Day 15

Victoria is so damned familiar, it's a bit of a dud (at least for me). It feels like I've been in some exotic land and returned to the mundane. Sigh. Steve posed for the camera in front of the first body of fresh water we'd seen for 4000km, the Murray River.

Why haven't they drunk all the water?

The soil became red and rocky and we joined the traffic (yes, traffic. Victoria has traffic, even in the country) for the drone down to Melbourne. There wasn't much to see that was unfamiliar.

The dirt harvest should be a good one this year.

We saw a cider farm which had a beautifully made stone house and cider barn and turned in, whereupon a sort of winery etiquette took over. Have you noticed that if you turn into a winery just-to-have-a-look-it-can't-do-any-harm and you turn out to be the only people there, it is impossible to get away without buying something? There's something in the built-in etiquette gland that forces you to buy stuff you'd never pick up at the supermarket. Of course, there are people who have a congenitally withered etiquette gland who can walk out of this situation with their wallets intact. They can not be considered human. They're also usually rich.

So we made it back, sort of anti-climactically. Most people looked at me strangely when I said we were planning to drive to Perth and back in two weeks. I wish we'd taken a lot longer. Anywhere is interesting, if you slow down enough.