After teetering on the brink of disaster, Dhu and I made it back to Adelaide without additional drama, although in our haste to get rid of the car, we failed to remember to return it with a full tank of gas. You'd think after the last episode, we'd be more mindful of such things.
Within 16 hours of being back in Adelaide, we set off for another roadtrip - this time to Melbourne with our friend Brad. He picked us up in his mom's pimpin' '92 sea blue Mitsubishi Executive loaded with a bumpin' cassette stereo system and classy velour seats. The only thing missing was a license plate that says "SXY MF" accented by neon pink pimp lights -- cuz we were that stylin'.
Right. So...
Our first stop was a volcanic crater with a lake in the center.
And then a cave.
Then we got hungry, picked up some Asian-licious noodles, and being the vagabonds we were, ate them by the water.
After lunch, we officially turned onto the Great Ocean Road, but for the first couple of hours, we continued to see the same roadsidescape we had all morning, which looked something like this:
By afternoon, I started getting suspicious.
Me: "Uh, so Brad... where's the ocean on this so-called Great Ocean Road?"
Indhu: "Yeah, Brad. What's so great about this road?"
Brad: "Are you two poo-pooing this trip already?" (I don't think Brad actually used the term "poo poo" but I wanted to keep a consistent theme from the last post.)
Indhu: "I think it's a misnomer. It should really be called the So-So Ocean Road."
And as Indhu and I were exchanging verbal high fives over that last comment, we turned a corner and suddenly came upon a breathtaking view that would render any obnoxious American speechless.
I had written this post up to this point before falling ill, so the rest of this is just a summary of the highlights of the trip.
We stayed in Apollo Bay for two nights. During the day we hiked through a nearby rainforest, did a treetop walk, and admired some gorgeous waterfalls.
We made it into Melbourne by Friday afternoon. Later that evening, Brad took us to an Aussie Rules quarterfinals footy match at the MCG. Unsurprisingly, Australians are loud and crazy about their footy. It was like being in Pittsburgh during the Superbowl all over again (but without cars getting overturned and furniture dragged out into the streets and set on fire).The next day, Saturday, we went to the National Gallery of Victoria to see Picasso: Love & War 1935-1945 and then ate lunch at Queen Victoria Market. And for our last night in Melbourne, we ventured out to St. Kilda's beach on the tram for dinner. We left early next morning and made it back to Adelaide by late afternoon, less than twelve hours before our first class of the new semester.
In conclusion: Melbourne is a kick ass city, full of life and energy.
Bonus Features--
1. A Few Memorable Quotes:
Indhu: "Aww, look at the cute baby cows!"
Brad: "Indhu, those are alpacas."
Brad: "You two look like paraplegic teletubbies on speed."
Indhu: "I would jump out of a cake."
Me: "Really?"
Indhu: "Yeah, why not?"
Me: "I don't know. The mental image I have of you doing that is a little traumatic."
Indhu: "What? Why?"
Me: "You know... you popping out of a cake wearing nothing but pasties."
Indhu: "That wasn't what I had in mind when I said I would jump out of a cake."
Brad: "What are pasties?"
(Let's just say that I hope I never have to explain what pasties are ever again.)
2. A short story about nothing:
While having dinner one night in Apollo Bay, Brad says, "So-and-so is really nice but I wish she could just stop talking so much... blah..blah... like a rooba or something."
I sat there thinking, What the hell is a rooba? Perplexed, I shot a glance at Indhu for help but she was looking at Brad like he had an extra head growing out of his left nostril. I leaned across the table and asked, "Rhubarb?"
He stared at me blankly, leaned closer toward me, and said, "Rooba, you know, like a booba?"
A boo-ba? Was he being dirty?
"Boo-ba," I repeated slowly.
"A bool?" suggested Brad.
I shook my head.
But Brad was persistent. "You know, bools... the animal. And a ba... the thing on the front of cahs."
And then it clicked.
"A bar?"
"Yes, a barrr." (Brad's American accent has a southern twang to it)
"A bull-bar? And a... 'roo-bar?"
"Yes, that's it."
"Oh. We don't have those in the States."
So what was Brad's point about the bull bar and 'roo bar? I still have no idea.
3. Link to my web album (click on photo):
5 comments:
Four things:
1) I almost didn't check your blog because I've been disappointed by the lack of updates in the recent past, but yay, I did anyway. Possibly out of boredom.
2) I laughed out loud at the convo about Indhu and the cake and the pasties.
3) Are those the same pants from the Gap?
4) Your mom has nice boo-bas.
1)As I laid in bed ill, I thought, "Hey, I can't lay here! I've got adoring fans who are eagerly awaiting my next post!" It was all for you Lesley.
2)Yes, there was some confusion over an American pasty and an Aussie pasty (which is a savory meat/veggie filled filo pastry).
3)A different pair. I still have those Gap pants though. Do you still have yours?
4)Well if you were wondering where I got my nice boo-bas, now you know.
1) I wish the rest of the world had the same mindset that you do.
3) I think I still have mine. If so, they're probably buried somewhere in my parents' house, to be unearthed in August 2007.
4) I said your mom has nice boobas, not you.
So I just looked at the pics and there's a little link at the bottom to "report inappropriate content," and I'm wondering, "Are we required to report said innapropriate content?" And does it count if it's (albeit explicit) animal nudity?
Oh c'mon, Deb, just admit it -- you loooove animal nudity. Reporting it just means you'll have less to enjoy in the future.
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