New Year - Part 2

With all the fun of Christmas over we had the new year to look forward to. Fireworks at 9:15pm in the heart of Melbourne before we drink till midnight and see in the new year. After the hot days we had experienced through the Christmas period, including a couple of days where he parent just called chilling in the aircon as an activity, the temperature was dropping. Black clouds on the horizon was not looking good for fireworks but we would persevere and see them. We had friends round to join in the fun, feeding all with a huge chilli and rice dish before we braved the rain. The fireworks were due to start at 9:15 and the rain started at 9:00. As the only person there with an umbrella I was quite happy to wait for the fireworks however as the rain soaked through their clothing the other members of the party grew more despondent about staying. When the announcement came that the fireworks were to be delayed we simply turned and left. We played games, board and wii, until midnight when we all watched the fireworks in Sydney harbour on the TV.

In the new year we hired a car and set off into the Grampians, he rain from the previous days was stopping and the weather was turning for the better. The Grampians are one of the mountain regions of Victoria, although we are stretching the term mountain here. These large hills are full of panoramic beauty and spectacular lookout points. And being Australian most of them can be reached by car. The only downside was that it was a six hour drive to the cabin.

When we pulled up outside the cabin the first thing that sprung to mind was how close the cabins were to town, we were staying at a town called Halls Gap, three shops, a pub and a car park, along with fifteen restaurants and hundreds of cabins. This was a small sleepy town alright, full of tourists trying to get away from the general population by hiding out in one of several hundred cabins. Our spirits were lifted even higher when we pulled up and saw the table sized BBQ sitting outside our cabin, a few minutes playing and we had confirmed that we had gas, and all our limbs remaining.

Moira and I sat outside the cabin watching small colourful birds playing in the braches of the bushes outside, although the cabins were crowded there was a sense of privacy afforded by the clever use of foliage. As we did there came a call and we turned to see several Kangaroos sitting and grazing at the side of our cabin. As we watched we spotted many more hopping around in the forest behind our cabin and we sat and watched. Soon they were joined by wild deer who seemed also not to be bothered by our presence. Even when some of the children staying at the site came over to see the kangaroos just kept a careful distance. After a while we moved over and ate our BBQ dinner and in doing so we saw all the kangaroos come thundering through the forest on their way back up the hills.

The following day we drove round some viewing platforms and saw the sights of the region, Mackenzie falls, the Balconies (formerly the jaws of death, wonder why they changed the name) and the pinnacles. The latter was a spectacular walk through valleys and climning gullys until you reached one of the highest points in the region. Very energetic and made us all feel as though we had deserved our beer in the evening.

It turned out that the Kangaroo show was a nightly event, each night they followed the same pattern, slowly working their way through the forest and down the hill, past our cabin and down to a meadow by the road. There they all stood around grazing and scratching, the roo equivalent of a local pub I suppose. Then after about half an hour a mad dash back up the hillside.

Over the three days we spent in Halls Gap we managed plenty of walks as well as lots of wine tasting and more BBQ meals than you can eat in three days (three to be more precise). Everyone had a wonderful time and I would totally recommend this area of Australia to anyone. This place was so beautiful and we managed to see wild roos, wild emu’s, wild echidna and wild bogans.

After the holiday it was back to work for me whist the others enjoyed the final days of the visit. Moira had a birthday meal at Riva, a fantastic restaurant by the sea. Then before we knew it they were on a flight home.

It is weird how cramped a room can seem when there are four people trying to share a single studio flat, and then how empty it seems when the people you love are no longer there.