Coastal Caravanning

October 4-8, 2012 – Coastal Caravanning

Thursday morning we packed up our bits and pieces and reloaded the motorhome. It had been very nice staying with our friends Ted and Linda in their beautiful home in East Doncaster, Victoria, Australia (sleeping in a real bed, nice hot shower….). Said our “goodbyes” and headed out of the greater Melbourne area driving east along the Princess Highway. Another day of driving through some beautiful countryside. We saw more rainforest areas, lots and lots of gum trees, the occasional sheep, or cattle farm – beautiful.  By the afternoon we even got a glimpse of the coast again, along the Bass Strait. Stopped for the night in a  coastal community of Lake’s Entrance.

Friday, October 5, 2012, day #38 of our R.2.OZ.2012 found us driving north along the coast, leaving the state of Victoria and entering New South Wales. The weather was a bit more of our gray/raining variety, but we had occasional breaks of sun. The coastal view was now that of the Tasman Sea, beautiful in any weather.  Our destination for the day was Bateman’s Bay. Our friends Jenny and Robert had made reservations for us; Robert had gotten a good deal on the sites and booked us a nice “ensuite” (this was our own private bathroom adjoining our campsite) right next to them and their caravan (travel trailer).  We arrived late in the afternoon and enjoyed a nice evening catching up with them, had a great Aussie BBQ of steak and sausages cooked on “George” aka the grill. Robert also tempted us with selections from his wine collection – kept safely in the friger in the ensuite J.

Saturday morning was a bit rainy not a real good sightseeing day, but the 4 of us struck out to see what sights we could see. We drove south along the coast pulling into viewpoints and getting a few good coastal perspectives. Brrrrr it was chilly, so most of our viewing was done from the car. We bought some fresh fish from a local fisherman and 4 dozen oysters from a little shack right down on the water; a real feast for our evening meal. So nice that Jen and Rob’s rig is bigger than our little Apollo, room for the 4 of us to sit inside and enjoy our meals together.

Sunday and we have SUN!! Smiling faces - we planned another little site seeing trip – heading north along the coast.  The coast is so much prettier when the skies are blue and the sun is shining. We enjoyed seeing the communities of Pebbly Beach, Ulladulla, and Mollymock – all pretty little “beach towns” a lot of beautiful homes that we are sure are worth lots of $$$$. More oysters for our entrees tonight – YUM!

Monday morning we are on the road to the Australian Capital Territory (ACT), Canberra. It was about a 2-hour drive. Along the way we stopped in the little town of Bungendore to look at a hallstand that Jen and Rob had admired on their way over to the coast. A purchase was made and we continued on our journey. We stopped at a tulip garden called Tulip Tops – it is a 10-acre park that is planted beautifully with every color, size and shape of tulip imaginable. There were also 1000s of flowering trees. My favorite bed was the aBRAetum – a dozen or so hanging flower baskets made from some very fancy BRAS.

The “fearsome foursome” then traveled on into the capital city and had a nice tour of many of the sites, including the National Art Gallery, the National Film and Sound Archive, The War Memorial, and the stunningly beautiful new Parliament House. This area has really grown up in the 40+ years between our visits. Another great day for the OZ visitors. Tomorrow we head off again.