This is what Bonnie Doon is supposed to look like. Last time we drove through here there was no water under this bridge and it is a long way down.
We''ve driven past a sign each time we've
driven through Creswick to St George Lake and we've always missed the turn. Today we finally found it.
We had a pretty uneventful trip to Coffs, arriving yesterday around 2.30. The resort is still as nice we remember and once again we got a great room with an excellent view. This is a panorama from our balcony. We'll post more as they come.
Late yesterday Donna and I went for a walk out to Muttonbird Island just as the sun was setting. I'll post the photos later but I can say it was quite a good sunset.
Marcus and friend Maddie 
Donna and I are having a weekend away in the van alone for our anniversary. Just the of us until Monday as we both have Monday off.
We've driven out to a little place called Beaufort that we stopped at for lunch when we visited Halls Gap last year. We thought it nice and decided we'd came back when we could. So here we are.
Donna found the lakeside van park and booked us in. We've got a ensuite site facing directly onto the lake.
Apparently there was a secondary reason for our trip. We are almost out of honey and if you follow our blog you'll know we bought some honey at a market in Jung when we were out this way last time. So we've had to go Jung again. Great honey.
After that we headed back to Beaufort and dropped in on Bests winery at Great Western along with Seppelt's. Yes I bought a couple of bottles ( or more).
Back at Beaufort I went for a walk along lake and had a chat with a couple of guys fishing. As it turns out the lake is regularly stocked with redfin and trout.i did bring some rods but none of the right stuff.
Lastly for our anniversary we decided to go out for dinner at the local pub. Very nice food, very filling.
Donna,and I have just been to see the Grace Kelly collection at the Bendigo Art Gallery. It is a fabulous collection of dresses and Jewellery worn and owned by the Princess It is provided here from the Princes' Palace Monaco.. Dresses are from various movies she starred in as well as dresses made for her by various designers.
The collection shows how over time she created her own style, one of simplicity with elegance. Her accessorizing and attention to details was extraordinary.
I was amazed at how well even the movie dresses were made.
It's a long weekend and we've got nothing much planned. Went to the caravan and camping show yesterday (Saturday). Its good value for money, we spent nearly hours there. Bought some wheel chocs and some new load levelers. We have some levellers but these will be much easier to use.
This morning we headed up to Yarra Glen to go to the markets. They used to be huge but had to move when some refurbishment works were done. They haven't recovered as they are now quite small. So we headed up Healesville but nothing was on there so we took a road we hadn't taken before, no idea where it headed. After some side tracks we ended up on the Melba Highway heating towards Yea. We made a turn instead and drove back home via Flowerdale with lunch at Hazeldene. With all the rain it is still very green for this time of year. Normally by now everything is Brown and dry.
Yesterday we went to see the stage play of Yes Prime Minister at the Comedy Theater. Yes it is very good and the laughs regular enough to be very enjoyable. Both the boys really enjoyed it which is good as we were a little worried they wouldn't. They had no idea what to expect as they had never seen any of the episodes so I gave a quick description of what it was about and who the characters were. The wit and humour are still very much the same as the original series. Definitely one to go see.
Yep, home tomorrow. Sitting in the airport now jut waiting to go. We've just seen our flight get delayed so it won't leave now till 11.30 rather than 10.30.
Today we had a late check out so just hung around doing things. The thing we found we could do was check in at the City International Terminal right in the heart of the city. Take the bags and complete the check-in there and they take care of everything. You pay a little for the privilage but being able to get it all done 8 hours ahead of time was worth it.
We spent the rest of the afternoon seeing the new Sherlock Holmes movie.
See you in Melbourne.
Wow, today we all slept in and I mean slept in. 9.30 for me and Don. The boys would have been later if it hadn't been for us calling them to let them know we were going down for breakfast, since it closes at 10.30.
Don, Marcus and I travelled to the Mariner Mall this time to see it all. It is huge but we saw it all. In the tourist areas like this nothing is cheap, especially electronics where they are cheaper at home.
At 3.30 we all left to go on our sand Safari tour. It is a half day of racing over sand dunes at amazing angles and speeds. Sliding along the sides of the really steep dunes and running along the rims of the really big ones only to then drop off the edge and down the side again. Then we pull in at the camp site and go for a camel ride. That is fun especially the getting up and the going down. Marcus and Nicholas both had a go at the sand boarding with Marcus doing quite well and then having a spectacular roll.
In the camp there is entertainment of a belly dancer and a barbecue for dinner. All of us had a lot of fun and i highly rcommend it. We were a little worried whether it would be worth it as we had booked it on-line but it was very good.
Apparently the Volvo around the world racers are arriving tonight so we might see what is happening over the next few days.
Flights are long and hardly anyone sleeps, Donna and I get some but not the kids.
We arrived in Abu Dhabi this morning around 7.30 and to the hotel around 8.30. The weather is beautiful, sunny and warm. We are all fairly tired, especially the boys however we can't check into the hotel until around midday. So we hang around in a Burger King, have some brekky there or the others did not me. We can get wifi there for free.
Later we headed down to the Marina Mall, the largest shopping mall in UAE. Just to kill some time and to get some munchies for later. Finally we checked into the hotel and the boys decided to stay in and sleep while Donna and I decided to do looking around near th hotel. Gold is everywhere here. Shop after shop of it. Across from the hotel on one side is a park which we can see from our window. Donna and thought it woul be good to go for a wander around it but couldn't work out why all the entrances to it were closed. Once we got to the main entrnce we understood why. You have to pay to get into it. It was only a single Dirham which is about 30c, so we did. It is a very peaceful park.
There is construction work going on all over the place. The architecture here is so beautiful even the new buildings look awesome.
After dinner we convinced the boys to go for a walk witth us over to the water. Turns out we can't get across the road, there must be a secret passage or something. Anyway between us and the water is a park with these little garden sections in it.
Today we travel from Budapest to Frankfurt and then on to Abu Dhabi. Unfortunately or fortunately depending on how you look at it we have a fair amount of time to kill as our flight doesn't leave until 6pm.
So we decided to walk around, firstly to the "big shopping centre" around the corner from our hotel. The directions were a little vague and after a fair walk we couldn't find it. So we decided to head into town. Maps, who needs them when you have a vague recollection of what it looks like and a single conversation of what train to take. Anyway the nearest bus won't take us there and we don't have enough coin for the train. Walking it is, how far can it be?!
Apparently a bloody long way. After an hour or so of walking and not really getting much of any view that looked familiar we decide to head back and have lunch at the hotel. Over lunch we get out a map. Turns out we remembered quite well, we were on the right raod heading in th right direction. What no-one had managed to tells us was just how far it was. Well beyond walking distance!
This will be it now until Abu Dhabi. We fly Buda to Franfurt at 6pm, then Frankfurt to Abu at 10pm arriving at 7.30am. At least it is nights we are losing.
Donna and I decided to do the "Hop on Hop off" tour of Budapest today. The boys have had enough and are quite tired from last night. Outside to get on the bus and what happens, SNOW! YES it actually started snowing quite lightly. Everyone, in particular the Australians, were quite excited. A number of the group come from Queensland and had never seen snow. We all walked around in it for a while. We tried to call the boys but their phone was off. It was still snowing when we got off the HOHO for our first stop in Hero's Square. It kept lightly snowing for about 2 hours. We enjoyed it. 
From Hero's Square we walked over to the Zoo. Check out Donna walking on the snow covered track. The reason for going to a zoo being, throughout Budapest we kept seeing this sign of a wombat advertising the zoo. They have quite a large Australian section in the zoo. Some of the animals looked quite cold, especially the kangaroos and wallabies but the rest were mostly indoors and kept warm. It is quite a large zoo for one in the middle of the city.
Budapest is a city that still remembers the communist era. There are signs of it all of the place but none more so than the "House of Terror". This is not a fun ride or a side show but the actual building, now museum, where under the communist regime citizens were taken for interrogation and never seen alive again. Along the exterior walls are photos of people who disappeared in here. Unfortunately it was closed but outside is a great sculpture depicting the "Iron Curtain".
