he Piedmont Winery and their "Taste of Croatia" festival. We made plans to go and happily Mick, Bec and Rassie decided to go with us. Noojee is a small holiday town in the midst of a logging community minutes away from the winery so that is where we decided to stay. "Noojee" is an aboriginal word which means "valley of contentment" or "place of rest. The name doesn't lie. Noojee reminded me very much of Lakeside, Michigan where I used to vacat
ion with friends from Chicago. The main difference is less antique shops bedecked with rainbow flags and more bikers and country music...very odd to hear Gretchen Wilson's "Redneck Woman" floating thru the mountain ranges of Australia. We stayed right on the Latrobe river which was perfect for relaxing and catching yabbies (a type of crayfish). We found one by accident and thought it may be a scorpion at first bu
t he was just a little yabby.I did want to try to go fishing. I haven't fished since I was a kid and I went with my Dad. There was a hand reel in the cabin so I bought some worms and thought I would give it a try. Supposedly there had been buckets of rain which
had brought lots of trout up the river. I personally didn't see any fish whatsoever. I happened to forget that in order to fish I needed to be patient. I am not patient, I get bored pretty quickly and so went the way of my fishing adventure. I did manage to catch some river weed and a stick. While looking for a good fishing pool we had a look around Noojee and found this lovely little suspension bridge. Putting earthworms on a hook was Matt's job since it made me feel really guilty. We only sacrificed two and I freed the rest of them by the river hoping they live a long happy worm life.
had brought lots of trout up the river. I personally didn't see any fish whatsoever. I happened to forget that in order to fish I needed to be patient. I am not patient, I get bored pretty quickly and so went the way of my fishing adventure. I did manage to catch some river weed and a stick. While looking for a good fishing pool we had a look around Noojee and found this lovely little suspension bridge. Putting earthworms on a hook was Matt's job since it made me feel really guilty. We only sacrificed two and I freed the rest of them by the river hoping they live a long happy worm life. The back yard of the cabin had a big platform that we put some seed on and attracted
all kinds of birds. We mostly had gallahs and rosellas. The rosellas weren't really too scared of me (Rassie was another story). They would sit in branches just above my head and look down there beaks at me. Two of these cheeky parrots were very friendly with each other, making horrible squawking noises while the boy wobbled his head like an angry woman on Jerry Springer only stopping from time to time to kiss the girl bird. It looked more like they were chewing on each others beaks but we'll say it was kissing.
all kinds of birds. We mostly had gallahs and rosellas. The rosellas weren't really too scared of me (Rassie was another story). They would sit in branches just above my head and look down there beaks at me. Two of these cheeky parrots were very friendly with each other, making horrible squawking noises while the boy wobbled his head like an angry woman on Jerry Springer only stopping from time to time to kiss the girl bird. It looked more like they were chewing on each others beaks but we'll say it was kissing. We headed to the Piedm
ont Winery which was founded in 1988 by Ivan and Lubi Juric for their annual "Taste of Croatia" lunch. The winery was lovley and huge. There were vines everywhere even over where we were sitting for lunch. There were also trellises covered with growing kiwi fruits.
ont Winery which was founded in 1988 by Ivan and Lubi Juric for their annual "Taste of Croatia" lunch. The winery was lovley and huge. There were vines everywhere even over where we were sitting for lunch. There were also trellises covered with growing kiwi fruits. Lunch was fantastic full of traditional Croatian fare and Lubi walked around talking to everyone holding her first grand child dressed in traditional Croatian dress made by th
e little baby's great grandmother. There were young Croatian dancers/singers who did a great job but I felt sorry for because it was really hot out of the shade and they had lot of layers of clothes on. We had a great time talking to the family sitting next to us about traveling around the world.
e little baby's great grandmother. There were young Croatian dancers/singers who did a great job but I felt sorry for because it was really hot out of the shade and they had lot of layers of clothes on. We had a great time talking to the family sitting next to us about traveling around the world.After lunch we
decided to check out some of the sights of Noojee. We went up to see the old trestle bridge which was part of the railway used by the logging industry in the first part of the 20th century. There were originally seven of these bridges but all of the others were destroyed by fire. We climbed up some slippery, uneven steps to the top, walked over and climbed down some slippery, uneven steps. Lovely.
decided to check out some of the sights of Noojee. We went up to see the old trestle bridge which was part of the railway used by the logging industry in the first part of the 20th century. There were originally seven of these bridges but all of the others were destroyed by fire. We climbed up some slippery, uneven steps to the top, walked over and climbed down some slippery, uneven steps. Lovely. We went off to see Toorongo Falls. There 
was a beautiful (if not a little hard for one out of shape girl) hike up thru the mountains where I could feel the temperature significantly drop as soon as we hiked into the woods. There were massive ferns and gums trees dripping with all kinds of unusual moss. We walked along side the river which fell over huge boulders all the way up to the first of the falls, the Amphitheatre Falls.
was a beautiful (if not a little hard for one out of shape girl) hike up thru the mountains where I could feel the temperature significantly drop as soon as we hiked into the woods. There were massive ferns and gums trees dripping with all kinds of unusual moss. We walked along side the river which fell over huge boulders all the way up to the first of the falls, the Amphitheatre Falls.We we
nt farther up into the mountains until we came to the Toorongo Falls. They were beautiful and the sun was shining making rainbows in the spray from the water. I kept nagging at Matt to smile naturally not the strained camera smile. He chose to strike a serious pose in front of the falls. Very dignified man he is.
nt farther up into the mountains until we came to the Toorongo Falls. They were beautiful and the sun was shining making rainbows in the spray from the water. I kept nagging at Matt to smile naturally not the strained camera smile. He chose to strike a serious pose in front of the falls. Very dignified man he is. We took the 45 minute drive up to the top of Mount Baw Baw. Winding, winding roads. As a child I loved to visit my Aunt Jenell and Uncle Ra-Ra in south Carolina but these visits always came with the trip to the top of Paris Mountain and more often than not me throwing up. I felt a little deja vu going up to the top of Mt Baw Baw. I would love to say that the trip was worth it but all that was at the top was a nearly abandoned ski lodge. Very popular with snow skiers Mt Baw Baw is strictly a place for the winter months.
On the way back to Melbourne we made a detour to the town of Jindivick to sto
p into Laurie Collins workshop. He makes art from "junk". He was leaving that afternoon to clean out a friends garage and find more materials to turn into art. He showed us around his workshop explaining how he made the various dogs, planes, and furniture pieces all out of thrown away materials. This was recycling at it's best. He was very friendly and enthusiastic. I really liked the balloon sculpture he was working on the day we were there.
p into Laurie Collins workshop. He makes art from "junk". He was leaving that afternoon to clean out a friends garage and find more materials to turn into art. He showed us around his workshop explaining how he made the various dogs, planes, and furniture pieces all out of thrown away materials. This was recycling at it's best. He was very friendly and enthusiastic. I really liked the balloon sculpture he was working on the day we were there.