Cal & Rachel Litwiller's Adventures: Melbourne, Australia

We have missed most of May 5^th. Due to crossing the International Date line we went directly to May 6^th!

On the plane – One of the 2 parts of this trip that we dreaded is almost over! - The 16 hour flight from Dallas, TX to Brisbane, AU. Each of us watched 2 movies and we did sleep for a while – however it was not quality sleep! To our delight the plane was not full, which was wonderful – it gives you space to move around and not be crowded elbow to elbow. We had reserved isle seats for both of us – across from each other, but when we realized there was plenty of room, I moved. We are flying Quantas Air which has amenities we do not call normal on US flights – plenty of food, snack, and drinks. They have a free snack bar – apples, nuts and sweets, etc.

Our flight left Dallas on time and we arrived a tad ahead of schedule in Brisbane, just as the airport was waking up for the day. (5:00 am). We saw the sun rise for the morning of May 6 from Brisbane airport.

After a transfer to the domestic airport in Brisbane, we boarded a plane for a 2 hour 10 min flight to Melborne. To our surprise we were served breakfast on this short flight.

Australia from the air

Sunrise at Brisbane airport

At the Melbourne airport we were met by our dear friends who live on a peninsula south east of Melbourne – Mornington Peninsula. How wonderful it was stop see them again. They have wanted us to come to see their paradise for years. After leaving the airport which is located at the northwest corner of the city, we drove downtown for a glimpse of the Melbourne skyline and spent a little time walking around their lovely Botanical gardens, where we also had a cup of tea/coffee and a sweet.

The drive down the peninsula was a beautiful drive, and we arrived at their paradise! We walked into the house and said, WOW!! The view is beautiful. Their house has lots of glass so you can see the Bay and Philip Island from the kitchen, dining area, living area and bedroom! Last evening we saw two rainbows, one while we were driving and one from the house. We will be going out to Philip Island at some point during our visit.

We had a very good sleep our first night in beds! We will see what the day holds in this beautiful part of the world. We plan to walk around their gardens and beyond.