Needs Photos

Making Travel Part Of Everyday Life

Posted on November 20, 2011

It is a little bit over a week since I returned from Melbourne and the week has been a pretty full week. Working every day and also working on a 30 Day Writing Challenge. Sometimes when I look back at the two I am not really sure how I fitted it in, however obviously I have and everything is still in order.

However this week has also brought home the fact that for the next three and a half months this is what I will be doing week in, week out. As many people often come to realise work is an unfortunate side effect of the need for money to be able to live your life and travel.

This has got me thinking somewhat about how to fill some of the gaps in a wish to travel while working five days a week. Which is something that I am always looking for some good answers to fill the blanks. Below you will find some of my own ideas on how I am going to make the next three and half months not feel so much like one big block of work, and break it up with some more fun.

  • Plan the next trip – If you are feeling the blues from not being out there travelling the next best thing may be to have your planning cap on doing the research for your next trip away. This is something that I am going to be working hard on over the coming month, for a trip to Europe next year. Although it is not going to be anything like being there and doing it, I will be learning about a whole bunch of new and exciting places that I will get to visit in the time I am in Europe.
  • Weekend Escape – While it may not be possible to hop on a plane in Brisbane and fly to some exotic overseas location. That does not mean that there is not somewhere local that you can either explore or just take some time to go and relax. For example for me a two hour drive can get me to many great locations, many of which I have never been to. While a two hour flight becomes 3-4 hours or more, due to getting to and from airports and waiting for flights and such, which really does eat into the time you have available.
  • Explore Local – For the most part your local area may be a little more interesting then you think. Take  a look around the area or find the local tourist information location and find out what is in the area. You may have lived where you are for 20 years and still never really know what is around. This is perfect case in point for me, I came across a small guide book put out by the council about local heritage, while I knew some of the places listed, there were just as many that were new to me and gave me something to look at.
  • Explore Local 2 – Do you live near a big city, do you go to the city every day for work. Why not go to the city and pretend to be a tourist. This means go to an area you don’t normally visit and try something new, a different cafe, a new restaurant, anything that is different for you. Maybe there is a river splitting the city and you go to work every day but have never explored the other side of the river.

There are so many potential options for experiences that are similar travelling around home and your every day life that you could experience as an alternative to having to get in a plane and cross oceans to find new experiences. If you think about it there are opportunities all around, all you need to do is get out there and take some action to change the everyday into an extraordinary experience.

While I started this post off with a title of “A little bit down” just writing this has got me inspired. I now want to get out there and do something, I am feeling more ready to take on the next week. Planning for my trip to Europe will get some of the time, while I may do a little more local exploring.

Planning

Checking In Jasper Hotel Melbourne

Posted on November 19, 2011
Melbourne - Jasper Hotel Room

While in Melbourne for the past five days, the hotel which I chose to stay at was the Jasper Hotel. This hotel is located just near the intersection of Elizabeth and Franklin Streets. While not right in the heart of Melbourne it is still in an excellent location for almost everything as long as you are happy to make use of public transport or walk.

Checking In

Check-in was no problem, I arrived a little after 2 pm, and the room was ready. The staff were friendly, and the special requests I had made in the online booking process had been noted and were fulfilled. Specifically, the requests were for a high floor (which I received a room on the 8th floor) and for a room at the rear of the building (I was overlooking the Queen Victoria Markets, rather than the street). These two requests being fulfilled I was quite pleased about.

The Room

Walking into the room, I was pleasantly surprised. The room while not in perfect condition was well maintained and clean. There is a closet with ample space for clothing, as well as a smaller cupboard with a few shelves. There is a small fridge and tea and coffee making facilities. The bathroom has a shower, toilet and basin. I had booked a Queen Room, and this included the queen size bed, and a table and chair.

Melbourne - Jasper Hotel Room

There were just three negatives that I found in the room; the first was that there was only one chair in a room which is designed for two guests. The shower cubical was kind of tight, I am a fairly average size and it tight to move around in so anyone much larger may find it to be small. Finally, the table could have been a little deeper. However, this is a minor thing.

What I liked about the room was the ability to open the windows for fresh air rather than needing to use the air conditioning all the time. Rather than a curtain, a blackout blind was included which helped with the sun early in the morning. Finally, the size was right and while not over the top there was space to move around.

Melbourne - Jasper Hotel Room

Facilities

One of the negative aspects for me is many of the facilities I would like are not onsite. Parking was available close by but not available at the hotel. Even though I did not have a car with me, this did play a part in the decision not to get a rental car for a couple of days.

The other important facility missing was an onsite Gym. Don’t get me wrong there was a gym available it was just slightly inconvenient. It was located one block away, and the hotel did provide a pass for entry to the Gym. However, this meant leaving the hotel and may not be to everyone’s liking having to make the trip from the hotel to gym and back.

The only other thing of note is the lift; it is slow. However being that the hotel only has eight levels this is not too much of a problem.

Getting Around

Even though the Jasper Hotel is not located right in the middle of Melbourne, it is right on a major Tram line, which will take you down to Bourke St or Flinders St in a matter of minutes. From here you can get to anywhere you want.

Of course if you don’t really want to take the Tram, it is also more then possible to walk. Most of the places to visit are within about 2 km or 30 minutes walk, such as Crown Casino,  Federation Square, Docklands, Bourke Street Mall, and many other attractions. Any further then this and you may like to consider the Tram

Overall

I would definitely recommend this hotel to anyone that is travelling to Melbourne, as a couple or on business. If you are travelling as a family I would check what rooms are available which may be suitable. The best things are about the hotel was the price was reasonable for the location and the staff were more then happy to help on just about anything that I needed.

Needs Photos

Some Of My Favourite Travelling Lessons

Posted on November 18, 2011

If I was to write a post about all the great things that can come from travel it would be a long one. With the ability to see and explore places that are different from home. You meet many different people, in all kinds of different circumstances. With experiences that can change all the time, whether on a tour, while you are eating or even figuring out how to spend your time.

But through all of this, the one stand out thing for me about travel is what the experiences teach you. There are so many great lessons that come from travel that can profoundly change your view of the world. Yet it still surprises me how many people choose to ignore some of the simple things that make travel so great. Although I am sure there are many lessons I am still to learn from travelling. Below are just a few that I have learned and happy to remember.

Take Time Out

One key thing that I often found myself forgetting is that I am on holiday. A holiday is supposed to be a time to relax and recharge. I constantly found myself going day after day that seemed more intense than working a day job. Going from an all day tour, to a full day of walking a city, and attraction after attraction. It can be easy to forget that you need time to rest.

One of the key points that we often forget about though is downtime is not always relaxing. Think about the time that you spend on planes, trains and buses are often not restful or relaxing. So it is worth the consideration to build a little downtime into your travel beyond that spent moving between destinations. It could be a couple of hours at the beach or by the hotel pool, or even a whole day with no plans at all.

It has been a rather hard lesson for me to learn as I just want to constantly be on the go. But I am learning that giving myself a little extra time and building some downtime into my plans has its benefits.

Budgeting is Essential

The concept of having a budget while you are travelling is going to depend on your circumstances. But it is something worth considering if you do not want to be stuck overseas with no money. There are a lot of different approaches to take on this lesson and they will depend upon your own circumstances.

There are many different factors that will impact how you approach budgeting. Some of the things that may impact your budgeting method could include,

  • Length of time travelling
  • Countries you are travelling through
  • If you have credit cards to use
  • Willingness to use overseas ATM’s and pay the fees
  • Ability to contact people at home to access further money
  • How much money you have saved to travel with

My personal approach to budgeting when travelling may not work for most people but it works for me. I like to take some cash money along with prepaid travel VISA card. There is also a preloaded travel money card with approximately what I am budgeting to spend in each country I visit. I do also carry a credit card as backup. Essentially I am not so much budgeting in this sense, but I do have my mind on the costs of what I am doing. Other people may prefer to be a little more strict on the budget that they are using.

If you are locking yourself into a budget by just carrying the cash you expect to spend you need to be more aware of your budget. You might be travelling for 28 days and decide to take $1000 cash for food and spending money. In the first 14 days, you spend $600 then consider you only have $400 for the last 14 days could leave you short towards the end of the journey. It is better to be a little cautious spending up front and have some money left over than to run out with days still ahead of you.

You don’t need to spend it all

Continuing on from the above topic of budgets, I mentioned that having some money left over if ok. In fact, there has not been a single trip that I have not arrived home still with cash in hand. It is not true that you need to spend every cent to feel like you have enjoyed your holiday. I have had a great time on every trip I have taken even coming home with money.

The reality for me is that I tend to feel less happy about the trip the more money that I spend. I started out buying a little something from every attraction I visited. I quickly figured out how quickly I would have no money left if I continued with this approach. On my last trip, I stopped buying souvenirs and would just buy one or two postcards as a memento of the holiday.

Just remember that it is not the end of the world to go home with some money. Almost every city has some great things you can do without spending a cent, sometimes they just require a little more research.

A Great Holiday does not have to be expensive

Again this point continues on from the above point. There are so many great experiences that can improve your holiday that is free or very close to free.

A great example comes from my recent trip to Melbourne. The friend I was travelling with wanted to see the Australian Centre for the Moving Image. On a previous trip to Melbourne, I had looked at this but thought it of no interest and without looking expected it to be costly. But since my friend wanted to go agreed to take a look. To my surprise, most of the exhibits were free to attend. There was just one exhibit that had an entry fee, but the whole experience was very much worth visiting.

Also, consider the many other aspects of travelling beyond just that of visiting attractions. I have met many wonderful people while travelling without necessarily spending a cent. One way I have done this is through a website called Couch Surfing. Through this website, I have met people in Victoria BC, Seattle, San Francisco, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Dallas and San Diego. Along with the overseas destinations, I have also met people through the site at home in Brisbane. The people come from all over the world in many different countries and it makes the experience much fuller.

Accept you will have Language Challenges

There is no doubt that some places you travel the language is going to be different to your home country. The challenge can vary greatly depending on which countries you choose to travel to and what areas within those countries.

While I have faced very little challenges to date, I have also generally travelled to countries that do not pose a problem. Yet it surprises me how faced with a language barrier so many people very much fail to understand how language works. Far too many people fail to realise that raising their voice does not actually improve the understanding in any way. Just like speaking slowly also does little to improve understanding if the language is not known.

I am sure there are ways that you can get around the challenge of understanding. But that is something that I am going to have to hope I can overcome when it presents itself. From my understanding, there are plenty of people that travel and overcome these challenges without trouble every day.

What Have You Learnt

Travel is such a diverse and ever-changing part of life for many people. So I imagine many people have had a chance to learn a lot more from travelling than I have and I would love to hear your thoughts. When it comes to travelling what are some of the lessons that you have learnt? Please feel free to share your lessons in the comments below.

Destinations

Exploring Melbourne and St Kilda

Posted on November 18, 2011
Melbourne - St Kilda Beach

Today would be the last day with my friend while we were both in Melbourne. As such I wanted to get the morning off to a good start so that we could maximise the day. The plan for the day was to take the tram to St Kilda before returning to visit Carlton Gardens and see where we ended up from there. As soon as my friend arrived at my hotel this morning, I was ready to go.

St Kilda

We started by heading across to Swanson Street to catch the No. 16 tram towards St Kilda. St Kilda is a suburb of Melbourne and around 35 minutes by tram. The tram follows St Kilda Road past the Botanical Gardens and as it arrives in St Kilda goes along the main street of the suburb. You get a look at everything as you are arriving which makes exploring a little easier.

We disembarked the tram at the far end of the main street closest to St Kilda Beach. From here we walked along the beach towards St Kilda Pier. I can imagine this would be quite a beautiful spot during summer. However, today a fresh breeze was blowing and some clouds blocking the sun the water was not too appealing.

Melbourne - St Kilda Beach

St Kilda Pier

Walking along St Kilda Pier is quite a beautiful spot providing quite a good view back towards the Melbourne City skyline.

Melbourne - City skyline view from St Kilda Pier

The building at the end of the pier houses a small cafe. The building is not original to the pier though as fire destroyed the original building in 2003. However, I believe it was rebuilt in the same style as the original.

Melbourne - St Kilda Pier, Cafe

Fitzroy Street

After leaving the pier, we headed up the main street of St Kilda, Fitzroy Street. There were a couple of interesting looking shops but nothing that caught our eye. We did find a nice small cafe to get some pizza and a drink for lunch.

Back To Melbourne

After lunch, we discovered that there is an alternative tram available No. 96. The route takes a different approach past Albert Park, the location of the Melbourne Formula One Grand Prix and is around 10 minutes quicker. Instead of stopping in the CBD we continued along to a stop on Exhibition Street to be closer to Carlton Gardens.

Carlton Gardens

While there are many nice gardens throughout Carlton Gardens, we stopped here to take a look at two interesting buildings. The first is the Royal Exhibition Building, built in 1880 and still in use today. The building hosts some different events throughout the year.

Melbourne - Royal Exhibition Building

The second building is the Melbourne Museum, originally opened in 1854. However, not in the current location, it was moved to this building in Carlton Gardens in 2000. It sits in stark contrast to the 130-year-old Royal Exhibition building.

Melbourne - Museum

Lygon Street

We had not particularly planned anything for the evening or dinner. However, we were close by to the famed Lygon Street. So we decided to take a walk and see if anything caught our attention for dinner, even though it was a little early.

Lygon Street is lined with stores, restaurants and cafes and is said to be one of the best spots to eat in Melbourne. After taking a walk and seeing what options there were, we stopped at one bar for a drink to fill in time before it was time to eat dinner.

The restaurant we choose was an Italian restaurant by the name of Zingarella. I decide to have a more traditional meal to match the restaurant, a pasta dish. While my friend opted for steak. It was quite a good meal and a place I would consider eating again. Although it was a cooler evening, we could not pass up the option to try some Gelato at a nearby store.

The last few days have been great getting to explore Melbourne with a friend. However, in the morning he leaves to continue his journey in Tasmania. While I have one more day in Melbourne before flying home myself. Even though this might be the end of this trip, I will be getting right into planning my next trip was coming up next year. So I hope you keep watching for updates on the planning of that journey.

Destinations

Phillip Island Penguins and More Tour

Posted on November 17, 2011
Phillip Island - Cowes Jetty

Recently while I was visiting Melbourne to explore with my friend from Canada, we took a day trip to visit Phillip Island. The main thing to see at Phillip Island is the little penguins, but there are some other things along the way as well.

The biggest challenge is choosing just which tour to take. I managed to grab six different brochures from the stand at the hotel. We did still visit the Melbourne Visitors Centre and found even more brochures.

A Tour With A Difference

After taking a look at all the brochures, the tour offered by A Tour With A Difference stood out to us. Even though it was one of the more expensive options, it had a good list of inclusions. The two attractive aspects for us were a small group and the inclusion of a sit-down meal. You can find more information on their website ‘A Tour With A Difference‘.

Departing Melbourne

The tour leaves Melbourne at a time relative to the time the little penguins will be arriving. Getting close to summer with a later sunset this is around 7.30pm at night. As such the tour pickup in Melbourne was right around midday.

The journey to Phillip Island from Melbourne takes around two hours. However, the tour is broken up slightly with the first stop just over an hour from Melbourne at a winery.

The Gurdies Winery

The stop at The Gurdies Winery was not of great interest to me since I am not much of a wine drinker. I could potentially even recall each of the times that I have had wine to drink. There was, of course, some wine tasting with six different wines and port. Plus they also provided some cheese, crackers and fruit. I do not see any benefit in passing any judgement on the wine, as I could not tell whether it was good or not. On the other hand, the location is amazing with a beautiful view across the vineyard.

Phillip Island - Curdies Winery

Phillip Island Chocolate Factory

The next stop was the first on Phillip Island and one that I could get much more excited about. There is a very brief tour through the factory here, with an explanation of the chocolate making process. While I have seen the process demonstrated before in Mexico, there is a big difference between the handmade and commercial methods.

The next section of the tour shows a few pieces of I guess you could say art made with chocolate. Including a statue replica od “David” and an oversized portrait of Dame Edna made of many small chocolates. There was also a machine where you could write your name in chocolate to eat. Plus my favourite the Chocolate waterfall. There was a chance for a little shopping, but all I bought was a chocolate penguin.

Phillip Island - Chocolate Factory Chocolate Waterfall

Woolamai Surf Beach

The next stop was on the southern coast of Phillip Island at Woolamai Surf Beach. The stop was not long and more so for people to have a look and get a photo. The location is a very popular surf beach, maybe in summer, I can see it but not today. The waves that arrive here mostly originate in the Southern Ocean and the Bass Strait, which would create some good waves I imagine.

Phillip Island - Woolamai Surf Beach

Cowes

The tour offered a choice from here, either visit the local wildlife centre, or some free time in Cowes. Cowes is located on the northern side of the island looking out towards Western Port Bay. We opted to spend the time in Cowes.

Phillip Island - Cowes Jetty

At the time we visited Cowes, it seemed to be a rather beautiful and quiet little town. However, I imagine in holiday times that this is not so much the case. We took a walk along the boardwalk, before heading back up along the main street. The majority of business appears to focus on the passing trade for the Penguin Parade and Phillip Island Racetrack. But there are also plenty of cafes and restaurants as well.

Phillip Island - Cowes Mainstreet

A restaurant by the name of Gullivers in Cowes was the location for the included dinner. There was a small selection of meals to choose from, and I opted for the Aussie Beef Burger. It turned out to be a good choice and tasted quite good.

The Nobbies & Seal Rocks

There was just one more stop before heading to see the little penguins. The Nobbies and Seal Rocks, sit at the western most point of Phillip Island. The area here is a very beautiful spot, with some seals on the rocks, some penguin burrows in the area. But the thing that kind of spoils it is a large number of seagulls that nest here, and the noise they create.

Besides the wildlife, this area has some very dramatic scenery as well. You can see one part that includes a blowhole of sorts when the waves are big.

Phillip Island - The Nobbies, Seal Rocks and A Blowhole

Penguin Parade

The very last stop on the tour was also the highlight for the Phillip Island Penguin Parade. The location is not far from the western end of the island. You cannot drive past this point after a certain time either, due to the potential for Penguins on the road.

The arrival at the penguin parade was rather early, almost an hour before sunset. The timing was to give us a good chance to get the best seats to see the penguins. Not a big issue as me and my friend have opted for the Penguins Plus option. A smaller seating area which is very close to one of the main areas the penguin’s pass through.

We were seated around 40 minutes before sunset, and in the front row as well. In the time that we had to wait, I listened to the audio guide that had been provided. Before the ranger gave a short talk about what we would see when the penguins arrived.

A waddle of Little Penguins crossing the beach

A Waddle of Little Penguins crossing the Beach. Photo by: Phillip Island Nature Parks www.penguins.org.au

Penguins Arrival

The sun had fully set, and it was getting rather close to the last light around 8.20pm. But then we saw the first of the Penguins come over the edge of the rocks. I did start trying to count them but soon gave this idea up as there were just too many. Within 10-15 minutes there would have easily been over 100 penguins passing. Many of them stopped right near to the seating area to preen themselves, not more than a couple of metres away.

More Information

If you would like to find out more information, there are a few places that you can look. I go into more detail about the Penguin Parade in my post “Visiting Phillip Island Penguin Parade.” If you would like more information about Phillip Island Nature Parks. Or if you would like more information about the particular tour I took “A Tour With A Difference.”

I can highly recommend both the tour that we took and the experience at the Penguin Parade. If you like this post, I would love to hear from you either in the comments below or via the contact form.

Destinations

Visiting Melbourne Parks And Old Gaol

Posted on November 16, 2011
Melbourne - Old Melbourne Gaol

Last night I worked through a couple of different ideas with my friend for today. We thought that we might have had an idea put together, but on doing some research, it was not exactly the best plan. But that soon went out the window this morning when I woke up to rain.

Plans and Changes

There end up being three different plans that got dropped today. Any of them could have worked had we put effort into it, but neither of us was looking to rush around for things.

Plan 1

The first option that we both quite liked was to rent a car and take a drive out to the Dandenong Ranges area. The biggest challenge in this was the 5 pm return time for the rental car. We could have taken this approach, but it seemed like we would be rushing and spending more time in traffic than seeing much.

Plan 2

The second option would see us heading out to the Dandenong Ranges area and visit the Puffing Billy Railroad. Also a great option, but it also required making some very specific public transport connections. If we missed the connections, it would have meant catching a taxi and a rather expensive day out.

Plan 3

The particular visit to the Puffing Billy Railroad was still a possible option. However, it would have meant it was the only place we visited today. But we decided against it when we awoke to rain that had been around for most of the night.

City Sights

As such we decided to stick to the city and see a few more sights around Melbourne itself. The first stop for the day was the Old Melbourne Gaol. Even though we were ready and moving early, the Gaol does not open until 10 am so there was a stop for coffee on the way.

Melbourne - Old Melbourne Gaol

I had previously visited the Old Melbourne Gaol when I was in Melbourne last time. However, it was a place that I was happy to revisit for a short time anyway. I don’t particularly like the idea of being inside a gaol, but doing so in short bursts is not too bad.

There was also a small tour here that I missed on my last visit. That is the Police Watch House Experience. A short tour of maybe 20 minutes that takes you through what it might feel like to be taken through the watch house after being arrested. Even though you know it is not real, it is a feeling that you know you don’t want to go through beyond this one time.

Melbourne - Old Melbourne Gaol Holding Cell

After lunch, we had planned to visit the Fox Classic Car Collection in the Docklands area. However, we end up having to pass on this idea as well due to some rather limited opening hours.

Australian Centre for the Moving Image (ACMI)

Without much else to do my friend suggested we visit the Australian Centre for the Moving Image. It was somewhere a friend of his had suggested visiting. It also worked out well since it is located at Federation Square not far from where we needed to be for dinner.

In the past, I had not visited the ACMI not sure what it was. However, after visiting here today, I would highly recommend it as a great way to fill in some time. They have a couple of free galleries that might take around 2-3 hours to view. Plus there is also a paid exhibit, which we did not visit today, but they recommend an hour for this.

Fitzroy Gardens

After leaving ACMI, there was still a little time to fill in before dinner. So a short walk and we were in Fitzroy Gardens, which is a beautiful area to walk around. Even though it was a little late to see any of the attractions some them you can still see to some extent without going in. They include Cooks Cottage, a Model Tudor Village, the Carved Fairy Tree and a couple of fountains. You can read more about Fitzroy Gardens in my previous post, Melbourne Cricket Ground Tour And Fitzroy Gardens.

In the end, I only got a photo of this family of ducks in Fitzroy Gardens. But they are quite cute, so here they are.

Melbourne - Ducks and ducklings in fitzroy Gardens

Terra Rossa

For dinner tonight I had arranged to catch up with a friend I met last year in Las Vegas. Not knowing Melbourne I let her choose the restaurant with some local knowledge. The restaurant was an Italian one by the name of Terra Rossa, and it was an excellent choice with some good food. I always enjoy catching up with friends and tonight was no different with some good conversation.

Melbourne - Terra Rossa Restaurant - Flinders Lane

Nightcap

The last stop tonight was at a trendy bar by the name of Cookie. It was one recommended to us by another friend and thought it might check it out. Finding it is a bit of a challenge with it being an unmarked doorway with a rather small nameplate in a list of other tenants. If you were not looking for it, you would not know it was there. However, once your inside it is a rather interesting decor with a very extensive selection of spirits and beers, both on tap and in bottles.

After the challenge of getting the plans for the day, I am happy with what we got to see. If we had followed any of the other plans it would have not been such a productive day.

Destinations

Seeing Melbourne Docklands And Crown Casino

Posted on November 15, 2011
Melbourne - Docklands

Today got off to a slow start for sightseeing around Melbourne for my friend and I. There were a couple of things that he needed to get sorted out, so we made a visit to a few stores. The next stop was across to Federation Square to visit the Tourist Information Centre.

Organising Tours

The visit to the Tourist Information Centre was to arrange a tour that we wanted to take. We were looking to visit Phillip Island, especially to see the Phillip Island Penguin Parade. With some information in hand, we found a nearby coffee shop to review the options and make a booking.

In the end, we decided on a tour with a company named “A Tour With A Difference.” The tour was Phillip Island Penguins & More including the Penguins Plus Seating at the Penguin Parade. I will include the update and review of the tour in a couple of days once we have completed the tour.

Docklands

After booking the tour, it was time to get down to seeing some sights. We boarded the free tourist tram with a plan to do the complete loop. However, we did not get far before I remembered a few good spots to have a look and we left the tram near to Docklands. There were a couple of funny pieces of public art that I knew my friend would appreciate like “Cow In A Tree.”

Melbourne - Cow In a Tree Sculpture

It was just as interesting for me to see this area as it was for my friend. Since my visit to Melbourne last year, there has been a lot of new development in the area. One of the biggest changes is the ferris wheel here. It was on the ground in pieces as of my last visit, and it is now partially reconstructed. It is good to see as it is at least two years since it was taken out of operation due to technical difficulties.

Melbourne - Docklands

Yarra River Cruise

One of the things my friend wanted to do was take a cruise on the Yarra River. So we headed back to Southbank where many of the river cruises depart. Unfortunately, at this time of year, they all seem to finish early in the afternoon. However, we did manage to get on a shorter version of one cruise travelling with the guy taking his boat back to the dock for the evening. It turned out this took us back to Docklands where we had just come from.

Eureka Skydeck

One place I recommend visiting when in Melbourne is Eureka Skydeck at the top of the Eureka Building. It is by far the best place to get a view over Melbourne City. It started out great with some excellent views over the city as the sun was setting. However, as it was approaching dark, there were some school groups arrived, which resulted in far too many children. With so much noise and kids, we did not end up staying as long as we might.

Riverside

We visited the northern bank of the Yarra River both before and after visiting the Eureka Skydeck. Beforehand there was some very nice light from the sun coming through some clouds.

Melbourne - Yarra River Sculpture "Constellation"

After visiting the Eureka Skydeck, we returned to almost the same spot we were in earlier. We stopped here to see the show that is in front of the Crown Casino along the river in the evening.

Melbourne - Crown Casinos Gas Brigades show

Overall an enjoyable day in Melbourne with some good things to come later in the week. I even got to see some new area’s today that I had not visited before.

Destinations

Melbourne Tapas and Graffiti Laneway

Posted on November 14, 2011
Melbourne - Movida Next Door

Today is the first of a few days I will be spending in Melbourne with a friend from Canada. Unlike some other flights I have taken recently, I decided at a more reasonable hour or 9.55 am for the flight. Being a Sunday, there was no need to leave much before 8 am to make it to the airport.

Flying Virgin Australia

The flight was my second flight with Virgin Australia, at least in recent memory. To be honest, the experience was much better this time. The aircraft was larger, and there was in-flight entertainment available, with a few complimentary pay TV channels.

Arriving In Melbourne

With the later flight to Melbourne, I did not arrive until around 1 pm. So once you take into account the bus into the city and getting checked into the hotel, it was closer to 2.30 pm when I met with my friend.

The hotel I chose for the stay is Jasper Hotel, located on Elizabeth St. You can find the post which I shared about my experience at the hotel Checking In Jasper Hotel Melbourne.

Social Afternoon

To start the afternoon, I was friend meeting with my friend from Toronto who I met on my Transpacific Cruise. I organised to meet for coffee near the hotel. Once we were enjoying our coffee, we contacted the other friend from the cruise and arranged to meet later in the day.

With a couple of hours to fill in, we went for a short walk through some of the city areas. Since we were meeting the other friend at my hotel, we did not want to venture too far.

Tapas & Laneways

 

Around 5.30 pm we met with our other friend who had organised to visit a local place for Tapas. The spot was named Movida Next Door, a small Spanish Tapas Bar opposite Federation Square on Flinders St. The menu did not appeal to me all that much, but I was more than willing to give it a try. Melbourne - Movida Next Door

As it turns out I had to be prepared to try some new things, including learning just how tapas works. I think there end up being around ten different plates that we tried, many that I cannot even remember what they were. I can honestly say there were a few things on the menu I never thought I would be trying let alone enjoying.

Melbourne - Movida Next Door Tapas

Even though I quite enjoyed the tapas, I do not believe that it is something I will be rushing back to try again. There were a couple of reasons; the most important for me though was the large amount that was deep fried and had not real taste. Also the other aspect of the rather expensive cost for a tiny amount of food. Even after spending almost $50 a head on a drink and the ten different tapas I still feel hungry enough to go and buy something else to eat. On the plus side, it is now something I have tried that I don’t need to try again.

Hosier Lane

Right next to Movida Next Door is one of Melbourne’s many laneways. Hosier Lane is a slightly more popular spot to visit with a rather extensive graffiti gallery covering the walls. While some people do spoil it a little adding their tag over a better piece, mostly it is great to look at.

Melbourne - Laneway Graffiti

Missed Opportunities

The rest of the evening did not go exactly as planned. Our friend from Melbourne had wanted to take us to The Lui Bar which is located on level 55 of the Rialto Tower. However, it did not work out due to the bar closing at 6 pm on a Sunday.

A little quick thinking and we set a course to walk through and take a look at the Crown Casino. When you look at this compared to the casino’s in Brisbane or the Gold Coast, it is considerable better. There is a certain level of class that it seems to have over the ones near home. Plus it seems much more alive with the expected gambling options, but also a range of shops, entertainment and eateries.

We finished the night with a drink at an Irish bar in the area of Melbourne’s Southbank. The pub was named P J Obrien’s and not the most comfortable place, but still good to have a chat. It has been great to catch up with some friends from the Transpacific cruise.

Destinations

Visiting Phillip Island Penguin Parade

Posted on November 12, 2011
Little Penguins are heading to their nests

While I was visiting Melbourne with a friend, we decided to look at visiting Phillip Island to see the little penguins. We decided to book a tour with “A Tour With A Difference” who offer small group tours combined with visiting the penguins. The tour included some stops along the way with timing to arrive for The Penguin Parade. In this post, I cover the details of the experience at The Penguin Parade, but you can read more about the tour “Phillip Island Penguins and More Tour.”

The tour guide stays updated on the expected arrival time of the little penguins. However, it seems to coincide with dusk. Today we arrived around 7.30pm and were provided with poncho’s and waterproof rugs, due to recent and possible rain.

The Penguin Parade does seem to be a very popular attraction, with plenty of people arriving at the visitors centre. All are making their way down to the viewing areas. For us, that was not a big problem as we had paid a little extra for the Penguins Plus option with a smaller, closer seating area.

Penguins Plus

There are some different options for The Penguin Parade when it comes to seating. There is a general admission area that is like grandstand seating. But we choose to pay a little extra for the Penguins Plus viewing area.

The tour includes seating in a small more intimate area near where more penguins pass by. Also included were an audio tour and short talk by a park ranger describing what we might expect to see. Finally, there was a free hot drink once the little penguin viewing was finished.

Little Penguins are heading to their nests

Little Penguins are heading to their nests. Photo by: Phillip Island Nature Parks www.penguins.org.au

Dusk Approaches

By the time that we had passed through the visitors centre, collected the audio tour and found our way to the seating it was around 7.40 pm. Even with the evening being dulled by overcast clouds, there was still around 30 minutes before the Penguins were expected.

In the time spent waiting, we listened to the audio tour and also a little information from the guide. Almost all light had gone from the sky when at about 8.20pm the first littler penguin appeared. Soon followed by another and then an army of little penguins scrambling over the rocks. I had started trying to count them, but this soon became too difficult.

A waddle of Little Penguins crossing the beach

A Waddle of Little Penguins crossing the Beach. Photo by: Phillip Island Nature Parks www.penguins.org.au

The Penguins Plus area provides just about the best seating to see the little penguins. You are no more than one or two meters from the penguins, and hundreds are passing. But the little penguins also tend to stop around this area the preen a little. As it is this area that is the first chance since leaving the water they start to feel a little safer.

More Viewing Opportunities

Even though the Penguins Plus viewing area provides a great view of the penguins coming in, there are plenty of other opportunities. On the walk back to the visitors centre, the little penguins are moving around on both sides of the path. Along with the penguin’s nest covering the landscape around the area. You can be a lot closer to the penguins along here, but the numbers of them together are much smaller.

About the Little Penguins*

The Little Penguin is the smallest of all penguin species. Growing to a height of between 30-33cm (12-13inches) and weighing between 1 to 1.5 kilograms. The areas that they are most commonly found are the southern coastal areas of Australia and New Zealand. However, there are also possible records of them in Chile as well.

The Phillip Island colony at Summerlands Peninsula on the south-western coast of Phillip Island is home to approx 32,000 Little Penguins. Every sunset anywhere from a few hundred to over one thousands Little Penguins can be seen crossing the beach and returning to their nests.

Little Penguin on the beach

Little Penguin on the Beach. Photo by: Phillip Island Nature Parks www.penguins.org.au

*Information sourced from Wikipedia & Phillip Island Nature Parks.

The Numbers

I am one that loves to see numbers and statistics and they do their best to provide some numbers. On the night of our tour visit, there was a total of 1,415 little penguins crossed the beach. Of these around 880 of them passed by the Penguins Plus viewing area. With so many of them passing this viewing area I am glad we choose this option.

How To See The Little Penguins

There are some options to see the little penguins for yourself. You can make a choice between taking a tour, driving yourself or even staying at Phillip Island.

Tour

With limited time in Melbourne, myself and my friend opted for a tour. As mentioned above the company we choose was A Tour With a Difference. Taking their Phillip Island and Penguins Day tour. The tour was a great idea with the option to include dinner and the choice to add Penguins Plus at an extra cost.

Besides the penguins, the tour also included some other stops. There were five in total visiting, Cowes, Nobbies Conservation Centre, Gurdies Winery, Phillip Island Chocolate Factory & Woolamai Surf Beach. Plus time for dinner in Cowes, which we opted to include dinner with the tour.

You can contact A Tour With A Different by phone on 1300 36 27 36.

Self Drive

If you live near Melbourne or have rented a car, you can choose to drive to Phillip Island Yourself. From Melbourne, it takes around 90 minutes, but you need to remember to arrive at least an hour before the penguin arrival. The self-drive option makes it rather flexible for you to decided what to do and where to go along the way.

Staying At Phillip Island

If you have a couple of days, it can be very nice to stay at Phillip Island. There are some hotels around the main town on the island Cowes. Two hotels I have used in the area are the Arthur Phillip Moter Inn and the Seahorse Motel. Both were quite comfortable and would consider staying again when returning to Phillip Island in the future.

Entry to The Penguin Parade

Standard Admission to see the little penguins starts from $25.70 for adults and $12.80 for children (4-15 years).While Penguin Plus admissions start from $50.00 for adults and $25.00 for children (4-15 years). There is a range of other options available including different inclusions and family passes. But the best place to find the latest prices and information is the Penguin Parade website – www.penguins.org.au.

Disclaimer – Information in this post is correct as at May 2017. Information has been sourced from third party websites including Wikipedia, A Tour With A Difference and Phillip Island Nature Parks. Other information is based on my personal experience. The prices included within this post are supplied as an indication only and may change, so please check prices on the provided websites.

Cruising Destinations

Cruise Days–Costa Rica, Mexico and San Diego return

Posted on November 4, 2011
Panama Canal - Gatun Locks Westbound

Welcome to the fourth and last post in the series of posts which will look at the ports of call for the 28-day Panama Canal cruise which I was onboard earlier this year. In this post, I will cover the remaining ports in a little more detail than the summary post here “28 Day Panama Canal Cruise Summary.”

Looking for the other parts? Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3

After leaving Aruba, there was a day at sea before the second full transit of the Panama Canal. The second transit was the greatest benefit of doing the cruise over 28 days. There are a couple of advantages to this, such as seeing all three sets of locks at the opposite ends of the day. Also just getting to watch and see different areas of the canal as the transit progresses.

After completing the Panama Canal transit, the first stop is Puerto Caldera in Costa Rica. Followed by another three ports in Mexico, Huatulco, Acapulco, and Cabo San Lucus. With the cruise coming to an end in San Diego at the end of 28-days.

Panama Canal, Panama

Due to the way that transits for cruise ships are scheduled each transit will enter the canal in the morning. Then the exiting at the other end of the canal in the afternoon or evening. For this transit, there were three cruises all entering the Gatun locks together. The MS Statendam, Island Princess and Celebrity Century.

Panama Canal - Gatun Locks Westbound

I spent the time along this transit in a relatively similar way to the last transit. There was a mix of time spent on deck in the heat and humidity, with some time in the pool. But I also took advantage of some indoor activities to cool down from time to time.

Puerto Caldera – Costa Rica

Costa Rica was one of the ports that I was looking forward to seeing. Although seeing the country was of interest, the tour I had booked almost overshadowed this. There were a few parts of the tour. However, the main part I was looking forward to was zip lining. The rest of the tour included a one-hour bus trip from the ship to the forest area where the zip lining was. A 20-minute ride in a gondola to get to the top of the zip line course, and a reasonably good spread for the included lunch.

Costa Rica - Gondola

The zip line course was a series of ten different zip lines of various lengths, with the longest one over 1000 feet long. Depending on the individual zip line you achieve speeds up to 35+ miles per hour. The course here had one big plus; you did not need to worry about braking. On some other zip lines, you also need to slow yourself down with a brake on the equipment. The only issue at times was the amount of time that you had to wait in between turns. As a result of people needing to be helped to connect and disconnected to the zip lines. However, the views while you waited kind made it worth while.

Costa Rica - Ziplining

Doing this tour did not leave time for really anything else, it was a full eight-hour tour. There was little time left before the ship “all aboard” time. It started to rain on the way back to the ship so I was happy to get back onboard. However, this was not a concern. I don’t think I could have found a better way to spend the time in Costa Rica myself.

Costa Rica - Lunch

Huatulco, Mexico

Huatulco was the next port, and the only port duplicated for the whole cruise. A perfect opportunity for another beach day. After the first visit, I did ask people who had taken tours, and the primary feedback was, there is not much to see on the tours.

Acapulco, Mexico

The following day was a stop in Acapulco, Mexico. I had little interest in this port after reading quite a lot about safety issues in the area. With some cruise lines even opting for alternate ports or making a decision on the day whether to dock or not. While the ship may have docked, I chose to stay in the port area, and onboard the ship. Which turned out to be a good choice as stories filtered back about people being given bad directions to try and lead them away. So it does not look like I missed much, and still got a decent photo over the city.

Acapulco - Mexico

Cabo San Lucas – Mexico

The last port of the cruise was Cabo San Lucas, Mexico. It was kind of sad that the cruise was coming to an end. However, what a fantastic port to end on. Cabo San Lucas is a tender port, which meant you needed to plan whether to be on or off the ship for most of the day.

Cabo San Lucas - Mexico

The views over the port, water, and surrounding areas are stunning. With water, that is a deep blue color, sandy beaches stretching along the shoreline and some very dramatic rocky features. Small boats are acting as taxi’s darting across the water in every direction. Many almost private alcoves with beaches and people enjoying the sun.

Cabo San Lucas - Mexico

The first thing I noticed once on shore was a very different feel to other Mexican ports that I visited. There was a feeling of fun, and everything was busy and happy. The market stalls were everywhere with people trying to sell their wares, or use their boat to get around the bay. It was an outstanding place to wander around and just see what was on offer. Such as “free tequila with your beer” or a bucket of 7 Coronas for $10 US.

Cabo San Lucas - Mexico - Beach

Cabo San Lucas - Natural Archway

Back To San Diego

After leaving Cabo San Lucus, there was still one sea day before arriving back to San Diego. While there were plenty of people happy to leave at the end of the first 14 days, I could easily have stayed longer. I made full use of the last day enjoying some of the luxuries of the ship for the last time. A cruise is such a great way to see some places you may never think to visit otherwise. Along with the benefits of getting to meet a lot of people and also only having to unpack once.

MS Statendam departing San Diego

More To Come

With this post, it brings the series of posts about my 28-day Panama Canal Cruise to an end. There are more posts to read from my travel and adventures. So I hope that you take a chance to check out some more posts. Especially if you would like to try cruising yourself, consider checking out my post about Choosing Your First Cruise Experience.

If you enjoyed this post, please consider leaving a comment below or sharing it with your friends and family.

Pin It on Pinterest

Share This