Roadtrip - the Victorian coast

 Victorian coast 

Photos by my 8 year old son, when we went to Apollo Bay stopping a few places along the Great Ocean Rd, this is at the Round the Twist lighthouse. We have been doing a few daytrips most recently which I always enjoy and the kids like as long as there is plenty of food and fun places to visit. I took pics too with my own camera just not at the lighthouse - I was able to set up my Eye-fi card which is cool as I can have my photos on the tablet and the notebook. Its meant to share on FB but doesn't. I found it shares my photos taken on the tablet (and even uploads these to the notebook which I find amusing) but not the ones taken with my camera. Not sure how that works!

Just been thinking a lot( like others have) about the fires.

What was I doing last Saturday? (Feels like so long ago)
Hubby had promised to take the kids to see their cousins at his biological mother's house.
I couldn't take J in that heat. So he and I stayed home in the comfort of our air conditoned house as the mercury reached something crazy like 47.1 degrees.
It was comfortable (not to mention quiet). I noticed it was very windy also.
It wasn't until about 6,7,8 in the evening that I started to feel sticky from the heat.

Meanwhile the big kids and hubby were at his bio mum's. They were comforatble there. They then went to the beach nearby where it rained a little. When they came back the Hume Highway was closed off.

I heard about the fires but didn't realise their enormity til the next day and even now almost a week later I still can't completely comprehend this horrible tragedy.
Just to think people were struggling to survive, screaming as they burnt alive, witnessing loved ones do same or losing their homes. Its a horror scenario.

It makes me realise what's really important.

The closest fires to us would have been St Andrews just south of King Lake. Its really not that far.
Marysville is gone. We stayed in a beautifully built cottage in heavily wooded area in October 2007. That is now gone. Ash. We ate at their restauraunts. Enjoyed the tourist town which is now burnt to nothing. We wonder about the people we met there. Bruno's art gallery.
Our good friend used to live in Flowerdale. His uncle and aunty lost their home. We saw them on tv with some Aussie cricketers.

Our local doctor died in the inferno. He was trying to save his animals in Broadford.
I knew him very well. Though I only went to see him once for myself and once for my son, my husband often went there (mainly to get a sickness cert for work). And of course we saw him often outside the clinic. He was a friendly man who just loved his animals.

I know people in Beechworth. I have no idea how they are. I pray that they are safe.

Its just too close to home....
I can smell and see smoke now and hope that its nothing to worry about.