Amazing Day on the Morningside Peninsula

8/14/11
Our friend Eva took us out on a day trip down the Morningside Penninsula which encapsulates Port Phillip Bay. It was absolutely lovely with stunning views, wineries, cheeseries, and ocean-side volcanic beaches. Our little Canon did the best it could but here is a little taste of some of what we saw.




















We stopped at the T'Gallant winery. The grownups enjoyed a free sampling of their wines and later a wood-fired pizza dinner. Auden jumped into an impromptu game of "footy"





















Later in the day we stopped at Gowantu beach. It is surrounded by volcanic rocks and cliffs. We found some interesting life in the tide pools. The top picture is of a green sea biscuit and Auden found a sea sponge.
Later we visited "Surfer's Beach". It truly is a surfer's beach as the rip currents and reefs make it too dangerous for inexperienced or family swimmers. It was teaming with surfers when we got there at sunset. We mangaged to capture one modest surfer although some of them were "totally ripping".
http://youtu.be/CQ5EGT41DAQ

Yarra River Valley

8/13/11
We ventured out of the city to the Healsville Sanctuary in the Yarra River Valley. The sanctuary is part of the Melbourne Zoo system although it is well outside the city limits. It houses only native flora and fauna in a "bush-like" setting. On the way out we saw many farms and vineyards. Deer are not a native species but are raised in small numbers for venison. Lots of sheep peppered fields and cattle grazing. The landscape is quite unique. If you can imagine a mix of southern Spain and Texas river country with lots of gum (ecualyptus) trees. You really have to see it. Here are some iconic Aussie animals we saw at the sanctuary. Yes, they had 'roos but they really weren't doing much.

Koalas are adorable but my favorite is the wombat!












Well-trained dingos allowed kids to pet them. They were much more interested in the rewards they were getting for tolerating the petting though.










The zoos have a "Wipe for Wildlife" campaign to inspire people to buy toilet paper made from recycled paper. The message was everywhere but clearly stated here. Aussies have a way with the PSA.

Royal Botanical Gardens 8/2/11

Beautiful and unseasonably warm day. We went to the Royal Botanical Gardens right in the middle of downtown Melbourne. It does seem that everything is bigger in Australia. Ferns are giant, Ficus and Norfolk Island pines reach monstrous sizes. (The tree in the right side foreground is a Norflok Island pine!)

This statue ia called the "Wiggy Pudding Dance". I think the round fellow in the middle is the pudding. Why he is dancing and with whom is not explained...

There was a very friendly black swan and these funny water birds called Dusky Moorhens. The Moorhens call sounds just like a clown’s bicycle horn or squeaking air out of a balloon. They don’t seem to be at all embarrassed though.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VNTJH5Arsns

On the topic of birds, just down from our street is the Port Phillip Bay and the St. Kilda pier. On a rocky outcropping from the pier there is a colony of the smallest species of penguin. They are sometimes called Fairy Penguins but we have been told that they prefer the term Little Penguins. They come to roost at dusk and dawn. We have been to the rocks at both times of day and caught glimpses of them coming in or going out. They are very shy and unfortunately because of the light we have been unable to get footage, but they are quite noisy and I will try to get some sound on the Flip cam soon.

City Farm VIsit

The kids and I ventured out to the upper north end of the city today to visit the Collingwood Children’s Farm. It is literally 20 meters from a freeway but once you enter the farm you would never know it. It was very open and friendly (like all Australian’s we’ve met so far, animals included).

The brown and white ducks are called racing ducks but they are kept not for racing but for their superior laying ability. Duck eggs are very common here. You can buy them in the grocery stores.

The adolescent piglets were named Maybelle and Isobel. They know their names and immediately came up to the fence to beg!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jxb9hsxfIyY

Rhy and Gwen

Rhyana and her new friend Gwen goofing off on the beach (Phillip Bay is behind them). Gwen is the daughter of my colleague at the University, Brian, and his partner Eva. They have been tremendously generous hosts, taking us places and introducing us to regional culture and sites. Gwen had just had Rhy for a sleep over and they went out after lunch for milk shakes on the beach. They live on the bay and Gwen and Brian are both avid sailors. --Jim

"Footy" match

Brian invited us to attend a “Footy” match. Australian Rules Football is a very interesting game that resembles a combination of rugby and soccer. Like ball is very much like a rugby ball but the field is oval and there are strict tackling rules. There isn’t any padding and the “lads” who play tend to be around 6’2” minimum with an average age of 24. This match was between the Collingwood Magpies and the Essenton Bombers . In the picture you can see the crowds making their way to the Melbourne Cricket Grounds stadium which was built for the 1956 Olympics. It seats 100,000. Because of the fine weather that day 73,000 attended this particular game. (We know the number because Aussies love to make a wager and our friend asked Auden to wager with him on how many people were there. At the end of the match the score board flashed the answer. He also asked me to wager how many points our team , the Magpies would win by. I bet by 15 he by 40. He won. The ‘Pies slaughtered the Bombers by by 60 points!

link to the Collingwood Magpies fighting song. We tried to record the (drunken) crowd singing it but it didn't come out.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z45ytXTzcA8

Funny signs

Yes Zeppelin, there are coin operated dog washes that you could encounter on a W-A-L-K! Also, it is reassuring to realize how inclusive Melbournians are about Ladies' nights.