Koaless

 Our time at Apollo Bay on the coast of the south seas is coming to an end. It has been a special time. There are places in the world where you simply feel like you are at another point on the globe and others where you feel like you are a long way away. Such is Apollo Bay. Perhaps the weather has contributed to this feeling. I understand that the aboriginal community were here long before anyone else but it still feels like somewhere that we have learnt to live through man's ingenuity. 

The houses here are mostly for holiday accommodation. Apparently 75% are holiday homes. They have been built specifically to embrace the extraordinary surroundings. They are a series of boxes raised off the ground in order to peer over the next house to see the sea. They all have impressive balconies, often stuck precariously into mid-air and from a distance, the area resembles a collection of creatively constructed lego pieces. It has a strangely temporary feel about it. Like someone could 're-jumble' the pieces in a blink. 

The main street, running along the shore, has a collection of cafés, surf shops (or should I say shacks) and many Chinese restaurants and takeaways to cater for the large Chinese population which flocks here. We were sat near one today and I noticed that they advertised the shop - which was called Chopstix, with several posters showing a scantily clad lady applying her lipstick whilst driving a large truck. Notwithstanding the health and saftey implications of attending to your makeup whilst driving, I realise it might be just me, but seeing a nearly naked woman sat in a cab, driving a truck whilst applying lipstick doesn't immediately make me think. 'Aha! A Chinese Takeaway!' (Or it didn't...) The power of advertising, I suppose. 

After ambling down to Apollo Bay for the above-mentioned coffee, we nipped back for some lunch then headed to the Kennet river. 

The mixture of British names and indigenous town names make for an interesting journey at all times when travelling in Australia. You can pass signs for Winchelsea and Wagga Wagga in the same breath.

The purpose of travelling the twenty five minutes up the road to the river Kennet, was to take the promisingly named Koala trail. We are very keen to add a Koala to our list of spotted Australian wildlife.

The trail was very pretty and the first 100 metres or so was labelled with all sorts of fish, birds and mammals which the region boasts. We did see several cormorants, posing, it seemed, for the tourists on a conveniently placed fallen tree. We plunged deeper into the hinterland. It was then that we became aware of the presence of a Chinese woman close by. When we moved, she moved. When we stopped, she stopped. Just a few feet away. This happened for a long time. We plunged through bogs, she plunged through bogs. We vaulted fallen trees laying across the path, she vaulted fallen trees laying across the path. We tried to decide whether she was working as part of a triad gang, and would shortly mug us at gun point, or whether she wanted to stay near others as she was on her own, and thought we looked harmless enough. Happily, it turned out to be the latter. We had an interesting chat as we retraced our steps. She is in Australia as she studies for a masters in translation. Perhaps that's why she spoke good English. Her native tongue was Mandarin and she confirmed that all the hieroglyphics we often see under Englsh signs are Mandarin. She said she could get away with only speaking Mandarin because there are so many Chinese here. The three of us continued to look for Koalas, but to no avail. The best we could do was turn up at the Koala Café where we said goodbye to our new Chinese friend and took a photo of the toy Koalas in the window of the café, as the next best thing to a real one.

After a final fling round Apollo Bay, we decided to call it a day. We are quite tired and have another long day tomorrow as we travel north, back to my cousin, Julie. 

We wouldn't mind if it also meant heading for more temperate climes. 

Apparently, the prolonged cold and wind is becoming the 'new normal' and is a sign of the extreme weather which we all now experience. It's part of the brave new world. Along with the dangers from security cameras. I have just watched the news and now it is common for people to hack into personal cameras and stream them worldwide. Which means I'll soon be able to stop writing blogs. You just be able to watch us, wether we like it or not. (like you'd want to...)

Ambling on the coast at Apollo Bay 
Cormorants, posing
Deep in the rain forest 
The next best thing to spotting a real Koala....
Is a toy Koala 

Brrrr!


"Here is love, vast as the ocean" 


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Strange milkman

Image
 Yesterday saw a massive tick on Kate's bucket list; We drove up to my cousin, Joy's house and the garage door opened as if by magic as we approached allowing the car to drive into the basement of the house. The trip to Australia has already delivered, therefore.  We have now been upside down for about 14 hours and, so far, the blood isn't running to our heads.  We awoke after a short but inevitable sleep to the sound of kookaburras. It is the most extraordinary bird song I have heard. It sounds like someone whistling softly who has the ability to yodel whilst whistling. Dawn was just beginning to break and I found the sound both spine chilling and hilarious - not something I thought possible up to now. It was like there was a creepy and psychopathic milkman circling the house on his deliveries. The whistling is soft, melodious and mournful - typical of psychopathic milkmen, I find. Brisbane is tropical. The humidity suggests warmth regardless of the temperature. Today, a...
Read more

Signing off

Image
 OK, so it seems that merchandise which winds up in an airport goes through some sort of 'size-warp'. Toblerones are prone to expand and apparently, 'Pringles' shrink. Both in circumference and thickness. But don't worry, the price has increased, presumably to cover the cost of the different sized product, the different sized packaging and so on.... Airports are obviously very significant sources of revenue. It's Brisbane airport that we're sat in now as we await our flight to Dubai, and so, home. It is quite late in the evening and the departure lounge is quiet. The high ceilings which they favour these days, give the space a hushed, almost reverential feel, as people glide by, their cases gliding obediently by their sides. This is the sterile space between worlds where we 'limbo dance' until we reach our gate and exit it. Only people's dress might give a clue to the country that they call home. It's a good time to reflect on the past month....
Read more

Bruce

Image
 This entry starts with an apology to all kookaburras. The birds which sound like a disturbed milkman are magpies! This is much more believable when you consider the nature of a magpie but it is a far cry from their British counterparts. (See what I did there...) Today we climbed a mountain in the Glasshouse range. Saying we had a smashing time would be such a dad joke that I shall avoid it. The mountains are a series of volcanic lumps which stand in a loose huddle, allowing plenty of flat land between each one, ensuring a great 360° view from each one. They all rise to satisfying points with only a few requiring ropes. Satisfied with the view from Ngungun mountain, we climbed down to a pub lunch. I had a sheep. On a plate. I certainly didn't do justice to it but it was delicious.  I also had a small beer. Rather chilly, I thought... I love that we drove down the Bruce highway to get there. I practiced the word Bruce in my best Australian for much of the journey. I don't know ...
Read more