Wallabies, Kangaroos, and Penguins…OH MY!

Melbourne Marriott Hotel-  We woke up refreshed from a full night of sleep and got right to planning our next adventure!  We had researched day trips from the city and the goal for today was to make it to Phillip Island for the Penguin Parade (Australia’s most visited tourist attraction as the guide would tell us).  The tour did not leave until 3:30 PM which was great because we are still adjusting to the major time change and were able to get in a much needed nap. 

The tour bus picked us up at our hotel and we met our driver/tour guide/comedian Jerry along with the 11 other people on the tour.  Our first stop was at the Moonlit Conservation Park where the guide had April and I wrapped in a python before we could even turn down the free tea and coffee (apparently we should have learned to like tea and/or coffee before coming as it is offered everywhere and when we turn it down it feels as though we are the first who have ever said no thanks). 

We then headed out to the park and saw many different animals including an Emu that April developed a love-hate relationship with and several dingoes (hi Lacey!).  There were also several types of birds following us around as we saw Koalas that were not very interesting while sleeping in a tree and a wombat that wouldn’t come out to show itself. 

The fun really started with the Wallaby Walk where a path went through woods full of 3 types of Wallabies that would come up and eat out of your hand.  After meeting another couple on their honeymoon (see pic) we made our way to find a couple of kangaroos that we were able to feed by hand as well.  It was very cool to see these animals so close.



Tasmanian Devil Honeymooners







He wasn't sure about us at first...



 Our next stop was Phillip Island for the world famous Penguin Parade (although I’ve never heard of it before so it might be like Rewey’s world famous fireworks or Pulaski’s world famous Polka Days).  There is no photography allowed at all because the flash can blind the penguins so unfortunately no pics but it was quite the sight.  The penguins come out of the ocean after a long day of fishing in small groups to head up into the surrounding hills for the night.  There are roughly 1,500 that come out and about 3,000 people sitting in stands on the beach to watch them.  The penguins get scared once they get on the beach (scared of getting eaten by a larger animal, apparently not of the large mass of humans staring at them…not sure I think that is true) so sometimes they make it halfway and then all turn around and waddle back into the ocean…so funny! 

The Nobbies

This all takes place about 2 hours from Melbourne and since the penguins only come out after dark we didn’t get back to the hotel until midnight and were exhausted.  We’re hoping staying up later helps us get more adjusted to the time change…at least that is the theory I came up with and I think April might just be being a nice wife and saying she agrees.

*We have tickets to the Roddick match tonight!  We will be sitting on the end of the court and will be wearing something that should make us stick out.  It should be on back home around 7 or 8 tonight if you want to check it out.