Hello everyone! It's been so so long since I updated this and I have done loads! Which is why I have been so slack - just having too much fun I'm afraid! I am in Sydney now, I am here for a week then heading up the coast for some surfing then on to the hippie town of Nimbin, Gold Coast then Brisbane where I meet Andy yay!! I left the last postcard in Victoria, and I went to the Melbourne museum the day before my road trip, which was really good - loads on natural history which is always a bonud for me! They even had a forest area in there complete with lizards, birds and fish! Also about aboriginals and the history of Melbourne - there was a whole section I didn\'t see and I spent about 7 hours in there!! Road trip!! It seems so crazy writing about this now it seems quite a long time ago! Me, Ben, Nittin (my housemates) and 2 Irish gals Vicky and Joanie got a car for a week and headed down the infamous great ocean road!! Our car was massive ir was ideal for the 5 of us and our stuff - was such a bargain too - only cost $5 each a day - just over 2 quid!! Our first day really involved getting out of Melbourne and we stopped at Torquay (bit like Newquay in UK but a million times smaller!) Been there once before for a surf lesson, was even better this time coz I hired a board and managed to stand up on it nearly every time just before wobbling and falling off! But am getting better! Was so fun, and really hot. Drove on to Apollo Bay where we stayed, and saw wild koalas in the trees by the road! Went on a walk to a waterfall but there was no waterfall as it has been so dry! Had a great barbie that night. Next day we drove into the otways national park which was pretty much next to where we were staying! We went on a dirt road in the mountains it was so cool - great views but a bit scary and we had no idea where we were going! Saw lots of wild parrots! Went on a fab walk to a gorgeous waterfall (was lots of water!!) and saw a freshwater crayfish in the pool there! Then went to the Otway tree top walk where we walked really high up in the trees and climbed a big viewing tower - was spectacular! Sat by the river very near the sea that night in the dark talking about the supernatural and getting scared, and drinking goon (cheap boxed wine!) Drove on along the coast the next day and first stopped at Cape Otway lighthouse where before the lighthouse was built many ships got wrecked - hence why they built a lighthouse! Great views of the coast. Then we drove further west and stopped many times and saw various geological spectacular delights such as the 12 Apostles, Loch Ard Gorge, London Bridge, Grotto, and Razorback, and saw some amazing beaches! The whole coastline was just fab. I drove all day that day - was fun! That night we went out and had a really good meal then went to an Irish pub where a really good band were playing and danced the night away! Next day was a long drive back towards Melbourne but on the inland route, so all we saw was dry, flat plains, a few cows and hardly any towns, people or cars! Went to a place called Ballarat on the way back which is famous for it\'s gold rush in the 1800\'s. Went to an outdoor/living museum called Sovereign Hill which is a whole town recreated to look how Ballarat would have looked about 150 years ago! Was so cool, you could pan for gold, go down a mine, see gold being poured and separated, and you could walk down loads of streets and go in all the shops. The people were all dressed up and all the stuff for sale was old-fashioned goods in a souvenir stylee - was so much fun! There were schools, bowling alley, pubs and everything! We all stayed at our place in Melbourne that night and got pizzas! Next day we headed east (last bit of trip was west) to Phillip Island. Just before we got to the island we stopped at a wildlife park where I stroked a big cuddly wombat and fed loads of greedy and lazy (but very cute!) roos. Saw the usual other Aussie fauna and had a good time. Then went to the island and to our gorgeous hostel which was more of a caravan park, and had such nice grounds and lounge and even a pool! We had a picnic dinner that night then the others went to see the penguin parade but I didn\'t go coz I saw them in Tassie and knew this one wouldn\'t be as good. Was right - the others said there were hundreds of people in a stadium style seating area and they only saw about 10 and they were really far away! Glad I didn\'t go! We played \'ring of fire\' drinking game in out room that night - was Ben\'s last night! He left in the morning as he flew off to NZ the next day. We all stayed another night on the island. Had a lazy day the next day - sat by pool and on the nearby beach then enjoyed fish and chips by the seaside! In the evening we drove to these rocks called the \'Nobbies\'! Saw a few penguins under the boardwalk and a baby in a nest! For some reason tons of dead seagull though!! Before leaving the island today we went to a place where they feed wild pelicans every day and we saw loads up really close on a beach! Then massive stingray came along too - how mad! Then went on a really nice walk through sand dunes and on the top of cliffs with stunning views of the coastline and the amazing surf beach. All the way along there were burrows of seabirds called Shearwaters, and we saw loads of different species all the way - it was a bird reserve though so to be expected! Very exciting though. Walked to rocks called the Pinicles which were pretty cool! Drove back to Melbourne and had to take the car back which was a bit sad - it felt like it was ours! Back to walking and trams for next few days! Wow - how pleased are you all that I kept that so short! I will do it like that in future - there really isn\'t any need for any more detail is there! Had a few days in Melbourne in my house after that where I just sorted stuff out before I left - it took so long! Ended up sending 5kg of stuff I have acculmulated home by sea which will take 3 months how crazy is that! I will come and update again tomorrow coz I have done loads since I left Melbourne - so stay tuned!!