Archive for the 'Melbourne 2008' Category

Got up early enough to have a continental breakfast in the hotel dining room this morning (included in the room rate!), and then packed up ready for our activity for the day.

We jumped in our car and drove out to Werribee Open Range Zoo for the day – about 45 minutes drive from our hotel in St. Kilda.

It was a nice day, and school holidays, so we expected the zoo to be crowded – and it was, we had to line up for about 15 minutes to get in (they really need a fast-access lane for membership holders!). We started off with a walk along the Volcanic Plains Walk while we waited for our bus tour to begin.

Zebra - Werribee Open Range Zoo

The bus tour is in purpose-built safari buses, which load from the side (the whole side of the bus opens up and forms steps so that all rows can board at once).

Werribee Open Range Zoo

It was interesting to see the new developments at the zoo – since we were last here in 2003, they have added a new Hippo enclosure, new Lion viewing area and were constructing an enclosure for African Wild Dogs, which will be great to see.

Watersmart Garden - Werribee Open Range Zoo

After the bus tour we stopped for some lunch and then did the Pula Reserve Walk – which allows you to see the Vervet Monkeys, Lions, Meerkats, Hippos, Cheetahs and Zebras at your own pace. This was one of my criticisms of Werribee when we last visited – you simply couldn’t see much on your own, and the bus tour is never long enough, nor convenient for photography.

Wetlands Wirribi Yaluk Walk - Werribee Open Range Zoo

We finished up with a walk through the Watersmart Garden and Wiribi Yaluk Walk down to the Werribee River.

GPS Track from St. Kilda to Werribee Open Range Zoo

All up, it was a very pleasant day – we got back to the hotel worn out and had a nap.

I’ve uploaded more photos to the Werribee Open Range Zoo gallery on ZooChat .

Tweets from today

enjoying some cake from one of the shops on Acland Street, St Kilda (about 2 min walk from where we are staying – dangerous!)

25th September, 2008 8:06 PM from web

just back from Werribee Open Range Zoo – great day, fantastic weather. Pity about the crowds.

25th September, 2008 5:13 PM from web

off to Werribee Open Range Zoo just outside Melbourne

25th September, 2008 10:17 AM from web

We flew down to Melbourne tonight for a few days off.

Leanne finished up work early and I picked her up so she could come home and get ready. We then caught a train to the airport – cheaper than catching a taxi. It costs around $45 for two return tickets from Artarmon to the domestic airport, while a taxi costs over $50 one way. You just have to plan ahead a bit more and allow plenty of time to get there … and hope that the trains don’t break down!

We arrived at the airport in plenty of time, checked in and headed to the Qantas club lounge. This trip will be the last time I will be able to get into the lounge, my Gold status expires at the end of the month and I haven’t done enough flying to requalify for anything. Fortunately I now have lifetime Silver status, so I don’t lose all my status, but Silver isn’t that useful, and it won’t get us into the lounge.

Had a bit of a scare after passing through security, I was hoisting my backpack onto my shoulder which had all my camera gear and my laptop in it – when one of the clips that hold the straps in place snapped and the bag fell from my back to the floor. I was a bit worried about my gear, but after checking through it all once we got to the lounge, everything seemed to be okay.

The flight was non-eventful (the best kind), and we arrived in Melbourne just after 9:30pm. After collecting our bags, we headed across to Hertz and picked up a car and then set off to our hotel.

When we had been planning our weekend away, I used wotif.com to find accomodation – but I noted that most hotels around the city seemed to have quite expensive rates for the weekend, and many of them had no last minute deals at all. It took me a while to figure out why – but eventually I realised that it was AFL Grand Final weekend! We did consider changing our plans – but we were pretty keen to spend some time in Melbourne, so I persisted with my search.

Eventually I found a decent price at a hotel in St.Kilda – the Cosmopolitan, which seemed strangely familiar when I was booking. When we arrived I knew why – we had stayed here before, but it was being renovated at the time, so they only had a few rooms available and they were on special. Located on Carlisle Street, just off the end of Acland Street, it really is in a great location – close to all the restaurants and cafes, short walk to the beach, and easy access to trams.

We checked in and got settled and spent some time planning our next few days.

Tweets from today

at the airport heading to Melbourne for a few days with my wife

24th September, 2008 7:21 PM from web