Sailing is the leisure activity of choice here in the Whitsundays.  So sailing is what we did.

The Whitsundays consist of 74 islands, most of which are uninhabited, all falling within the Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area. We sought out tripadvisor and found Iceberg, a small, 12 person (plus two crewman) sail boat.  It was two full days and one night of sailing.  The first day was very exciting getting to know our boat mates (three Germans, two from the Netherlands, five from Denmark, the Australian captain and first mate and us) but also very somber as the weather was still grey.  We even caught some rain showers.

We did get two beautiful snorkel trips in on the first day.  We avoided the beach stop in hopes the weather would shape up.  The water was extremely warm, warmer than the air. Our first snorkel stop was in Mantaray Bay off of Hook Island where the fish were abundant. They were definitely not afraid of the dingy we came in, nor were they afraid to swim right up next to us. Seems they had been fed by others and were hoping for the same from us. It made for a fun snorkel but was kind of sad.

Later in the afternoon we stopped for another snorkel at Border Island.  Here were amazing coral reefs and tons of anemones unlike any we’d seen before.

We sailed to Tongue Bay, where we anchored for the night.  Sleeping on a boat is interesting and I’m ok we only did it for one night. Tight quarters, no showers, salty water. Not as bad as camping, at least.

We woke up to sun (yay sun!) so our first adventure of the day was Whitehaven Beach on Whitsunday Island. We relaxed and got exfoliated on the famous, white sand beach….the sun was out but boy was it windy and the sand is so fine it just blows and blows. At low-tide, we walked on the exposed sandbar and did a short bush walk to a famous view point overlooking the beach.

Back on the boat, everyone was so happy the sun was out.  We sprawled across the boat, soaking in every ounce we could.  And then, they put the sails up.  Yes, the point of the trip was to sail.  However, with the sails up, it created an instant shade, the sun disappeared and the goose bumps came back.  Boo.

Sun block

With goose bumps, we hopped back into the water for one last snorkel.  The snorkeling was magnificent.  All three stops we left very satisfied with all the fish and coral their was to see.

Three snorkels and a beach stop later, we sailed back, in the shade, to Airlie Beach.  We were very happy we did it and added it to our honeymoon adventures.

First Impression of Airlie Beach – Meh.

It doesn’t help that it’s muggy and overcast.  Where’s the sun?!  But it reminds me a lot of Cairns, which neither Dentler or I were extremely impressed with.  Hopefully it gets nice.  The sun always helps.

Melbourne is Australia’s second largest city with an art scene that allows people to be creative on a public level.  You’d have to jump through so many hoops in Seattle to have graffiti art in the alley’s.  Not to mention the fact it would be vandalized within days.  But here, the city has sanctioned the colorful stencil art and graffiti.  It’s pretty darn cool.  It gives tourists a reason to wander about the city because you want to check out the diverse art.  Last night, we walked through China Town and stumbled upon a graffitied alley that led us to a crazy fun bar that we would have never found otherwise.  The alley’s are spreadout throughout the entire CBD and are all different; some covered in concert posters (AC/DC alley), and a  Banksy alley that was sadly painted over.

Laneways are another fun, commissioned project the Melbourne City Council started in 2001.  There are over a dozen laneways, each with a different focus, whether it be cafes, shopping or art they have found a way to use the quirky space and turn it into something really special.  We started our day having brekky at a cafe on Centre Place. Kevin has fallen in love with the coffee in Australia and he said Melbourne’s is the best (he had three coffee’s today).  We mapped out our route for the day, hitting as many laneways and graffitied walls we could before our footy match!

Centre Place

In between the laneways and graffitied alley’s we went to the Queen Victoria Market.  The 133 year-old market is the largest open-air market in the southern hemisphere with more than 600 traders.  In addition to being full of tourists looking for a good souvenir bargain, the locals go to the market to do their produce shopping – it was packed.  It was very similar to the market we visited in Cusco, Peru, but ten times as crowded.

What was also impressive about Melbourne was how easy it was for us to get around – and all for free.  They had a tram that circled the CBD that you could hop on and off of at your leisure.  They also had a bus that took you just outside of the CBD to different points of interest.  Same thing, you could hop on and off and while riding and you get to learn along the way with informative recordings and drivers.  The bus (almost) took us to a neighborhood recommended by our morning barista called Brunswick Street.  Brunswick was totally “put a bird on it” Portlandia vibe.  Very hip, lots of second-hand shops, lots of ”Supportland” type businesses and bars and cafes.  We wished we had more time to explore this area – it was very fun, but we had a footy match to catch!

Back into the CBD is the famous Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) where Australian Rules Football dominates the city.  We saw a match between Richmond and Fremantle.  It was unlike anything we’ve ever experienced.  These fans are insane and completely infatuated with their team of choice.  We entered the MCG knowing zero about Aussie Rules Football (Footy) and left with some understanding and a new fondness for the sport.  It’s kind of a combination of football and soccer and basketball and volleyball all in one game.  No pads, they tackle at will and nobody ever seemed too injured.  While the fans are die-hard for their team, they are also very considerate of each other.  Nobody was mean-spirited to an opposing fan, nor were the players. They pushed each other around but that was it, it never escalated to a crazy hockey punch fight.

Their concessions were interesting.  Meat pies were definitely the thing to eat.  Meat pies and Vegemite.  I can get behind the meat pies but the Vegemite ranks up there with fish on my list.  Disgusting.  Footy though…I could get into it.

By the end of the footy match, it had been a really long day.  We had a few more alley’s we wanted to hit up but the ones far away, they just weren’t going to happen.  Our feet were tired, our bellies were full of meat pie and we had a really early flight to the Whitsunday’s (and sun!).  It would have been awesome to have one more day in Melbourne but for the time we had, we came, we saw, we conquered.

Today Kevin was really stoked to get in the water.  But the waves were not cooperating and were flat.

Sad there were no waves :*(

So, we decided to drive more of the Great Ocean Road and see if we could find kangaroos and koalas like the Lonely Planet book said we might.  The Great Ocean Road reminds me of Highway 101.  Beach town after beach town, every one of them is cute and has a bit of charm about them.  In between towns you’re driving through eucalyptus trees and long stretches of cliffs, overlooking the ocean.  We made it as far west as Lorne which isn’t even close to the famous Twelve Apostles, but we’ve seen plenty ‘a rock stack and were anxious to get to Melbourne.

Driving into the city, Kevin drove in some crazy traffic and I think we were both glad to be rid of the car and be in a city that wasn’t asleep at 6pm.

Melbourne was quite the opposite of sleepy.  It was vibrant and fun and there were SO.MANY.PEOPLE!  As we were walking among the masses we were comparing it to Sydney.  Sydney is much more spread out, with many more neighborhoods, each with a distinct vibe, compared to Melbourne that has everything downtown.  Office space, shopping, arenas, neighborhoods, parks – everything.  And downtown is where everyone goes.  We both fell in love with Melbourne quickly (Kevin, more so once he was not driving and trying to figure out hook turns) and pondered why downtown Seattle wasn’t more of a destination than it is.

We had an early morning flight to Melbourne, picked up a car and drove straight to Torquay (pronounced Tor-key).  Torquay is about an hour and a half drive from Melbourne and the official beginnging of the famous Great Ocean Road.  We wanted to come to Torquay because it is a popular place for surf.  In fact, just a couple of weeks ago, at Bells Beach, the Rip Curl Pro was held.

The first adventure of the day was driving the car.  Not only do they drive on the wrong side of the road here, the driver’s seat is like a mailman’s, on the right, instead of the left.  The big dilemma was, does Kevin drive, with an expired license (yay for birthday’s abroad!) or does Kelli drive, the worst navigator in the world.  All fingers point to me, but Kevin drove.

He got us there just fine and once in Torquay, we hit Bells Beach.  The weather was not rainy but it was definitely not warm…it is their fall.  The surfers were in wetsuits and told us the water was warmer than the air.  It still didn’t make me want to get in.  Plus the waves at Bells were a little big for us and the waves at the other beaches weren’t worth getting wet for.  Sooo, we went shopping!  Our Lonely Planet book told us everyone loves to hit up the surf outlets (like Rip Curl, Quicksilver, Roxy, etc).  When we got there though, it was like TJ Maxx on steroids with piles of clothes everywhere.  No thanks.

Bells Beach!

We explored the small beach town a little more and called it a night. When it’s dark by 6pm and everything closes about that time, there’s only so much you can do.  It was nice though, we grabbed a take-away pizza and cozied up in our cute little B&B for dinner and a movie.

I was in Sydney five and a half years ago with KMJ, Dentler and Eleni.  When we were here last, Eleni and I did the Sydney Harbour Bridge Climb.  It was amazing then and I knew it was something Kevin would love.  So, that’s how we started our day.  It was exactly the same as I remember.  Still amazing, well run, efficient, manageable for all, you learn fun facts along the way and you leave feeling like you accomplished a feat, with a group photo and a certificate of completion.  And then they rip you off because you kind of have to buy the photos they take of you on the bridge – especially when you’re on your honeymoon!

The bridge is located in a cool area of Sydney called The Rocks so we grabbed lunch in the neighborhood at the recommended Lord Nelson Brewery, did some exploring, then caught a ferry in Circular Quay to Manly Beach.  Last trip to Australia, we also spent some time at Manly.  I remember attempting to surf, even five years ago.  I don’t consider myself good now but I can only imagine how bad I was back then!  When we were here last, it was summertime so it was a good excuse to get in the water.  Kevin and I had a lovely day of sun but after being in 90+ degree Fiji, 65 degree Sydney did not warrant getting in the water.  Instead, we relaxed on the beach, watching the surfers and paddle boarders and shopped the Corso.

All of our days in Sydney have been full and fun.  Tomorrow, we leave Sallie for a week and head to Melbourne!

…own a churro chain in Australia.

We made it back into Sydney from Katoomba in the afternoon and went for a late lunch at a Malaysian restaurant called Mamuk. This is the awesome thing about having Sal as a tour guide. We don’t have to think. She knows her way around and knows where to eat so we aren’t wandering for hours hoping we find something good. She just takes us there and we follow. After last nights dinner, I didn’t think I could feel so full again – let alone so soon. We stuffed ourselves. I can feel my pants getting tighter already.

We decided to walk off some of our lunch and check out a different part of Sydney. Mar had recommended The Coogee walk, talking us along a cliff walk from Coogee beach to Bondi Beach. It was a beautiful stretch of ocean. We loved watching the surfers at Bronte Beach, critiquing them like we know what we’re talking about. There was a beautiful cemetery on the walk…not a bad view for those guys. And more stairs. My calves really hurt from the hike yesterday. Every time we walk down stairs, it hurts. I wish I was exaggerating. We knew though it was best for us to keep that lactic acid moving. Luckily, it was such a pretty walk, the pain was not in the forefront of our thoughts – there was too much other stuff to look at and think about.

By the time we made it to Bondi Beach, it was dark. Because it’s winter, too, the Bondi Beach “scene” wasn’t as it would be during a hot summer day. It was still fun to explore though – all of the shops were still open. We had planned to grab dinner in Bondi but we were all still too full from lunch….but we weren’t too full for dessert! And since it’s my birthday, I got to pick what we ate. So, instead of just one dessert, we shared several. Dessert for dinner is awesome.