An early start for our drive along the Great Ocean Road recommended by family, friends, and the tourist board! Built by returned soldiers between 1919 and 1932 and dedicated to soldiers killed during World War I, the road is the world's largest war memorial. Winding along the coast and providing access to several prominent landmarks, including theTwelve Apostles limestone stack formations. A whole days worth of driving and drinking in the spectacular coastline w...

We decided to visit Phillip Island today and took Max (David's young son) with us. Max had visited the island previously with his school so was able to tell us all about the animals and birds, and show us the cliff paths and the best ways to go. The wind was cold but it stayed dry and sunny for us to make our way the the western tip of the island, Nobbies (see photo). The waves crashed onto the rocks and we saw some young penguins recently hatched in their boxes...

With the sun shining brightly and the forecast good, we decided to visit this National Park- Wilson's Promontory today. Affectionately known as 'The Prom', it is one of the state's best loved parks and is a refuge for an array of native wildlife including kangaroos, emus, wombats, echidnas and vividly plumed birds like rosellas. As we witnessed over lunch, the rosellas flocked to anyone with food- we had chips at the visitors area at Tidal River, and we're mobbed...

So we arrived at Meeniyan midday. A small town conveniently located for trips to the beautiful coastal area of South Gippsland and Wilson's Promontory. We had just missed seeing a koala with her baby in the tree in the garden- the kids were very excited but disappointed we missed it. The rain became heavier so we sat and chatted, looked at maps of the area and considered our options for today. We decided to take a drive to the coast with the hope the weather woul...

Back to Victoria for our 2nd stay in Australia. All nicely planned with our friends: a stay in their holiday home in Gippsland for a couple of nights. A pleasant flight back over the Southern Alps and West Coast, from a slightly higher altitude than our previous experience! A morning arrival at the very busy Melbourne Airport- passport control was pretty hectic with confused people at the e-passport route out. Once through we quickly hailed a taxi and arrived at ...