MELBOURNE: Sunday 22nd April till Anzac Day 25th April 2012.

Yesterday we rode further into Melbourne than we had originally planned due to worrying about all the heavy traffic. The best things we have bought for our big holiday have been GPS Genie and Senna Speakers so we can manage at times like this, and we ended up at the Melbourne Big4 Caravan Park which is in Coburg, just 9kms out of Melbourne city.

Our tent site overlooked the Merri Creek and lovely bushland; you'd never guess we were near the heart of a huge city. Soon we had our "Shangri-La" tent set up, and Dave rode off to bring back some takeaway food for our first night in the big smoke.

Sunday was a day for visiting relations; Aunt Joan and her son Peter O'Loughlin with his gorgeous 14month old daughter Emma, whose mummy Catherine was in Canada for a short work trip. We had a most enjoyable afternoon yarning away in a warm house, and playing with our little niece. She panicked when we were leaving and I put on my motorbike helmet….I think she was trying to say something like "Take that alien away Daddy!" I've learned since I once freaked out my little granddaughter Rebecca not to approach babies with a helmet on, so I quickly backed off from Emma as we were leaving…I didn't want to have a howling child as a memory!

Before we rode over to see the O'Loughlins in Eltham, we caught a tram to Melbourne's Victoria Markets. I looked everywhere for a non-dorky camping hat that could stay on in a gale if necessary, but couldn't find such apparel. Only fancy pretty hats that would blow off on high cliffs when sightseeing etc. I did buy a cute jade ring for $10, a bargain and real jade! We ate yummy Asian food with chopsticks at the Markets.

On Monday we rode again 2-up on one bike (guess who was pillion ha ha!) as it is too tricky trying to keep 2 motorbikes together in heavy Melbourne traffic. We visited more relatives; having a lovely lunch visit with my cousin Deidre (nee Bensley) and her husband John. (Meredith.) It was great to catch up with Deidre and John after not seeing them for years and we yarned the afternoon away while rain and thunder and lightning gave us a sky show from their beautiful home windows.

John is writing a book after years of research on Deidre's uncle Richard Moffatt who died aged 19 in France in World War 1. Such a sad story and so good to see that a young life is being acknowledged after so many years; and this is such a sadly typical tale that John is writing about. I am looking forward to reading the book when it is ready. Apparently Richard Moffatt's personal possessions were incorrectly not returned to his immediate family after his death, and now the Canberra War Museum people are saying it is too late to let the family have things back, even one special engraved hand-made map of Australia that Richard made out of a spoon. Simon Crean the current Minister for Veterans Affairs has not been sympathetic to the family's request to have this back where belongs, but I am sure Deidre and John and other family members will see this very special family heirloom come back home successfully, as its young dead maker wanted this to be so. Only the official "dog tag" medals and army gear is legally meant to be retained at the War Museum, and why 19 year old Richard Moffatt's other personal gear was not returned to his family as it should have been remains a mystery, which can now be rectified as a matter of social justice!

On Tuesday 24th April Dave and I planned to pack up our tent and ride to Bairnsdale, but it was too rainy and cold. So we decided to get our laundry done instead, then hopped on a bus and then a tram to Melbourne city again, this time to explore Chinatown area. We looked at some very expensive jade jewellery there, had another chopstick Asian meal and I bought a beaut little black beanie with a peak (to keep the rain off my specs) for $6, another bargain. At a bus stop where we had to wait for a while we saw the worst child we have ever seen…we called her the Butterball because although she was only about 6 years old she was fat and eating a bun, and she was bullying her (fat) mum something terrible. I felt sorry for this child for being allowed to behave so badly, but we made sure we didn't sit near her on the bus home as she was too loud! She was demanding her mum carry her….as if a human could carry such a heavy butterball! It's child abuse to let a kid get so unhealthy I reckon. Made me realise how cute and good our 10 grandkids are! And we enjoyed our bit of "street theatre" while waiting for public transport.

We bought more food for tea at a 24 hour Coles in Coburg and had another yummy camp kitchen meal back at the caravan park. This one has had a lot of young European backpackers; French, German and Danish. We are the oldest ones in the communal kitchen, as all the other grey nomads have fancy caravans to do their thing in. We enjoy chatting to the young travellers and we told some last night about Op shops, as they looked so cold. They travel light because they are only staying a while, but the cold Melbourne weather was catching them out with not enough warmth. At least with Op shop gear they can afford to get warmer and then discard it when they have to leave for home. It often amazes me what beautiful English they speak, yet most Aussies cannot speak another language.

We are looking at our computer for weather patterns….it looks like more rain and storms coming! What to do now?

Anzac Day in Melbourne.Cold rainy and thunder stormy in Melbourne and to where we planned to ride, so we are not going anywhere! We booked a cabin for another night at the Big 4 Park, and then packed up our tent in pouring rain. Luckily our motorbike wet weather gear kept us dry while doing this. I would have loved to have gone into the city to see the Melbourne Anzac Day march, but we had to be off our tent site by 10am. Everything had turned muddy outside and the Merri Creek near our tent had turned into a Merry raging river. As we packed up in the cold rain and mud I contemplated how awful it must have been for the poor soldiers in Gallipoli and Europe and other places as they were living in tents then in the mud, misery and death all around them. Dave and I were doing it easy, with no sadness and a warm cabin to move to. We later watched the Anzac Day marches and ceremonies on TV in our cosy room. Now we can ride out of Melbourne tomorrow morning without having to pack things up, and the weather forecasts better conditions. But, do we travel northwards, or southwards? Still to decide, weather permitting.