Last day on GOR
Sista dagen på Great Ocean Road va det även Jennifers födelsedag!
Vi började med en "rester-frukost" som faktiskt var väldigt god.
Sen började vi resan tillbaka till Melbourne. Vi började med ett stopp i Timboon där vi kollade in ett whiskey distilleri Timboon Railway Shed Distillery där provade jag och Nicklas whiskeyn, den var väl sådär, jag gillar ju inte whiskey, men sen blev det bättre och då ville tom de andra oxå prova. Då blev det kaffelikör, jordgubbssnaps, äppelsnaps och limoncello! Satan va gott det var! Kaffelikören och Jordgubbssnapsen va mina favoriter, så jäkla goda! Jag och Jennifer köpte med oss båda. Mums
Sen skulle vi till en bärgård som bara låg ner för gatan, men det visade sig vara på en annan gata ön den vi körde på så vi skippade det. Istället skulle vi till en vingård, men vi hittade inte den heller.
Vi åkte till Red Rock och kollade på typ kratrar och sen kollade vi in vingården där, dom hade bara öppet på helger men dom gjorde ett undantag för oss. Så vi fick smaka lite viner oxå. Dom hade en jättestor hund som blev väldigt förtjust i Maria, han försökte tom följa med henne in i bilen, men det fick han ju inte.
Sen blev det lunch i en liten by som hetter Birregurra, skitgod lunch blev det faktiskt. Det var snorhett ute så det blev även en glass.
När vi kom tillbaka till Melbourne checkade gänget in på vandrarhemmet, vi packade om våra väskor och sen drog vi till St Kilda beach. Vi drack Bag in Box vin, killarna kastade lite boll och sen badade Nicklas, Jennifer och Jaina, galna människor. Det var svinkallt i vattnet.
På kvällen va det happy hour i baren på deras vandrarhem, en norsk tjej jobbade i baren och blev så glad att träffa andra skandinavier. Killarna drack kannor med öl och jag och Jennifer drack Toblerone drinkar och isbjörn.
De andra tjejerna va lite sena, blir lätt så med Facebook :) Vi hade tänkt äta middag på Lygon Street där det finns en massa italienska restauranger men det var för sent. Istället gick vi till Chinatown och hittade ett litet ställe. Servitören försökte lära Andrew att äta med ätpinnar, det gick sådär, så han fick bestick. Han beställde extra kryddstark mat och det var jäkla starkt, jag smakade en halv liten morot och det bara brann i käften på mig!
Jag åt nån nudelrätt med biff, köttet va sådär men nudlarna va goda och servitören verkade stold för jag var den enda av oss som beställde riktig kinesisk mat. Det var såklart en slump men ändå :)
Efter middagen promenerade vi bort till casinot. Det är ju södra hemisfärens största casino och ja det är stort. Tror att alla spelade lite och en del vann faktiskt! När klockan va runt 1-2 tiden gick vi hem. Det hade varit en lång dag!
Dagen efter åkte Jaina och Maria till Sydney. Vi andra shoppade lite och sen gick vi till parken och softade. Det var så underbart! Vi låg i solen, kastade lite frisbee, sparkade lite boll och hade det jäkla bra.
På kvällen åkte vi till St Kilda, kollade in solnedgången och åt middag. Jennifer provade Victorias nationalrätt, Chicken Parma och tyckte det var gott.
Dagen efter va det dags för dom att åka vidare till NZ. Kändes lite tomt när alla hade åkt.
The last day on the Great Ocean Road was also Jennifer's birthday!
We started with a "leftover-breakfast" which was actually very good.
Then we began the journey back to Melbourne. We began with a stop in Timboon, where we checked out a whiskey distillery, Timboon Railway Shed Distillery where Nicklas and I tried the whiskey, it wasn't as bad as I thought, considering I don't like whiskey. Then it got better cause then we got to try some liqueur :) All of us wanted to try those, it was coffee liqueur, strawberry schnapps, apple schnapps and limoncello. It was sooooo good! The coffee and strawberry ones were my favourites so I bought a couple of bottles. Yummy
Then the plan was to go to a berry farm, which was supposed to be just down the road, unfortunately it was down another road than the one we were on so we skipped it. Instead we headed for a winery but we couldn't find that either.
We went to Red Rock and watched some kind of craters and then we checked out the vineyard there, they were only open on weekends but they made an exception for us. So we got to taste some wines as well. They had a huge dog who was very fond of Maria, he even tried to follow her into the car, but she managed to get away.
We had lunch in a small village called Birregurra, it was really really good and since it was suc ha hot day we also had some ice cream.
When we got back to Melbourne the gang checked into their hostel, we repacked our bags and then we went to St Kilda beach. We drank some wine, the guys thucked the rugby ball around and then Nicklas, Jennifer and Jaina went for a dip. Crazy people, the water was freezing!
In the evening it was happy hour at the hostel, a Norwegian girl worked in the bar and she was so happy to meet some Scandinavians. The guys had jugs of beer and Jennifer and I had Toblerone cocktails :)
We had planned to eat dinner on Lygon Street where there are a lot of Italian restaurants, but we were a bit late. Instead we went to Chinatown and found a little place. The waiter tried to teach Andrew to eat with chopsticks, it didn't go too well but luckily he got a fork and spoon as well. He ordered extra spicy food and he got it! I tried half a little carrot and holy crap it was hot!
I ate some noodles with beef, the noodles were really good and the waiter seemed very impressed with me since I was the only one who ordered authentic Chinese food. I didn't know that but I'll still take some credit :)
After dinner we walked over to the casino. It's the southern hemisphere's largest casino and yes it's massive. I think everybody gambled a little and some actually won! We left around 1-2ish, it had been a long day!
The day after Jaina and Maria went to Sydney. The rest of us shopped a bit and then we went to the park and chilled out. It was so wonderful! We played with the frisbee, footbal and rugby ball and just enjoyed the nice weather.
In the evening we went to St Kilda, checked out the sunset and had dinner. Jennifer tried Victoria's national dish, Chicken Parma and the boys had steak.
The day after it was time for them to continue their journey to NZ. Felt a bit empty when everyone had gone.
Lovely day in the sun
Rugby World Cup
Yesterday it was time for the final of the Rugby World Cup. NZ All Blacks against France. I wore my "I Heart NZ" T-shirt and felt a bit nervous. It was a good game and it was so even between the teams! France really stepped up and played really well and the All Blacks obviously also played well but you could tell the pressure got to them a bit. But the final score was 8-7 to the All Blacks!! The final minutes were not good for the nerves, but hey they won! And at home, that must have made it a bit more special.
I bet it was one hell of a party in NZ yesterday and I wonder how many got to work on time this morning :)
GOR part 3
Here we are at 12 Apostles
On Monday we left our house at Johanna and went on to Port Campbell where we would spend the last night.
First we went to Johanna Beach and was going to take us down and check out Wreck Beach, but unfortunately the tide wasn't right, we could probably have made it round to see the anchor on Wreck Beach but we wouldn't have had the time to get back and then we would have been screwed and we decided it wasn't worth it. But it was still awesome!
I kept a safe distance from the shoreline this time, Andrew was on a couple of rocks and did well, but Nicklas got wet.
Then we went to the Arch, it was awesome, the views were wonderful and it was just so awesome. The water had such power and it was so foamy, so cool.
Then we went on a little tasting tour. First chocolate tasting which was a bit disappointing, not a lot of chocolate and they didn't tell us anything about it. The cheese tasting however was great and well worth the visit. We went to the Apostle Whey Cheese and got to try several different cheeses. They were so good! I'm not a big fan of blue cheese but I did try the 2 they had and they weren't that bad. The others were so nice though. We bought some brie and feta.
Apostle Whey Cheese
Then we went and checked out the 12 Apostles, which is the most famous scene along the Great Ocean Road. To be honest, I think Arch was cooler, but it was of course still awesome and beautiful.
We also saw a couple of lizards, one of them looked like a short snake at first cause you couldn't see its legs when it moved. Yuk
Then on to London Bridge, less people there than at the 12 Apostles and again, it was so incredibly beautiful and peaceful!
In the evening we went back to the 12 Apostles and watched the sunset, we also had some cheese, crackers, beer and bubbly with us :) Life is so good sometimes
When we got back to Port Campbell, we went to a pub, there was only one that was open. We were the only girls in there, and well we got a little too much attention so we went back to the room, drank some wine and played cards. The guys stayed behind and tried to play pool
Wonderful day!
Johanna Beach
The 12 Apostles
Awesome eh?
In the evening
Evening snack
Big Lizard / Little lizard
London Bridge
There used to be another arch over to the little island, but it collapsed in 2009
Beautiful!
Andrew and I at London Bridge
Sunset
GOR Part 2
När jag skulle gå och lägga mig såg jag en skitstor spindel i Maria och Jainas rum, Andrew slog ihjäl den och så kastade vi in den i brasan (för att vara på säkra sidan).
The boys at Triplet Falls
The way to the falls
Triplet Falls
On Sunday when we woke up it was windy as hell! It had been raining and been very windy more or less all night, at one point I thought the walls were gonna cave in, but they didn't.
The weather wasn't actually as bad as it sounded. We had out breakfast and then we were off again, Nicklas wanted to drive so he could get some practice for when they go to NZ.
The first stop was Triplet Falls. It was an hour long walk through the woods. They warned of snakes, slippery roads and falling trees but it was fine, although we did almost hit a wallaby on the way there, it kind of whipped the car with its tail but no injuries to anyone.
The waterfalls were cool and this time Andrew and Nicklas kept to the track.
After the waterfalls we went to Otway Fly Tree Top Adventures, but we thought it was a bit expensive plus it was still very windy so we had a snack and then went to Otway Lighthouse. The way there was so cool, we saw sooooo many koalas! So awesome!
We didn't get to see the lighthouse cause they charge $17.50 for that, we didn't feel it was worth it, so we went back and had a look at more koalas.
Then we stopped at Gibson steps. It was soo windy, we all almost got knocked out when we got out of the car!
We went down to the beach, the sand was so soft and the waves were so big. I had a bit of an "accident". A wave came in a little too fast for me to have time to get away, clumsy as hell really. My legs and trousers got a bit wet, but since it was so windy they tried quite quickly anyway.
In the evening we went to Apollo Bay and watched the rugby, it was the semifinals, NZ All Blacks against Australia's Wallabies. All Blacks kicked the Wallabies butts :) so this weekend we will be watching the final between the All Blacks and France.
For dinner we BBQ'd steaks and drank some more bubbly :)
When I was going to bed I saw a huge spider in Maria and Jaina's room. Andrew killed it and we threw it in the fire, just to be on the safe side
A bit windy at Gibson Steps
Andrew and I on the beach
Rough sea
Koala
Cutie!
Jennifer, Jaina and Maria are doing some koala spotting
Mommy and baby koala
Sunset
Spidey (RIP)
Visitors
Last Friday, I showed them around Melbourne, the sun shone brightly, it was 25 degrees and we walked for about 7 hours! I showed them the town, the Shrine, Botanical Gardens, Yarra River, the stadiums (MCG, AAMI Park, Rod Laver, etc.), then we ate lunch, then Andrew came and he was nice enough to bring the sunscreen so we didn't have to get too burnt.
In the evening we got to rest for about an hour before we went to meet Kate and John at the pub for some happy hour drinks and some food.
On Saturday it was time for the Great Ocean Road (GOR)! We picked the car, Andrew got the others while I got fruit, veg and bread at the market, we had bought the alcohol the night before. Then we were off. The weather was like usual in Melbourne, it was the sun, rain, wind, sun, clouds and so on.
The first stop was Torquay, had lunch and checked out Bells Beach, which is a famous surfing beach. A lot of people were surfing, crazy muppets, it was really cold in the water!
Then we came to Lorne, where we ate a bit again and then we took a walk to Erskine Falls. Of course the boys had to get closer to the waterfall than was suggested, but the rest of us were happy with taking in the view from the rocks.
Then on to Teddy's Lookout, where we kind of went the wrong way, the signs were not that clear, so we took a walk through the woods which we hadn't needed to, but it turned out to be a blessing in disguise. All of a sudden Nicklas started making funny noises but it turned out he was saying "kolla koala, kolla koala" (look koala, look koala in Swedish) very fast. And yep up there in one of the trees was a small koala. Then we decided that some of us were on koala watch and the rest on snake, lizard and spider watch. We didn't see any more animals during the rest of the walk. Instead we came to the lookout and it was sooooo beautiful!
Then off again, this time was the Kennet River, we drove along a dirt road in search of koalas and we found them. It's like picking mushrooms, you just have to find the first one, once you have done this and get your "mushroom-eyes" you see them everywhere! So was this, we saw loads of koalas in the trees. Lucky though Andrew still kept his eyes on the road as there were also quite a few kangaroos around. A few of them jumped in front of the car but ut was ok.
We had rented a cottage at Johanna. Such an amazing find by Andrew! It was really really nice! It was a bit chilly when we got there but we got the log fires going and then opened the sparkling wine. Life is bloody good sometimes!
Grafitti
Vår
Kanelbullar & rugby
Det var mycket sport den här helgen. I lördags va det AFL Grand Final och rugby och i söndags va det NRL Grand Final.
Som jag skrev förut så är ju Melbourne och förmodligen resten av Victoria, AFL galna så jag tror hela staten kollade på den matchen i lördags och vi var inget undantag. Vädret hade svårt att bestämma sig, det var molnigt, regn, sol om vartannat. Meatloaf uppträdde och verkade smått galen som vanligt. Matchen va spännande, speciellt de första 2-3 perioderna, sen i slutet av 3:e perioden drog Geelong iväg och dom vann sen. En kille bröt näsan och dom var så snälla och filmade när dom tryckte tillbaka näsan på honom, bussigt, en annan kille (båda från Geelong faktiskt) ramlade väldigt illa och axeln hoppade ur led, det visade dom oss ett x antal gånger, från alla vinklar och i slowmotion, det gjorde lika ont varje gång! Killen med bruten näsa fortsatte spela men den andra fick se resten av matchen från bänken.
Kate ville att jag lärde henne baka kanelbullar så det gjorde vi oxå, dom har inte pärlsocker i detta land, bara i svenska kyrkan men vi orkade inte åka dit så det blev hackade nötter istället, sen har dom ju inte jäst som vi har i Sverige utan det är ju torrjäst. Men det gick bra ändå och bullarna blev väldigt goda och Kate klarade Kanellbullekursen med bravur.
Sen va det rugby VM, England mot Skottland. England spelade som krattor och Skottland ledde mer eller mindre hela matchen, sen vann ”tyvärr” England. Ok det var väl bra, men dom förtjänade inte att vinna.
I söndags va det NRL Grand Final, det är rugby league, en annan rugby än den i rugby VM som är rugby union. Det var ju NZ Warriors mot Manly Sea Eagles (inte fiskmåsar utan havsörnar). Igen en bra match och rätt spännande men tyvärr vann Manly.
Så ja, det var våran helg :)
Kate and John watching the AFL Grand Final (Andrew is there as well but can't be seen)
There was a lot of sports this weekend. On Saturday it was the AFL Grand Final and rugby and on Sunday it was the NRL Grand Final.
As I wrote before, Melbourne and probably the rest of Victoria, are AFL mad so I think the entire state was watching the game on Saturday and we were no exception. The weather was all over the place, it was cloudy, raining, sunny and so on. Meatloaf was performing and seemed crazy as usual. The game was very exciting, especially the first 2-3 quarters, then at the end of the third quarter Geelong pulled away and then won. One guy broke his nose and they were so kind and showed us when they pushed it back into place, cheers, another guy (both from Geelong actually) dislocated his shoulder and again they were nice enough to show us over and over, from every angle and in slow-motion, it looked equally painful every time! The guy with the broken nose continued to play but the other guy had to spend the rest of the game on the bench.
Kate wanted me teach her to bake kanelbullar (Swedish cinnamon buns) so we did that as well. They didn’t have pearl sugar except for in the Swedish Church and we couldn’t be bothered going there so we used chopped nuts instead, then they have dried yeast and we don’t use that in Sweden but it still worked and they turned out to be very nice and Kate passed the Kanelbulle-course with flying colours.
Then it was the rugby World Cup game between England and Scotland, England didn’t play very well at all and Scotland were leading most of the game but “unfortunately” England won in the end. Ok I guess that was good but they didn’t deserve to win.
On Sunday it was the NRL Grand Final which is also rugby but league and not union which they play in the World Cup. It was NZ Warriors against Manly Sea Eagles (not seagulls). Again a good game and quite exciting but unfortunately Manly won.
So there you have it, our sporty weekend! :)
Kate making kanelbullar
Me doing the finishing touches
Kanelbullar
