This morning I was at the point where I could actually count the number of times per hour I was blowing my nose. And as a bonus, it was down to single figures.

The weather had also improved with barely a cloud in the sky and an average of 22 degrees. Much better than the last few days. Today’s excursion was to cover quite a few hundred kilometres with little chance to get out and stretch our legs, but some amazing scenery.

First stop was the Kallista picnic ground that we’d visited on my first evening here. There were more birds around this time (and people) and I managed to get the most beautiful parrot perched on my arm eating seed from my hand.

 We then drove down the South Gippsland highway to Yarragon, a small town with some nice shops. We had lunch in a lovely little cafe then walked round a sweetshop where, believe it or not, I managed not to buy anything. I heartily recommend visiting confectionary establishments ona full stomach if you value the contents of your wallet.

From now until returning home, we had no stops except for red lights and small people demanding toilet breaks. We covered some huge amount of kays! Korrumbara to Wonthaggi and then on to Phillip Island. This is where the most famous “penguin parade” in Australia takes place at dusk, so sadly we were a few hours too early. There is also a grand prix track and Lyn informed me that you can arrange to be whizzed round this with a professional driver (or even have a go yourself). I might well look into this! One of my possible plans coming up is to hire or buy a car, in which case I’ll be back down here sometime anyway.

 The drive home had only one stop for a potty break (and to glimpse the largest earthworm in Victoria… a concrete structure at another wildlife park) before we got in just in time to go right back out to dinner. The Luxford’s had very kindly arranged a table at Zagame’s bistro in the town centre. The six of us invaded said hostelry slightly later than planned and ate far too much. Then had dessert. The kids played in the entertainment room thingy between courses and miraculously never returned coated in vomit. I know when I was their age (or at least Jessica’s) that if I had a full meal then went running around, I’d not be digesting the food for long.

Jason showed a talent for getting Skittles out of a vending machine for nothing. Impressive and also annoying as I put 20c into the same machine and got exactly five of the little chewy sweets out. Jason had about 100 which had literally just dropped into his sweaty little palms. Thankfully, he shared them before I started crying too loudly.

 And then back home for my last night on the Luxford’s comfy leather sofa – at least for this visit. I have directions to Mari and Jesse’s place in central Melbourne for tomorrow morning so will be saying my goodbyes to some wonderful hosts then. You never know, though – I may take them up on their invitation and head back sometime. They’ll regret their hospitality, I assure you!

So to the Luxfords – an enormous “thank you” for inviting a pretty-much complete stranger into your home and making him feel like part of the family. When I eventually settle down again (wherever it may be) you’re all welcome to come visit any time. It would be my pleasure to return the favour, the welcome and the effort you have put in to making my few days here so enjoyable. 

 One thing to be aware of is that the weather in Victoria, especially down at the south, isn’t quite as sunny and hot as it is in Queensland. Today was no exception as the rain overnight gave way to a brief hail shower. Despite this, we all agreed that a day on the coast would be a wonderful idea. Well, summer’s not for a few weeks yet and I’m only here for a couple of days! Lyn, the kids and I bundled into the car (armed with waterproofs just in case) and got on the road towards Rosebud. Yup, it seems one of the early settlers was an Orson Welles fan. Probably.

A quick stop for hot dogs by the roadside was lunch and we enjoyed some lovely scenery on the way to the southern peninsula. My cold’s still plodding along relentlessly, and by the time we were thirty kilometres from the house my hanky needed rung out. Still, the Luxfords were great company and didn’t complain once about my constant coughing, sniffing and blowing.

 After around two hours we arrived in Rosebud, a fairly quiet little seaside town. The ocean was very rough due to the weather, but looked amazing with the grey skies above. We stopped at a viewing spot and I managed to get a handful of pictures in between heavy showers before my camera risked getting drenched. Further downhill, we pulled in at the cross-peninsula ferry port and saw some sunlight for the first time since we set of. The water seemed to change colour and the light glistening off the sea made for more good snaps. Jason found a large cuttlefish (brought home for the budgies) and several sponges. I saw what I thought was a duck in the water, diving under for food. Then I realised that ducks don’t do that. They especially don’t swim very quickly for about 20m underwater and the resurface. It was a young penguin! Unfortunately, it swam faster than I could walk with the camera so I didn’t get a photo.

 Heading into the hills, we drove to Arthurs Seat – named after the hill in Edinburgh by one of the early settlers. One difference here is the addition of an actual seat. The one present is the third – the first two were wooden and destroyed in bushfires. Sensibly, the new one is made of metal. There are many walks which can be done from here, but with the weather we had, these just weren’t an option.

Our final stop of the day was at a strawberry farm where they make just about anything you can imagine from these lovely little lumps of red sweetness. Freeze-dried strawberries in chocolate, lollipops, jam, liquers, wines (they make the only sparkling strawberry wine in Australia)… I bought a bottle of the wine and we had “Devonshire tea”. This consisted of a lovely cuppa with two delicious fresh-baked scones and home-made strawberry jam and cream. Very classy.

 I confess I fell asleep on the drive back – this cold is really knocking me for six – but while I was awake I saw more brightly coloured birds and my first glimpse of the not-actually-fictional “kangaroo crossing” roadsigns.