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January Getaways

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new growth on 2020 burns

I’m still backtracking, catching me and you up on the past year. I know I’m a little late, but since I haven’t done much traveling on this working holiday, I figured I’d write about what I can. At the start of the year, I was out of lockdown, ready for new adventures, and with plenty to explore in my own backyard. I took advantage of public holidays and long weekends, and made the most of January, doing more traveling than I had done in the previous six months. On three separate weekends, I traveled throughout the eastern part of Victoria, to Mallacoota, Melbourne, and Wilson’s Promontory.

8-9 January: Mallacoota

Nearly at the New South Wales border, the small, coastal holiday town of Mallacoota is known for its fishing and boating, neither of which I have any interest in. It was on my radar as being a cute little place to visit, which it is, but I would say you don’t need more than a weekend there to see all it has to offer. I drove from Bairnsdale along the coast, stopping for breakfast in Orbost, then on through Croajingolong National Park. Don’t worry, I didn’t know how to pronounce that the first time I saw it either. I wanted to visit a lighthouse, but after driving over an hour on unsealed roads, discovered that it was closed from fire damage the previous year. Bushfires often plague the eastern side of Australia during the summers, as they do along the west coast of the US, but those at the end of 2020 were worse than recent years. Driving along, there was plenty of evidence of areas devastated by fire damage, through the open bush, all the way until Mallacoota. The drive took about five hours in total, so I arrived at my campsite by early afternoon. This was my first adventure in camping on my own, and hardly camping at that. I had folded over a foam mattress topper, which fit nicely in the back of my car, making a barely comfortable bed. For one night it would do, and since then I’ve added an additional foam mattress, lights, curtains, and window covers. It’s still a funny sight for me to pull up in just my car, when I’m surrounded by multi room tents and caravans, but I make it work.

I walked around the one block of town, and then for about two hours on the trail along the foreshore and all throughout the massive caravan park. I walked until I was tired of walking, bought some beers, and settled in to read my book. By the time I was ready for dinner, a kebab food truck was my best and only option. And since it was the only option, it somehow took an hour and a half until I had my food. After a restless sleep with the streetlight flooding into my eyes, I was up early for breakfast and the beach. This was the middle of summer after all, so even by 10am the sun was beating down on me. I got in a couple hours of tanning, and watching surfers, and then was on my way back down the coast. I stopped at one of my favorite places in Victoria, Cape Conran, which has beautiful beaches and scenic walks. After another couple of hours there, I was on my way back to Bairnsdale. I survived my first weekend camping on my own, and was ready for more adventure.


22-24 January: Melbourne

The first city I called home in Australia, but this was my first time back in nine months. Of the core group of friends I had there, only one remained, so I took the weekend to visit her and explore my old Brunswick neighborhood. And return my lacrosse stick. Because I had been holding on to it since I left the city and it had been collecting dust nicely in the corner of my room. It’s greatest use was when playing fetch with a dog. I would love the chance to return to the Brunswick Lacrosse Club, who I played with for a few weeks, but I don’t know if that’s in the cards.

We had an all day eating and drinking plan, that started with bottomless mimosas and espresso martinis with brunch, and then moved on to bar hopping down towards St. Kilda. I’m not quite sure how we made it through the day, but it was an insane amount of fun, and some lifelong memories were made that day. I left her place Sunday, and headed first to an American supermarket south of the city. I stocked up on LaCroix, Goldfish, and Cheeze-It’s, all at an outrageous price, and then drove east toward the Yarra Valley. I’d had a few different places marked on my map as things to do and see, so I ticked some of them off the list. I visited the Alfred Nicholas Memorial Garden, which was just a nice walk through some pretty trees, and then to a spot with California Redwoods. I didn’t expect it to be as busy with tourists as it was, and it was just a square block of relatively small trees, with a river to swim in behind it. Compared to the real California redwoods, it wasn’t all that spectacular, but was still fun to see. I stayed Sunday night near Walhalla, and old gold mining town, and then drove south to Tarra-Bulga National Park and stopped for a hike, and then headed back up the coast to Bairnsdale.

I stayed again in Melbourne for one night when I moved from Bairnsdale to Myrtleford, and visited the same friend again during a weekend in July, which included a comedy show and delicious dinner. As much as I appreciate the time I had living in Melbourne and love it as a city, living in regional Victoria has made me realize how much I like the country lifestyle, and how I probably won’t live long-term in a big city again. I guess never say never, because I do like many of the comforts and easiness of living that comes in a city, but I don’t think it’s for me.

30-31 January: Wilson’s Promontory

One of the more famous National Parks in Victoria, Wilson’s Prom lived up to the hype. I only stayed for one night, but managed to squeeze a lot in. On the drive to and from Bairnsdale, I explored more of Victoria’s southeast coast, completing my tour of eastern Victoria. On the Saturday afternoon when I arrived, I did one of the main walks, from the Tidal River Campground to Squeaky Beach, Picnic Bay, and Whisky Bay. On the way back to the campsite, I did the Lilly Pilly circuit and climbed Mt Bishop, making for about six hours of hiking. This was before I had any of my camping gear, so for two lunches and one dinner I enjoyed PB&J sandwiches, fruit, and chips. I saw my first wombat, and despite the campground being crowded, got a peaceful sleep. In the morning, I took a walk to Norman Beach, and then climbed Mt Oberon, which isn’t a very exciting walk up, but leads to some of the most spectacular views of the Prom. This was my favorite camping adventure so far, and I knew I’d be back.

With the lockdown lifted, at the time, I had more time for socializing. I moved back into the local hostel I had first lived in when I arrived in Bairnsdale, and had between three and eight housemates, with more time to explore the local area and go to the pub. I met another American girl, who welcomed me into her circle, and was just starting to enjoy my life in Bairnsdale. But I was ready to move on, and I knew I needed a change of scenery, which is how I ended up back in North East Victoria, and ended up having one of the best years of my life.

Week 1: Welcome to Travel

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An hour before I left Oregon, an hour after I arrived in Australia.

I’ve arrived! I mean, as I write this, I’ve been here for over four weeks, but I’m a busy lady, so I’m just getting around to writing about it.

I touched down at Tullamarine Airport in Melbourne at 9:30 AM on Friday, November 15, local time. For those paying attention, I left the United States on Wednesday the 13th, so I lost my Thursday in between the sixteen hour flight and the nineteen hour time difference (I’m a day and a half ahead of you reading this at home). I connected at LAX after a two hour flight down the coast, and then was on my way across the Pacific. I know sixteen hours in the air may sound miserable to some of you (specifically my parents), but it really wasn’t that bad. A couple of movies, a few hours of sleep, some more TV. Too easy.

As I mentioned in a previous post, I booked a week-long tour with Welcome to Travel, a company geared towards preparing those new to Australia for their upcoming travels or working holidays. This tour officially began the Monday morning after I arrived, and included my airport pickup and accommodation for my first three nights, so my arrival process was very smooth. I’d already made brunch plans with my friend CT, pictured above, who was on her last day of vacation with her friends, so I dropped my bags at the YHA Metro hostel and walked the three blocks to the Auction Rooms for a delicious meal. The rest of the day was spent wandering around the North Melbourne suburb by myself, trying to stay awake for as long as I could.

Saturday, November 16, was my first full day in Oz. I met up with others from the tour who had also arrived early, and off we went around the city. We wandered down through the CBD (central business district), and down to the Yarra River. We ended up in the National Gallery of Victoria, one of several free museums in the city. Yes, I was just as surprised as you that I wound up in a museum on day 1. We hadn’t been introduced to the trams yet, so we walked all the way back, and ended the night on the rooftop deck with others from the tour.

Now with more from the group, Sunday was again spent exploring the city. We headed towards Carlton Gardens in search of some greenery, but that wasn’t sufficient, so we started towards the Royal Botanic Gardens. Along the way, we stopped at Federation Square, walking through a Polish festival. We crossed the river to the top of the gardens, and with already enough walking, stopped to sit and relax in the sun on a grassy hillside. This was actually one of the highlights of the week, each of us chatting about why we’re here and really getting to know each other. We continued on to the botanic gardens, taking a lap around the lake in the middle, all of us agreeing that we should come back for a picnic or gondola ride. That has yet to happen. Well into the afternoon, and with everyone tired and hungry, we made our way back towards Fed Square to a nighttime noodle market. Delicious food all around, and our first sunburns! We finished the night, again on the rooftop, excited for the tour to officially start.

The whole gang

First thing Monday morning, 22 of us gathered in the lounge on the roof, for our introductions and welcome from our tour leader Clauds, and co-founder Darryl. They talked us through the itinerary for the week, what to expect during and after the tour, and then helped us set up our SIM cards, allowing us to have an Australian phone number (now seems like a good time to mention that if you need to contact me from the US, it’s best to do it via Facebook, What’sApp, or email). At noon, we began our walking tour of the city. Incidentally, I did more walking in my first three days here than in the entire week following. Our first stop was for lunch at Center Place and Degraves Street, little alleyways packed with cafes and restaurants. We walked towards the Old Treasury Building, back through the CBD, and then Chinatown. Along the way, Clauds shared the history of the city, things to note, such as the Free Tram Zone, and shared that Melbourne had the longest ongoing Chinatown outside of Asia. I was ready to fight her on that, but she explained that because of San Francisco’s 1906 earthquake that *technically* Melbourne’s was older. The afternoon ended with a trip to the bank to set up our Australian accounts for when we would eventually be working. After a pit stop back at the hostel, we all went for dinner at Hop Haus on the river. Some of us ventured over to Arbory Afloat, a picture perfect bar on the river, and then called it an evening.

Tuesday’s focus was food and drink. We started at the Queen Victoria Markets, three blocks from our hostel, which is like a huge farmers market mixed with tourist trinkets. One could spend hours here, and I’ve made a few trips back in the weeks that followed. From there we all headed back to the botanic gardens for an Aboriginal Heritage Walk, where we learned about the significance of the indigenous culture and history, and how it relates to modern-day Australia. I would definitely recommend this for anyone spending time in Melbourne. We then trammed back to the CBD for gelato and chocolate tasting in Royal and Block Arcades, modeled after London’s indoor shopping areas. We stopped off at the renowned street art alleys, the only areas of the city where street art is permitted and encouraged. To top off a very filling day, dinner was dumplings in Chinatown.

Wednesday we hit the road for an overnight trip to Phillip Island. Mount Martha was our first stop, with the most perfect beaches I’ve ever seen. We got to spend a couple of hours there, then packing back in the bus for lunch of fish and chips with a view. From there we went wine tasting, and enjoyed it so much that we all got wine coolers to go. We crossed the bridge to the island, dropped our bags at the YHA, and then headed to dinner. Before eating, we stopped at Cape Woolamai, best know for where the Hemsworth brothers grew up surfing. Yes, those Hemsworths. After dinner, we were off to the main event, the Penguin Parade! Formerly beachside mansions, the western tip of the island has been turned into a sanctuary for penguins. At dusk, you’re able to watch their migration from the sea back to their underground homes. The most interesting part is watching and listening to their call and response migration as they waddle up and over hills to make sure they get back to their own homes. Cute end to a long day.

Thursday we were up bright and early for surfing! I’ve tried it once in Hawaii when I was 10, and once when I was previously in Australia, and I’m just as bad at it now as I was then! But seriously, I’d love to spend a concentrated amount of time, likely on the east coast, actually practicing the sport, but now’s not the time. We went back to the hostel to shower and change, and then went next door to the Ripcurl surf shop for a brief history of surfing, from Hawaii to Australia, and around the world. From there, we headed back inland to the Maru Wildlife Sanctuary, where we got to feed kangaroos and emus. Lots of animals for me! Getting back on the bus, the temperature said 40° C (104° F), but by the time we were back in the city, it had rained and dropped to 20° C, meaning we got to experience Melbourne’s “four seasons in one day”. We arrived back in North Melbourne in the late afternoon, ordered takeout, and called it a night.

Friday fun started with an all-morning meeting with Sander and Clauds reviewing visa and work details, as well as different travel options. This was a lot of information, but was meant to prepare us for our one-on-one meetings the following day. For lunch, we packed our swimsuits and headed down to St. Kilda, the closest beach to the CBD. I was expecting this to be the same as our experience two days earlier, but it was more of a sub-par beach with touristy chains and shopping. This was a bad introduction, as it was a bit cold, and I’ve enjoyed it more since then, but still, I was expecting more from an Australian beach. After wandering around the area, we headed for a BBQ in the park. This was for all previous Welcome to Travelers as well, so we got to meet some new people. I kicked a soccer ball around til it was too dark, and then we stopped for a beer tower on the way back. Culture and fun in one trip!

Saturday was our time to chat individually with a WTT leader about our future plans for Australia. I got to sleep in, pop to the market, and then talk with the other co-founder, Adam, about what I wanted to do. I had a rough itinerary in my head, and it was more solidified with him. At the moment, I’d like to stay in Melbourne to work for at least the next three months. From there, I want to head to the west coast, likely via guided road trip, to Perth and then up north. Everything is up in the air and I’m being uncharacteristically flexible, but at least I have a general idea to work with. The main event of the day was the night’s bar crawl. We were treated to a free drink at four different bars around the city, starting with a pub and ending with a nightclub. Fun end to a fun week!

Sunday was the final day of the tour, but the only event was an afternoon BBQ. We got to hang out and relax, just what we needed after an exhausting week. Clauds gave us a fond farewell, and then we were left to our own devices. Some of us went for dinner in Little Italy, and most were staying at the YHA for that evening, so it wasn’t really goodbye, but it still felt odd to not have a plan for the next day.

The past week on the tour has surpassed my expectations, and then some. The WTT team set us up for success, and I’m pleasantly surprised at how well I got on with everyone. At the end of my first ten days, I feel that I’ve genuinely made some friends, something I was nervous about prior to arrival. I feel prepared to tackle the next year, and while I know that every week won’t be as amazing as this one was, it has been a pretty incredible start to my time in Australia.