Tag Archives: Travel

As I mentioned at the start of this week, one year ago I flew to Australia for 3 weeks. To recapture the moment and re-live the experiences, I’m re-posting some of my favorite entries from the trip.

The city of Melbourne really took my breathe away and for anyone contemplating a visit to Australia, I have to strongly recommend visiting this beautiful city. We were lucky to have a special connection with a family that made the stay even more wonderful, but even without them this city would have stopped me dead in my tracks.

Victoria & Hepburn Springs
originally posted 1-Dec. 2009

A huge reason I’ve fallen head over heels with Australia is because of a city called Melbourne. There is a magnificent contrast of architecture that compliment rather than compete with each other and provides a sense of charm that I was hard-pressed to find elsewhere. Some of my favorite activities included: strolling down Lygon Street which is chalk full of Italian cafes, shops and gelateria; checking out the ever so hip Gertrude Street which had a definite San Francisco-vibe; seeing the Fitzroy Gardens and in particular the conservatory; hanging out in Federation Square which has been scorned by many but I think is an excellent example of modern architecture and houses interesting cafes, restaurants, pubs and museums – not the least of which is the Australian Centre for the Moving Image.

Melbourne is surrounded by wine country, which is so easy to visit if you are willing to drive on the other side of the road. I opted to select an overnight in Hepburn Springs, which is next to the quaint town of Daylesford. The drive is easy and picturesque making it a great overnight trip, although I will admit I did not want to leave and would have enjoyed spending more time there. On the positive side, I made the excellent decision to book at the Peppers Springs Retreat which is 1-2 hour drive from Melbourne depending on 1) how fast you drive and 2) how direct your route is to get there. After taking the indirect route to see the countryside, I can tell you that your best bet is to drive directly there (the scenery is beautiful regardless of the route) and the towns prior to Daylesford and Hepburn Springs simply are not worth visting. 

If you do book a stay in the country, I would definitely recommend the Peppers Springs Retreat which is less than a 5 minute drive to Daylesford downtown. Request a room in the main building with a private deck that overlooks the countryside. The two owners, Chris and Wayne, are as warm and friendly as the rest of the staff and the trip provided the perfect respite between visits to Melbourne and Sydney (Australia’s two largest cities). If you want to learn more about the retreat, you can read my glowing review on TripAdvisor.com here. Visiting wineries from the hotel is easy to do, but I preferred the pampering of the natural springs spa on sight and eating at the hotel’s restaurant – rarely have I ever been so full in my life.  Below I’ve included a sampling of photos from my time in Melbourne, the drive out of the city and the stay in Hepburn Springs.

After two nights in Sydney, Sergio and I hopped a plane to spend a week up north in a small town called Port Douglas so we could enjoy some “down time” and go snorkeling in Australia’s Great Barrier Reef (GBR). Port Douglas is a sleepy, little village that closes early so we spent nearly all our time lounging at our hotel, The Peppers Beach Club (check out the hotel’s photos) or in the coffee shop, re:hab, where we could escape the intense sun and heat. The post I’ve included today was one I wrote after snorkeling.

Snorkeling in the Great Barrier Reef
originally posted 25-Nov 2009
Yesterday (Wednesday), I went snorkeling in the Great Barrier Reef pretty snappy costumes they gave us don’t you think? At least the black spandex is slimming.  I will post more pictures upon my return.

I feel fortunate to have chosen Wavelength for my first snorkeling adventure in the Great Barrier Reef for a couple of reasons.  First, they never take more than 30 people (however yesterday there were only 25 in our group) and second they did a superb job of swimming with you to explain what you were seeing.   Half the time I followed the guides and the other half I spent exploring on my own.  The tour stopped in three separate locations for an hour each time which may sound like a lot but the time absolutely flew.  Thanks to the wet suits, I avoided getting a painful burn.

The first site was pretty cool, but it was the least interesting of the three stops we made.  It really allowed me to get a feel for snorkeling and diving under the water to get closer looks at the fish and coral.  By far the most interesting of the three locations was the third stop.  Although I saw clown fish at each location, at the third stop we found “Nemo”  (see above) as well as sea turtles and a couple of sharks.  I was impressed by my lack of fright and actually pointed out a slumbering shark that was about 8-10′ long for the guides to show to the others on the tour.

I know that many people suggest SCUBA diving when visting the GBR but something we learnt on our tour was that 85-90% of all marine life that you would want to see lives within the first 5 – 10 meters (15 – 30 feet).  This is because coral needs to be able to absorb the rays of sunlight to flourish and the sea life relies on the coral in turn so if you can hold your breath for a minute or two, one can swim to the floor of the reef and see all there is.  Even for those who were not comfortable the water is so clear that it is quite easy to see the marine life while floating atop the water. 

One year ago this week my partner and I left Boston to spend 3 full weeks in Australia. I can’t believe its been an entire year and to recapture the moment I’m going to re-post some of my favorite entries from the vacation. If you’d like to read all the posts you can link here.

Here is a little taste of some of the fun we had in Sydney last fall.

Safely arrived and loving Sydney
originally posted 21-Nov 2009
I landed in Sydney on Friday, November 20th fairly refreshed and none the worse for the wear thanks to flying business class on United Airlines. The flight was fantastic in part because of the cush-seating that converts into a narrow but cozy bed. I flew on the second level of the 747, which is only the second time in all my travels that I’ve had the opportunity.

The first two days in Sydney have been brilliant. The weather has been in the high 80s to mid 90s and I’ve used the time as sort of a scouting expedition to get the lay of the land. The only sign of jet lag was the fact that I was exhausted last night (Friday) and went to bed at 10:30 and then promptly woke up at 6:00am.

Today (Saturday), Sergio and I ventured out on an ambitious walk that brought us down to Darling Harbour, Sydney train station and Surry Hills. We had intended to go to Paddington but pooped out and will probably check it out upon our return to the city. However lunch at a cute coffee shop called Le Monde and a cold draft at the bar at The Clock Hotel definitely revived me. I have to admit that Surrey Hills was a highlight and a place I look forward to revisiting (perhaps even tonight for a night cap). The restaurants, bars and shops ooze a chic class that is sadly absent on Oxford Street (Sydney’s gay district); near where I am currently staying.

Despite the lack of any personality in the CBD (where I am at the moment) my room at the Marriott overlooks Hyde Park which is a lush downtown park that is pretty to look out at. Tomorrow I’ll be checking out of the Marriott and hopping on Virgin Blue to head north to the Port Douglas. I’m looking forward to the beach and visiting the Great Barrier Reef… That’s all for now. I’ll be writing more about the entire adventure down under but wanted to briefly document the stay since I have a terrible memory.