Road Trip day 3 Sunrise to Melbourne
We set off from our hostel at some ungodly time of morning before sunrise. Driving along the coast road in the dark was very much like the previous evening. We might as well not have stopped.
As it became lighter the view appeared, and was just stunning. Every corner we turned we saw a new cove with the waves crashing against the rocks, in that lovely low sunlight that makes everything shine. We’d turn another corner and see yet more, a new configuration of this beauty-at-scale that seems to have become a habit on this trip.
By sunrise, we’d reached Kennett River, a village with a beach, a campsite and nothing else. The guide book promised that behind the campsite and up a dirt road, we’d find “bundles of sleepy koalas clinging to the trees”. We went in search, marching up the road. We saw the sun rise over the next headland, we saw the back gardens of some houses and we saw a bird’s nest that looked like it had two little ears. But we saw no koalas. Maybe they were in hiding from rain the previous night, or maybe they were just somewhere else. Oh well, no we’ll have to tick them off the list somewhere else.
A little along the coast we came to the town of Lorne, a lovely little resort town with a great beach, surfing waves and some cracking breakfast places. We enjoyed a tasty slice of banana cake and some local jam before a nice stroll along the beach. The surfers were out early, as were the cockatoos – I’d take these little punks over pigeons any day, Trafalgar Square would sound amazing!
Some more driving, some more pretty vistas and before too long we got to the motorway at Geelong and then Melbourne itself. Even from the ten minutes driving through the city to drop the rental car, Melbourne looked cool. We fumbled a little with the Oyster card machine but eventually made it to our apartment in the suburb of Windsor. It’s great – spacious, comfy and close to the action. The main drag of Chapel Street is about ten minutes away with cool bars, classy clothes shops and pretentious coffee. It’s great, and there’s plenty more to explore!