This past Christmas and New Years, Teresa and I decided to add another “first” to our travel adventures. During our stay in Japan, we’ve met many wonderful people. Our next door neighbors for our first couple of years in Yokohama were from Perth and gave us an open invitation to visit whenever we had the opportunity to go “down under”. We also met a fabulous couple on a Princess Cruise around Japan, that hailed from England but had Australian connections. They invited us to join while they were house sitting for friends in the Melbourne area. So we put together an itinerary that spanned over two weeks and would take us from Tokyo to Sydney to Melbourne to Perth and back. We were set for another trip of a lifetime!

Here are a series of posts that I put on Facebook during our trip. A brief explanation of each of our stops, along with links to my Flickr album with lots of photos along the way. Enjoy.

Click for Aerial Photos

Click for Aerial Video of Sydney Harbor

Sydney Day 1

The first day was just spent exploring the sites around the harbor area. Took in the iconic sites and ended the day with beautiful night time views of the city skyline.

Click here for the full album of Day 1 pics from Sydney

Sydney Day 2

Our second day in Sydney started with me heading out early with my drone to grab some aerial video and photos of the harbor. Mission accomplished. Then the big event of the day was lunch at Momofuku, David Chang’s (of Mind of a Chef) first restaurant outside of New York. Lunch took a detour so we ended up a another fabulous place called Black.

Then we sort of stumbled into the Australian National Maritime Museum which was rich with history and interesting exhibits. Then a leisurely walk back to the hotel. I hope you enjoy the photos.

Click here for the full album of Day 2 pics from Sydney

Click here for the full album of Day 3 in Sydney and Day 1 in Melbourne (area)

Click here for aerial footage of the cottage we stayed at

Melbourne Day 2

Here’s “Pepa”, the dog of the house. Sweet. This day was going to be fairly laid back, just to get our bearings around the peninsula. We stumbled into an Aboriginal Culture Center, with some really great art and handicrafts. After a quick stop at a garden center with some other interesting art pieces, it was onto the Anglesea golf club to try and see some Kangaroo. We got up close and personal with quite a few. After that we headed to the penultimate Australian surfer’s beach, the famous Bells Beach. It was really windy so there weren’t too many surfers out, but we did see some kiteboarders in action. We ended the day with another glorious sunset off the porch.

Click here for the full album of Day 2 in Melbourne (area)

 

Melbourne Day 3

Day 3 in the Melbourne area was mostly about our visit to the Jirrahlinga Koala and Wildlife sanctuary. Exotic birds, snakes, lizards, bats, Emu, Wombats, Kangaroo and of course Koala were plentiful and the helpful staff were there to facilitate our interaction with the animals. Glen gave us a tip, play the mating cry of the Kookaburra on my iPhone to get quite a show at the bird cage. The sanctuary rescues “at risk” animals and raises many from birth. A good cause and a good time. After the wildlife sanctuary, we enjoyed a late lunch and wine tasting at Terindah Estate and moved over to Jack Rabbit Vineyard for dessert and coffee. After dropping everyone off at the house, I went back and got some aerial photos and video at both wineries which are perched on a cliff overlooking the ocean.

Click here for the full album of Day 3 in Melbourne (area)

Melbourne Day 4

We’re up to day 4 in “Melbourne”. Here are some maps to give you some perspective. We’re staying at the blue dot on the Bellerine peninsula. Melbourne is over an hour drive, and we won’t get to the city for a couple of days. We’re staying overnight before we head to Perth. In the meantime, We drove the “Great Ocean Road” on day 4. The first leg was to Tower Hill, near Warrnambool. (no, I’m not making these names up). This is an area with the largest dormant volcano in Australia, and a great place to see Koala in the wild. On our way through Warrnambool, we stopped at “Cheese World”. We missed the tasting but toured a very interesting museum of farm implements and other tools used by early Australian farmers. Then we headed to the Great Ocean Road, which has spectacular vista turnouts every 3-5 km. We ended that stretch at the 12 Apostles, which are (were) 12 massive spires near the shore. 4 have collapsed through erosion leaving 8. There was a forest fire further down the coast, so after viewing the 12(8) Apostles, we headed inland on our way back to the house. It was a very full and scenic day!

Click here for the full album of Day 4 in Melbourne (area)

Melbourne Day 5

Christmas Eve. After a full day driving the Great Ocean Road yesterday, we decided to keep close to the house. We explored many of the ports and beach areas of the Bellerine Peninsula. From the house we headed due south to Point Lonsdale, where there is a spectacular lighthouse. From there we headed to Queenscliff, featuring a fortress and two smaller lighthouses. We worked our way up the coast to my namesake, St. Leonards, then to Portarlington. We finished the day with a late lunch and wine tasting (just Teresa tasted), before heading back to the house. We were blessed with bright sunshine and calm winds all day, so it was a great opportunity to get the drone in the air. Look forward to the aerial version of this tour later. Cheers, and Merry Christmas!

Click here for the full album of Day 5 in Melbourne (area)

Melbourne Day 6

Christmas Day on the Bellerine Peninsula near Melbourne. Pretty uneventful, just the two of us. Teresa prepared a great BBQ Filet meal (after hanging the laundry to dry), then we headed to the beach late in the day to watch the first Christmas full moon in 30 years rise on the ocean.

Click here for the full album of Day 6 in Melbourne (area)

 

Melbourne Day 7

Boxing Day (the day after Christmas), we rode the Bellerine Railway Steam driven train from Drysdale to Queenscliff. It was a nice (but bumpy) ride through the country and gave us an opportunity to see a glimpse of the country we hadn’t yet experienced. We then explored the historic buildings of Queenscliff before heading back to the house for our last night in the countryside.

Click here for the full album of Day 7 in Melbourne (area)

Melbourne Day 8

It took us eight days in the Melbourne area to get to the city proper. It was our last day with our friends from England that we met on our Japan cruise last year. The Swatmans have been great hosts for this leg of our journey, and we ended by letting them (mostly Glen), lead us on a tour of the city. Lots of interesting architecture, both modern and historical. Some really cool street art (including work in process), a museum display of early technology, and the general sights and sounds of the city. I ended the day down by the river, taking some long exposure shots of the city skyline. One more day exploring Melbourne and it’s off to Perth!

Click here for the full album of Day 8 in Melbourne

Melbourne Day 9

Our last day started with me heading to the Southbank at a little after 6:00am. I caught the sun rising over the stadium, then captured some nice skyline reflections in the glassy still water. The wind was so light, I got some great drone footage of the downtown area. After breakfast, we headed out to Fitzroy Gardens, taking in the historic buildings and sights along the way. After checking out, we headed down the peninsula in the car, through St Kilda and on to the Brighton Beach area. Lunch and more photos, then further down the coast to Frankston where we turned north to head to the airport. It was a full day in Melbourne but a pretty short stay to take in this great city. Now we’re on to Perth for a visit with friends and an opportunity to see the Australian west coast.

Click here for the full album of Day 9 in Melbourne

Perth Day 1

After Sydney and Melbourne, we headed to the west coast of Australia. After arriving late, we stayed close to downtown Perth which gave me an opportunity to grab some aerial footage with my drone. Then we headed to the suburbs to visit with our old (young) Yokohama neighbors, the Schmidt family. They were terrific hosts and put us up in a private bedroom and bath in their lovely home. We took a quick tour of the area including a visit to King’s Park and Botanical Garden, with sweeping views of the city. A nice relaxed way to get a feel for the area. After a quick stop at the fish market, Ben “put another shrimp on the Barbie”, as well as some nice lobster, and we enjoyed a real Australian backyard barbecue. The day ended with another one of the many spectacular sunsets we enjoyed while “Down Under”.

Click here for the full album of Day 1 in Perth

 

Perth Day 2

After one full day in Perth, we realized that we would only have one opportunity to take an overnight trip to explore the Margaret River Region we had heard so much about (thank you Cath Gyprock). We were able to book one of the few remaining hotel rooms in the area, and after a relaxing morning, headed out on a three hour drive down the coast. We stopped for lunch in Dolphin Bay, then continued on, passing through Margaret River, then to Augusta, the furthest point south of the region(and the location of Australia’s tallest lighthouse). Augusta was windy and cold, with stormy conditions that prevented most maritime activity (although there was one brave wind surfer fighting the elements). We then worked our way back toward Busselton where we were staying the night. After passing through Margaret River for the second time, we cut over to Caves Road and enjoyed the vineyards during the “Golden Hour”. We arrived at Yallingup (pronounced “Yelling Up”), just before sunset, and spent the rest of our daylight taking photos of waves crashing on the rocks. A truly magical moment.

Click here for the full album of Day 2 in Perth

 

Perth Day 3

Our third day in “Perth”, was actually our second day in the Margaret River Region. We woke early at the Esplanade Hotel in Busselton and had a nice breakfast in the downtown area. Leia at the hotel was very helpful in helping us decide how to spend our day before heading back to Perth to celebrate New Years Eve with Ben and Cassy. We decided not to venture too far and Leia highly recommended us taking the Eagle Bay drive, a loop with many gorgeous views of the ocean. At one point we back-tracked to visit Bunker Bay, which was also spectacular and provided a great opportunity to fly the drone. We enjoyed a delicious lunch as the Studio Gallery Bistro before driving back to Perth.

Click here for the full album of Day 3 in Perth

 

Perth Day 4

 

After our overnight excursion to the Margaret River region, we headed back to Perth for our New Years Eve celebration with Ben and Cassy. We had a blast dancing the night away to an 80’s band. The next day, we took a tour of the Fremantle area of Perth. After a delicious lunch at the wharf, we worked our way up the coast to City Beach, ending the day with another glorious Australian sunset.

Click here for the full album of Day 4 in Perth

 

Perth Day 5

 

Just enough time for one more trip to the beach before we flew to Sydney for a quick layover on our way back to Japan. One thing we noticed in Australia which is just an amazing is the public barbecues they have at virtually all public parks and beaches. They provide the facility and gas and people just gather around cooking together. Very cool. We then finished our visit with an Aussie breakfast at the beach side cafe. Really nice end to a fantastic trip.

Click here for the full album of Day 5 in Perth

 

Last Day in Australia (Day 17 overall)

 

They say, “nothing left but the crying”, in our case it was “nothing left but the flying”. We flew from Perth to Sydney and spent the night in an airport hotel, then had to get up very early to catch our flight back to Tokyo. We decided to splurge with our airline miles and tried out JAL First Class for our last leg. A pretty nice way to finish up our first trip “Down Under”.

Click here for the full album of our last day in Australia

With our first trip to Australia over, all we have to say is, “G’day mate!”

Lenny & Teresa Sharp

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