a place not on the tourist map

most tourists to melbourne invariably go to phillip's island nature park to catch a view of the fairy penguins and to the great ocean road to see the twelve apostles (i was told that only eight are still standing). i know a few singaporeans who have expressed disappointment because when they reached the spot it was raining they could hardly see the rock formations out in the sea, after enduring a few hours of coach ride over some twisting and narrow coastal roads.

these visitors should instead make their way to the mornington peninsula which is about an hour's drive from the city of melbourne. if they go to portsea, they will be able to see similar rock formations, albeit on a smaller scale. a nice view of the sea can be had from arthur's seat. rye and rosebud have nice beaches. there are many wineries and some fruit farms in the peninsula that are open to visitors.

another place that i like to visit when i come to melbourne is the dandenong mountains. the mountain ranges are about 35km from the city. although most families with small children go there for a ride on the puffing billy, we go up to the mountains for the food, especially scones.

one of the more popular eating places is miss marples at sassafras.

this time, instead of miss marples, we went to fortnums for lunch. it is a cosy place where one can see colourful rosellas - a species of parrot - in the garden.