When I made the return booking for the Spirit of Tasmania I just took whatever date they had around the time we thought we would want to get back to the mainland. I didn’t look at the fact that this would get us in on Easter Friday and had I been alone I probably wouldn’t have known this even as I boarded. Fortunately, I am not alone and Hayley made me well aware of the fact weeks before we left the mainland by declaring that there was nowhere we could stay when we returned on this busy long weekend. This is a typical example of a “3^rd world caravan problem” – instead of house issues like mowing the lawn, paying the bills, renovating the bathroom etc we had swapped these for caravan issues – where would we stay?, can we clear that tree? and what to do on a holiday long weekend when you get off the ferry from Tasmania?

Fortunately, by an amazing coincidence, one of Hayley’s friends from TAFE, Ana (as well as her husband Jason and kids Nicholas and Santiago), were doing a house swap for their Newport home with a family from Warrnambool starting on Easter Friday. A few text messages and a phone call later and we at least had a destination to aim for coming off the ferry as well as somewhere to at least park the van (the property was 40 acres after all!).. We were in no rush, Ana and Jason wouldn’t be there until later in the evening (and we were off the ferry by 6am!) so we decided to take the scenic route, down the Great Ocean Road, stopping in at Bells Beach (the Ripcurl Pro was on) and the 12 Apostles on our way.

You don’t see that many caravans on the Great Ocean Road and probably with good reason. It’s not so much that you can’t take one or that the windy road makes it slow, we were happily able to stay on or around the speed limit (and with reasonable fuel economy!). It’s more because it tends to be a beautiful drive, something your less inclined to enjoy with a 3 tonne caravan on the back.  Still, we got to experience all the beauty of this famous driving route on our way, even if the limestone cliffs, forests, beaches and seaside towns deserve more than a passing glance. We’ll be back again, maybe just not at Easter next time! Following the signs to Torquay and the Ripcurl Pro surfing event at Bells Beach, the weather yet again impacted on our (quickly improvised) plans, the conditions were poor and a lay day had been called for the Good Friday. You can’t really be too disappointed when you miss out on something you hadn’t planned for in the first place, at least we got to stretch our legs with an enjoyable cliff walk as well as see first-hand this iconic beach and surf break.

By the time we got to the 12 Apostles it’s fair to say enthusiasm was waning as the lack of sleep the night before and long day of driving was having an impact in the front left and rear of the car. Before we knew it however a very helpful parking assistant had guided us into a space reserved for buses and it seemed rude to just pull right through and keep on driving. Mustering all the enthusiasm I could I jumped out of the car and headed towards the throngs of tourists brandishing selfie sticks. As spectacular as the remaining Apostles are its fair to say that the tourists are equally entertaining (but nowhere near as beautiful!), all clambering for the best selfie possie, pulling duck face poses into their extended sticks and generally paying more attention to themselves than the majestic limestone formations.

After working our way through the crowds and determining that the line in the visitor centre was too long to wait for an ice-cream, we headed to Port Campbell where I was sure we could find ice-creams without the lines. A couple of retro inspired Golden Gaytimes and Buffalo Bills later we climbed back into the car to complete the rest of the journey to Warrnambool and “our” house!

After we had agreed the best spot for the caravan, squeezed it along the edge of a paddock, hooked up to the power and water and met up with Zazu the dog (who welcomed us to the house), we settled in for an easy dinner and an early night. The next morning we stayed put until we were sure we wouldn’t wake anyone and then headed into the house to say hello to the Arruzza family. In the end we stayed at the house for as long as Ana and Jason did, enjoying the company, the fireplace (which was lit from morning to night), the rural setting (with Zazu, chickens, sheep, 4 wheelers, a putting green and fresh veggie patch) as well as the local surrounds and attractions. Day trips to Port Fairy (awesome fish and chips as well as a highly recommended artesian ice-cream), Tower Hill (an old volcanic crater where we saw emu’s and our first “wild” Koala), Bay of Islands (the Victorian not New Zealand version) and Hopkins Falls were interspersed with kid friendly visits to the incredible Lake Pertobe adventure playground (where the kids got to go in motorised boats, zoom down the flying fox and have fun in the sand), Putt Putt Golf, Flagstaff Hill, an introduction to the pretty self-explanatory Inflatable World and plenty of fun and games around the house.

The Easter Egg hunt provided a supply of chocolate for the kids to ration over the stay (well ration it after an initial gorging phase!) and a variety of wonderful home cooked meals, nice local wines and cheeses kept the older “kids” happy during the week also. Morning coffee was followed by collecting the eggs from the chickens, rumbles with the kids (and dog) and then an excursion for the day before returning home for more play, gourmet delights and a family movie to end the day. The kids loved having other kids (and other kids’ toys) to play with as well as the wide open spaces of this home after extended periods in a single room. They had a lot of fun with Nick and Santi and came up with wild and wonderful games to play together (with only one small kinetic sand incident!).

Before we knew it time (and the wood supply) were coming to an end. It was time for the Arruzza family to head to the airport and for us to move onto our next destination, the Grampians National Park.

Making our way to Halls Gap we changed our intended caravan park on a whim and headed instead for the park that boasted a heated swimming pool! The Lakeside Tourist Park also had fire pits that could be taken onto your site and used to warm you through the night or just roast some marshmallows! Fortunately the family camping next to us already had one and it wasn’t long before we had negotiated a share of their flame in exchange for some sticks and marshmallows. Bizarrely enough for the first day or so most of the shops around town had sold out of marshmallows (the “Stall” Gift had been on in neighbouring Stallwell the previous weekend but they didn’t seem like marshmallow eating folk). It took us 4 stops but we finally found a bag of puffy goodness – clearly we weren’t the only family who thought this was a good idea!

With the kids a bit more “hike fit” we set off each day to explore the Grampians. The largest hike was up to the Pinnacle, where we started at the Sundial car park (slightly easier for the kids) for the 4.2k round trip to the top, but we also ventured to Mackenzie Falls (which I was surprised to learn is Victoria’s largest waterfall), Reed Lookout, The Balconies and Boroka lookout for sunrise! In the end we only hiked a small part of this spectacular National Park, it is truly a magnet for walkers of all ages with numerous trails taking you all over the fantastic rock formations and mountain ranges. No matter where you went the one thing you were guaranteed was the reward of spectacular views.

Time around the park was spent jumping on one of the many trampolines, riding bikes with new-found friends (bizarrely enough another set of twins!), exploring the local area and wildlife (kangaroos and emu’s were in abundance) as well as feeding the birds. The birds ranged from Cockatoo’s to Blackbirds, but the nicest looking were the Rosella’s, which came in two distinct colour patterns. Although we had just purchased the book “What bird is that” I am still not quite sure whether the different appearance was down to age, sex or some other determining factor – I guess it’s important not only to purchase a book, but also to read it if you want to learn! What I do know was that the kids (and Hayley too) enjoyed feeding them some mixed seeds and they certainly enjoyed eating them!

During the past few weeks we had planned for Hayley to return to Sydney for a friend’s surprise 40^th and also to catch up with friends and family. That meant a slightly circuitous route, from the Grampians we headed back to Melbourne (where we would have stayed coming back from the boat was it not for the whole busy long weekend thing). The plan was that I would then take the kids from Melbourne to Adelaide and that we would meet up with Hayley when she flew back in a few weeks later.

In Melbourne, dinner with Paige and Robert allowed us to pick up the entire Term 2 of schoolwork for Denver (not sure he will want to visit Paige again in a hurry!) as well as catch up on what had been happening since we last saw them at their wedding nearly 3 years ago.

Dropping Hayley at the airport, the kids and I decided to hang around for a few days and catch a game of AFL at the MCG (yep the kids definitely decided that one!). To take their minds off leaving Mum we decided the afternoon would be spent at the Melbourne Aquarium, which had plenty of interactive exhibits. Colouring in your own fish, scanning it and then having it appear on the projected wall aquarium was pretty cool, as were the displays with sharks, rays and turtles. I was happy that not all the turtles had been re-released into the wild as they are one of my favourite creatures in the world! We spend 30 minutes with a crocodile display and at the end I still couldn’t tell you if it was real or a model, it certainly didn’t move (not even an eyelid) during the whole time it was under surveillance! At the opposite end of the scale from the motionless croc were the penguins, who didn’t stop moving, diving, swimming, twisting and turning at every opportunity.

A return visit to Scienceworks, this time with the additional ticket for the Planetarium for some stargazing, was snuck in around some schoolwork and bike riding, and then it was Saturday and time for the clash between Carlton and Essendon at the “G”. Although it was a home game for Carlton the support was largely pro Essendon and it didn’t take the kids long to declare their allegiance. Singing the club song after the siren had sounded endorsed the choice and at the moment at least there are two more Bombers fans running around. Still plenty of time to convert them though – “Cheer, cheer the red and the white!”