realized I haven't finished writing about our time in Australia. So, before I put up a post about our time in NZ, here's the rest on Oz...We left Adelaide on Dec. 20th and drove along the Great Ocean Road to Melbourne. The drive was gorgeous despite the rain. We saw beautiful coastal scenery, the highlight probably being the 12 Apostles and wildlife throughout the drive. 
We even got to see koalas in the wild - one more Australian animal we can check off our list! They were all hiding out in one particular part of the woods as we drove by and we were fortunate enough to pull over and spot 7 of them, curled up in balls hiding from the rain. It was awesome to see them in the wild and we were even able to get within a few feet of one who was sitting pretty low in a tree.
We even got to see koalas in the wild - one more Australian animal we can check off our list! They were all hiding out in one particular part of the woods as we drove by and we were fortunate enough to pull over and spot 7 of them, curled up in balls hiding from the rain. It was awesome to see them in the wild and we were even able to get within a few feet of one who was sitting pretty low in a tree.We took our time doing the drive over 2 1/2 days and arrived in Melbourne on December 22nd. Our friends Dave and Teresa (friends we met in Ireland who have since moved to Melbourne) met us at the car rental place and we stayed with them for a couple of days. They had a bbq that night and it was like a mini reunion of our Irish friends!!! We also got to catch up with our friend Luke who we hadn't seen in about 3 years (also met him in Dublin) and he showed us a bit of Melbourne we hadn't seen so far. So awesome to see friends again!!!
On Christmas Eve the McLean's came to collect us and we spent the next 4 1/2 days with them celebrating Christmas and seeing Melbourne and the surrounding area. It was so great to finally meet Doug and April (parents of our friend Brad who is in Ireland but not much longer...) and spend Christmas with their family! They too were awesome hosts and showed us around Melbourne and made us feel like part of the family. We even got to see National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation on Christmas evening - a tradition for us and one we thought we were going to have to miss out on this year. Luckily not!
April and Doug took us up to Healesville on the 26th to see the wildlife sanctuary up there and it was a gorgeous day out! The weather could not have been better and it was a bit warmer than it had been which we welcomed with open arms!!! We also got to try meat pies for the first time - what a treat! The 27th was spent with our friends Ross, Emma and their son Bailey, catching up and enjoying a lovely day out at some wineries near them, just south of Melbourne. Again, we could not have had better weather or a better time with the Smith's!
Next up was a visit with Carol and Phil (you guessed it... friends we met in Ireland that have moved to Melbourne... I'm seeing a trend here...) and their parents back down on the Great Ocean Road. April and Doug were incredibly generous and drove us down there via the ferry across the bay which showed us some of the 
beautiful coast south of Melbourne. Carol's parents were visiting from Ireland so the 6 of them had rented a house near Jan Juc Beach for the week after Christmas. They were so nice and invited us down for a couple of days and we were happy to join them and see them again. We really got to relax down there and enjoy some good beach time before heading back to Melbourne for New Year's Eve.
beautiful coast south of Melbourne. Carol's parents were visiting from Ireland so the 6 of them had rented a house near Jan Juc Beach for the week after Christmas. They were so nice and invited us down for a couple of days and we were happy to join them and see them again. We really got to relax down there and enjoy some good beach time before heading back to Melbourne for New Year's Eve. Dave and Teresa graciously loaned us their apartment over New Year's since they were away 
and we gladly accepted. Their apartment has gorgeous views over the city and it was an excellent base for us to explore more of the city on our own. We went to St. Kilda beach on the 30th and picked out a place to return to for New Year's Eve. On New Year's Eve day, we headed to Brighton Beach, which was really nice and pretty. It was boiling hot that day (42C/107F) so we were happy to be by the water. In fact, we couldn't even lay out properly b/c we felt like bacon frying in a pan!!! I had to lay on the waters edge just to stay cool enough.
and we gladly accepted. Their apartment has gorgeous views over the city and it was an excellent base for us to explore more of the city on our own. We went to St. Kilda beach on the 30th and picked out a place to return to for New Year's Eve. On New Year's Eve day, we headed to Brighton Beach, which was really nice and pretty. It was boiling hot that day (42C/107F) so we were happy to be by the water. In fact, we couldn't even lay out properly b/c we felt like bacon frying in a pan!!! I had to lay on the waters edge just to stay cool enough. That night we headed back down to St. Kilda beach to celebrate the new year. Melbourne does this cool thing where they provide free public transportation from 6pm on NYE to 4am the following morning. Very cool, except EVERYONE apparently wants to go to St. Kilda, including us! We had to wait for an hour for a tram b/c they all kept passing us up and not stopping. We finally got on one and there was no air/con so between it being 107F that day and the tram being completely overcrowded, the ride to the beach was miserable! And to make matters worse, the tram stopped shortly after we got on b/c there was a tram way ahead of us that broke down. It was very uncomforable and miserable to say the least! By 11:30 we finally made it to St. Kilda only to find out the place we wanted to go was 
entry-by-ticket only and they were all sold out. So, we went to the nearest bottle shop and got in line to buy beer to take down to the beach with us. We had to wait in line but finally made it out of there with 3 minutes to spare before midnight. We quickly headed for the beach, cracked open a couple of cold ones and counted down to midnight! We made it just in time!!! For starting off so rough, the night ended up good and we got to see 6 sets of fireworks going off all around the bay from our little spot on the beach. A pretty cool way to bring in the new year, if you ask me!
entry-by-ticket only and they were all sold out. So, we went to the nearest bottle shop and got in line to buy beer to take down to the beach with us. We had to wait in line but finally made it out of there with 3 minutes to spare before midnight. We quickly headed for the beach, cracked open a couple of cold ones and counted down to midnight! We made it just in time!!! For starting off so rough, the night ended up good and we got to see 6 sets of fireworks going off all around the bay from our little spot on the beach. A pretty cool way to bring in the new year, if you ask me!We finished up in Melbourne on the 1st and flew out to New Zealand on the 2nd of January. Riding to the airport I suddenly realized I was quite sad to be leaving Australia. Our 5 weeks there were incredible and it was really starting to feel like home. I have a feeling we'll be back though - hopefully sooner than later!
More from NZ coming soon...
Love,
Renee & Chuck
(Pictures from top to bottom: 12 Apostles on the Great Ocean Road, Koala outside of Apollo Bay, rooftop drinks with Dave and Teresa at Cookie in Melbourne, us with April, Doug and Jodie McLean on Christmas day, us and the Smith's, us with the McLean's on the ferry, view of Melbourne from Dave and Teresa's apartment, bath houses on Brighton Beach, St. Kilda on NYE 2008)
1 comment:
It's good to hear more about your travels and to see pictures. Australia looks like a beautiful place and I'm sure New Zealand is as well. Enjoy the last few weeks of your travel time. We can't wait to see you both in February!
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