First, I owe everyone an apology.  I have been having so much fun and working that I was to tired to post, so here is an outline of my time over the past week:

2-15-13
Grampians Great Escape
- Ash was our tour guide
- There are pull off areas on highway called nap stations
- There are farms everywhere full of sheep, cows, and steer
- I met a great couple, the Australian version of Stan and I, Brian and Karen from Perth
- We headed on the bus from Melbourne to the Grampians, one of the world's oldest and most spectacular mountain ranges - rich in Aboriginal history.
- In 2006 70% of Grampian National Park burned in a wild fire.
- I had morning tea at the charming township of Beaufort.
- We saw unique wildlife along the way including wild kangaroos and a vast array of birdlife.
- I visited the delightful town of Halls Gap for lunch...Meat pies and H&P.  it's what's for lunch
- I walked through the breath-taking Wonderland Ranges.
- I visited the  Brambuk Aboriginal Cultural Centre.  This is where I got to walk in the woods.  The forest smells like eucalyptus and while walking in the woods I could hear the bees swarming to the blooming trees.  I got to see a mob of wild kangaroos and I saw a joey in it's mom's pouch.  It was all legs and tail sticking out!
- I hiked to the Jaws of Death and Balconies Lookout and experienced awesome views and scenery.  i saw smoke from the wildfires.
- We also went to Boroka Lookout where I got to spend time with the fairy wrens
- We ended up at the base of Australia's most inspiring waterfall - Mackenzie Falls.
- On the way home I thought I saw a big jack rabbit.... It was a roo
- I saw lots of wild things - skinks, lorikeets, fairy wrens, rosellas, mynah birds, miner birds, magpies (female is less white), and cockies (white crested cockatiels).
- The day finished up with a cheeseburger and fries at Mackers (McDonalds)

2-16-13
Queen Victoria Market
- Went shopping for goodies this morning at the Victoria Market.  This is an open air market that is 130 years old.

Phillip Island Tour
- Steve was the tour guide on our adventure.
- San Remo was where we stopped to have lunch
- The first adventure was Panny’s Amazing World of Chocolate!  I was in heaven!  We toured the factory and were able to eat coco beans (they are bitter like dark chocolate), play games with chocolate, interact with the mechanical penguin who dispensed candy, played with the candy designer, I made an M, then I purchased some things.  There was a huge portrait of Dame Edna made out of chocolate pieces.
- Then it was on to the Koala Conservation Centre where I strolled through this eucalypt woodland and came ‘face-to-face’ with koalas in their natural habitat. The Koala Conservation Centre has unique tree top boardwalks and close viewing areas that allowed me to see how truly amazing koalas are. The boardwalk provided exceptional koala viewing and amazing views of a beautiful natural wetland area. I didn't catch a glimpse of this year’s koala joeys, as they took their first adventures out of the mother’s pouch, learning to climb, find food and meet each other but I did get to see and video a few koala's in motion! The Centre promotes koala conservation and this ecotourism attraction has been essential for saving Phillip Island’s koala population and natural bush environment. The new close viewing area plays host to a special koala breeding program over the next year, ensuring it remains a key player in the conservation of these important animals. Unlike a zoo, the Koala Conservation Centre is really unique as I got the chance to see these magnificent creatures in their natural habitat, living as they would in the wild. There was also a woodland walk that wanders through the natural bush, amongst hundreds of different species of Australian wildlife, (including wallabies, possums, echidnas and snakes) and I got to spot the koalas in the trees.
- Then it was on to Berry's Beach and its cool Pacific waters and beautiful cliffs and rocks
- We did gourmet food tasting and wine tasting at the Phillip Island Winery, tasting of four Gippsland cheeses and five locally produced wines.  It was very tipsy tasty
- We spent sunset at Point Grant and the Nobbies, the sunset was breathtaking!
- Then it was on to the amazing Phillip Island Penguin Parade, where I took a waddle on the wild side and saw wild Fairy penguins.  I experienced the magic of little penguins returning home at sunset to one of the largest penguin colonies in Australia. I took a walk down the Penguin Parade boardwalks through the penguin colony to the beach. I saw the penguin burrows where some penguins were resting during the day and where the other penguins returned to at sunset.  There were penguin made burrows and man made ones too.  They looked like little doorways into the earth.  Penguins have sensitive eyes and a bright, sudden flash or unusual light can frighten or disorientate a penguin. To ensure penguins keep coming back to this special area we were asked not to take pictures at the parade.
- We returned home at 1:30 AM

2-17-13
Today I flew to Albury, to Charles Sturt University.  I flew from Melbourne to Sydney to Albury.  We flew over the mountains and the Murray River which separates Victoria from New South Wales.

2-17-13 to 2-22-13
Work, work, work with the CSU team. It was great to meet everyone face to face and I made a new friend at the Uni!  Lesley thank you for being my 'mate' and chauffeur :)

On the 22nd, I was able to take a break for an hour and go bird watching with Dr. Maggie Watson, an Ornithologist!  She is from the US and she was an awesome tour guide.  I was able to see the lab that the students work in and the 'stuffed' samples of the collection on campus.  I was able to see eagles, parrots, owls, and other indigenous birds of Australia.  Like me, Maggie falls prey to birds turning their butts toward her while she is trying to identify them and there are quite a few black and white birds and little brown birds!  She is a professional and was having issues identifying them, it made me feel better about my skill level!

Tomorrow it is back to Sydney for my last days of fun.  I am going to the zoo, aquarium, Manly beach by ferry, and maybe the on and off bus.  Talk to you all later... miss you all and I'll be home soon!