@$$#%

Expletive expletive expletive. I tried to buy this MP3 player - Creative Muvo, as I have discussed in earlier posts is pretty much all you need as far as these things are concerned. Well, all I need anyway. And some no-talent-ass-clown pips me at the post. I mean really. It's just so rude. I was watching the whole thing unfold in front of me, quite sure I had it sorted.

Some people may suggest getting the Ebay toolbar. Perhaps, but it wouldn't have helped me in this situation...

the @$$#% person somehow managed to put in a bid EXACTLY $1 over my maximum bid when the time left reads: less than 1 minutes.

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Photos in Order of Appearance (click to enlarge):

1. The Apollo Bay Clubhouse, 9th green. The first tee is around the corner
2. The spectacular 3rd hole, overlooking the ocean
3. The view from the 6th tee if you look behind you!
4. The 8th tee
5. The 9th tee with horses riding off into the sunset!

Witnessing the beauty of Apollo Bay Golf Course was a pretty amazing experience. I tried to compare it to another golf course but all I could come up with was Tiger Woods 2o03 on Playstation. It looks a bit like Torrey Pines with a bit of Pebble Beach thrown in. For those of you who don't know, Apollo Bay is in South Western Victoria, Australia (see map)















Firstly, the green fees for Apollo Bay Golf Course are reasonable. $20 for 18 holes - or $12 for 9 holes.

Secondly, the views are incredible. It is hard to concentrate on anything else. Fortunately, I was caddying so I didn't have to actually make the shots. I gave a couple of suggestions about club selection and I clicked for each shot.

My partner hit some truly beautiful shots and a number of pars. The dudes (locals) on the first tee were impressed by the seemingly effortless '3' on the first hole.

The conditions on the first day were gusty - a course like this gets a lot of wind, especially on the exposed seaside parts and any part of the course without a tree. The greens, well that was a different thing altogether. I saw balls skid and fly across greens like a dog on a tiled floor. There was no way this was going to be easy.

And... there are some moments where it is difficult to be a caddy. Like when my partner shot the ball into the trees and rather than taking a deep breath, walking around and doing a setup, he whacked the ball once.

I clicked.

And another.

I clicked, my mouth falling open but saying nothing.

Another whack and the ball was out. Finally.

I clicked again.

He looked at me and said "did you get all that?"

I nodded. And said nothing. Sometimes the best thing you can do as a caddy is say nothing. That's what I think anyway. I wouldn't want someone telling me what I already know I did wrong. We certainly had a big laugh about it at the hotel that night.

One of the shots landed in the ocean, so the next Srixon came out.

Another Srixon was lost in what looked like an old fishing hut from "I Know What You Did Last Summer". Either way, it was out of bounds and it would not have been the best idea to look for it, considering the high grass and rusty things lying around. Plus, I don't like snakes. I don't even care if they're actually there or not, it's just the thought of one lying in wait at the bottom of long grass...waiting for you to step on them.

There were some more great shots, and then disaster struck on the 2nd hole.

My partner sliced (?) - the one that goes to the left, anyway - the ball off the tee on the second hole into a shrubbery of wrong.

I thought that the last Srixon had left the building.

After much rummaging around and bending down to look at anything that appeared white, I suddenly heard my partner call out "here it is!"

I was relieved. The last Srixon saved. I looked up to see what looked like a frighteningly bad shot. It was like a chopping motion down into the ground and the club didn't seem to go anywhere at all. I went from relieved to horrified. But suddenly, the ball trickled out of the underbrush, down the massive hill and onto the fairway again. Go figure. I have a lot to learn about golf. These 3 days of golf were so much fun and very relaxing. The sea air is very good for the health.

Anyway, these are the Srixon balls (around $15)


















They certainly performed well on the 3 consecutive days of golf. They are designed for high wind conditions and they certainly did what they were supposed to do.

Technorati Tags: Golf course 18 holes Apollo Bay Srixon

I fell in love with the Hyundai Getz we used to get to Apollo Bay. Rented from Budget Rent-A-Car in Geelong, the total cost for 4 days (more like 5, actually!) hire was $290. Organising the rental was no problem, the people were courteous and the car was in good shape. The only surprise occurred when I arrived at the pick-up point and found out the car was an automatic. As a lifelong manual driver, I found this unsettling. But, it turned out to be a blessing in disguise - it was easier to drive and considering the number of corners I had to navigate, actually made the drive more enjoyable. By the end of driving from Geelong to Apollo Bay through Winchelsea and Skenes Creek way, I felt exhilarated and now I want to drive more. We came back from Apollo Bay through Marengo, Gellibrand and Colac. Now dubbed "The Third Way", it is, in my opinion, the quickest, easiest and most pleasant drive from Apollo Bay to Geelong.

If you are ever in the area, make sure you stop off at the Winchelsea Roadhouse. The people are very friendly and they sell these great 7-packs of vitamins (Nature's Way Energy Multi) that kept us going throughout the journey and the rest of the holiday.

Here is the Winchelsea Roadhouse in all its glory:

If you ever go there, say hi to the very funny lady who works there. She is quite a character!

Technorati Tags: Car Rental Budget Rent A Holidays, Apollo Bay Gellibrand Holiday, Geelong, Winchelsea Roadhouse

I have to add this to my previous V/Line post - the fares are VERY reasonable. It cost me $6.10 to travel from Melbourne to Geelong. When I think about it, that's actually cheaper than an all day Zone 1&2 metropolitan ticket. The fare I managed to buy was for off-peak travel. The journey started on Thursday 22 March at 2pm. If you happen to get a peak ticket, it will still only cost you $8.60, which won't break the bank.

Technorati Tags: V/Line VLine Spencer St Southern Cross Australia,

I would like to say I enjoyed the trip from Melbourne to Geelong travelling with V/Line. But...(and there was always going to be a "but") the trains don't seem as quaint and old-worldly as they used to. I'll start with Spencer Street Station, where the Journey began. Actually, it's called "Southern Cross" Station now which I think is bollocks. What the hell does that mean, for a start? Southern Cross? The station is located at Spencer Street. Spencer Street made sense. Now a whole bunch of tourists from overseas are lost in space trying to work out where Southern Cross station is supposed to be.

Here is a picture of the "new and improved" Southern Cross station:













I call it "The Birdcage". And I think that's being nice to it. It looks like a great big dirty chicken coop. I don't know whose bright idea it was to change the station into a large barn but I liked it better before.

The glossy photos of Southern Cross don't actually show the crapness of the design. I suppose it's trying to be "modern". You know what? It's a nightmare. You can't find anything. The staff are unfriendly. The V/Line ticket counter is hidden underneath a secret passageway that requires a map and lots of legwork to find. I can't stand it.

The old Spencer Street station was cute. And daggy. That's what's wrong with Australia. It's daggy but it doesn't want to admit it. So it tries to be modern and cutting edge and ends up looking even more dorky. Come on Australia, embrace your inner dag. It's okay.

Here it is (*sigh*) The old Spencer Street. Complete with kiosks and seating areas for people to congregate and greet or farewell loved ones.













But now, to the actual journey itself. My partner and I were crammed into this tiny carriage (only a 3 carriage train!) with a whole bunch of other travellers. Why there were so many, I will never know. The Swimming perhaps? The Airshow? Don't know. All I know is I don't want to go through that again. We were seated next to an obnoxious lady who actually picked a fight with us because we had a lot of luggage. Then she put her feet on our bags, then insulted us. We were flabbergasted. And we had to ignore the scheming harpy for 1 whole hour. That is not easy when someone is goading you and making nasty comments every 10 minutes. What a cow. Actually scratch that. I like cows. What a horrible banshee of a woman. I think she came from South Geelong and I hope to never run into her again.

So apart from the nasty woman and the crowded carriages and another weird lady eating a sandwich very loudly in front of us, the trip was forgettable.

I remember a time about 18 months ago where we got a V/Line train from Geelong to Melbourne. We found a quaint carriage with a hallway and sliding doors to these little booths, like in those old movies. It looked a little like this one:














The window had little curtains and the snack car was still active. I miss the snack car ladies and the conductors with the whistle. Perhaps those days are over. Are we moving forward? No. We're regressing and devolving (is that a word?). V/Line used to be charming. I hope one day they will be again.

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