Australia, size-wise

In case you're wondering about the size of Australia, here's a helpful visualization we got from Andrew Keuer. Thanks, mate!

Mornington Peninsula

We found a new weekend getaway spot we'll sure be returning to! This past Saturday we drove down to the Mornington Peninsula. Located south-east of Melbourne, it's surrounded by the calm waters Port Phillip Bay on one side and raging ocean water on the other. The Peninsula has the best of both worlds for us- wineries in the interior and water/hiking on the exterior. The drive along the bay is beautiful and we can see why this is a popular weekend destination. We'll be back next month for some strawberry picking!

Hikes along the GOR

It's not a road trip with the boys if we don't get out of the car to stretch our legs by trampling in the woods. Luckily for us there are many good hikes along the GOR, including ones that reward you with a waterfall in the end. :)

Warning signs before the hike . . . I especially like the 3rd one involving falling trees.

Can you spot Whit? Scott and I were taking photos of the area and when we turned around, Whit had already jumped over the railing. He never misses a chance to go climbing on slippery rocks!

Erskine Falls (thanks Scott for being our photographer on the trip!)

Great Ocean Road!

We've been dying to go to the Great Ocean Road (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Ocean_Road ) since we arrived in Victoria, and what a treat it was to take our 3rd visitor from the States, Scott, along with us. The GOR is Australia's answer to CA's Highway 1. The 151 mile curvy drive down the coast line included sweeping views of the Southern Ocean, traversing through the rain forest and woods, and passing through quaint beach towns that are sure to be holiday destinations in the summer. Gorgeous!

Here we go- let's hope Debbie doesn't get car sick in the little 3 door stick shift car!

Leave your suits at home- this is no place for a swim!

Lord Ard Gorge

Scott and Whit with 2 of the "12 Apostles"

The most popular site along the GOR- The Twelve Apostles . . . though everyone still calls it by this name, there are only about 7 of these limestone formations standing now.

"The Magic Hour"

A phrase that we first heard in one of Rick Steve's travel shows, "The Magic Hour" refers to that time of day as the sun is setting and the sky turns to dusk. The colors can be quite amazing some days. Strolling along the banks of the Yarra River has become a favorite habit here in Melbourne.

Sydney with the Ing's

Debbie's family came for a 3 week visit to Australia and our first meeting place with them was in Sydney. Here are some photos from Bondi Beach and Circular Quay (pronounced "key") where the famous bridge and opera house are located.
Sydney is a great city, one that we consider fun to visit, but not so fun to live in. Compared to Melbourne things are a little more expensive here, public transportation isn't as readily available, and the city is sprawling, making it more time consuming and difficult to get to places. Though the Circular Key area and harbor do get some major points and a big "WOW" factor for sure. :)

Fun with the Flores'!

Our first official US visitors, the Flores (Sam, Sarah, & Josh) came to visit Oz in late July. Sarah and Debbie have become good friends since last year when they both started teaching kindergarten at West Dallas. What a sweet time we had with them, from wine tasting (pictured here at Domain Chandon) to kangaroo petting at the Healesville Sanctuary. Their stay was definitely too short!

Dandelongs

Another weekend trip we took was to the Dandelongs- a large hilly/small mountainous area (depending how you look at it) outside of Melbourne. We went there to try and see a view of the city from afar and climb the "1,000 Steps" hike, but only accomplished the latter as the weather was a bit crummy. All in all, it was still nice to get out of the city. Whit claimed to have seen his first kangaroo here (Debbie was smartly staying warm in the car). He tried to sneak up behind it but it hopped away from him . . .

Mates!

How good it was to see some mates in Melbourne! We reunited with the Sypkes family who were in town for the weekend from Tasmania. Andrew and Whit met during their time at Stanford and soon their SO’s linked up too. Debbie enjoyed being one of Sarah’s go-to babysitters at Stanford. For those of you who were at our wedding, you might recognize our ring bearer (Daniel) and flower girl (Laura) here, with a new baby brother (Nick) who was in Mum's stomach during the wedding. Thanks for a fun morning, Sypkes'! :)

Yarra Valley- Victoria’s version of Napa

On our 2^nd weekend here we hired a car and explored the wine region of Yarra Valley. Melbourne is surrounded by easily accessible weekend/day trips such as vineries, hikes, Phillip Island, and the famous Great Ocean Road- Australia’s “Big Sur.” Only 45 mins.-1 hour away, we spent a Saturday afternoon visiting the wine country. Domain Chandon is the most famous and known for their champagne, but there are many other gems such as Oakwood and Yarra Glen. Unlike Napa, wineries are more casual here with tastings free of charge and you’re not elbowing the tourist next to you to get some wine. Each winery also has an impressive dining room and beautiful views. I reck’n we’ll be back a few times before we leave!

Our Home, the “Bible House”

Many of you have asked about our living conditions during our time here. Though it got off to a rough start (our original place was not what we had expected at all, in a bad way, so we ended up staying in the Hyatt for a week and looked for new housing), we have recently moved into a charming 2 story apartment on top of a historical building called “The Bible House.” It’s in a wonderful location next to yummy restaurants and cafes, a 10 min. walk across Yarra River to the steps of Southbank, and around the corner from the hustle and bustle of Flinders Station and Federation Square. Our neighbors downstairs include a flower shop, local women’s boutique, and a French creperie that smells delicious.

Howdy, Melbourne!

Our first entry, about 3 months later than we aspired, but we're sure this isn't the first blog to start this way!
Melbourne’s population increased by 2 on June 11, 2010, with the arrival of 1 Texan and 1 Californian (the “Duo Down Under”). We arrived after over 20 hours of travel,the last 14 of which were spent on a wonderful Qantas airplane (the 380 Airbus for you frequent flyers). A few of our first impressions of the city:

1. As Debbie put it after 1 days exploration, “It’s like a small, clean European city.” That it is with many people traveling on foot/tram, a great café culture (still learning the coffee lingo!), hidden alleyways filled with little shops and other good finds, and diversity. Melbourne feels like United Nations on an island, with everyone, no matter what ethnicity they may appear to be, greet you with an Aussie accent. Speaking of accents, that leads us to our second thought of the city . . .

2. “American accent” We have been asked (and told) many times already, “Ah, is that an American accent I hear? It’s quite heavy, eh?” Let’s get one thing straight here- we are not the ones with an accent. What we have can better be described as a lack of an accent. After all, going by the rules of phonics, why wouldn’t you pronounce all the sounds in “Melbourne?” Since when is there a silent “o” and “r” rule?

3. Still on the subject of languages, we’ve actually grown quite fond of the delightful expressions used here. Here are a few of our favorite selection from Aussie-speak -“jumper” = sweater, “sweater” = sweatshirt, “G’day love” = hi honey, “no worries” / “no drama” = no problem, “flick it over” = I’ll email it to you, “mate” = buddy, “you reck’n?” = you think?, “nappies” = baby diapers

4. It is frequently said that Aussies love their sport (yes, “sport”, not sports). The king of all sport is the Australian Football League (AFL). For those that aren’t familiar with AFL (aka "Footy"), Debbie summarizes it well – “It’s American football meets soccer meets basketball meets volleyball with intermittent wrestling.” The game is played with an American style football but teams are constantly punting the ball, not just through goals to score points but also as a way to pass the ball. You can also pass with your hands but you have to bump it like in volleyball. Oh, and no protective gear is worn just to keep it interesting, and the field is the same shape as the ball. We’ve got a few months to figure this sport out and wear our team colors proudly on game days!