The Great Ocean Road And Beyond

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	Guernsey Arrived on 26th Jun 2012
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Blog updated: 11th May 2013

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Our latest 5 Diary Entries

Shannon & Pamela's Adventures

31st May 2012 - 5th Jun 2012
The Great Ocean Road And Beyond

Left South Australia and started our journey on the Great Ocean Road. The road was built by soldiers who returned from the WW1, as it gave them jobs and put them back into normality, it was built in remembrance for those who had died in the war. The reason it was built was to do exactly as it is named, be a great ocean drive, and to rival Los Angeles great drive.
Our first stop was 'Bay of Islands' which was rock formations in the sea just sitting there. Then we drove to 'London Bridge', which was a rock connected to the mainland and looked like a bridge, however a few years ago two people were out walking on the bridge when it collapsed and they were stranded, helicopters came to rescue them and tv crews came to interview them- the only problem- they were work colleagues having an affair!!
Then we carried on the drive to the biggest attraction on the Great Ocean Road- the 'Twelve Apostles' (although due to time only 8 remain) the twelve apostles are large rock formations standing on the coastline, they are pretty amazing to see.
The road stays close to the sea then moves into the Otway Ranges and we were deep in jungle, with winding, twisting roads which Shan loved driving on. Drove to Apollo Bay where we camped for the night.
The next day we had a look around Apollo Bay before heading to Lorne for breakfast then to Aireys Inlet, home to the Split Point Lighthouse, made famous in the 90's kids tv show 'Round the Twist'. The road now is right on the edge of the cliff so we have amazing views the whole way around the coast, which is probably why most people travel the opposite way than us. Next stop was Bells Beach, famous for its surf championships and it's surf clothing brands, so treated ourselves to some rip curl clothes. Round the corner was Torquay where we had a nice lunch before saying our goodbyes to the Great Ocean Road and headed back to Melbourne.
We stayed the night at my friend Josie's house. I met Josie in 2007 when we worked together in Harrods in London and she got me job in a pub in London's Notting Hill, so I've always been grateful to her, we have kept in touch and it was really lovely to see her again, and shared a yummy Thai takeaway with her and her boyfriend.
Then we went back to my cousins house where we stayed for a few days, washing and cleaning the van ready for selling it, and had a lovely dinner with Darren and Lorraine and their friends. Left theirs and said we will see them in another 5 years. We visited the locations of The Block, the home renovation show which I loved watching last year. We visited both last years and this years which was fun.
We stopped for the night at Wodonga on the NSW border and then the next day headed back to our final destination- Sydney.

Love Shannon and Pamela xx