This morning we slept in to almost 8am local time. Local temperature was a brisk 16-17 degrees, with high wind and light rain. After a slow start, we decided to return to the Great Ocean Road.
First stop was Tourqay, the official start point of the road. A pleasant seaside village which does a roaring trade with the tourists passing through.
Next stop was Bell's beach made famous for its huge surf and surfers who visit annually. The waves, when running were huge, which excited the surfer mob watching. The temperature out of water was in the teens, so it must have been freezing out in the surf. We asked a surfer about the temperature who claimed it was warm. There was plenty of watchers and surfers due the "piping hot" surf carnival being held.
The trip back to Melbourne was uneventful and relatively quick on the M1 highway. We first visited St Kilda and Brighton Beach, fanous for its beach huts or bathing boxes.
The huts have been in use since the 1860s, so "Ladies" would have privacy when changing for the beach. The homes along the beachfront range from Victorian Era to the modern, but almost all are wealthy in construction and decoration. Clearly Melbourne's well to do have been living the area for some time.
Later we drove on to Anglesea (another seaside town), but the road was so clogged up with traffic heading along the great ocean road, that it took 30 minutes to cover 10kms, so we stopped for lunch.
The road cleared somewhat so we continued on till we almost got to Lorne. Very pretty road, well worth the pain of the slow traffic.
Each town we passed through was holding a carnival so it increased the busy nature of the road.
After some street gymnastics with the car we arrived in Flinders Lane, home of Punt Hill apartments. The parking under the apartments are very tight, but at least we don't have to cart our gear too far.
The Apartments are ok, older in design but comfortable. Our suite is just above street level, so we can watch the night life below us. Cafés and restaurants line the lane way below, so we can have easy access to food and coffee most of the time.
After unpacking we did a quick explore of the blocks around our apartment. Still full from lunch, we enjoyed a light meal from a restaurant specialising in Cajun foods. Very nice.
After a long day we return to our apartments, but not before buying coffee and desert from our lane way neighbours.
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