Life Down Under (Part 23): Great Ocean Road, Warratina Lavender Farm, and Diwali in Melbourne!

- October 24-30, 2022, Monday to Sunday.

- I can't believe I nearly missed this. I really cannot believe myself. The Great Ocean Road is one of the pride of the state of Victoria; it is highly recommended tour by everyone. I guess it wasn't something I was interested in while looking for places to go in Melbourne because it is more natural than it is cultural (and I prefer the latter,) and the tour of Great Ocean Road can only be done with a private car or through a group tour. After everyone recommended that I do the tour, I decided to do it - and boy did I almost miss out! I booked a tour on the 25th with Sightseeing Tours Australia (click here) since it was the most practical way for me to see the Great Ocean Road.

- The Great Ocean Road is literally a great road by the ocean. Australian soldiers who returned after World War I worked on a long road that would make some suburbs in western Victoria easier to access. Apart from easier access, it was also seen as a potential tourist activity due to the unusual rock formations and beautiful coasts that the road would pass by.

Bells Beach, perfect for swimming and surfing - just not on the day we saw it.

I'm glad I wore something warmer for the day.

The great archway that officially marks the start of the Great Ocean Road.

At Lorne, you can see a very very small lighthouse at the back near the shore. That's the Split Point Lighthouse from 1891. I realize that the fog made everything look like Silent Hill.

Saw koalas at Kennett River.

There were colorful parrots too!

Don't forget to try the famous scallop pie at Apollo Bay!

The perfect lunch for a cold foggy day, honestly.

Entrance to Apollo Bay.

Another wild koala at Maits Rest Rainforest Walk.

Maits Rest Rainforest has a ton of local Australian plants, many of which, like the ferns at my back, go back millions of years!

I feel like I'm in a science book.

The hold of this fallen tree is taller than me. I'm 5'8 by the way.

- The day-long tour passes by several places, but its most picturesque spot is the Twelve Apostles limestone stacks. They were made naturally by erosion, and because of that some of the "apostles" have collapsed through the years as their bases were constantly hit by the raging waves of the sea. The Twelve Apostles is part of the more than 100-kilometer long "Shipwreck Coast." As beautiful as the coastline might look because of its dramatic unevenness and land/rock formations, this has also allowed many ships (more than 600!) to sink. Sometimes ships were damaged because it was hard to calculate how far away from the shore the ship is due to the jagged coastline, or sometimes ships sank due to the unpredictable winds and waters by the coast. 

I HATE THAT IT'S THIS FOGGY....but I also kind of like it? For the mysterious effect maybe????

It'd be much, much nicer on a sunny day.

The view lasted for maybe a minute since our tour group arrived. Afterwards, just a blanket of white.

Sad.

- Apart from the 12 Apostles, another iconic landmark is the Razorback. It is named for its long and narrow shape, which frankly, looks more like a bacon strip to me. The Razorback is also around the area of the Loch Ard Gorge. The gorge was named after the clipper ship, Loch Ard, that sank near the area.

"Tom and Eva." Named after the two survivors of the Loch Ard shipwreck.

Razorback.

With my giant rocky bacon.

Loch Ard Gorge, you can see "London Bridge" at the back. It used to be connected to the land but the natural walkway fell some decades back.

Loch Ard Gorge.

With the limestone cave.

- We arrived back in Melbourne around early evening, after a long day on the road. While there were some situations like the fog you see in the photos above, as well as dealing with some obnoxiously inconsiderate tourists who were in our tour group, the tour itself was amazing. Maybe I'll consider going back some day and hopefully there won't be a fog to cover my view. 

- Tying in with the theme of nature in Australia, I also got to visit a small lavender field during the weekend, called Warratina Lavender Farm. Just take the Lilydale train to Lilydale station (terminal station), and take bus 683 to Quayle Road / Warburton Highway stop, then walk along Quayle Road until you reach the farm. I took an Uber from the station to the farm, but had to take the bus back since the farm is quite remote and the bus is the most reliable public transport that can take you back to Lilydale Station. The farm is open from Wednesdays to Sundays on a regular week, and is closed totally from June to August, as well as some national holidays. It is generally free entrance, except during some special events (check their website for more information: click here).

- Opened in 1991, this small lavender field is perhaps the most accessible lavender field via public transport. While I understand that there are bigger and prettier lavender fields in Victoria as well as other parts of Australia, Warratina Lavender Farm is still worth a visit (especially if you can only rely on public transportation in Melbourne.)

Yes they are.

I love my "summer in Europe" look. Also, it was neither summer nor was I in Europe. HAHA.

Since only one row had flowers, I had to make do and just play around with the camera angles.

The smell as good as they look!

Unfortunately I won't be around to see all of them in bloom huhu.

- I was the only person the whole morning in Warratina and I couldn't be happier. No one to photobomb my photos, and just peace and quiet. I was also alone at the cafe. I guess part of why there wasn't anyone there was because it was a Friday, and it was raining that morning. I was also lucky because even though it wasn't lavender season (usually December and January), there was at least one row of lavender bushes that had flowers. This is what Warratina promises - you will see some lavender no matter what time of the year, except on the months when the farm is closed. I can only imagine how it would look when all the bushes are in bloom with violet flowers!

Farming tools.

There was a lemon tree in the farm.

Some roses too.

Lavender flowers up close.

A lavender harvester.

My chamomile tea and lavender scones with kookaberry jam and clotted cream.

You'll see this sign along Quayle Road.

- Finally, I ended the week by celebrating a colorful Diwali festival at Federation Square with Melbourne's Indian community. It was a big celebration full of performances and food. It made me miss the countless Diwali celebrations I have attended back in Manila that were just as grand and colorful!

Jai Lakshmi, Jai Ganesh!

Bhangra in the afternoon.

I will miss this view when I go back to Manila.

A saree-draping competiton.

Evening performance. This one is a group Bharatanatyam performance.

Quite scared of the little fireworks.

Melbourne is pink!

Of course I had to wear something Indian too.

Bollywood dancing.

These three made me feel very anxious. Their whole performance was just them dancing on long wiggly (but secure) poles.

And of course, another bhangra performance to end the night!

- As a cherry on top, I got to meet my good friend and former college classmate, Lauren, and her boyfriend Steven. It was nice to catch up after so many years!

Thanks for meeting me!!

- That week ended with Melbourne feeling like it was back in mid-winter July - with strong winds and drizzles. I guess it was the perfect time for me to skedaddle and see another part of Australia once more!

How to Party Like an Indian: My Back to Back Diwali Celebrations in Manila!!

- Oct. 14-15, 2017, Saturday to Sunday.

- During the "-ber months" people in the Philippines are excited to celebrate two things: Halloween and Christmas. For the Indian community, however, they look forward to another big celebration: Diwali. Diwali, or Deepavali, is the Indian festival of lights and is considered as the biggest festival in India. Depending on a person's religion or region of origin in India, the way Diwali is celebrated may vary. They most important thing, however, is lighting diyas or oil lamps, or having lights in general. This is to invite blessings to people's houses. Apart from that, people wear new clothes, eat Indian sweets, and exchange gifts (which includes colorful money envelopes with cash). Normally, Diwali is celebrated for 5 days, with the biggest celebration ("Bari Diwali" or "Big Diwali") celebrated on the third day. This year, Big Diwali falls on Oct. 19, Thursday. Each day of Diwali has a different name and a different purpose; I shall not elaborate on these since as I mentioned, the other 4 days may be called a different name or celebrated in a different manner depending on the religion or the place of origin in India of the person.

- The Indian community in the Philippines has been active in celebrating Diwali in both public and private spaces. Every year, I get to attend the big one that the Indian community does in SM Mall of Asia (more on that later,) but this year I got to attend two Diwali events during the weekend before the actual Diwali.

- The first Diwali event I went to was in Urdaneta Village and organized by Bharati Manila, one of the ladies' organizations of the Indian community. It was held in the village's function hall, and so the event had a cozy yet vibrant bazaar vibe. Food and souvenir stalls were set up by different Indians while occasionally, someone would sing or dance in front. DJ CJ Wasu of Sing India, one of the Indian community's most sought after musicians, was there not only to facilitate the sounds, but also to play the dhol, a large Indian drum. My highlight of the afternoon was meeting the new Indian ambassador for the first time. Ambassador Jaideep Mazumdar was there in his casual Indian kurta, so I had to make sure if was him before going up to him and introducing myself and the work that I do. (Yes, it is sort of part of my work to be connected to the embassy, being the Indian specialist that I am.)

Packed with people, but for some reason the venue was still cozy.

Happy Diwali to you too!!

Rangoli or a picture made from colored powder/grains.

My food for the afternoon: Indian bread, Indian butter chicken, and biryani.

A nicely-colored diya.

Indian ladies getting it on!!

A common kind of dance during festivities.

Indian children doing the gharba or the stick dance.

Wit His Excellency Jaideep Mazumdar, current ambassador of India to the Philippines.

Punjabis dancing the bhangra, with DJ Wasu playing the dhol at the back.

- My short Saturday afternoon was the perfect teaser to the grander Diwali event in MOA the day after. Most of the people in the Urdaneta event were also in MOA, so I was able to see some familiar faces when I got to Mall of Asia the next day. I was also happy when DJ CJ Wasu recognized me when I bumped into him - after all, I've been attending Indian events a lot in the past years, and I've seen him in all those events.

Arrived early; the Hare Krishna group of the Philippines were singing prayers to the gods.

With DJ CJ Wasu himself. He's an awesome musician.

Ganesh, the remover of obstacles.

Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth, one of the revered goddesses during Diwali; she blesses each home during Diwali.

My OOTD with the stage and the Hare Krishna group at the back. Of course I had to go all-out Indian.

- The grand event in SM Mall of Asia was organized by different organizations and people in the Indian community. They Indian community has been holding Diwali here for more than 10 years now. Indian food stalls, and sometimes even souvenir stalls, line the back part of Mall of Asia's Music Hall. I'm glad I came a bit early since I was not only able to get a seat near the front, but I was also able to have my dinner with much elbow space. Normally I'd arrive later, but it'd be difficult to get a seat by then and found it hard to eat since the food stalls are crowded and the seats felt cramped from too many people.

Indian food beyond the golden decor.

Indian ladies buying food.

One of the earliest Indian restaurants in the Philippines came to cater. By the way, all the food in the event was good!!

- The program started shortly after Ambassador Jaideep Mazumdar arrived and settled down. I was able to say hello to him a second time that weekend. After the ambassador gave his speech and the ceremonial lighting of the candles with the opening aarti (a kind of prayer ritual,) both modern and traditional performances mostly by various Indians from the community, some Filipinos. They also had a raffle in between the program. I eventually saw some friends from the UP Asian Center, my alma mater, and I sat with them and enjoyed the whole night.

Hello again ambassador.

This year's Diwali event.

Punjabi selfie!!

Lighting of candles and the Lakshmi aarti.

See all these people!!

Ceremonial dance by the children of the community.

Lakshmi.

Ambassador's opening speech.

The four hosts.

Rajini, a Bharatanatyam dancer and teacher.

- The latter part of the program had short interviews with the winners of the Miss Punjabi Manila, and performances by Ms. Ritu Wasu (CJ Wasu's wife,) and performers from India. The finale, of course, was none other than the Lions of Manila Bhangra Group, one of the favorite performers by the Indian community of Metro Manila. Bhangra is a kind of folk dance from the Indian northwestern state of Punjab. It is one of the Indian folk dances that really equates to merry-making and partying. After the bhangra group did their awesome dance, many Indian audience members took over the dance floor (some of them drunk) and danced the night away. But, fear not, the event itself is tame; it's only after the finale where things get a bit wild.

Ms. Ritu Wasu.

The two winners of the Ms. Punjabi pageant (in the middle.)

With friends from the UP Asian Center.

Guest performers from India and CJ Wasu with his dhol.

The event organizer and some VIPs dancing to Bollywood songs.

LIONS. OF. MANILAAAAAAAAAAAA.

You can't go wrong with bhangra in a party.

Audience members taking over the dance floor. (See the booze?)

- I said my goodbyes to my friends after the event and went home. I may not be Indian but I celebrate Diwali every year because of the festival's welcoming and generous vibe. I am very happy that the Indian community has been open to Filipinos celebrating Diwali with them, since allowing the Filipinos to peek into the Indians' culture and society opens doors to cultural appreciation, understanding, and a tighter friendship. By the way, if you missed this year's Diwali event, I hope you won't miss next year's!!