Wednesday, 05 March 2008 @ 4:12pm.
Apologies for the absence… I don’t know what happens to the time sometimes… Well, actually I do. Life just gets busy, right? I hope all is well wherever you might be. I could be better at keeping in regular contact with family and friends, but please know that I am usually thinking of y’all. 
We have some friends staying over for a while until they move into their new place. In the mean time, I have had the pleasure of eating fabulous curries every other night. My favorites so far have been an eggplant and potato dish and a tuna one. With wholewheat rotis and tasty yogurt as well, it’s been like having our own chefs at home. What a treat! Though on the negative side, this has not been good for the hips or thighs!
I recently returned from a weekend trip to the Great Ocean Road and Great Otway National Park. I had a wonderful time. All the fresh air, breathtaking ocean views, educational sites, trails/hikes, cool wildlife, and yummy foods did me a lot of good. Though things could have gone smoother at the campsite the first night and there were little frustrations in some of the small towns (e.g., broken ATM, cash only gas station, no direction signs), I had fun. I must say that there’s nothing quite like not being able to fall asleep because a koala is making loud strange noises outside! Pictures are posted below:
I thought I’d post the best picture first. Here is the definition of “adorable.” Seriously. If you open up a dictionary, this is what should be pictured. We saw this lovely creature in the Great Otway National Park on the way to the lightstation. Cars were stopped along the road as tourist after tourist made their way to snap photos. The koala barely budged and had what I think was a very pleasant afternoon nap:
This is the Cape Otway Lightstation. I climbed the stairs to the top and was able to circle around it on the narrow path high up. The lightstation is no longer in use besides for tourist purposes. Instead, there is a much smaller, yet more powerful solar-powered lightstation not too far from it. It’s eco-friendly and apparently a lot cheaper than running the older lightstation:
The famous Twelve Apostles are just simply amazing coastal rock formations:
I read that the Twelve Apostles, along with some additional formations, used to be called the “Sow and Piglets!” We later returned at dusk to see the fairy penguins come to shore, but we were far away and couldn’t see them that clearly. It still was cool seeing groups make their way inland, though.
Near the Twelve Apostles is Loch Ard Gorge and the beautiful Island Archway (see below):
In the tiny town of Port Campbell, we stayed at Cairns Cottage. A friendly man named Jack was renting out his old place. The 1970s and 1980s decor inside was quite tacky, but in a charming kind of way:
A’ hiking we will go:
Triplet Falls is a 1 hour looped rainforest and waterfall walk.
Here are the Triplet Falls:
I just love the sound of running water in the forest.
One of my high school friends (Cober, I am so calling you out!) used to tease me for being a treehugging liberal. Well, I guess I haven’t changed much, have I?
Next stop was the Otway Fly Tree Top Walk, which is the tallest tree-top walk in the world. So even though I can be quite scared of certain kinds of heights, I had to brave it:
Nervous laughter at the top:
One of the tree top paths:
The metal paths and the top of the spiral tower sway/flex by the way, thereby making the experience that much more scarier, but also more thrilling and worth doing.
Pluto spent time in a dog kennel while we were away. He seemed happy and relieved to return home. He slept a long time that first day back; perhaps he didn’t sleep much with other dogs around. He continues to grow. He is still very fond of carrots, ice cubes, and raw bones. He has totally taken to jumping and playing in the creek at a nearby dog park. Unfortunately, he does this on the very same days (or the next morning) that I give him a bath. I can’t really blame him, however. I would probably do the same thing if I were in his shoes…er…paws, I mean. On perhaps a less happy note from his perspective, he will be going to the vet soon to get desexed.
In other news, I am very disappointed that the post office lost a recent birthday package. I am in the process of filling out a formal complaint. :< It didn’t help matters that I saw a news special not too long ago about postal workers stealing mail to get cash, lottery tickets, presents, and the like. Bad karma if you ask me.
