The Great Ocean Road Part II

A trip down the Great Ocean Road won't be complete if one doesn't partake of the culinary delights that each town offers. Indeed, besides the sights shown in my previous post, some of the best moments on our trip revolved around our creature comforts.

First of all, it's definitely important to choose a comfortable B&B (bed and breakfast) with the all important "full country breakfast" included. A and I don't usually have a big breakfast most mornings but we do enjoy partaking in this particular pleasure of staying at a B&B. It was a little difficult with the accomodation choices for our trip, which took place over the long Melbourne Cup weekend, as either quite a fair number of accomodation choices were fully booked up or else required a minimum 2 - 3 night compulsory stay. Still, if it hadn't been for these difficulties, we wouldn't have stumbled upon one of the highlights of our stay.

Timboon House

Timboon House (circa 1855), a heritage Victoria-listed property, is located at Camperdown, which is about 56km north of the Great Ocean Road. We had a night's stay there on my birthday, as I could not find any suitable accomodation nearer the Great Ocean Road. Despite the 45 minute journey up north, A and I were delighted to come across this historic homestead in the late afternoon sun and to be warmly greeted by our affable host, John King and his Jack Russell terrier, Mr. Darcy.

Our pretty bedroom

Timboon House is beautifully proportioned with antique furniture and Laura Ashley-like furnishings and is set amidst peaceful, matured rose gardens. I liked the incredible details each bedroom presented, from the clawfoot bath in the spotless private bathroom, the little bon bons next to the water jug, and particularly the antique light pull next to the door (pull once to switch on the light, pull a second time to turn it off!). John was also extremely helpful with suggestions for our trip and dinner that night and over the course of the night and the next morning, proved to be an engaging and hospitable host. We spend part of the afternoon enjoying a very prettily arranged afternoon tea on the patio with John and chatting about travels (and his visit to Singapore last year), food, work and passing the time quite nicely indeed.

The welcoming dining room all neatly set for breakfast

By the end of the evening when John calls up to us to ask if we still want coffee and a nightcap before turning in, we're starting to wish we had booked ourselves in for the next night as well. Especially when we descend the stairs the next day to the dining room, with the strains of classical music playing and a crackling fire going, to see the spread laid out for us in the dining room!

The cereals and poached fruits table all nicely laid out

My lovely brekkie!

Both A and I love a big breakfast on weekends but rarely do we go the whole hog with cereal, poached fruits and yoghurt, toast and preserves and the cooked portion. We do here, as the peaceful night we enjoyed in the comfortable bed upstairs whetted our appetite. A stays with the traditional eggs, bacon, mushroom, tomato and sausage combo while I decide to try John's suggestion of scrambled eggs with smoked salmon on rye toast. We pass a lovely morning at the breakfast table chatting with the other couple about Melbourne and their part of Victoria, which turns out to be Red Hill in the Mornington Peninsula. We push back out chairs from the table around 10.30 am but not until the couple gives us tips of where to go during our upcoming weekend on the Mornington Peninsula.

We leave Timboon House to the accompaniment of a volley of goodbye barks from Mr. Darcy. There are B&Bs and there are those B&Bs that rise above all others - Timboon House is one of the rare few that we would consider coming to stay at again and again, by virtue of the host of creature comforts, its peaceful setting and most of all, its cheerful and welcoming host (and dog).

After a good night's rest, I would say the next important consideration would be getting a good meal. A loves his food and can happily eat anything as long as it's not too badly cooked but he's increasingly starting to take an interest in visiting way-off places just for the food! We were relatively blessed on this trip to experience 3 differing dining experiences with the freshest regional produce available.

The Bend Cafe

Our first stop for the night was our B&B, Whispering Seas B&B at Glenaire. This is about 20 minutes from Apollo Bay (our original stop) and was one of the few B&Bs who would take us for one night. Our host Susan Collingbourne points us in the direction of the Bend Cafe for dinner and warns us that while Paul would feed us well, "he's a bit of a character!". I knew from reading some articles on the internet and an earlier article from The Australian, that Paul, the chef at the Bend Cafe, had been dubbed "a reluctant chef" and "possessing a wicked sense of humour" and we would soon find out what Susan meant!

You can see the Bend Cafe with its green roof in the distance

Making our way down to the Bend Cafe that evening, both of us were hungry and looking forward to dinner. Paul greets us with a beer stubbie in hand (in fact, when he's not behind the grill, he has a beer bottle firmly in hand that whole evening!) and tells us to sit anywhere. I look around for a menu and read the 'instructions' on the blackboards next to the kitchen and around the cafe with amusement when Paul rolls up to tell us that what he's got in the fridge and how he plans to cook it!

Paul behind the stove and his amusing instructions on the blackboard. If you can't read it, it says "Your conversation may be monitored for future training purposes: If you do not wish to participate, please inform your server and thank you for your cooperation. In a rush ---> MacDonalds - Colac 63km, Torquay 127km, Warrnambool 131km DRIVE SAFELY"

No menu in sight and with no idea about the prices, this is a leap of faith on our part and we decide to fall in with his suggestion of "the heavy meal" - a roasted lamb rump stuffed with feta cheese served on grilled aubergine, potato cakes, mushrooms and tomatoes. Following his query whether we had any food preferences and our reply that "we eat everything", Paul grumbles that "Americans say they eat everything and I serve them feta and they dig it out of the lamb and leave it by the side of their plate..." and by his stern look, we take it that we should not commit such a sin. A plate of bread and pesto appears on the table and when we are asked if we want wine, no wine list is presented - instead, it's "Do you fancy a Cab Sauv, Merlot or Shiraz?". Shiraz it is. We make ourselves comfortable with the newspapers as appetizing smells emanate from the kitchen and Paul banters with us and the other guests.

Not too long later, our food comes out together with a generous pouring of the shiraz A wanted. Taking mouthfuls of both, we realise that even without a menu or a winelist, Paul's food and drink is more than plain good - it's hearty and very very tasty! The unknown shiraz is plummy with every mouthful of lamb we take. Quite stuffed, we end off with a slice of freshly baked cheesecake for dessert and a cup of coffee each. We never find out how much each item cost as the bill came totalled up and we paid a reasonable sum for the amount we had. Come to think of it, we never found out what the mysterious shiraz A drank as well.....

The Dining Room at Dublin House Inn

When I was booking our accomodation at Port Fairy, I had made calls around to our first choice, the 2 Chef's Hat rated joint serving up Middle Eastern-inspired/Mediterranean cuisine, Portofino on Bank. Unfortunately, Portofino is closed on Mondays and we rue our chance to eat at this highly-lauded restaurant.

We opt instead to visit the Dining Room at Dublin House Inn instead, being lured by the premise that the menu involved quite a fair bit of seafood! Our arrival in Port Fairy and the subsequent afternoon spent visiting the galleries was marred by the constant drizzle and dreary skies, so we were greatly cheered to find upon arrival at Dublin House Inn, that we would be seated next to the fire blazing in the fireplace.We decide to go with seafood for both our entrees and mains and here's what we had.

Entrees

A decides on the special appetizer of the day called "Flavours of the Sea", which has a trio of small starters - Scallops seasoned with Piri Piri spices, smoked Timboon eel, seasoned oysters battered and fried.

I opt for the Marriner's Linguine, which is al dente linguine tossed in a garlicky, semillon-based sauce with mussels, scallops, smoked eel, oysters and prawns.

Mains

A has the catch of the day, which is a duo of Tasmanian salmon and freshly caught local Ling, served on a bed of green olive potato mash and with a green salad with Roquefort dressing. No picture unfortunately as the various pictures I took turned out too dark.

This is my main dish - Zarzuela or a Catalonian Seafood Stew, served with olive tapenade and something similar to gremolata (I forgot what it was but think its called picada).

We end off with a shared dessert as by this time, we are both full to bursting point on the really generous portions. Although we decide on a steamed cranberry pudding with orange caramel sauce, homemade vanilla bean icecream, mascarpone and cranberry compote, I am intrigued by another dessert with Persian saffron cotton candy, which is a common fixture in Middle Eastern desserts that I've heard lots about but never tasted. I decide to try my luck and I ask the server if we could have the pudding but as I couldn't stomach another dessert alone, would she be so good as to let me have a taste of the Persian "Fairy Floss" and she very nicely accedes and comes back with a big portion the size of a fist!

Both of us thoroughly enjoyed the food there, particularly as the seafood was really fresh (quite a fair bit was freshly caught that morning). I liked the Zarzuela very much, which was tangy and spicy and definitely a wonderful dish to have on a cold evening. Best of all, service here was attentive and flexible and definitely a crowning touch to the wonderful food. Warm and cosy, the Dining Room is blessed with an extremely professional and accomodating host in Michelle and a very competent cook in Nick. Another place to mark in our diary for a return visit in the future!

Wisharts at the Wharf

The next day after our meal at Dublin House Inn, we eat a hearty breakfast and make a trek to Griffiths Island to see the island in the daytime (after our teeth-chattering visit the night before in the light drizzle to catch the shearwater birds return to their nests at dusk). Tramping around the island works up an appetite (even after the substantial breakfast) and we decide to fuel up on fish and chips before heading onto Tower Hill Reserve for another ramble on our way home.

Wisharts at the Wharf is your typical unpretentious chippie shop, save for the chilled display case showcasing the catch of the day and all the fish used in their fish and chips, all freshly caught and unfrozen. This is a rarity in any chippie shop and indeed, we had been quite let down by the fish and chips we had bought in Port Campbell a couple of days before as the fish had all the texture and taste of frozen fish.

When fish and chips is nicely done, nothing quite compares to tearing open the paper its wrapped in, having it steaming hot and doused liberally with vinegar and salt, and then bathing your face in that aroma. Not only is the fish really fresh, the batter is light with none of the oil-laden sogginess lesser chippie shops would have. Sitting on the deck overlooking the River Moyne and enjoying our hot treat, this was a simple but lovely way to wrap up our holiday.

All the details you need:

We stayed at Timboon House, located at 320 Old Geelong Road, Camperdown Victoria. For more details, contact John King at (03) 5593 1003.

We ate at these places:

The Bend Cafe

3225 Great Ocean Road, Glenaire Victoria
Tel: (03) 5237 9102

Definitely phone ahead to check with Paul if the cafe will be open for dinner as opening hours are not fixed, although the Bend Cafe usually opens on Friday and Saturday nights for dinner. Ask him nicely and he might just decide to cook for you that night!

The Dining Room at Dublin House Inn

57 - 59 Bank Street, Port Fairy Victoria
Tel: (03) 5568 2022

Wisharts at the Wharf

You can't miss this - just walk along the River Moyne to the wharf in Port Fairy and you'll find this little fish and chips shop with outdoor seating. A swankier restaurant just across the carpark also serves the same but at a higher price.

Resin Jewellery Class # 4

Today's the 4th session of our 5 week course and having mastered the basics, we're left pretty much to our own devices. Some of us work on casting our remaining pieces of jewellery or little bits and bobs in resin - this is the easy bit. Most of us take the chance to use the heavy duty machines available to start on polishing and refining the earlier pieces we had cast.

Gayle using the sanding machine to file the rough edges of her bangle

1/2 to 1 hour of solid elbow grease using emery paper (to smoothen the rough edge of the resin piece) and the leather polishing cloth (to give shine) takes just minutes on these machines so it's no wonder we're taking the opportunity to start the finishing process. I've cast quite a number of bangles and smaller items, all of which have not been sanded or polished. Unfortunately, I spent too much time mixing up a new batch of resin to finish off my pieces that I only manage to finishing sanding and filing one bangle (with another 4 more to go....).

Edit at the polishing machine

Part of the fun I've been having in class is checking out what everyone else has been doing since I'm the boring one, casting bangles (ha, some of you might think you're getting bangles for Christmas but not at the rate I'm progressing with the finishing process!) and small shapes with the intention of stringing them as beads (again I stress intention). Many of the other girls are thoroughly creative, particularly Edit, who's been putting in the hours at home casting new rubber moulds and resin pieces and coming to class with very interesting ideas she's managed during the week. Viliama proves to be quite thrilled with some of Edit's pieces, modelling them below in an improvised necklace (mine is the tiny little yellow triangle object).

The Great Ocean Road Part I

A couple of weeks ago over the Melbourne Cup long weekend, A and I took a trip down the Great Ocean Road to celebrate my birthday. The trip also marks our first road trip together (seems like 2006 is a year of firsts for us). Taking place over 4 days, we saw quite a lot of sights, met heaps of lovely people and ate some really good grub so I thought it might be better to split my posts into 2. This one is going to focus on the sights and the second on the creature comforts of the trip.

According to tourism statistics, more people travel the Great Ocean Road to visit the Twelve Apostles than Kakadu and Uluru combined. As one of the most popular highlights of any visit to Australia, the vast part of the Great Ocean Road stretches from Torquay all the way to Portland (about 4 hours drive via the inland route on Princes Highway from Melbourne).

With all that distance, the environment that one traverses on a trip down the Great Ocean Road would be incredibly diverse, ranging from the Surf Coast (Torquay to Apollo Bay - for the biggest waves a surfer can desire) to the Shipwreck Coast (Cape Otway to Warrnambool - the coastal bits where many shipwrecks occurred in the 19th century). Travelling just half an hour north from the Great Ocean Road would lead you to rainforests, waterfalls, volcanic territory and quaint country towns. So a trip down the Great Ocean Road would have enough varied activities for a group with different interests.

Better yet, one now has the option to either drive down the Great Ocean Road (which most visitors choose) or to walk part of it in the Great Ocean Walk, which covers about 91km from Apollo Bay to Glenample Homestead near the 12 Apostles. We drove of course….

Our trip took us as far as Port Fairy, which is about 290 km west of Melbourne. The beauty about travelling the Great Ocean Road is that you can decide how far you want to venture as there are many turn-offs along the way leading north up to the inland route back to Melbourne. On hindsight, I did wish we had taken it a little easier and not ventured so far this time around as most of our days were quite packed. It's also prudent to remember that driving times between attractions will also take slightly longer owing to the winding roads and occasional offroad conditions (particularly at the national parks).

Still, we packed in a nice variety of activities ranging from exploring the quaint fishing village of Port Fairy and the other little country towns we passed through, climbing up the many lighthouses along the coast, trekking through rainforests to see waterfalls, attempting to see glowworms at night and aborting the same as it was terrifyingly dark and our torch was but a tiny beam of light in a pool of black, visiting a migratory bird sanctuary island (at night in the pitch black again and then the next day when it's light) and a wild-life reserve set in a dormant volcanic crater…..

I could go on and on about the fun we had, the places we'd visited and the people we met. Instead, here's a selection of some of our memories:

The views and townships we passed through

We saw plenty of views from the many lookout points along the Great Ocean Road. Here is just one of the many beautiful views on offer.

Each of the towns we passed through had their own character. We were lucky when we rolled into Apollo Bay on Saturday that their weekly market was in session - so we took the chance to buy some excellent jam and check out the wares on offer.

A buying some yummy watermelon, lemon and orange honey jam in Apollo Bay

Camperdown is an excellent example of an old country town and nowhere is it evident that it is also cattle country than by this sign displayed next to the town's historic clock tower.

Port Fairy is a charming (if slightly sleepy) fishing village, which has been gentrified by the arrival of retired Melburnians. Lots of very good cafes and top notch restaurants (which I will post about next) would be found on the single stretch of shops down its "high street" and Port Fairy has fast acquired a reputation as a foodie town - indeed, there are no less than 4 restaurants in Port Fairy listed in the Age Good Food Guide and the Australian Gourmet Traveller but seeing that we only had 1 night there, we had to settle for just one of those 4 restaurants! Other attractions include a thriving artist community scattered around the town, fresh seafood hauled in by the fishing vessels and a migratory bird colony on a nearby island. Take a lovely stroll down the River Moyne and better yet, book one of the B&Bs (bed and breakfast) places with a view overlooking the river. Unfortunately for us, the weather when we were there was rainy, overcast and extremely cold.

A view of the many B&Bs along the River Moyne - we stayed in Gobles Mill House (the grey building with the red roof)

Further along this stretch is the port where fishermen pull up and the fishermen's co-op where you can buy fresh fish, crayfish and even abalone (in season)!

Driving back along the Princes Highway, we were treated to a different type of view altogether of rolling hills, golden pastures dotted with sheep and cows and miles and miles of these dry stone walls. If you look closely, you'll notice that these walls have been constructed without the aid of cement or any binding agent. Drystone-walling is an artform in itself, handed down from generation to generation and nowhere is this art more in evidence than in the countryside surrounding Camperdown and Colac.

Lighthouses a plenty

Split Point Lighthouse

This being the part of the coast where ships from England and Europe used to pull in, lighthouses abound plentiful. All the lighthouses we visited continue to be in operation, save that with advances in technology and the light beams now being automated, a lighthouse keeper is no longer required. It was quite fascinating to read about the history of the pioneer lighthouse keepers and the solitary and spartan life they led, which was evident from our visit to their homestead in the lighthouse grounds.

Cape Otway Lighthouse - the oldest lighthouse in Victoria

The lonely lifestyle of a lighthouse keeper and his family is most evident when we visit the lighthouse on Griffiths Island (an island next to Port Fairy), which is now a protected migratory bird sanctuary. The lighthouse stands as the last bastion against the howling winds and the huge waves of the Southern Ocean and when night falls (as we experienced it one night when we went to watch the migratory birds called "muttonbirds" or shearwater birds come back in droves from feeding time), all is pitch dark in this part of the island except for the great beam of light. Oftentimes, the small footpath connecting Griffiths Island to the mainland would be flooded at stretches, leaving the lighthouse keeper and his family cut off on the island.

Here is A plodding along on our walk around Griffith Island to the lighthouse at its extreme point

Inland attractions

The Otways region is rich in flora and fauna and we took the opportunity to visit a few of the rainforest walks in the national parks and check out some of the noted waterfalls.

At the Triplet Falls - I only managed to capture one of the 3 waterfalls owing to vegetation being in the way

Taking one of these walks (there are many to chose from with different gradients of difficulty) is a good respite from the ocean winds and views and is just a short 30 minutes north from the Great Ocean Road. We're also fortunate that we came just before the summer rush so much of our treks in the rainforest is blessedly quiet and peaceful - very Lord of the Rings as A put it.

Soaring views of the treetops

Anyone intending to do a "glowworm" trek at night at Melba Gully or Kennett River is definitely encouraged to check out these places in the daytime. A and I went to Melba Gully our first evening and couldn't find out way from the carpark to the start of the trail in the pitch black darkness, even with the help of our torch and the car's headlights. Needless to say that in the dark, one does get a little disoriented and everything takes on an extra sinister aspect so not seeing anyone around (but several cars in the carpark) was enough to spook us badly so that we slunk back to the B&B without having seen any glowworms.

The Twelve Apostles and Lord Ard Gorge

One of the most famous attractions along the Great Ocean Road, the Twelve Apostles probably need no introduction. Lord Ard Gorge is another beautiful rock formation further down from the Twelve Apostles, and is also where the sailing ship, the Lord Ard, was shipwrecked, leaving only 2 survivors. The sinking of the Lord Ard is retold every night in a lights and laser show at Flagstaff Hill (at Warrnambool).

Unfortunately, when we reach the Twelve Apostles, nature conspires against us and the skies go all dark and broody. Hence our dramatic stormy looking shots!

As our tummies are rumbling and we need to turn off the Great Ocean Road to get to Camperdown for the night, we decide to skip the rest of the rock formations after we visit Lord Ard Gorge.

All the animals we spotted

The nesting burrow of a shearwater bird but no bird in sight!

On the plus side, fauna was in abundance on our trip. We started off with a sighting of koala bear mothers and their cubs in the trees when driving along the winding road away from the Cape Otway lighthouse. Cars would progressively pull over to the roadside to stand beneath the trees to check out one of Australia's national icons in the wild. Ignoring the threat of snakes in the bushes (actually, A told me that there aren't any snakes in bushland but he was WRONG!), we plunged into the scrub to check out that koala mama's extended family. Luckily I was toting my long range lens and was able to capture quite a few shots of the happy family.

Emu chicks

We spot plenty more animals along our drives, including what looked like a hedgehog ambling along the highway (A tells me its actually an echidna). The bumper crop of sightings comes on our last day when we check out the shearwater bird colony on Griffiths Island and visit the Tower Hill Game Reserve.

The shy echidna who hid his face everytime it heard my camera click

We don't see very many shearwater birds (being out fishing the whole day) although we do see evidence of their 'homes' - they nest in burrows much like puffins do. What's quite interesting to us is that every year, these birds fly 15,000 km from their wintering grounds in the Aleutian Islands and the Kamchatka Peninsula to Griffiths Island to next. Individual birds return to the same nest burrow they occupied the previous year and what follows is several months of housekeeping, feeding and nesting. The young are eventually left by their parents who make their way back to their wintering grounds and these young chicks are able to eventually find their way back there without the guidance of the older birds! Griffiths Island is also an ornithologist's paradise, with its proliferation of sea birds, To our surprise, I spy a joey in the midst of this island (A thought it was a rock initially until it move).

No shearwater birds to be seen but there is a joey!

Later on that afternoon, we went for a ramble in the Tower Hill Game Reserve. Tower Hill Game Reserve is noted for being located in a dormant (not extinct!) volcanic crater. Noting that the signboard warns us to be careful of poisonous snakes (leading me to scold A thoroughly for misleading me about snakes in Australian bushland), we make our way through the scrub and have lovely views of the volcanic crater.

The ditzy koala finally ensconed in the right tree

Along the way, we spot emus and their chicks, an echidna hiding in the bush and a ditzy koala in the carpark. What amused me most, prior to spotting the koala ambling on the ground (a rare occurrence as they are mostly treebound during the day) was that A said something about spotting a strange-looking dog. One glance told me it was a koala and I grabbed my camera, yelling to him to follow at the same time. Apparently, the koala had climbed up a wrong tree instead of a eucalyptus and proceeded to do the same thing again in our presence before finally finding the correct tree to join his mate. It must have been a little disconcerted to find an audience observing his ditziness!

Seeing so many animals in the wild was a nice ending to a great trip. Indeed, the ditzy koala provided many laughs on our long drive back home.

Resin Jewellery Class # 3

This week's class proves to be quite exciting since we get to unmold some of the pieces we had cast the previous week. Here's a selection of what Jimmy and I had done... nothing vaguely Dinosaur Design about our creations but we're definitely proud of what we managed to achieve!

This week, we learn about finishing techniques, which range from sanding to filing to polishing with leather and a polish agent. After Viliama demonstrates how to use the various sanding machines (a scary process involving lots of noise, dust and screeching sounds), we all fan out to attempt more resin works and polish the various bangles and objects we had created over the past couple of weeks. After spending 10 minutes working the file over my bangle, my tingling arm tells me that I'm not going to get anywhere near making Dinosaur Design - standard jewellery anytime soon!

I'm looking forward to unearthing more of my pieces next week, one of which is a bangle which I tried to do a swirly pattern through. That's the fun bit about each class, not knowing what to anticipate for the next week! Keep checking in to see what else I managed to achieve!

Our weekends in Melbourne

The contents of my many emails to friends and family (and vice versa) these last couple of months have invariably ranged around the topic of "What are you up to this weekend?". Friends and family have written to me about attending cake-making classes, fun dinner dates, weekend getaways and visiting some of the new eateries that have sprung up in town during my absence. In turn, I tell them about the latest bit of Melbourne A and I have explored, a short synopsis of a weekend to Melbourne's regions, the parties or exhibitions we've attended or the latest restaurant visited.

Of course, not every weekend will be chockfull of special events and activities; some will instead feature nothing more than lounging around and catching up on reading, having convivial conversations over a lunch table with friends or a simple lunch/dinner date with A at a nearby eatery. Here's a selection of the "simple weekends" we've had in Melbourne these past few months….

Lunches with friends & colleagues

Colleagues from the Melbourne & New York offices

Checking out Campari at Port Melbourne with A's colleagues from the Melbourne and New York offices one lazy Sunday afternoon and visiting Station Pier nearby after lunch.

Tusk

An impromptu Saturday afternoon lunch at Tusk with Michelle and Jackson, who have been very hospitable to us during our stay. Michelle has been a source of great comfort seeing that I don't have any other girlfriends here and have been missing girltalk and commiseration over coffee sorely these past few months.

Beachcombing at Brighton beach

View of the CBD from Brighton

It was too windy that day but we managed to walk a short section of the beach path linking the beachside suburbs of Albert Park, Middle Park, Brighton and so on.

In and around the Botanic Gardens

Footprints of an Aboriginal chieftain and his grandchild in the RBG

Early one Sunday morning, we went for a Walk on the Wildside with our guide, David Plant and saw the different animal varieties, including many different birds, which have made the Royal Botanic Gardens their home. We didn't spot the large eagle (reputedly the height of a small child) but did see many of the garden's other denizens such as possums, swans, moor hens, birds and the lot.

Other than such activities (Walk on the Wildside being my third guided walk in the RBG), A and I spend a lot of time in the RBG just lounging in the sunshine and catching up on the news in the Age. I just have to say this about the Age, it is simply one of the best newspapers I've read – the Saturday edition weighing in at close to 1kg (just like the weekend edition of the New York Times), it comes chockfull of insightful articles on politics and the arts, and enough international news to keep me happily reading for the next couple of days.

Not having a garden with this apartment in Melbourne means that we have been treating the RBG as pretty much "ours" and have been enjoying the greenery there as often as we possibly can. We're not the only ones… these women were there for a hen party and of course, many couples choose to come to the RBG for their wedding photos. Quite a few others organize family picnics in its extensive grounds, while some others engage in a game of lawnbowling. While it sounds like every Melburnian finds their way to the RBG every weekend, the grounds are extensive enough for every one of us to find our own piece of garden.

Having yum cha lunch in a funky tea house


One Saturday, we decided to see what the fuss about the Oriental Tea House was all about. For a traditional tea house funked up and given a modern (read Westernised) twist, the food proves to be pretty good, with a good selection of new-age dim sums and our traditional favourites (like chicken feet, char siew pastries and egg tart). Of course, the bill when it arrives, similarly mirrors the funked up image!

Catching a street show while out walking!

One of many street performers around Melbourne, we caught this guy working the crowds while strolling the Sunday market at the Arts Centre.

Places to visit:

Campari

Station Pier
2 Waterfront Place, Port Melbourne
Tel: (03) 9676 9230

Oriental Tea House

455 Chapel Street, South Yarra
Tel: (03) 9824 0128
For yum cha bookings, please call (03) 9826 1068

Tusk Cafe Bar

133 Chapel Street, Windsor
Tel: (03) 9529 1198

The Piano Man (Update)

This is where A and I were on November 10, together with 11,000 plus others at the Rod Laver Arena in Melbourne.

After the earlier drama of buying tickets, we finally got to see Billy Joel live in concert! Definitely a fun night and nothing quite like hearing him belt out his hits live. Starting off with "Angry Old Man", the concert kicked into high gear with very spirited renditions of "My Life" (complete with audience sing-a-long, me included), "Uptown Girl", "Moving Out" and ending off with "The Piano Man" for his second encore. We didn't have the best seats in the house, seeing most of his back except when the stage on which the piano sat rotated 360' but it was close enough to feel the energy emanating from this incredibly talented 57 year old pounding on the piano. A and I had a great night for sure!

Resin Jewellery Class # 2

My first class for the Resin Jewellery and Sculpture course I was taking had passed rather uneventfully last week. Today's class however, proved to be quite a fair bit more exciting since I actually got to work with the resin material itself and could finally start on creating the bracelets I'd cast in moulds last week. Here's a blow-by-blow account of today's class!

Step 1 - Releasing the Rubber Moulds

The item, e.g. a bangle, which you wish to cast in resin needs first be cast in a rubber mould. To do so, one has to form a clay "container" (i.e. there is a layer of clay underneath the bangle and a wall of clay 10mm around) to contain the rubber which will be poured in a thin stream until it surrounds and covers the bangle.

On the right is one bangle that I cast, which is still contained by the clay. On the left is another bangle in its rubber mould, free and clean of clay. To get from one to the other involves using heavy wooden rolling pins to bash the clay apart amidst lots of dust from all that bashing. A final wash and dry and the mould is ready for use.

Step 2 - Mixing up the Resin mixture

Viliama, our instructor, begins by measuring 3 parts of the resin mixture to 1 part of the reacting agent and stirs clockwise to ensure that everything is thoroughly mixed. Do so slowly so as not to form air bubbles within the mixture as you will have to wait till these bubbles rise to the surface and disappear before using the mixture.

Step 3 - Mix up the colours you want

We learn how to mix colours (both clear and opaque) and what types of pigments are suitable for colouring the resin mixture. No-nos are things like food dye or any type of liquid paints (unless denser than the resin mixture); surprisingly, items like paprika, tumeric and dried pigments for paints work really well in turning out a great colour. Above is the fire-engine red mixture I used for one of my bangles, which used red paint pigment we took from the painting class.

Step 4 - Pour into desired moulds

I also discover that the ice-cube rubber moulds from Ikea would also work well to contain any resin mixture! Here are just some of the resin items I will unearth next week, including the first item I started (intended to be in a sort of triptych of 3 freestanding pieces) containing memories from my recent trip down the Great Ocean Road).

Step 5 - Take a break with friends from class!

Having cast all the items we had planned for, we finish class on time today and a couple of us decide to head off for lunch at one of the funky cafes on Degraves Street before we go our separate ways. Here are 2 of my very artistically-inclined classmates, Edit (who teaches textiles and works with knits and basketry) and Jimmy (who is a graphic designer) and the wall of graffitti at Degraves Street (very common in Melbourne's little lanes in the CBD and definitely encouraged by the authorities!).