DAY 1;

Monday, 12:00, Europcar, 2 Red Bulls and creditcard ready...I met the 4 girls for the first time and no idea what's gonna happen. This is the backpacking experience! The car ended up 50% more expensive because our driver was not above 25. It took an hour to get out of busy Melbourne and all those one-way streets. Heading to Geelong, our first pitstop at Subway, them those Israeli girls could eat :-) I was on the backseat, but from the beginning it seemed that I was the navigator. We were so unprepared without food, maps, drinks and no plan what to do. Maybe this is making the trip more fun. First stops were Torquay Bay, Surfers Beach. There was a Rip Curl Surfcontest at Bells Beach, but they missed the turnoff. I had endless chats with Linda, she was the only one with proper English. The Israeli's were driving like it was a race, not stopping anywhere in the beginning. The waterfall we visited was out of water, like many other waterfalls in this area. After a break at Lornes' Pierwe arrived in a small town with nice campsites near wonderfull beaches. Linda and me wanted to camp in her small tent (my feet could hardly fit inside), but the other ones wanted to Apollo Bay for a backpacker hostel and party. So we were in minority and we drove on the most beautifull part of GOR in the dark. Apollo Bay was packed with backpackers because of the public holiday. Pizzatime at the food court and Linda and me asked to drop us off somewhere on a campsite. First Linda forgot here sleepingbag, very smart if you want to camp :-) The office was closed so we just placed the tent, bought some bottles of wine and went to the beach. We spend hours on the beach in the dark, enjoying our time till deep in the night. Shooting stars and a big orange colored moon (Linda told me it was Mars whahaha). It was getting cold so we got back to our tent for a short sleep...

DAY 2;

Tuesday, 07:30, refreshing shower and healthy fruit breakfast. The other girls came to pick us up. Threw our stuff in the back of the car and some people tried to stop us...whahaha, well I think they still smell the burned rubber from our tires :-) Batel was driving like Mark Webber should do in the F1 last week! Today the girls wanted to stop everywhere, what a change. Because our short time at the campsite, Linda was brushing her teeth at the middle of the street. Supermarket breakfast and go. The Mariners lookout in Apollo Bay was an easy climb with a good view. Team Isreal was smoking again. And Linda was unpacking her luggage for the 50th time now I guess, organize your stuff girl ;-) We stopped fora short Jungletrekking. At Cape Otway you could visit this so called Lighthouse area for 16,50 dollars. Well backpackers as we are...just walk in :-) Near Cape Otway we walked into the bushes to see a big group of cute koala's. The followingpart of the trip was absolutelystunning, what a views on the coastline! Gibson Steps, climb down to the beach for some great spots. The waves are so high and wild. At some point we were there with some other people and a big wave came much further then all the other ones, we were almost smashed against the cliffs! We were lucky we 'only' got wet. After changing our clothes it was time for 12 Apostels. Damn, the last time I was here there were almost no tourists, now it were hundreds and maybe more...helicopters flying on and off for a minumum of 90 dollars. No pink sky today, it was cloudy. We headed on to Loch Ard Gorge, I still think one of the best places on GOR. I wanted to swim and entered the water. It's not a good idea to do this with the rough sea and big waves. And what a feeling when the sun came trough...just can't describe the beauty. Linda started to feel her disabled knee. At Bay of Martyrs a fantastic scenery...sunset and no people at all. One of the last stops was Bay of Islands. It's time to get to Warrnambool, darkness started as well as the rain. It took some time to find the Warrnambool Beach Backpackers and we decided to stay here instead of camping. Linda and me made a delicious tuna pasta while the other girls choose pizza again! The ride to the supermarket in the rain was almost the end. Batel panicked and the car started to spin in the middle of traffic on a big crossroad, the car stopped in front of a pole and other cars on the wrong side of the road... We survided! :-) After the last bit of red wine it was time to sleep.

DAY 3:

07:30, said goodbye to my Danish friend Linda, she is heading on to Adelaide. I had to go back to Melbourne with the Israeli's. We took the A1 highway to Geelong and it was one long way of speeding, crazy Hebrew singing, dangerous take overs. They needed me as navigator, otherwise they should never arrive in Melbourne. We did it in 3 hours, refilled the tank twice because Europcar wanted to charge us extra. The girls didn't even know how to put petrol in the car, and needed a helping hand from a granny. So funny.

I won't forget this trip, the feeling of travelling is back again and it gave me the extra bit of energy. I didn't have enough sleep and still I was running when I got back in Melbourne. Back to work tonight! And then 'Sweet Dreams or a beautiful nightmare' :-)