Visiting Oz

It has been almost six years since my last visit to Melbourne. This time I was there as part of my company team building trip.

We checked in at LCCT (flying Airasia) on the 28th May with our tour agent Nicole who handed out our bag tags and assigned us to our room buddy. The flight was about 8 hours long and Melbourne is two hours ahead of Malaysia (GMT + 10). With nothing much to do on the plane and the unwillingness to pay RM 30 for the entertainment system on-board, we resorted to playing "black jack" to kill time. When we finally arrived at the airport, it was already midnight. We headed straight to our hotel, Grand Mercure at Chinatown and called it a night.



The following day, our tour started with a visit to Bellarat, which is about an hour's drive from Melbourne. Bellarat was a famous mining town back in the 1850's. Now, they have the replica of what Bellarat used to be back in the olden days. Some of my friends tried their hands at finding gold using the conventional method. You can still find specks of gold (and even a nugget or two if you are very lucky) and get to keep them as souvenirs.

Night activity: Crown casino (gamble)

The second day, we rose early and headed to Yarra Valley, famous for it numerous wineries, and Chandon, being one of the more prestigious. We sampled different wines at the Green Point Room and took plenty of pictures of the panoramic scenery.

Since many of us have not tried a red sparkling wine before (unique only to Australia), we might as well buy a bottle for loved ones back home.



Pic above: the grass does look greener over there! Shot taken at Yarra Valley


For lunch, we went to the famous Cuckoo restaurant serving mainly German cuisine, buffet style.

After lunch, we took the Puffing Billy train ride from Belgrave to Menzie's Creek before continuing on with our journey to Phillip Island. Phillip Island is famous for its beautiful beaches and during summer time, many locals and visitors come here for surfing, swimming or merely enjoy basking under the sun. However, come winter, many visitors flock to the island to see the smallest species of penguin in the world, the fairy penguins. These penguins often go out to sea in search of food and come back to shore where their nesting burrows are located in the evenings.

We waited patiently under the strong chilly winter wind for about 20 minutes at the shore line before a school of penguins started to show. We were amused to see these little beings lining up and walking up to their respective burrows. What a sight! too bad we are not allowed to photograph them for fear of damaging the sensitive eyes of these birds by the powerful flashes from our cameras. Well, some things are meant to be enjoyed with our very own eyes and the memory stored only in our brains.

Pic above: Loch Ard

On the 3rd day, we woke up early for our long drive to The Twelve Apostles and Loch Ard. To get to these two places which are located at Port Campbell National Park, we have to drive along the Great Ocean Road for almost 4 - 5 hours (depending on whether you got stop midway or not for toilet breaks). By this time, many of us were already feeling restless from the long drive and couldn't wait to get off the bus.

The gorge is named after the ship, Loch Ard , which was shipwrecked nearby Muttonbird Island on 1 June 1878, approaching the end of a three-month journey from England to Melbourne. Of the the fifty-one passengers and crew, only two survived: Tom Pearce and Eva Carmichael, both of whom were 18 - 19 years of age. According to memorials at the site, Pearce and Carmichael were washed ashore and sought shelter at the gorge before climbing up the gorge to seek help the following morning.



A few kilometers from the gorge are The Twelve Apostles, or rather eight as the remaining four had collapsed some time ago.

It was a beautiful sight and plenty of photo-taking opportunities.

By the time we reached back to Melbourne, we were so tired that many of us went straight to bed.

The last day was the most relaxing and to some, most enjoyable as we get to shop and shop and shop.

First stop was the Queen Victoria's Market.

This is the place where you can get fresh vegetables and fruits, fish and seafood, cheese and ham, chocolates and lollies, soft fluffy toys and wines, all under one big roof.

A 10-minute walk will take you to Central Melbourne shopping district where you can find departmental stores such as Myers, David Jones and Target (Bourke Street). I always love to visit their supermarkets such as Coles and Woolsworth.

In Australia, don't just try mass market beers/cocktails such as VB and Cascade. Opt for smaller brand names such as Fat Yak and Lemon Ruski (I could only find it at Dan Murphy's) .........they are goooood..too bad they don't have it here in Malaysia.

After lunch, some of us opted for the half-day city tour while a majority of the BiO-LiFE staff continued on with more shopping. International brands such as Coach and Burberry at 20% to 50% discounts was enough to send the whole entourage flocking to the outlets and maxing out on their credit cards (I can actually see the happy smiley faces of the sales personnel at these stores, whom will be earning fat commissions for that day) .

As for the rest of us who are not easily swayed.......city tour here we come........








The city tour took us around Melbourne city, visiting St. Patrick's Cathedral, Captain Cook's cottage, Botanical Garden and The Shrine of Remembrance, built as a tribute to soldiers who have lost their lives fighting during WW1 and WW2. We also took the free City Circle Tram ride around Melbourne city, passing the parliament house, old treasury building and the Federation Square. That was fun!


Pic above: This conservatory changes themes all the time...this time is tropical!

Pic above: My friends and I @ Shrine of Remembrance

Night life in Melbourne can be boring as everything seems to close at 6 pm. So, night activity for tourists: Crown Casino (gambling again). However, we were lucky that David Jones closed at 10 pm on the 1st June for their mid year sales.......so we had some time to do last-minute damage to our wallets.


All in all, great fun with great friends.........