Dodging kangaroos
15. The Twelve Apostles and the Great Ocean Road, Victoria, Australia
[achieved on 11th March 2005]
The Fourteen
1. Mont Saint Michel, Normandy
2. Cornwall, SW England (St Michael's Mount, Land's End)
3. The Potala Palace, Lhasa, and Lake Namtso, Tibet
4. Köln (Cologne) Cathedral, Germany, constructed 1248-1880
5. The Golden Temple, Amritsar
6. The Vatican (St Peter's Square, St Peter's Basilica, the Sistine Chapel, and the Pope)
7. Piazzia del Signoria, Duomo di Firenze and the Galleria degli Uffizi, Florence, Italy
8. Åhus, Sweden (the home of ABSOLUT VODKA.)
9. St Basil's Cathedral, Red Square and the Kremlin, Moscow, Former Soviet Union
10. Auschwitz-Birkenau Concentration Camp, Poland (especially the Arbeit Macht Frei gate)
11. The Blarney Stone, Cork, Ireland
12. Bagan, Myanmar
13. The Zen Garden of Soami at the Ryoan-ji Temple, Kyoto, Japan
14. The Jet d'Eau, Geneva, Switzerland
|. The Twelve Apostles and the Great Ocean Road, Victoria, Australia [achieved on 11th March 2005]
|. El Temple Expiatori de la Sagrada Família, Barcelona, Spain (started in 1883, apparently it's still under construction!) [achieved on 5th April 2004] [to visit again (?) when completed, est. 20 years]
|. The Taj Mahal, Agra, India [achieved in January 1996]
|. Paris, France [achieved in June 1989]
|. This isn't technically a place, but: To break the sound barrier in Concorde [Overtaken by events]
Anyway, about kangaroos...
You see, they are rather stupid animals really (so the RAAF mates tell me) and they can't turn very easily, so they just aim in a straight line for wherever they wanna go, and if one happens to thump right into your car's path, that's IT.
But no, that wasn't the biggest danger on the Great Ocean Road-the biggest danger was driving off it. The Great Ocean Road is a rather challenging road to drive on, I must say, but that doesn't mean it wasn't entirely fun. I first sighted the Southern Ocean at Torquay, and after Anglesea, the road vacilitated between hugging the shore-with the crashing waves level with you just metres away-and hugging the cliffs, rising high above the angry waters, with nothing but a 30m drop into it should you meander off the narrow road. If you wanted both beachside and mountain driving, you got both on this road. And that's not counting later when it runs through the Otways National Park, with nothing but the most amazing flora around you. And above you always, bright blue skies with swirling clouds. Now I know why they say the Great Ocean Road is arguably the most beautiful road in the world.
Driving along the Ocean Road reminded me of England sometimes, of the times driving in the Lake District with my darling Cindy; curving through mountains, alongside cliffs, and fantastic views of water. But in spite of the times when I swerved and sped down the road, nearly ramming my rented Lancer into an oncoming car, it still only comes a close second to the heart-thumping Kirkstone Pass. Thank God they didn't give me the manual car I originally requested for.
Truly, every time I stopped along the road, it would be painful to tear myself away, from the awe-inspiring sights of the many little rock islands, formed over time, and the powerful waves crashing more than 100m out to shore. I could really see why it was called the Shipwreck Coast, and the sad thing was whenever I had to drag myself away from each of them-the Bay of Martyrs, London Bridge, the Grotto, the Arch, Loch Ard Gorge, Airey's Inlet, Lorne, Apollo Bay, and of course, the Twelve Apostles-I would always always look back. There is something mystical about seeing something like that with your own eyes, even if it were metres out to sea, something no photo or video could ever do. And I would always look back because I knew, in all probability, I would never see these fanastic sights with my own eyes ever again, with the horizon so unbroken that you could see the curvature of the Earth, and knowing that there was nothing between me and Antarctica.
But luck was not always on my side. When I was heading down towards the Apostles, after Cinema Point I realised I was running out of time, so I had to speed through Lorne and Apollo Bay towards the Apostles. It was also here that I realised why nobody would bother to police the speed limit along the Ocean Road: it's was an incredulous 80 km/h on the windy parts! My goodness, don't even talk about exceeding the speed limit, I couldn't even reach it without fearing for my life!
But yes, I reached the Apostles just as the sun was setting, and then... horror of horrors, my digital camera ran out of battery. So I fell back on my trusty Lomo, only to realise that I loaded the film wrongly so not a single shot was captured. So now I have no photos of myself at the Apostles at dusk. :(((
I retired to my motel (which is very comfy) and proceeded to K.O. I planned on waking up at dawn to snap more photos, but because in my excitement I had run out to the Apostles without my jacket, I was freezing my ass off (you're right, it's damn cold there). What resulted was a massive headache the next morning, and to make things worse, I had no paracetamol on me cos I left it in illate's place.
Fortunately, I managed to buy some at a chemist store, and set off the next morning to explore around. I went to the Bay of Islands, Boat Bay, Bay of Martyrs, Port Campbell, The Grotto, The Arch, London Bridge, Loch Ard Gorge, the Twelve Apostles, and Castle Cove. Unfortunately, due to a shortage of time and Cf card space, I was forced to drop Moonlight Head, Gibson Steps, and the Cape Otway Lightstation.
But I made it a point to stop at Apollo Bay and for lunch/dinner at Lorne. If anyone is driving down the Ocean Road in future, I highly recommend eating at the Lorne Hotel. They serve fabulous food, and it's here that I tried fillet of kangaroo. It tastes quite yummy really, like a cross between beef and chicken.
But after this, it was time to rush back to Melbourne since the sun was setting. And as I finally turned away from the ocean, at Anglesea again, this is how I will always remember the Great Ocean Road:
Photos will follow once I've sorted them all out-less the many photos I wish I could've shot but couldn't, like the muttonbirds roosting on the sign saying 'Muttonbird Island', the sandbank at the mouth of the St George River, the dog splashing through said river and the horses grazing by its bank....