helicopter flight great ocean road

At first I didn't want to do the helicopterflight, which was quite expensive for only a few minutes. That was until my friend from the Netherlands told me it is an amazing experience and this might be a great view. I'm so happy I did it (although I got a little "carsick" when I was in the helicopter, so I didn't mind it didn't last that long). The view was amazing, the pictures as well I think (could have been better with a better camera and some sunshine, but we can't have it all in life, can we?!)

Some roadsigns and like every tourist, we just had to have them on picture.

Feeding the birds. They meant to land on our hands to eat the food we had in there, but somehow they just loved to sit on my head (it happened twice to me).

For most people this is the start of the Great Ocean Road, for us it was the end (since we did the tour in the opposite direction).

After being wet from the big wave, I had to dry my clothes (hanging them out the bus window) and could use one of the jumpers of our tourguide... she was just a little bit bigger then me, ha.

for the people who wanna write me a card with the holidays now, this is my address (only valid until 22nd of Januari):

Sara Goossens

5 Trenerry Crescent

Abbotsford

Victoria 3067

Australia

or send me a text message:

+61421 991 606

of course emails or messages on facebook will also do :)

The wave that got me...

The wave that got me... or the stupid tourist... mmm, not sure which title I prefer.

Anyway you should actually start reading this message at the bottom and this should be the last picture you see, just before I found out why you shouldn't take pictures of waves.

Yes, finally a big wave was coming and I would get it on a picture!!

Got it, but then realized the wave got me as well... it was so much bigger then all the ones before and I ended up until my knees in the water (on my rock), decided jumping off the rock would be saver (afraid the wave might pull me down from the rock, it was a really strong one, I couldn't win this fight :p).

Of course that got me way deeper in the water (wet up till my middle, had to change all my clothes afterwards).

The moment I jumped of the rock I couldn't do anything then standing still, holding stand until the water was gone (just too strong to move and nowhere to go), lucky my arm went up above my head with my camera (reflex to save the picture I just took I guess, ha).

Yeah, stupid tourist he, though my tourguide told me I wasn't the only one, many people get this on this spot. And really the first 15 minutes nothing like this happened on this spot or in this area.

But I do have my picture!
And the water goes back to the ocean, like it does after every wave. Nice!

I really took a lot of pictures (almost as many as one of the Chinese tourists who got a billion pictures on every spot, who stood close to me for a long time to get these rocks with nice wave). He just left, got his nice wave on camera I think. I didn't (blame it on my zoom, needed to get a better one so decided to stay here... like I said, nice and dry with waves around my rock sometimes).
See the water is coming, nice and slowly most of the times (and then you get a nice picture), sometimes however it comes faster. But all the time my rock stays nice and dry, nothing to worry about (only 20 centimetre above the sand, it was a low rock, but save).
Standing on a rock (just behind me there is a cliff, so only one or two metre left behind me). Everybody in our group stood here for a while to take some nice pictures, just like me. Most people left this spot after 5 minutes, I stayed for 15 minutes.

Our tourguide told us this bay has dangerous waves that might get you wet.

Ha, stupid if you get caught by a wave, people should open their eyes and go to a save spot in time (like standing on my rock). Or at least that was what I thought.

national park in a vulcano

not the first koala's I've seen in Australia, but the first ones in wild life (and not in a zoo or sanctuary).

clownshow

our conductor needs a hand to get herself organized to lead the band...

me as a roady trying so hard to get my minute of fame on stage... and finally got it!
carrying equipment for one of bandmembers (the lady in yellow plays the keyboard).