Monday 3 February<BR>Walk to Central Station to get bus to BONDI BEACH. We get out – mistakenly – at Bondi Junction, which gives us 45 min walk to the beach at 12.00. Marijke gets into the sea but it’s too rough for swimming. Very strong waves and currents. Sunny day, it’s quite a sight watching the surfing on white waves on top of a bright blue sea with almost white sand. Walk south from BONDI ALONG THE COAST VIA BRONTE TO COOGI, taking about 3 hours. Great views. Big cemetery along coast. <BR>In the evening we spend some time trying to find out where to get on to the harbour bridge to walk cross it. Just walk across and back on the East side and enjoy the good views of the Circular Quay area. <BR>

Tuesday 4 February<BR>First job is to get a car sorted out tomorrow. Get some quotes varying from A$500 to 700 for 10 days and unlimited kilometres. Settle for a Mitsubishi Mirage (Colt?) from Thrifty for A$505. <BR>Next to a camera repair shop where we get a quote of A$180 to fix it before we leave next day. The guy gives us a good dose of Aussie humour, starting after my “Good afternoon”: “Nothing good about it yet”. “Looks like a major repair to me” he says to the technician, loudly enough for us to hear. “I should charge you extra for rushing it through”. <BR>CHINESE GARDENS OF FRIENDSHIP (A$4.50 each), very enjoyable. Lots of lizards around. People getting dressed up as Chinese Emperors etc to be photographed. <BR>Stroll through DARLING HARBOUR area.<BR>

Wednesday 5 February - Blue Mountains<BR>Visit ST MARY’S CATHEDRAL before going to pick up the repaired camera (“Should charge you extra for picking it up early”), our luggage and then the car. <BR>Drive to KATOOMBA and the BLUE MOUNTAINS. Takes us 90 min. Traffic is pretty slow, nobody’s in a hurry. Call in on the way at the Blue Mountains information centre in GLENBROOK. Friendly lady is helpful. <BR>Stay in Katoomba at 3 Explorers motel for A$80. <BR>Take WALK FROM ECHO POINT AND THE THREE SISTERS ALONG THE CLIFF TO LEURA. Wonderful walks and views. Have walked 3 hours when we get back to the town. <BR>Eat good salads at the Parakeet Caf&eacute; and get ice cream to take out (A$23). <BR>Look at the lit-up 3 Sisters at night. Also clear views of southern sky. <BR>

Thursday 6 February<BR>Off early to the EUROKA CLEARING where a welcome by kangaroos is promised. Takes a little bit of finding and a short drive down an unsealed road, but doesn’t disappoint. Very tame, Marijke gets within a few meters before any nervousness shows. Spent about an hour admiring them, and the birds, before setting back. <BR>Start on our WALK DOWN INTO THE BLUE MOUNTAINS at 13.00. 1000 steps down in 20 min, walk to Scenic Railway and Cable Car, along Federal Pass walking track, Board Walk, see couple of lyrebirds and manage to get a couple of poor photo’s of them, partially due to people walking past at the wrong moment. Cable Car up; talk to ticket lady about best route to Canberra, and the bigger question: whether it’s worth a visit anyway; she thinks so. Walk along CLIFF PATH back to Echo Point, 17.00. <BR>The Blue Mountains are very impressive. I have now seen the rainforest and it is worth saving. In fact I’ve brought a bit back with me. ;-)<BR>

Friday 7 February - Canberra<BR>On the road around 08.00 to CANBERRA via Bathurst, Cowra and Boorowa. Stop for tea and coffee in Yass. Visitors Centre in Canbera helps us with accommodation. The Acacia motel, close to the city area, has a special offer on: A$59 incl. light breakfast. <BR>Walk for 3 hours past NEW PARLIAMENT HOUSE towards Red Hill where a good view is to be had but there’s some thunder and lightning around and it’s raining slightly where we are so we shelter and wait for a bus back. <BR>

Saturday 8 February<BR>Find our way to RED HILL LOOKOUT. Bit overcast but good views.<BR>Off to MERIMBULA for an afternoon on the coast. Stop briefly on the impressive SNOWY MOUNTAINS and see a few elusive Crimson Rosetta’s flying around. Plenty of dead kangaroos in varying stages of decomposition along the road. They usually get killed by traffic at dawn or in the evening. The ‘fresh’ ones are bloated with internal gasses and usually have one hind leg up in air. Not very elegant. Occasional dead wombat too. Arrive 13.10, approx 270 km from Canberra. <BR>Lady at the visitor centre pushes us off to B&amp;B Bella Vista run by Judy Hori, where there’s a good breakfast to be had, or so she’s gathered from a friend. No, an acquaintance, she corrects herself. Costs A$150 so we have high expectations. Very well equipped and clean, she has two rooms that she lets. It’s on the coast and there’re some steps down to the water; Marijke has a short swim. Go for a little walk along the coast. Eat at the Waterfront Caf&eacute;. Spicy Ling Fillet and a Curry. Garlic bread doesn’t arrive and we get a coffee knocked off the bill of A$35.<BR>

Sunday 9 February<BR>Elaborate breakfast indeed, the table on the patio facing the bay is set for 4 courses. Fresh mixed fruit juice; honey yoghurt; cereal; melon, pineapple, grapes; toasted Ciabatta bread, jam and compote marmalade, both homemade; eggs, tomatoes, bacon, mushrooms; coffee and tea. Graze my left arm loading a suitcase into the car, leaving a boomerang shaped scar as a souvenir. Off 09.50 in the direction of Melbourne; see how far we get. Drive more or less constantly for 660 km until 18.00, past Melbourne (detouring in order to avoid the Citypass section where you inconveniently need a prepaid pass) and stay at the Best Western motel in WERRIBEE for A$115. Nothing special for 4 stars. Close to Safeways excellent fish and chips shop “2 flake and a minimum of chips” for A$6.80.<BR>

Monday 10 February - Great Ocean Road<BR>09.30 on the road to the GREAT OCEAN ROAD, stop for info and accommodation at at the visitors centre in LORNE where Meryl tells about walks and arranges a night’s stay at the Flower Bed B&amp;B. Run by John and Lyn Morisson. Wonderful downstairs set-up with own kitchen, bathroom; great attention to detail. Flowers – real and otherwise – everywhere. Ocean view. 1st night A$150, 2nd 100. Couple of hours on the beach 200 metres down the hill. <BR>Drive 9 km to ERSKINE FALLS. On the way we see an Echidna crossing the road ahead of us. Lovely walk along little creek, over rocks and logs. Tall Mountain Ash trees. About 1 km and then we turn back. Another little walk from BLANKET LEAF PICNIC AREA. <BR>

Tuesday 11 February<BR>Absolutely enormous full breakfast – our own fault for ticking almost all the items mentioned: an egg, cheese and spinach slice, bacon, tomatoes, mushrooms and 2 big sausages; bread; fruit. Make a couple of sausage rolls for lunch with one of the untouched sausages. <BR>Off on the Great Ocean Road again at 09.30 to KENNETT RIVER, where KOALA’S are supposed to live in the forks of the tall Mountain Ash trees on Grey River Road (unsealed). See a couple within 1 km, pretty high up. Have a little walk about 6 km from start of road. On the way back we can’t believe our luck: there’s a baby koala low on a tree, almost within reaching distance, which we wouldn’t do but it’s good for a good look. Then the mother scampers up the tree, sticks baby on her back and retires to a safe distance, but still much lower than all the others we’ve seen. A great privilege to witness. We point it out to other people making there way up on foot, and hope they don’t get the wrong idea by saying the koala’s are within easy shooting distance. <BR>On to OTWAY NATIONAL PARK. Views of the coast along the Great Ocean Road come up to high expectations. Stop frequently to ooh and aah. Stop at MAINS REST in Otway NP for the boardwalk in rainforest area. Very good, but less exciting than the more rugged walk at Erskine Falls. <BR>Take the inland road back, first following the Great Ocean Road (B100) before turning right at Lavers Hill and back through Forrest and Beach Forrest. Encounter an unexpected 12 km stretch of unsealed road (Turton Track); pretty narrow and winding so you have to be extra attentive for oncoming traffic, of which there’s a fair amount. You are warned to watch out for kangaroos so can’t let concentration drop. <BR>Get take away Fish and Chips (A$12). Read on a board that Flake is local gummy shark, caught by captain Warren on the boat Nautilus. They also have Blue Grenadier as one of the more popular fish and also Hake, Ling and Sardines.<BR>

Wednesday 12 February - Grampians NP<BR>Gourmet breakfast today instead of full cooked. Eat 1/3, take 1/3 for lunch and leave the rest, so much was provided. Off 09.30 on the Great Ocean Road repeating the first half of our route yesterday, then new terrain, along the rock formations in the sea: the TWELVE APOSTLES etc. Impressive, but we are content to stop at just a few lookouts on our way to Port Fairy, where we turn north towards DUNKELD and the GRAMPIANS NATIONAL PARK, which we reach at 16.40. Get info about walks and accommodation and book in at the Royal Mall hotel for 1 night at A$110. Very stylish rooms, balcony facing the mountains. Eat at the bistro in the hotel for A$55 incl. couple of beers and a bottle of wine at A$26, half of which take back to the room. <BR>

Thursday 13 February<BR>Short and nice drive through Grampians to HALLS GAP. <BR>Visit info centre. Check in at Tim’s Place, a backpacker’s hostel we’ve heard about. The newish Eco-hostel was a good alternative, they said. A room with two beds is available for A$22 each. Including get your own breakfast, coffee and tea, chocolate cake. The beds are bunk beds and they just fit in the room, hardly leaving room for our luggage, which is admittedly more than the others, real backpackers, probably have. <BR>Do a short walk to the VENUS BATHS. Come across a couple dressed for serious walking and have a chat. It’s now 12.00 and they’ve been walking since 08.00. He’s a stereotype Aussie with Crocodile Dundee attributes and says that she – Fay – has to be pushed into walking otherwise she gets too fat. They live in Victoria and have been here maybe 30 times. Talk for a while about this and that and part ways. We value these encounters, which enrich our travels. <BR>We’re now off to Wonderland car park for a walk up to the PINNACLE, one of the highest points around, with a good view down across Halls Gap. It’s a 2.1 km, 280 meter high climb. The Pinnacle is about 700 meter, so the car park is roughly half way up. Well signposted, with little arrows painted on the rocks, and the occasional steps and rails to hang on to. We frequently arrest walkers coming the other way on the pretext of asking how far to go and this often leads to other things. Impressive view indeed when we get to the top, but nobody selling ice cream, which would have been nice, seeing as it’s fairly hot (about 30c) and there’s little wind to speak of. The walk takes us 75 min going up and 50 coming down. <BR>We’re now off to the BRAMBUK CENTRE, where there’s something on Aboriginal culture. 5 min down the road. Not particularly impressive but we have some tea, coffee and internet. I tell the girl behind the counter how nice the milk (for the tea) tastes and ask for a whether I glass of it. She looks at me strangely but pours a glass for me. My “How much?” gets a “That’s all right”. Apparently it’s a strange request, a glass of milk. <BR>Tim gives us a couple of ideas of a meal and we go for the A$15 Fish and Chips and Beer special (between 18.00 and 19.00) at the Kookaburra Motel. We’re seated in the cheaper area, next to the restaurant proper. Our part turns out to be more exclusive because we remain the only guests there, the restaurant filling up nicely. Friendly staff and good food. Ice cream and coconut lime tart with double cream finish us off. A$ 52.50 incl. 1 extra beer. <BR>Back at Tim’s Place we sit in the communal area until 23.00, chatting occasionally with the other guests, mostly young folk except one guy who seems to have got caught in a time warp in the sixties. Some cooking going on, I overhear somebody saying “It’s like Bolognese, apart from the bacon”. Out room is directly behind the kitchen and the walls are thin so it’s past midnight before it quietens down.<BR>

Friday 14 February - Ballorat<BR>The kookaburras wake me at 06.00, par for the course I guess, seeing as were in a national park. Make tea, coffee, toast and we’re on our way at 08.45 to the BUNJIL CAVES OR SHELTER, not far from Halls Gap but 5 km down a very bumpy unsealed road. Although it’s one of the more significant Aboriginal works it’s not really exciting. <BR>Next stop is BEAUFORT for some food to take along. It advertises itself as “the last highway town before Melbourne” and has the typical main road running though with shops on either side. At the visitor information centre we get some advice as where to stay. BALLORAT is suggested, which we follow, taking the lane of remembrance instead of the freeway. The lane has trees on either side, representing the fallen Aussies in the wars. For A$74 we book a night at the Avenue Motel, close to the BOTANICAL GARDENS, which we visit. Nice place, cool under the trees, lots of them are imported Redwoods. Chat to a lady who’s taking care of a mentally handicapped man. She tells us of a good organised walking holiday in Tasmania. 4 to 6 hours a day for 6 days. Autumn is the best time, more stable weather then. <BR>Drive 15 min to CRESWICK NATIONAL PARK and walk round a bit. Not very interesting.<BR>

Saturday 15 February - Melbourne <BR>Good drive into MELBOURNE and ST.KILDA, arriving at 10.30 but wasting some time looking for the Novotel where we’ve booked at A$168 a night before starting the holiday. Drop baggage off and drive to the city to return the car at 11.25, within our deadline of 12.00. Have covered 2778 km in 10 days. In Elizabeth Street I do my first and last ‘hooked right turn’ as is the custom in Melbourne to avoid blocking tram rails. This entails waiting in the left lane but indicating right until all other traffic has gone and then doing the right turn. <BR>Walk back to the new Federation Square where the information centre is located. Yet another helpful lady gives us various suggestions and practical tips. Tram to St.Kilda costs 2x A$2.70. Tram pretty full and not a quick run of the 4 or 5 km. Stops outside hotel. Smooth check-in, room clean, silent fridge but stacked with minibar items, to which we are allergic. <BR>Along Acland St to Scheherezade for a meal of Goulash, Cabbage rolls, wine, coffee for A$54. Russian spoken in the kitchen if I’m not mistaken. <BR>Busy Luna Park is fun to watch. <BR>

Sunday 16 February<BR>Short walk along the arts and crafts market on the Esplanade, just outside the hotel. Nothing special. Further along there’s a triathlon for kids going on. They’re keen on their sports, these Aussies. <BR>Walk north along the coast road towards the city. Brief visit to the enormous CROWN ENTERTAINMENT CENTRE. Along SOUTHBANK. Stop for coffee and two big slices of Lemon Meringue Pie and Tiramisu Cake. Couple of performers on the street. Walk across pedestrian bridge and through Flinders station. Take free CIRCLE TRAM clockwise, taking us through the new docklands area, La Trobe St and back to Federation Square. <BR>Short visit to the modern art museum in the IAN POTTER GALLERY on the square. Interesting architecture as well. <BR>After that we walk via the new riverside park to the Rod Laver Arena, where the Australian open is held. Vodafone stadium and Melbourne Cricket Ground in same vicinity. Back to Federation Square passing the FEDERATION BELLS on the way. They chime just a few times a day and we’re in time for the 17.00 session. <BR>Eat at Leo’s Spaghetti Caf&eacute; on Fitzroy St, one of the landmarks in St.Kilda. Kangaroo Salad, Spinach Canneloni, wine, ice cream to take away for A$50.50. <BR>

Monday 17 February<BR>Meet our pre-arranged Greeter at 10.00. We cover a bit of the main central area with him and he points out buildings that would have otherwise gone unnoticed. Have a look inside where possible. Hear about the foundation of Melbourne towards the end of the 19th century. Foundation attributed to two Tasmanians, Batman and Fawkner. He paints a pretty dismal picture of Fawkner, a bit of a ruthless character who is nevertheless admired by many, and lives twice as long as Batman, leaving me with the idea that there’s a moral in there somewhere. He’s a stickler for waiting at traffic lights for the virtual traffic to stop, saying that he’s got to take care of his visitors. I offer to sign a waiver but it doesn’t help. <BR>We go up the OBSERVATION DECK on the 55th floor of the tallest office building in the southern hemisphere, A$11 each, and get a talk on various areas. Very interesting and worth it just for the view. <BR>After regrouping at the hotel we’re off to the city again, getting value for money out of our daytrip cards at A$5.20 each. This time it’s CHINATOWN to find a cheap meal. Find Shanghai Noodle House in Tattersalls Lane, an alley you wouldn’t walk down in the dark without thinking twice about it. But it isn’t dark so we’re OK. They relieve us of A$12 in exchange for spicy beef with noodles and spicy chicken with fried rice cake. We’re the only non-Orientals, which is how we like it.<BR>

Tuesday 18 February<BR>QUEEN VICTORIA MARKET is open today and this keeps us busy for several hours. The prices of clothes on the various stalls seem to be well synchronised and the merchandise similar. Lively fruity and veg section. Another section for meat, cheese etc. <BR>In the evening take a tram to Chinatown for a meal at BBQ King on the main street in Chinatown. Singapore fried noodles, Combination on rice for A$16. <BR>Find A$50 bill in the gutter; very generous, these Aussies.<BR>

Wednesday 19 February<BR>Nice walk in the BOTANICAL GARDENS, visiting the SHINE OF REMEMBRANCE first. Good views from the balcony. <BR>Drop in at the Young and Jackson pub, where the painting of Cloe, one of Mebourne’s icons hangs and have a beer there. <BR>Eat excellent Thai meal at Tien Tien on Barkly St. Beef on basil, Lemon Grass Grilled Fish, wine for A$50.50. <BR>Take back some cakes from Monarch – since 1934 - on Acland St: Strawberry Custard Tartlet, a Florentine, piece of their famous Plum cake for A$11. <BR>

Thursday 20 February<BR>Get rid of excess dollars at hotel check-out and settle the rest by credit card. Wander around for an hour but no real interest anymore, having switched on to departure mode. Shuttle bus takes us to airport in 30 min for A$27 and almost 30 hours later we’re home, stopping briefly at Kuala Lumpur. <BR><BR>BOTTOM LINE: A very enjoyable holiday; didn’t have to rush anything; attractive big cities Sydney and Melbourne; great coastal road; charming little towns on the way; great walks, particularly in the wonderful rainforest and national parks, must have walked a couple of hundred kilometres; easy-going people, good food; favourable exchange rate. Total costs for Australia were approx A$2700 for 22 nights accommodation, A$700 for 10 days car rental incl. petrol, A$2500 for food, shopping, travel, attractions etc. Flight about A$4000 from Amsterdam.<BR><BR>If anybody would like more information about any aspect, we’ll be pleased to oblige.<BR><BR>Mark and Marijke Smalley

Mark,<BR>Congratulations on an excellent report.<BR>It will be of enormous help to all of those who are planning to visit our country in the future.<BR>I am so glad you had the time to see so much of the countryside and coast, as well as the cities.

Glad you enjoyed your trip to Australia - come back and and see us another time - still lots more to see!