Victoria Day 6 - The Grampians, Halls Gap / Victoria Market, Melbourne

Assalamualaikum. G'Day Mate.

Previous post (here).

31 July 2015

Stawell, Victoria

So pagi tu bangun dengan tenaga maksimum. We're gonna go hiking today. NOT!  Initial plan was to explore the Grampians National Park. Misi utama mau jejak landmarks di Halls Gap. Based on my reading from the internet (main source: of course John's blog), ndak lah perlu walkertapaki bersungguh sangat. 

I jotted down the places we must go prior our trip. Confident memang ke langit. I got it all covered; kataku. 

#1 Breakfast aku & Ms H. Gigih masak sardin bagai. Sejenis 'omnivor' pasal tu sayur kena senantiasa ada dalam meal (walhal demanding)

#2 The closest feel to 'how winter looks like in Australia'. Kecewa katanye Ms H; snow tiada. Mount Buller terlalu jauh untuk dikecapi

#3 Sebok juga dia mau berposing sama rented car. Kasi chance, walau burpday sudah expired sehari

Grampians National Park, Halls Gap

Sampai Grampians, singgah refuel dulu. And sedia maklum bila isi minyak area ke dalam-dalam ni, harga memang boleh bikin gugur bulu ketiak jantung.

Sebab si Err yakin yang semua info ada dalam kepala, memang tiadalah istilah singgah Information Centre. Berbekalkan arahan GPS, terus menderu drive ikut laluan menaik Mount Victory Road. Pastu, GPS suruh stop & parking situ katanye. Driver menurut perintah.

Memang berkobar-kobar lah kan mau explore national park ni. Siap plan macamana mau posing at each landmarks. Pastu signal internet Wiyo pun hilang. Selamat tinggal dunia luar. Ndak risau kunun masing-masing sebab si Err tau mana arah. Yakin itu penting. 

#4 Pose with the sign is a must

#5 Eh kenapa rasa macam tiada tangga ni dalam blog si John (gitu getus dalam hati). Ok maybe dia ndak tempek di blog (ayat sedapkan hati)

#6 Memang sejenis gigih paksarela dua Jemah tu mengikut jak langkah kaki aku

#7 Ni lah 1st landmark yang mau diterjah (tu pace untuk hiking rupanya oii!)

Tapi kenapa sudah walkertapaki dekat 2km dari parking area, masih belum jumpa bayang Boroka? Jangankan Boroka; Lookout pun tiada. Apalagi viewing platform like the one in John's blog. Ah sudah! Dan-dan masa tu baru teringat, lepas parking kereta tiadalah bersusah payah si John ni berhiking untuk sampai platform. And patut lepas parking we could already see the lake & mountain. Ni kenapa dari tadi memanjang batu-batu besar jak view kami. Laluan al-mencabar & sempit pula tu. 

Makin jauh kami menapak, makin sure lah si Err yang kami dia salah laluan. Laluan yang kami ikut ni pun boleh sampai Boroka Lookout, cumanya that was the REAL hiking trail. Mampu ko jungle trekking guna jeans?! OOTD segala. Siap bibir merah?! Ndak kan? Well, kami yang pro lagi bijak yang mampu. *flip tudung*

#8 Maaflah wahai wanita-wanita jelita. Kawan kamu sorang ni jadi pendera ndak bertauliah. Tabahlah masing-masing, pasrah mengikut

#9 Memang confirm salah laluan. Udah sesat wahai ibuk-ibuk!

#10 Tetap maintain posing. Bukan selalu salah jalan sampai naik bukit berkilometer jauh, kan

#11 Untunglah sesat-sesat pun sempat snap sana sini

#12 Lebih kurang view mountain dalam blog John, minus the lake & miniature town. Sobs

#13 Tiap kali nampak ni, kondifen cakap; sikit lagi kali ni sampai (sambil disambut krik krik)

#14 Tiada Boroka, tiada Balconies; buatlah lookout sendiri. Pun boleh

#15 Kecewa seketul Bibie. Terus jalan laju ke depan layan bingai sendiri

Kami ndak lah hiking sampai the peak. We saw the Boroka Lookout from where picture #14 was taken, but we decided to called it a day. Ndaklah kemampuan untuk continue hiking. Kami rest kejap, ambil gambar lebih kurang...then patah balik untuk pi parking. 

Untuk tidak menghampakan burpday girl, drive jugalah ikut Victory Road tu sampai atas. Suddenly GPS bersuara, you have reach your destination. That was where the real parking area for people going to Boroka, Red & The Balconies is. Gila punya dengki GPS sama kami wei. Pagi tadi beria dia suruh kami parking di bawah nun. Ingatkan tiada apa-apa di atas nun. Hampas!

Ms G drive balik dari Grampians. And half way tukar driver pula. We made a quick stop at this one pretty small town (forgot the name of course). The buildings caught our eyes. But we didn't stop long because suddenly we had this impromptu plan of going to Victoria Market. Ndak tau bila lagi mau selit market tu dalam itinerary, tu yang terus sebulat suara agreed terjah market petang tu juga. 

#16 Pretty small town on the way from Stawell to Melbourne city

#17 Memikirkan Victoria Market, maka simpanlah niat mau singgah ngopi ka apa

#18 We fell in love with the housing there

#19 Enroute to Melbourne; sayup-sayup nampak kincir angin. Pun tiada hati untuk singgah

Melbourne City

#20 Masuk area city, si Err took over the wheels (bajet terer walhal paling kau paling last dapat driving license)

#21 Hello highway, flyovers 

#22 Hello skyscrapers!

#23 Hello traffic jammed. Few days ndak ketemu

#24 Random pictures taken while on the road (terimas co-pilot)

#25 Reached Victoria Market just about time

Lepas parking kereta, terus meluru masuk market. Takut tutup sebab nampak gaya few vendors sudah start packing barang diorang. Yang aku sibuk mau cari cafe sebab mau mengopi.

#26 Memang mendapat pelestik hitam jaklah because none of us brought along a reusable bag. Sorry Earth!

Wandered lebih kurang dalam ni. Aku bab-bab ni memang kurang keminatan so I let the two ladies roamed the market on their own. Semua ikut laluan sendiri. Yang pasrah adalah aku sebab ndak jumpa cafe yang best. Ada few sebenarnya tapi dasar pemilih, in the end sendiri rugi.

#27 Randon picture of the sign in the market

#28 Bought sling bag, and few fridge magnets (some ada lagi dalam bag di rumah nun, ntah mau dibuat apa)

#29 When I saw this picture in the folder...I tried so hard to recalled whether did I go near this stall or not. Sebab aku tiada memori membelek beg-beg ni (which memang pelik considering aku suka belek beg)

#30 Rambang mata ke Cik kak oii

#31 Jadi mamarazi lah si Err. Curi gambar Ms G & Ms H membeli terbelah

#32 Oh I did bought these t-shirts for Bunda & the brothers. None for Yours Truly sebab tau memang aku ndak pakai

Spent an hour or so in the market, pastu tengok jam masih awal. Check in time hostel kami booked tu jam 6pm ok! So ke DFO lah kami. Jalan-jalan cuci mata, bunuh masa. Nampak bakeries, tapi nafsu mem-pastry nan hado. Masuk kedai kasut, sudah ada nafsu membeli...saiz pula nan hado. Ke laut mood ku terus. Pandang sipi jak segala coffee shop yang ada. Walhal dari tadi sibuk mau ngopi. 

Tu tanda si Err capek. Mau mandi sebab rimas pun iya juga.

#33 Ni jaklah gambar bukti ke DFO. Sepanjang mundar mandir dalam mall ni, camera memang tidur dalam beg

Agak-agak masa sudah time untuk check in, we made our move out from the mall. Ndak sabar mau masuk bilik. But first thing first, sampai area hostel...pusing banyak kali cari parking. Masa tu baru faham erti "mahalnya parking di Melbourne CBD!!"

Hujan pun start menghadirkan diri masa sibuk cari parking. Risau dapat yang jauh sebab banyak barang mau diangkut. Luckily after half an hour gitu dapatlah parking one block from the hostel we booked. And lagi beruntung, parking free after 7pm. Cumanya seawal Subuh esok kena bertabah pi bayar kupon because the parking hour starts at 5am (or was it 6am?). Lupa. Trip sudah 4 tahun kan, gitulah kejadian. Yang aku ingat, kalau tiada kupon...kau bakal jadi kayap bayar saman. Titik.

#34 Checking in; finally!

Malam tu plan mau explore CBD area sebenarnya. Tapi memikirkan penat yang tiada sempadan (kan kami hiking pagi tadi, sila ingat ok), mau mencari parking lagi satu hal walhal boleh jak naik tram (alasan sebenarnya). Pastu kena packing lagi; walau esoknya flight malam sebab we only booked for a night. Esok ada plan lain, gedebak gedebuk takut last minute packing nanti confirm ada tertinggal macam-macam barang. Belum masuk part menggelabah ayam itik si Bibie lagi sebab aku ndak suka last minute packing, titik. 

Makanya malam tu, lepas habis packing...mandi...makan...semua pun beradu bak sleeping beauty dalam kapal karam. Surfing murfing update ig semua dalam dreamland sajo. Esoknya mau naik train enjin tut tut (as I called it when I was young). Ni pun must-go in my list

Cerita enjin tut tut sambung later. Wah ndak lama habis cerita Down Under. Ndak sangka berjaya juga mengekalkan momentum rajin. Alhamdulillah. Harapnya sudah di atas track yang betul si Bibie ni. 

Wassalam.

eryantierdabdulkarim

Victoria Day 5 - The Arch / London Arch (London Bridge) / The Grotto

Assalamualaikum. G'Day Mate!

Previous post (here).

Next destination was the London Arch also previously known as London Bridge. Albeit already seeing so many limestone stacks & results of gradual erosion process...we didn't feel bored at all. In fact, we're in awed still. Lagi bila tengok ombak ganas memukul batuan tu semua. Allahu akbar. Sampai sekarang semua tu fresh lagi dalam ingatan. Sound of the waves hitting the shores or the rocks, cool wind blowing from the sea. Angin ganas menampar muka harus dilupa jangan. Rosak tudung-of-the-day tau tapilah sweater penyelamat. 

Kerana trip ni sudah bertahun ke belakang, so marilah layan gambar jak. Mau explain lebih-lebih, banyak sudah fakta ke laut. What to do lah kan, masa semua fakta masih fresh tuan rumah perasan-sibuk. 

30 July 2015

The Arch

"Monumental natural rock arch with waves crashing below, a popular stop on the Great Ocean Road."

#3 Kalau banyak masa haritu, memang boleh lepak lama sikit sini. Layan ombak rindu, angin & view penuh ketenangan ni (minus angin penampar yang sekali sekala datang menerpa)

#4 We didn't go to the Lower Viewing Platform because of its steepness & unstable condition (truth was; we're just that lazy for another date with the stairs)

London Arch

"London Bridge pre-1990 was a double-spanning bridge connected to the mainland. The stack was created over hundred of years; with the weaker layers toward the base being eroded by wind & water to form the two bridges. The span closer to the shoreline collapsed unexpectedly on 15 January 1990, leaving two tourists whilst uninjured; stranded on the outer span before being rescued by police helicopter. No one was injured in the event. Prior to the collapse, the arch was known as London Bridge because of its similarity to its namesake."

The Grotto

Didn't spend much time at the London Bridge platform view. We made our move to our final destination; The Grotto before we embark in a two-hours journey to Grampian. 

Honestly speaking, lepas baca plaque ni...ingat ok, done. Semua visible from the viewing platform. Boleh lah teruskan journey. Then Ms G told us about the staircase leading down. Ok, another flight of stairs we said. Suddenly

"Alang-alang sampai, alang-alang final spot...turun jaklah. Tengok apa ada sambil bergambar" 

Ms H finally bersuara; which surprised us sebab bab mendaki ni normally dia pemenang kategori 'Malas'

Jadinya menurut perintah jaklah dua wanita jelita. Why not, right? Berbekalkan 'alang-alang si Ms H', we descended the stairs. Expecting nothing. 

"Part-blowhole, part-archway, part-cave, it offers a peaceful place to enjoy the sea views and soak in the wonderful things nature is capable of. Essentially a sinkhole; an often overlooked attraction because of it being at the end of the route"

#8 Memang view biasa-biasa jak kan dari atas therefore we didn't expect anything extra-ordinary down there

#9 Same view from the other platforms

#10 Literally dragging our legs to go down

And it hit us when we reached the ground. Subhanallah. Ntah berapa kali ulang ayat ni bila nampak view di bawah. We're out of words, really.

My pictures simply didn't justify the beauty of this place. So beautiful, enchanting. So surreal.

#11 Tolong menolong. Ambil gambar kawan yang saiz tripod, berdiri di tangga lah untuk dapat angle cun

#12 Double Three (belum habis wish diri sendiri walau sudah bertahun berlalu)

#13 The Grotto; Great Ocean Road truly just saved the best for last!

#14 If we came during sunrise or sunset (with permissible weather of course), we would be able to catch the Australian sun reflecting gold & pink off the rock pool through that archway

We spent quite sometimes down here. Thumbs up for Ms H persistence we got to explore this beauty. So anyone heading to Port Campbell National Park, silalah 'paksa' diri & head down the staircase to explore The Grotto at eye-level. Totally worth every steps going down the wooden staircase! I promise, u won't regret it.

Tiba masa untuk gerak to our next destination. Set GPS to our accommodation terus. Senang kerja. On the way kalau mau singgah mana-mana, boleh stop kejap. Janji final destination adalah tempat berehat di malam hari.

#15 Australian winter view along the Great Ocean Road

#16 We won't be having this kinda pose-siring-kereta-sewa kinda picture if it weren't for her suggestion. Thumbs up lagi sekali!

#17 Also this pose-atas-GOR picture. Berbaloi Ms H kerja menggodek instagram orang. Macam-macam idea dia ceduk. Harap aku, memang krik krik.

#18 Last view of the ocean. Alhamdulillah

#19 Last view of Port Campbell town from up the hill before we bid goodbye to this charming town

#20 Ocean view no more. Sekarang masuk area kampung (tapi jalan tip top still). Kiri kanan hijau walaupun winter

#21 In the middle of no where

Adalah kami stop at this small town to refuel. Sempat singgah toilet tapi ndak sempatlah mau bergambar bagai. Angin kuat, rasa anytime boleh diterbangkan (confident gila ayat, walhal berat berkilotan). Mula ada plan mau singgah untuk ngopi tapi cafe macam ndak mengundang, and masing-masing pun ndak sabar mau buang diri atas katil hence initial plan tunda ke hari lain.

#22 Sihat-sihat bebiri di luar kota ni. Pun ndak berhenti masa ni, layan view dari jendela cuma

#23 Canola field tapi sebab belum musim so ndaklah meriah sangat canola-nya

Ada berhenti tepi canola field ni tapi gambar ndak menepati piawai blog (gituuu), simpan kenangan diri sendiri jaklah. Kah kau sudah delete, Bie? 

Overall puas hati trip meredah GOR ni. Walaupun first time ber-road trip bersama. Alhamdulillah Allah mudahkan semua. Adalah few hiccups here & there (manusia pun namanya, haruslah drama berterusan). Kalau diberi peluang untuk ulang benda ni pun, aku tetap mau pi sama dua minah jelita tu. And lagi dua yang ndak join haritu, hai Ms C & Ms P! Cuma part bijak TERtinggalkan barang dalam bas tu boleh ganti kejadian lain. Tapi kan, thing happened for a reason. Always! Husnuzon sama Allah. Boleh jadi Dia delaykan masa kami untuk pick up kereta sewa mainly to save us dari benda ndak elok. Far worst than barang tinggal & lambat pick up kereta. Allahu akbar *sob* 

Cerita Grampian (Day 6) will be continued in my next entry. It isn't long before I could wrapped up my Down Under trip stories. Kali ni memang ndak kan dapat bentang budget bagai sebab segalanya sudah tiada dalam simpanan. Almaklum, update tertangguh-kan. 

Wassalam.

eryantierdabdulkarim