Barwon Heads

Alright so the plane was delayed but after a short wait I boarded the plane and off we went. I began a conversation with Christopher the guy seated beside me. He was born and raised in south NZ but Melbourne had been his home for the better part of the last 12 years. Christopher had a pretty cool sense of style and after he told me he was a painter it kind of began to make sense. He that he was in NZ because his aunt was having some health issues. She ran a motor park in the south so he had been down there for the last six months helping run the business. At the end she even offered him the opportunity to buy it out. He seemed actually quite excited about the idea and the fact that the business came with a good chunk of ocean view property definitely didn't hurt the offer!

Once we arrived in Melbourne we said out goodbyes. I zoomed through customs and grabbed my stuff. As I walked through the doors there was Mel eagerly awaiting me. After a much needed long hug between old friends, we set out on our journey home. I would be staying with her in ocean Grove for the next few days which was about an hour south of Melbourne. We arrived back at her place and shortly after that I fell asleep.

April 30, 2016

After a long sleep I felt completely recharged. I woke up to Honey (Mels dog) licking my hand. It was the greatest deja vu I've ever had. I miss having a dog so much so this time here with Mels dog will be glorious!

Mel and I got ready for the day and headed out to her Net ball game. For those back home it's kind of like ultimate Frisbee meets basketball. When we arrived I saw these two old guys who seemed to be long lost friends randomly meeting at their bocce ball court and it warmed my heart to hear their brief exchange. Before the the game began I saw this mother and child trying to throw water bottles at a tree trying to get their balls out of the stuck branches. I'm not sure why but I felt like being the hero so I climbed up into the tree and got one of them and then they threw me up a water bottle and I got the other one out with just two swift tosses. Totally felt like a hero haha.

It was a tough game for the team as they lost quite badly but still fun to learn a new game. After the game we went out for lunch and I tried my first official sausage roll which is apparently quite an Australian thing. Then we went down to Queens cliff marina and I saw a stingray swim in the water right below the dock and I almost crapped my pants. For those of you who don't know me, I'm so afraid of ocean wildlife. It's not even funny. Anyways then we went to Point Lonsdale which was beautiful and picturesque. Then we headed back to Mels place.

I spent a good chunk of the afternoom watching some AFL on TV and getting acquainted with the rules. I can't really explain the game but I think we're going to go to a game next weekend in Melbourne.

Later that evening we went to Jamie's house (a close friend of Mels). Jamie lives in Geelong which is about an hour from Ocean Grove. From there we took Jamie's Mercedes C63. WHAT A BEAUTIFUL CAR! We went for dinner in Geelong and I tried my first chicken Parmigiano (chicken parmi as the aussies say it). It was good but nothing spectacular.

After that we met up with Jake and Catie a few more of their friends. We had quite a few drinks at a few different venues. Some of the drinks were just horrible though. This one martini type drink was blue and looked great but legitimately tasted like shaving cream. There was another Bright green drink that was the spiciest thing I have ever tasted. It was so gross. They even got a peanut butter and jelly drink which really wasn't very good either. On the better side of things I tried my first cosmo and my first old fashioned and Australian beer is pretty good also. Also liquor 43 is pretty delicious with coke.

Then as you do, Jamie, Mel and I went to Macdonalds for some late night snacking. It also started storming pretty bad so we went down to the oceanside and watched the storm for a little while. Obviously because Mel and I were drinking we just stayed the night in Geelong at Jamie's who pretty much lives in a big auto garage. It was quite an experience, but hey the couch was super comfy.

May 1

The next day Mel had to work so she left early but I stayed at Jamie's. We eventually went for Sunday brunch at Pako Pantry. I had the best french toast I've ever eaten there! The rest of the day was pretty chill. I did some planning for my time here in Australia and then Jamie and I also watched a few Netflix documentaries.

For supper Jamie, Mel, and I went back to Ocean Grove and Mels mom made us a nice pasta bake dinner with garlic bread which I inhaled! And that was pretty much the night. Pretty lazy day but much needed. Kinda got things planned out. I think I'll be staying in Ocean Grove and Melbourne for the next week or so! I'll keep you posted!

-Terrence out!Read more