Adelaide to Melbourne

Allow me to educate you in Melanie’s Rulebook of Travel. First lesson: There are two main types of travelers. The “seen it, done it, check it off” type of traveler goes to France to get a photo taken with the Eiffel Tower and returns home in time for the weekend football game. The “soak up the atmosphere” traveler goes to France to people-watch in a café, imagining what life is like for those who live there...and may not be going home before personally experiencing that life.

I have enjoyed the first way of traveling for much of my life, but I prefer the second. Hence my lengthy trip to Australia. But while driving along the Great Ocean Road this past week, I have never felt so forced from one extreme to the other...and I admit I was a tiny bit disappointed. Now don’t get me wrong – I very much enjoyed this leg of my trip. The views were spectacular and I’ve made some friends for life. It’s just...it would have been a million times better if I’d been able to close my eyes to feel the breeze on my face at the Bay of Islands or bury my feet in the sand at the Bay of Martyrs, then get up close to the edge of London Bridge. I would have loved to daydream in the caves of Loch Ard Gorge, sitting on the rocks and imagining the lives of the two survivors of the famous shipwreck that the gorge was named after. It nearly killed my poor little “soak up the atmosphere” heart to be told to get out of the bus at each place, take some photos, and get right back on the bus.

Still, at the Bay of Martyrs I did manage to sneak in a barefoot sprint to the water’s edge. The water was freezing, but the day was beautiful. And as everyone knows...

Mel’s Travel Rule # 1: On beautiful days at scenic beaches, urges to run barefoot into the water cannot be ignored.

The rock formation known as London Bridge (below) used to look like its namesake, but the first arch of rocks collapsed into the water not too long ago. No one was hurt, thankfully, but a honeymooning couple was stranded out there for hours waiting for a helicopter to pick them up. I figure it would make a nice honeymoon to be stranded on a little private island for a while...although I suppose the news crews probably made it not so private.

Mel’s Travel Rule #2: When crossing perilous rock formations, bring makeup – you never know when you might be on TV.

We spent sunset at the Twelve Apostles. It used to be called The Piglets until someone decided that The Twelve Apostles sounded more dignified as a tourist attraction. They were probably right. No one seems to know if there used to be twelve of these rock formations, although it is assumed so. Today there are eight. (Nine or more if you ask some people, eight-and-a-half if you ask my tour guide.)

Mel’s Travel Rule #3: As long as you’ve got more friends than you can number, it doesn’t so much matter how many rocks you can count.

Hollow Mountain and the Grampians. I hiked...and hiked...and hiked. And I reached the tops of both Hollow Mountain and the Grampians! Yeah! (Notice in the photo below that I’m not quite to the edge of the cliff. That’s because I’m not crazy.)

Mel’s Travel Rule #4: Don’t die if you can help it.

Princetown, population 9, exists basically as a tourist spot for people stopping by to see the Twelve Apostles. (I should add that rumor at the local pub has it that the population is now up to 15, counting children. Watch out, world – it’s a population boom!) I stayed in a little hostel in Princetown with a massive DVD collection, bed bugs, and snoring roommates.

Mel’s Travel Rule #5: Bed bugs don’t exist if you don’t think about them.
Mel’s Travel Rule #6: Snoring strangers are less forgiving than dads if you throw a pillow at them. Only use that method as a last resort.

Next we stopped at the Otway Fly tree top walk. My top five most useful purchases of all time: my car, my computer, my bed, my glasses, and now...my $3 rain poncho. Yes, that’s right, folks – after three weeks of hot weather, I went into the rainforest...and guess what? It rained! And me in my shorts. Ah, well. Clara joined me and bought a rain poncho as well, which was fun, as at least I didn’t look like a lonely ghost. However, we did worry a few people behind us into thinking they were following two members of the KKK. Definitely not something one wants to be mistaken for. Better a ghost any day.

Mel’s Travel Rule #7: Don’t accidentally dress up as anything more offensive than a tourist while in a foreign country. In some countries, don’t even dress as a tourist.

I hope you enjoyed your lessons! Stay tuned for the next leg of my trip from Melbourne to Sydney, including Ninety Mile Beach and Snowy River Country!