Sunday 7th November

Drove up to the high point by the war memorial for the view. A large group of bikers had gathered to remember their fallen colleagues from the Vietnam war. We then went on to Hanging Rock through the rolling hills and past fields of cows and more enormous vineyards.

It was a windy day with the sun making appearances from behind fast moving clouds. There were good views as we climbed the rock but it did have an eerie atmosphere and it was easy to recognise the inspiration behind the novel. A visit to the Hanging Rock museum, where the exhibition dedicated as much space to the making of the film as it did to the significant Aboriginal site. However, it was one of the first films to bring the Australian film industry to the attention of the world.

We had a picnic after our descent from the rock and then (fortunately) all returned safely to the house. We ate a delicious roast lamb for dinner (cooked in the webber), followed by an evening of chatting and casual drinking!

Monday 8th November

We went up a 'Poppet Head' in Bendigo, whose wealth is based on gold, where some mines are still in use. We visited the art gallery to see a modern international exhibition of chess pieces, with contributions from the likes of Tracey Emmin and Damien Hurst. There was also a similar exhibition from some contemporary Australian artists. We spent some time (too much for Gary's liking) viewing some more traditional Australian art before having lunch at the gallery.

We then went to visit the Chinese garden with its pagodas and traditional Chinese bridges over a pond full of gold fish, the Chinese temple and the Chinese heritage museum. The museum houses a wealth of Chinese artefacts reflecting the influx of the Chinese for the Australian gold rush. The museum also houses the largest ceremonial dragon in Australia which is used in the Easter carnival and requires 40 people to operate it.

On our way home we were driven into the local woodland close to Sarah and Gary's house. We climbed a lookout tower for the view and watched as the sky darkened with the approaching storm.

Downloaded some English folk music and Australian blues and folk music to my ipod after we ate.

Tuesday 9th November

Had a long drive through an area devastated by the bush fires 18 months ago, with the loss of well over 100 people. Many people are still without homes and living in makeshift accommodation. Sarah runs a knitting circle as a form of therapy for these people who lost everything. It must be working as a therapy as one or two even gave up their actual therapist in favour of the knitting circle! There was a surprising amount of re-growth from the charred eucalyptus trees, reminding us of our trip to the Peloponnese 18 months ago where a fire a year earlier had devastated immense olive groves.

We went to a wildlife park where the care of the large selection of Australian animals and the excellent display of the birds of prey was in sharp contrast to the animal sanctuary 'Featherdale' on the Blue Mountains trip.

We picnicked in the wildlife park and returned on the other side of the hill through forests of enormous gum trees with very straight trunks, each one producing enough wood for one house - well that's what Gary said and who am I to argue!

We went out to the local pub for a meal; where the volume of food served up far exceed our expectation and appetite. We all agreed the starter would've been enough. It's no surprise that the level of obesity in Australia has become such a problem and concern.