To our great surprise, the weather had followed us all the way from the old continent and instead of "stubbies and singlets" we spent our time cowering from the icy wind and drizzle in the only warm clothes we had brought along. Needless to say that after 24 hours of flying walking around Melbourne at 5 o'clock in the morning trying to find a decent hotel, visiting Melbourne CBD on foot and then driving down the GOR, our travel clothes were in need of a serious airing out. Nonetheless, I have to say that standing above the Twelve Apostles quickly makes you forget everything else for a moment. The word Breathtaking is probably the easiest description. Our only disappointment was the grey skies and resulting flat light that took a lot of the "Wagner" out of the images. This was one of those moments where we had a kind thought for Judy’s recommendation to me (I think it was about 15 years ago on Straddie) to "take a picture with my mind".

fter a bit of hunting around, we found a charming little cottage for the night in Port Campbell kept by a cheerful young couple and their cute little daughter. The view from the cottage down the valley, across the village to the sea was splendid and, under the circumstances, we particularly appreciated the reverse-cycle air-conditioning that kept us warm for the night.

After a fourth unsuccessful attempt to catch a glimpse of the Apostles under good lighting conditions (thrice on day 2 and once at dawn on day 3), we took the decision to cut short our stay on the GOR by one day and we made our way back through the countryside to Geelong and our route for the Yarra Valley. The idea was that visiting wineries and fine dining restaurants was less dependant on good weather.

To our great surprise, we discovered that things were quite different in the Yarra Valley and we were greeted by big blue skies upon our arrival at Healsville. The charming heart of the district has a curious “Carmel” feel to it which is quite surprising given that it is nowhere near the sea and it doesn’t have a Celebrity-Mayor. Nontetheless we had the very good fortune of finding a great place to stay (Toolebewong Cottage), terrific places to eat (The Middle Pub, Yearing Station and Eyton upon Yarra).

Although the competition was stiff, from a culinary standpoint, our pick would have to be the Middle pub for originalty, warmth, great wines and truly interesting cuisine (including a stunning Rocket salad with wafers of Pear). Yearing station’s (not the Château) cuisine is also top-notch and the dining room a very successful use of modern architecture with breathtaking views out over the vineyards. As for Eyton, even though the Cuisine was technically superior (really quite excellent) to our other two experiences, we were disappointed by the wines that didn’t live up to the standard at all (even their top wine was quite ordinary).

Without a doubt, the highlight in terms of wineries is the spectacular Coldstream Hills property where we first stopped. The "cadre" and the "accueil" are as magnificent as the wines.

a suivre...