One of the main things I wanted to see in Victoria was the Great Ocean Road which runs all the way through to the famous 12 Apostles near Port Campbell. It is a long drive in a round trip so Matt decided driving there would be my Christmas present which I was quite happy with. Matt's girlfriend, Tess, came too so she could practice her driving. We drove through a lot of seaside towns on the way including the city of Geelong, Torquay, Lorne and Apollo Bay. You could see that these were all popular with holidayers even though it was a bit cloudy to start the day with. We then arrived at the GOR which was really beautiful. The road literally just snaked around the cliffs very near to the ocean and once the sun came out when we were near the 12 Apostles it made it even better by reflecting off the sandstone cliffs and the blue sea. It was understandably a very windy road but Matt enjoyed the drive as most drivers down it generally do.

Once we got to the 12 Apostles which are just before the small town of Port Campbell, the skies were blue and the temperature up (40 degrees!). We timed it very well because the clear weather meant the Apostles were looking their best and very impressive. They are essentially just big bits of rock sticking out of the water but are very pretty and it leaves you wondering just how they were formed, quite remarkable. We spent about 45 minutes there and on the way back stopped off in Torquay for fish and chips at sunset before continuing the journey back. At one stage we drove up a random road to allow a driver change between Matt and Tess and ended up finding an amazing lookout point. We just kept driving up and the road continued until we found a small house and a view over a valley, the mountain, the GOR and the horizon. It was stunning and the sky was so blue it almost seemed to blend in with the sea and the horizon. I'd never seen anything like it. I thought the day was well worth it despite the 12 hour round trip!

Over the next week or so I also spent a few days in the centre of Melbourne as there really is a lot to do. The first time I travelled in I did a few walking tours from a book which took you around all the important buildings like the Victorian Government and various cathedrals before going to the botanical gardens and walking a fair way down by the big Yarra river that runs through the middle of the city. I ended up walking for about 7 hours that day so next time I went in I decided to take in attractions that required less leg movement. I went to the old Melbourne Gaol which was very interesting. It was well kept and the cells were very eerie. They also put on a kind of play to illustrate the life and times of Ned Kelly, the Australian anti-hero who was executed at the prison. You could also go just down the road to the state museum and see the body armour he used during his battles and it apparently has a value today of just over $7 million, that's a lot even with the Australian dollar bullying the pound at the moment!

I continued my walking adventures on another particularly sunny day by walking from Hampton to the suburb of St. Kilda. It was a 24km round trip and took me about 5 hours but the coast was really beautiful. The route goes all the way through the suburbs of Brighton and Elwood too and some of the beaches were quite impressive despite being so close to the city centre. It was quite a windy day and there were plenty of windsurfers and sailors about. I walked the St. Kilda pier when I got there which is quite famous for burning down in 2003. On the subject of burning, I managed to avoid it all day with the classic factor 30 and have been pretty good while in Australia despite plenty of entirely blue-skied days!

Next is the Australian Open which I have bought lots of tickets for and I've still got some lovely parts of Melbourne to visit like Williamstown and the Mornington Peninsula so I have more to look forward to before my departure.