The city that eats...

It is known for its culinary expertise, and it does not disappoint. Melbourne has in fact some of the best eats we have ever put in our growing stomachs. For the entire time we have been in Australia, I have commented that it reminds me of a cross between the States and Europe. For example, where Europe is largely single-nationality within each individual country (exceptions exist of course), Australia is a melting pot reminiscent of the States. It is also a young country having been founded by James Cook in 1770. For it's European flair (or you could argue British flair), the people have a very cool accent, spoken English is more proper than the States, and many sites are copy-cats of the Brits (Liverpool, Hyde Park, Canterbury, and well the Queen still has a hand in government appointees). I am not sure what I really expected when I got here (it has been on my dream list but I am not embarrassed to say it was for the accent), but it is unlike what I expected. In a good way.

We stayed in a lovely bed and breakfast run by a man named Stan, who prepared fresh fruit in the morning accompanied by different cereals and bread and an egg if I wished. He gave us plenty of things to do and see, filling our itinerary with tourist and local sights in Melbourne.

There is this rivalry between Melbourne and Sydney, which I liken Melbourne to the little sister of sorts overshadowed by the other. We have to say though-hands down, Melbourne wins. Don't get me wrong-Sydney was great and the fireworks show grand. Our trip was fantastic, but if I were to move to Australia, I would live in Melbourne where the Brunswick eateries won my stomach and the prices won my wallet. For example, a day pass on the metro in Sydney costs $20 while we spent $6.80 in Melbourne. That's just the beginning. But more than cost, it's the ambiance-it is less touristy and underrated by the masses. It is like Florence to Rome. The only setback would be the fear of getting fat.

Speaking of food, we over-ate at many places. The most resounding was a recommendation from our host: Vegie Bar. I know-right up our alley. It was a completely vegetarian place but get this-meat eaters go there too! It was sooooo good and I had my choice of anything on the menu AND it was not an Indian place. Or a mock-meat place. Truly veggie-based and delicious. So good, we checked out the other veg place across the town and CAME BACK! In the same day! I have NEVER done that while traveling, a self-imposed rule I strictly followed prior to this week.

Then there was the pizza place and bar called Bimbo's (hmmm...) that some Uni (that's Aussie for college/university) students from Hyderbad told us about. $4 pizzas! They didn't prove to be as good as they looked or sounded but it was fun nonetheless.

Gosh, how dare I forget to tell you about the Queen Victoria Market. It conjured homesickness in me for I had no kitchen to whip up a fresh meal with these ingredients. Cheap prices and truly fresh greens. Even the kitchenware was cheap!

We tried our luck at the local Crown Casino, but we didn't manage to make enough to pay for the trip. Bummer. Good thing we had a honeyfund:)

All in all, we loved Melbourne and wished we had one more day in which we could taste more of its local eats. And of course by local that means Malaysian, Thai, Indian, Greek, and anything from this side of the world.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Location:Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

The world's largest war memorial...

Well, it is just that. A memorial built by the Australians for the fallen Australians (from WWI). In true laid back Aussie nature, it took 13 years to complete (Sure, it was a huge feat but during our Sydney tour, we learned all things take a while in Australia.) I must say-well done Aussies. Well done. Imagine how much easier road trips would be when you can at least stare at this, green and rich blue ocean water as far as the eye can see.

Let me take a step back and bring you up to speed. We began our journey after Sydney, flying Tiger Airways (a low cost Singaporean airline...not to be confused with Singapore Airlines of course). Everyone who reads this next part and then flys Airtran or Southwest must thank them. And here's why. We takeoff and soon cabin service begins. As Srin and I shoot the breeze, we are asked by the flight attendant if we would like something to drink. We rarely get anything (except water) but we brought lunch aboard so we figured a ginger ale and diet coke seemed quenching. The flight attendant abides and returns and says "That will be $6." As Srin and I exchange looks of shock and shy smiles, we pay up. But, we notice no one else was asked. Certainly not the people in back or next to us-I watched intently. We must have exuded American. So, let all Americans who take to the skies be thankful for complimentary drinks (and even a snack on Southwest).

We arrive and haul our bags to the Hertz, anxiously wondering what it was going to be like to drive on the other side of the road.

Srin took the first stab at it. I would say his biggest issue was the switch between the wipers and the turn signal. The other big issue (which was my main one) was perception of lane space. By that I mean keeping the car in the middle of the lane, instead of creeping to the left too much (a natural tendency when you are used to driving a left-handed car!)

It was odd being a passenger too. They should put fake steering wheel and pedals in rentals to help us Americans feel "right".

We started around 40km prior to the pic, approximately at 10 061km.

The driving was quite easy and became a bit natural, albeit via a slow transition. The GOR essentially goes between Melbourne and Adelaide and has many scenic points between.

We stopped at numerous points just to allow the eyes to soak in the ocean, and stayed the night in Apollo Bay, which was about 3.5 hours from the Melbourne Tullamarine airport. Summer days are quite agreeable to road trips, providing sunlight until nearly 9PM. We grabbed a bite to eat (an adventure in and of itself-like our top choice cafe losing power right as we walked in) had dessert and called it a night (in Hotel Yaris of course).

We continued our way to one of the most revered sights along the GOR called the 12 apostles. There are only 10.5 left though and formed naturally millions of years ago. The gradual process started with the accumulation of tiny marine skeletons mixing with sediment on the ocean floor, creating limestone formations. As the ocean retreated, the creations were exposed.

 

One of the most famous GOR stories is probably with the so-called London Bridge which fell around 1990 leaving people stranded on top of the structure. They had to be rescued thereafter.

I must have not captured the other side but this is the right part which was the part still in the ocean.

Around Port Campbell, we saw other natural rock formations.

This is called a grotto and was probably my favorite, even more so than the apostles. A grotto is a natural formation sort of like a cave near water.

The so-called arch. Self explanatory I guess.

 

We left the GOR to head inland, where we were lucky enough to find a quaint and clean motel (which had free Wi-fi!) in a town called Camperdown.  Along the way, we stopped at two cheese making factories (yummy!), a distillery and ice cream shop, and a winery. It was so different than anything we had done thus far, and that made for a fun (but filling) last day.

We went to the grocery in Camperdown and decided to lay low on the eating out. This greek salad came complete in a bag for only $4 AUD. Contrast that to ONE salad (not the two big salads I made from this bag) that costs about $14 AUD in restaurants and doesn't taste nearly as good. Combined with our locally made cheese platter and wine, dinner was superb. For the record, I still do not like wine. Bleh. And don't call any wine sweet. It is not sweet. At all. It is mouth cringing and just bleh.

We drove safely to Melbourne the next day and returned the car. It was the road trip of all road trips. A phenomenal view, music (a la the iPAD. Thank you Drs. Clarke), and a good friend.

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Location:Great Ocean Road

No Vacancy

After many internet searches about three months ago, I knew it was going to be tough to find accommodations along the Great Ocean Road. But, we figured there must be small (not the internet booking type, you know?) motels that would have vacancy...

And, so here goes our first night along the GOR...

As I was just falling asleep in our Toyota Yaris, meters from the Youth Hostel just off of the main road, I hear a soft call.

"Mamta."
"Uh-huh."
More urgently, "Mamta. I gotta go."
"Uh huh. Okay. You can't wait until the morning?"
Silence.
"Mamta? I gotta GO."
Now wide awake, "Okay. What? Huh? Okay. Let's go. We can find that gas station, right? Was there a gas station?"
"I gotta GO!"
A kilometer later, we find ourselves along the GOR again. It is now 12:37AM and the bar on the corner has closed down.
"Aha. Is THAT bar open, Mamta? Is it? Is it!!?!"
"Umm..yes, yes it is. Go! Pull over and go!"

About 30 seconds after the door shut, I look in the side mirror. Hmmm...Why is Srin stopping? Who is he talking to? Is that a cop??!? Oh gosh. What did we do? Maybe it was the U-turn? What is taking him soooo long?"

About five minutes elapsed and images of an Australian jail (or worse, a huge fine) faded as Srin walked (ran) into the bar. Staring intently at the two (yes, now there are two) officers, I tidy up my hair so as not to look like I had been using my rented Toyota Yaris as my Hilton. (You see, it's illegal to sleep in your car here.)

I roll down my window and flash my straight American pearly whites, "Hi sir".

"He's just gonna use the facilities, ma'am."
"Great. Thank you."
"He's not doing too well."
A sympathetic head nod later, I say "I know." in a way only a wife understands.
A smile spreads across my accented Aussie cop's face.
"I am sorry to tell you that the city is booked solid, ma'am."

Fearing being hunted down in my Yaris and fined in AUD (well, it's getting worse to be an American in Australia as the days pass. C'mon Barack.), I reply: "I know. We tried really hard sir. And I just didn't want to drive on the GOR at night. I am a bit of a safety freak. A grandma of sorts."

All the while, hoping to convey a goody-two-shoe persona, as if that probably wasn't already brewing from my pores.

He says "That's mighty smart of you. It's dark out there and the only lights come from the animals." as he claws his hands and scrapes the air in front of me. Funny guy.

He continues, "I think you may be sitting in your hotel for the night. I would just park in a car park. It's not legal but I won't bust your chops for it."

"Well, thank you sir."

An excruciating three minutes later, Srin returns to a hopeful, now wide-awake, and anticipating wife. "Well, what did he want!??!?!"

And so it goes...

Cop1:
"How many drinks have you had?"
"I just had a glass of wine at dinner, officer."
As Srin handed over his license, he asks "Did I do something wrong?"
"No. I just noticed you pulled over."
"I stopped just to use the restroom."

Cop 2:
"Blow into this sir." And Srin did just that-a breathalyzer.
The result came as "He's golden." which, of course, was expected.
As if that wasn't enough, the ol' cop'rs asked if he had any drugs in the car. To which Srin replied "No. You can check the car." in hopes that his excruciating wait for the restroom would be soon cut short. (Of course, as I write this, Srin's main contribution to the blog is that he wants you to know what he was really thinking: 'I don't but you may want to check the wife.' Sure Srin. Crack a joke-it only keeps YOUR wait longer. (Pun not intended.))

The cop continued, "Well, where are you staying?"
"Well we wanted to stay at the hostel but everything is booked."
Amidst thoughts of the awaiting relief, he debates if these cops get the dire situation at hand.

"Look sir. I really need to GO." Images of Austin Powers and Number 2 danced in Srin's head as the cop, in true Aussie laidback nature, contemplated the honesty of this Indian-American-Non-Australian tourist.

This picture is a re-enactment and should only be attempted by professional, law-defying car sleepers. Do not try this at home.


And so went our first night along the GOR. It may sound awful (and for a while it was), but it was our favorite night so far. In all its ridiculous nature, we bonded to be quite honest. All we had was each other to focus on the funny parts and not the lack of facilities, comfort, or warmth. And for the record, summer nights along the GOR are cold.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Location:Great Ocean Road

From pretty cool to beautiful...

Day 4 in Sydney took us to the famous Manly Beach. As you know, Srin and I are hardly "tourist" types so we rented bikes and took the path less travelled. We weaved through turns and up hills (of course, I walked my bike up the mountains we had to climb), traversing through the National Park to find ourselves at the North Head. The frustration from my lack of uphill biking skills and deprivation of lunch was justified when we ventured upon this view.

Along the way, we made a pit stop at the cove and frolicked in the cold (yes, that's right. Cold.) salty water of the Pacific Ocean. 

Lucky for me, even I have downhill biking skills, and the ride back to Manly was shorter than a bug's life. Given this sight of infinite crowding, Srin and I knew right away our decision to stray from the famous beach was indeed the thing to do.

As we strolled to the Wharf to catch the ferry back to Sydney, it seemed God was in the mood for a laugh. Ay Bhagwan!

It must have been my good fortune to have been near a surplus of stores and shops so the Sydney-Siders didn't have to wait behind me as I dragged my foot around, fearing fungus-invasions without the protection of my cheap Old Navy footwear. All in all, the Manly excursion was well worth the $20 AUD metro fair (which, with the constantly falling USD, was more than $20. Per person of course.)

Day 5 turned out to be calming, laughter-filled, and food-centered. We spent New Year's Eve with Rohini and Prashant, joining them on brunch/lunch with some friends. It felt very local indeed as we walked about in Pyrmont, a quaint suburb near Canterbury where we were staying. All on the day's itinerary was laundry and packing so relaxation found its way into our day. We joined the grocery shopping errand, making us feel more local than before. As such, we decided to take advantage of having a kitchen and thank our hosts by making Taco Salads a la my Texas roots. They were real and spectacular, just like our nightly home-cooked dinners from Rohini. We may be a bit spoiled now.

Once out of food coma, we made our way to celebrate the coming of the new year. As it turns out, we learned Sydney puts on two New Year's shows: the so-called Family version at 9PM (so the kids can maintain their early bed time) and the traditional midnight spectacle. Rohini seemed surprised that the States would never do two shows. Where we came from, you either stayed up until midnight or you missed it. Guess children's bedtimes aren't a US celebration priority! We felt even more local as we refused to arrive at the Sydney Harbor at 3PM to stake a spot (so touristy huh?) so we joined them at an off the beaten path location just off of the Harbor. We reveled in the greens and reds and golds, lighting up the sky as 1-1-11 commenced.

And with that, we say goodbye to Sydney and hello to the Great Ocean Road. See you soon as we report what it is like to drive on the other side of the road!

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Location:Sydney, Australia