We stayed in the cheap airport hotel, because the morning of Sept. 3, it was a flight to Melbourne. We rented our car, and, boy, was it unnerving to sit on the left without a steering wheel and brakes!
When Alisa and I hiked Kilimanjaro in 2013, we had been joined by three Australians - one of which I was still friends with on Facebook! So Mark got to meet Stuart, and we both met his wife Andrea for the first time, when we got to the parking lot near Queen Victoria Market. I can't remember if it was expense or why, but we decided to have Stuart, an experienced Australian driver, move it a few blocks for two-hour street parking.
Hungry, we started with food - found a random Italian restaurant on pedestrian street, where we were sure to enjoy some wine with our pastas.
Refreshed, we walked to the Yarra River, passing the station where you can “meet under the clocks” - Flinders Street Station. After our trek, while it wasn't like climbing Kili, it was enough distance that it made sense to take the tram.
Within the city center, it's free, but take it one stop too far, and a policeman might stop you and ask to see your tram cards. I wasn't sure if having an American accent was better or worse for us, but Andrea ended up doing all the talking, and we left with nothing more than a warning.
So, we were back near Victoria Market, where we had parked... but no one could find the car! It took us all starting at the first parking lot, counting roundabouts, then frantically clicking the honk button on the car before we found it, I'm sure right where we had left it. For the second time in a day, we didn't get a ticket, despite being just outside the boundaries of the law (this time, by being 20 minutes late.)
It was disappointing to hit traffic at 2pm, but we motored through it to get to Geelong, then we found the Great Ocean Road. And, the first of the tourist traps, probably. I had looked up quite a few places we could stop, and I knew that the Great Ocean Road Chocolaterie had a 4pm tasting - we snuck in at 4:07.
Apparently, it's not as important to start at the beginning with chocolate, as it is with wine, so the host started serving us the tasters once we walked in, along with the family of six that was already there. We learned the basics of the cacao plant, white chocolate, etc., but really we just kept chatting her up in case she'd give us more chocoloate.
Well, that and we learned she had a vet degree and helped out wildlife! I had mentioned that we had seen signs with a phone number saying "if you see injured wildlife, call" - apparently, the number went to her teacher.
Just before the shop closed at 5, I got strawberry and dark chocolate gelato, which would keep us going until after sunset (and, little did we know, quite a bit past sunset.)
Now, we were really on a road that was built by veterans after WWI. There were sharp cliffs dropped right at my left side - and if it wasn't a cliff, it was a wall of rocks! Since looking around the car was anxiety-inducing, it was best to look out the front windshield, where the gorgeous ocean had carved inlets and met up with streams and rivers.
It was all new, so we took it in at a variety of pull-offs before making it to Split Point Lighthouse for sunset.
A few red bellied green parrots joined us in the lighthouse at the end of a residential street, which made it less surprising when we were walked back to our car by by a dog with a toy in his mouth.
When there was an arch over the road, naming it as the Great Ocean Road, we learned the piece I already said - the road built by WWI soldiers returning - but this was apparently the third sign to say so. It had previously been a toll road, but we sailed by.
The evening started turning into night - we were hungry and tired, but made it the extra hour thanks to Mark (at night, on the wrong side of the road, with a cliff on the other side), to get to Apollo Bay Hotel. While it was a restaurant and motel, we decided to go the next block or two over to the better rated (and more lively sounding) Great Ocean Road Brewhouse. For dinner, I couldn't resist - I had kangaroo hot pot. Mark had Chicken Parma, Mexican style. With a few local brews and a local cider for me, we didn't need any encouragement to sleep well in our Australian motel.
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