A new job, a new start, at Flexirent! An inbound call centre.
But I’ll not waste time boring you about that. The job started 4th May, and it’s for 8 weeks, thankfully Chris, Gemma, Flora and I all managed to get a job at the same place! Pretty good when Flora and I didn’t even apply for the position! We work in a team of 10, mostly backpackers so it’s good fun. We have had a few nights out after work, one at the weekly hostel quiz one week. We don’t actually have a boss, he lives in Sydney, and he came down to train us before leaving 2 weeks later, leaving us to fend for ourselves! In summary, I work with great people and it pays! Having said that, there's a possibility of a job in Sydney on my return in September. Melbourne Activities
Here are some of the activities that have been enjoyed whilst in melbourne:
- AFL. Australian Football. Chris, Kenty and I went to see a match at the Melbourne Criket Ground (MCG) and became keen supporters of the game. Chris attached himself to Hawthorn and I to Carlton. The game we watched was described by many footy fans as one of the best of the season with a close score all the way to the end.
- Nights out in Pugg Mahonnes, Chapel Street and St. Kilda. We enjoyed an evening at the Espy watching live bands on our short trip to St Kilda.
- Quiz: Our hostel hosts a quiz each Thursday. There is lots of opportunity to win free beer, which we do very well at! We have come 3rd on 2 occassions. Our work colleagues all joined us one Thursday.
- Exploring adventures with Kim have led us to 1000 steps, mount Dandenong and Outback Jacks, a restaurant where they have 'Jack's challenge'. Can you eat a 1kg steak in 30mins? If you can, you get it half price, and a t-shirt! I completed the task... it wasn't easy!
- Yarra Bike Ride with Flora, Dawn and Tracey. We cycled for almost 3 hours along the Yarra River, cirlcing the city. Lots of fun was had on the tandum!!
Wilsons Promontory
1 3 man campervan, 5 people, 400 kilometres and 3 days., the most southern point of mainland Australia. A weekend like no other. We drove down to the prom on the Friday evening and watched as Gemma and Chris attempted to put up their tent in the pouring rain. Unfortunately, it did not survive.
This meant 5 of us had to sleep in the 3 man camper! On Saturday we awoke to discover the campsite was at the bottom of Mount Oberon and the weather was on and off, rain for 5 minutes then clear skies and so on! We visited Squeaky Beach and Picnic Bay, and realised our gas stove didn’t work. Cheese sandwiches for lunch and dinner. We managed to find a BBQ at the campsite on Sunday and ate bacon sandwiches for breakfast and lunch. We walked up mount Oberon and watched as one way the clouds were dark grey, and another way the sky was completely blue! There were some spectacular views but it was similar to the Lake District with the cold wind blowing! The weekend was a great success despite the challenges.
1 3 man campervan, 5 people, 400 kilometres and 3 days., the most southern point of mainland Australia. A weekend like no other. We drove down to the prom on the Friday evening and watched as Gemma and Chris attempted to put up their tent in the pouring rain. Unfortunately, it did not survive.
This meant 5 of us had to sleep in the 3 man camper! On Saturday we awoke to discover the campsite was at the bottom of Mount Oberon and the weather was on and off, rain for 5 minutes then clear skies and so on! We visited Squeaky Beach and Picnic Bay, and realised our gas stove didn’t work. Cheese sandwiches for lunch and dinner. We managed to find a BBQ at the campsite on Sunday and ate bacon sandwiches for breakfast and lunch. We walked up mount Oberon and watched as one way the clouds were dark grey, and another way the sky was completely blue! There were some spectacular views but it was similar to the Lake District with the cold wind blowing! The weekend was a great success despite the challenges.Great Ocean Road & The Grampians
1 3 man campervan, 6 people, a whole load of kilometres and 4 days! We covered the great ocean road, the Grampians National Park and even fit in Ballarat on the way back to Melbourne. This time there was an extra body so we invested in a tent which Gemma and Chris kindly slept in all weekend. The temperature dropped very low at night time; after a cold sleepless night on Friday, Dawn created a duvet from sheets for the four of us in the van to get under to share body warmth!
We started in Geelong on Friday and started the great ocean road on Saturday morning. We stopped at Bells Beach (world famous surfing beach), Aireys Inlet Lighthouse, Otway Ranges - Erskin Falls & Teddy's lookout, Lorne, Shoak Falls, Kenneit River (for lunch), before finally arriving at the 12 Apostles, London Bridge and the Arch. The road is long and winding but is home to some stunning views! If you have never heard of the 12 apostles, check out the pictures, they are awesome land blocks left from erosion in the ocean. An evening enjoying the warmth of the Warranambool hotel bar for most of the evening before heading back to the cold of the campsite. We left Warranambool on Sunday early to look for whalesat Logans beach, none to see though unfortunately. It was then onto teh Grampians via Tower Hill reserve crater walk where we spotted a koala, many emus and a wallaby with a baby in its pouch. 
We stopped for a pint in the Stump Pub, the oldest licensed pub in Victoria. We found another pub to sit in to pass the eveing before the cold night ahead! On Monday we got up early and beat the weatehr, we managed to complete the pinnacle walk through the Grand Canyon before the heavens opened which was a stunning walk! We managed to attempt the Silverline Falls, Reids lookout and the Balconies during the rain but the weather did not allow us to enjoy the views so much! The rain stopped in the afternoon for us to check out McKenzie falls which were spectacular! It was then a long drive back to the city to take showers and get a good nights sleep!!Future Plans
With only 1 day before I fly to America for the summer, it seems like the past 6 months has flown by! There are many memories from the travels so far and I have met some great people! The next 3 months will feel like I am at home, but the travels will continue in September when I land in Melbourne on September 2nd! Where from there…
…who knows!!
Check out the photos in the last post, and the ones below
the final post of Australia Part 1!
Photos
