The Great Coastal Road and...onto. Adelaide, October 30 & 31st

 October 30

    We left Melbourne nice and early...we really enjoyed the city. We wanted to get a nice early start on the Great Ocean Road. However, within several miles of leaving, the tire light came on, the same one that was on when we rented the car and which the rental people dismissed and removed the warning.

     When we got to a pump, the tire was down to 16 pounds! (out of 32.) So, we filled it and had to stop 2-3 more times to keep refilling it. And, we bought a tire gauge as the tire gauge in the car would not recalibrate and was always on, even if we'd just refilled it. It definitely impacted our day and we skipped a sight in Lorne and Loch Ard Gorge which Otis and Jecca had highly recommended. But, the tire became an issue.

     Nevertheless, we enjoyed the day and tried not to let it bother us too much as the tire didn't go down quickly. We stopped every 2 hours, though. 

     We had lunch at the Fisherman's Coop in pretty Apollo Bay and had a Fisherman's Platter to share. Mmmmm.

Some of the 12 Apostles 

      The entire coastline is gorgeous - up through mountains, down to bays and sandy and rocky beaches. 

      A highlight was the 12 Apostles, even though it was crowded - it was well worth it. Mark saw a white-lipped snake (part of the cobra family) just off the path. - Venomous, of course.

     By 5:30, we stopped in lovely Port Fairy at a very nice lodging called Seacombe Inn. 

In Port Fairy looking at Seacombe Lodge

The main street in Port Fairy

We were too full to eat a meal, so got in oranges, crackers and cheese and at in our room. We also took a walk and were enchanted by the town. There was a yard where people were busy setting up for Halloween. We chatted with the woman who was in charge; she doesn't even live there! The people loan her their garden every year for the event - because their location is so good for trick-or-treaters.

 October 31

     We spent time on the phone with AutoEurope and got a man who said the car would definitely be replaced in center city, Adelaide and gave us an address. We were relieved.

      It was a beautiful drive through farmland - vineyards, sheep and cattle. We saw a koala in the wild as well as an echnidna. Mark saw an emu. We both saw kangaroos jumping in a field, but they were too far away to photograph. (Too many dead on the side of the road.)

While on a C rated road, we saw a koala crossing the street!

      We stopped along the way to check the tire twice. Mark drove about 6 1/2 hours to Adelaide. 

       We first stopped at The Retreat apartment building to fetch the key for our new rental. It was a bit of an adventure getting it from the lock box. And, we could not figure out where the car park was, but decided to go to the AutoEurope office to exchange the car. We had to drive up the the 5th level of a carpark and go back down to an office. And- the man had NO car and had been told NOTHING about us coming in, despite what we were told this morning. He said we'd have to go to the airport tomorrow as his office would be closed and he wouldn't have a car anyhow. Arrgh!

White lipped snake by the path.

     

So, we went back up to the carpark and got the darned car. Then, we had to figure out how to get into the carpark at the rental- another challenge that necessitated us calling Bridget, the owner, who told us that the carpark we needed was the one behind the building. That mission was accomplished. 

     Then - more of a challenge. The fob for the elevator would not work. We felt like we'd done something wrong, but 3 different tenants tried it to no avail. One man took us to the 10th floor and we needed the 12th floor, but we couldn't wait for someone to go that high, so we walked up the last 2 floors with our bags. Luckily, the key to the apartment worked and we called Bridget - again to report the non-working fob. We could not leave the apartment to get the rest of our luggage as we'd never be able to get back. So, Bridget came over and, sure enough, the fob was faulty. (Whew! It wasn't us!) So, then we unloaded everything from the car and ate what Bridget had left in the fridge and collapsed. Tomorrow- to the airport to replace the car.

     Travel does present challenges some days, but that's part of it and, rising to them has to be good for our brains. ?  We hope so!

This really belongs to November 1, but it seemed good to have this post have the old and the replacement car! Yay!

    

Last Day in Melbourne, October 29, 2025

Depiction of a hanging of aboriginal people in Melbourne

 Today was our last full day in Melbourne, another sunny day in the high 60s. We will be sorry to leave this wonderful city where we've had great experiences.

 We set off for the University of Melbourne to the Ian Potter Gallery which commemorates 60,000 years of aboriginal life. 

   As we were early, we had a coffee and shared a traditional scone with jam and clotted cream. Mmmmm.

   The museum was powerful. One section was off-limits to those under 18 because it documented the desecration of aboriginal graves for body parts to underscore the racist idea of eugenics. The bodies were used to "prove" that aboriginals were inferior to other races with the white Europeans at the top. We watched a film about how the U of Melbourne in the late 1800s into the 1900s collected body parts and published "research" that is now totally discredited. It was not until recently that the collection has been interred properly. They could not return them to the original places of rest because it was not well documented. 

     Throughout the museum, it was clear that the more civilized people were the aboriginals who suffered horribly at the hands of the so-called superior white Europeans.

   

This was originally a large sign post to a place where aboriginal people sold trinkets. It is now an art center and this was painted to represent 7 powerful women, including Tina Turner, Cher and Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz. It is based on the mythology of the 7 Sisters who escaped from a lecherous man to become the Pleides constellation.

  The art work was highly symbolic with creation myths and representations of aboriginal beliefs and practices.

       After that we walked to another restaurant recommended by Jecca and Otis - Tokui Sushi where we had sushi rolls - 5 for about $9.00! We had egg sushi (new to us), avocado sushi roll, fried chicken sushi roll and 2 spicy tuna rolls. All were delicious and there was a line to put in an order. We were among the few who sat at the restaurant.

At Tokui Sushi

Tokui Sushi

     Then we walked back to Victoria Market, only to find that it was closed for the day. 

A reminder

     After that, we took the tram home and went up to the sauna and swimming pool in our building.

              

The Royal Botanical Garden, Melbourne, October 28

 October 28

    Today was still chilly (60s) but less windy than yesterday.

    We took a tram and then waited way too long for a bus to get to the Royal Botanical Gardens. 

      It was incredibly beautiful and we wandered for almost 3 miles with a stop for coffee by a lake in the middle.

Black Swans

Rainbow Lorikeet

Bottle Tree

     Afterwards, we decided to take an Uber to Three Brothersss Indian Restaurant by Victoria Market, another recommendation from Jec and Otis. And, like their other recommendations, it did not disappoint.

      We both had chicken dishes we've never had before - on recommendation by the woman who served us, who was charming. Mark had Chicken Chettinad and Barbara had Chicken Karahi. She said that it made her day to hear Jecca and Otis's recommendations. We only finished about half, taking the rest home for dinner. We went home by a different tram line that took us right 'home.  

On to Melbourne, October 26, 27

 October 26, 2025

      We left Phillip Island - what a great stay we had! We needed to use up some time so as not to get to Melbourne too early. So, we took a brief stop at Churchill Island, a nature and old farm preserve.

Galah

MMMM Chocolate!

We only looked around at some birds. Then, we stopped at a chocolate factory to get some coffee (mocha, of course). It was mobbed with families who were taking tours and eating chocolates. 

Mangroves

       Mark drove in periods of driving rain, but, luckily, it was less than a two-hour trip. Getting into the apartment on the Docklands was a bit tricky, involving going to an IGA-xpress store to get the key, and then finding the parking garage etc etc. But, we did it and are in a swanky apartment directly overlooking the Docklands and Melbourne. 

     

Living room into bedroom - 2 Newquay Promenade

Kitchen, dining

    We ate in the apartment, did a laundry and watched a thunderstorm from our huge picture windows.

View from our window

October 27, 2025

     We had a really nice day today exploring a bit of Melbourne. But, it was cold - only about 51 degrees and a stiff wind of about 25 mph. 

      We took a tram (free in the inner zone) and then walked across the Yarra River to the National Gallery of Victoria where we spent the bulk of the morning. It is a beautiful building. This was recommended by Jecca and Otis who gave us a lot of tips on our visit to Melbourne.

National Gallery of Victoria

A plate by Picasso

Stansfield's Painting of ship wrecks on English coast

         We then walked to ShanDong Mama in China Town, recommended by Jecca and Otis from their trip here two months ago. It did not disappoint - we both had noodle soup dishes and hot tea, which was very welcome to warm us up.

Recommended by Jec and Otis

Mmmm. Noodle soup and tea

Noodles with bok choy, shitake mushrooms

   

State Library Reading Room

Dome at State Library

     From there, we walked to the State Library of Victoria which was very impressive, another recommendation from Jec and Otis.  Besides walking through the large reading room and the central Dome, we also viewed some rare books. Most impressive was an interactive exhibit about the abundance of misinformation, an exhibit we all should go through. Statistically, it showed how much of the information in social media is false and that most people do not fact check sources, even college students. 

Mark in front of State Libary

       We also saw an exhibit about Ned Kelly, a criminal who was hanged by order of the judge whose donations funded the original library. Both of us had read a book about Kelly's life and it was an interesting exhibit. He is somewhat of a national hero for standing up against authority.

Sculpture dedicated to reading. The animals are peaking to read, too!

       

Ned Kelly's armor

                                                           From there, we walked by to Elizabeth St and picked up a tram back home to 2 NewQuay in the Docklands.

        A good day.